Bucks or Lehigh County? (Allentown, Bethlehem: house, transfer, best school)

[mom2gurls]

Hello-

We may be getting corporate transfers to Bethlehem from the NYC area. Which is great because we will get rid of the commute that we currently make now.

But we are looking at blue ribbon schools and it seems like bucks county is the way to go. Looks like the cost of living there is just about the same as bergen/westchester..but at least we will be close to our jobs and enjoy a small commute and perhaps a less stressful lifestyle.

Here is the thing...we have found some great blue ribbon schools in the bethlehem area..but people seem to "love bucks county schools (central bucks?).

Also just to be safe...we would like to live within a "decent" driving distance to philly or princeton..(just in case anyone of us lost our jobs)--at least there is a major metro area near us).

What towns or counties would you reccommend? We are looking at doylestown, warrington, and upper wales...seems like that puts us smack dab within 35 miles of bethlehem/princeton and philly.

Besides it being expensive....what are your thoughts..good or bad on counties..lehigh valley counties, berks counties or bucks. We also like to living within 10 minute drive to major shopping..not to where it takes us 20 minutes to get anywhere)--

Any info good or bad would help!

[keri berghaier]

Hi there,

Bucks schools to stand out as very good schools with very high graduation and college attendance numbers.

Other areas to consider are Silverdale, Sellersville, Telford, Hilltown and a bunch of others. Email me back if you want any other information.

Sincerely,



kberghaier@comcast.net

[graysmom8]

I live (and teach) in the Lehigh Valley. Two very good school districts in nice areas are the East Penn School District (Emmaus, PA) and Parkland School District (suburban Allentown). Both districts have lots to offer and plenty of new housing going up everywhere. Shopping and restaurants are close by and Bethlehem is close to both districts (Interstate 78 is also very close to both and would put you in central NJ quite quickly).

GraysMom

[BeenAroundTheBlock]

My stepchildren attend Central Bucks schools, they are very good. My children attended Hatboro-Horsham school district schools and they are all blue ribbon. Horsham is in Montgomery County and borders Warrington, so it is in the same proximity.

You might also want to consider the Newtown (Bucks County) areas as well. All of Bucks County is pricey but you do get what you pay for. I would stay away from lower Bucks County communities however.

[bostongirl]

Hi,

We are also looking to relocate to Bucks County possibly. We liked Doylestown and Newtown...I heard the schools were also decent. I also heard that the Parkland School District was good. However, we didn't want to be way out ...

I guess is Doylestown considered Central Bucks or Lower Bucks? and I did hear good things about Central Bucks School district.

If anyone has anything to add..please do

need help!!

same for me..we want to be 10 mintues from shopping not 20

[jhd8]

have you tried looking at the allentown emmaus area? my cousins grew up there and it is a great area in terms of schools and safetey. I believe it has gotten very expensive lateley...
I spent my childhood in bucks county. It is a nice area with a lot of older people. Doylestown and those areas are full of antiques and it is a pretty peaceful area. There is shopping within 10 minutes permitted you are not 10 minutres into the woods:P hope it helps
the schools are good and like i said as long as you find a property that isnt way out youll be fine

[toobusytoday]

Southern Lehigh is a very good School district just Southwest of Bethlehem. The middle school is a Blue ribbon school but I'm not sure of the High School or elementary schools. It's a small district with about 3,000 students in grades K-12. Three elementary schools, one middle school and one high school. Olympus just moved their headquarters to Center Valley and there is a huge new outdoor living mall with some upscale stores. http://www.thepromenadeshopsatsauconvalley.com/ Very easy access to main highways. Unfortunately, it also has the highest avg. house price in the Lehigh valley. The older shopping mall - The Lehigh Valley mall http://www.lehighvalleymall.com/ is in Whitehall, just north of Allentown and is being renovated and will have all the bell and whistle stores that our newcomers have been missing. Frankly, I would rather drive outside the area for shopping and have the Lehigh Valley stay more rural. but, that's just me.

East Penn (Emmaus) has a huge high school and is bulging at the seams. They are having a hard time building schools fast enough for their growing population. Parkland has a beautiful High School. I've been there for district choir performances and they have a wonderful auditorium. Pretty area too.

When we were looking at schools we considered Bucks county because of the schools but discovered that Lehigh county had the advantage of just as good schools, less traffic and more bang for your buck housing wise. Saucon Valley school district is also very nice, this is right next to Southern Lehigh even closer to Bethlehem but not a city school district.

[mrgibson]

Did you ever get a response to this and where did you end up living as I am moving from Utah to the East and hvae decided on PA vs NJ or NY and have been looking in Bucks, Montgomery, Lehigh and Northampton Counties....what is the best Junior High and High School in the Area as I have a 13 year old son who loves sports and I want him in the best school. I also have a daughter who just graduated HS and needs to go to a good college and or beauty college.

Let me know if you have any input as to the area to live...specific as possible and I am not familiar with townships and burroughs.... please email me if you also have a web site that will show me all the stats on all the different schools in the different counties. I am looking for the Best Junior High and High School...10 minutes to shopping...close to 78...$400K home price range.

Any suggestions on a township, burrough, city, county, school, even more specifc...a great neigborhood with kids, close to the best school?

Email me at mikesmisc.com@comcast.net and thanks.

[cremebrulee]

Originally Posted by mom2gurls

Hello-

We may be getting corporate transfers to Bethlehem from the NYC area. Which is great because we will get rid of the commute that we currently make now.

But we are looking at blue ribbon schools and it seems like bucks county is the way to go. Looks like the cost of living there is just about the same as bergen/westchester..but at least we will be close to our jobs and enjoy a small commute and perhaps a less stressful lifestyle.

Here is the thing...we have found some great blue ribbon schools in the bethlehem area..but people seem to "love bucks county schools (central bucks?).

Also just to be safe...we would like to live within a "decent" driving distance to philly or princeton..(just in case anyone of us lost our jobs)--at least there is a major metro area near us).

What towns or counties would you reccommend? We are looking at doylestown, warrington, and upper wales...seems like that puts us smack dab within 35 miles of bethlehem/princeton and philly.

Besides it being expensive....what are your thoughts..good or bad on counties..lehigh valley counties, berks counties or bucks. We also like to living within 10 minute drive to major shopping..not to where it takes us 20 minutes to get anywhere)--

Any info good or bad would help!

Sent you an email, she's a great agent...and a good friend (wink)

Creme

[toobusytoday]

The best?? Did you know that the CEO's of the top fortune five hundred schools mostly attended State Colleges? For some kids a small school fits them just fine. Others are comfortable in big schools. If you want to truely move from the rat race, then put that mindset of "best" out of your mind.

This site will give you the opportunity to compare the school districts or schools: Schools, High School, Public Schools, School District, Public High Schools - SchoolMatters , but frankly, there is no best, it's what fits your child.