How is West Islip? (Babylon, Union: real estate, renters, insurance)

[mspl24]

We are renting in the Five Towns and are looking to buy a home in Suffolk. My husband has started looking near West Islip? Any info on that area, schools, crime, etc. We have 3 children under the age of 8- so we want the schools to be good as well as the community. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance

[KellyFG]

West Islip is sometimes dubbed "white islip" or "WASP Islip". Its a nice area though, south of montauk hwy is $$$$. Its close to great beaches & the southern state parkway. Schools have a good reputation.

[GypsySoul22]

West Islip is VERY nice. We go to the park there quite often *you can bring your dog* or just go walking. Brightwaters is another nice place near by. They have a good library and it's scenic there.

[Time2Moov]

Originally Posted by mspl24

We are renting in the Five Towns and are looking to buy a home in Suffolk. My husband has started looking near West Islip? Any info on that area, schools, crime, etc. We have 3 children under the age of 8- so we want the schools to be good as well as the community. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance

I personally don't care for the south shore much, but these links may help you out....

Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed
Schooldigger.com -- Search and compare elementary, middle, and high schools.
West Islip Neighborhood Profile on Yahoo! Real Estate - Demographics, Cost of Living & more!
Crime
http://bjsdata.ojp.usdoj.gov/dataonl...risbyJuris.cfm

[OvertaxedOnLI]

A relative of mine lives in West Islip, so I can speak from experience.

The school district is much better than the ones in any of the surrounding towns (like Babylon, West Babylon, Deer Park, Bay Shore). But because of that, your taxes will be higher than in said surrounding towns.

Brightwaters is a special case. It's a small village sitting between West Islip and Bay Shore. There is an beautiful lake surrounded by lovely homes with great charm and character, located at the intersection of Montauk Hwy (Rte 27A) and Windsor Avenue.

Now here is the "special case". Because Brightwaters itself is so small, it does not have its own school district. Thus, a house in Brightwaters (geographically) is going to be in either the West Islip or the Bay Shore school district. (This is often also true for houses that are geographically in either West Bay Shore or Bay Shore; a house can have a Bay Shore street/post office address but be in the West Islip school district.) The property taxes, and to some extent the price of the house itself, will reflect what school district it is in. It's very common for MLS listings under Bay Shore or Brightwaters to specify "West Islip schools!" because that is definitely a selling point.

Nothing against the Bay Shore school district per se, but the demographics of West Islip and Bay Shore, and its schools, are quite different.

There are affordable houses in the north section of West Islip (bordering Deer Park) that are still in the W.I. school district, but there you also need to be careful because there are a few streets up that way which are technically in Brentwood (whose schools are not good at all, though I'm not sure if that area of WI is in that district).

[water2moon]

I live in Brightwaters. My kids are in Bay Shore schools and I work in Bay Shore Schools as a teacher's Aide. I am very close to west islip and do my grocery shopping at the Stop N Shop on Union in West Islip. West islip is nice but personally I feel there is no diversity and I hear that the schools are not great academically. I have friends who complain that in WI kindergarten is only a half day and they feel the schools feel sports are more important than academics. Bay Shore schools are better academically but the problem with Bay Shore is they bring kids in from shelters and the feel of the area is changing. Being close to Gardiner Park and Robert Moses is great and it's the only thing I'll miss. We're moving to Orange county this Summer. I would drive out here and see what you think.

[Joe L]

West Islip is great my sister lives there.
She came from Hicksville, her girls like the school. To add they DON't come home speaking "gangsa" or Spanish or get dry humped in the stairways by the 10 year old Spanish boys.
School taxes are low since the school doesnt have 20 ESL teachers...dont need them.

People wanting to bring diversity to Long Island can SHOVE IT!
Move to Ridgewood Queens (where I am originally from) JHS 91 and 93 are REAL nice and diverse like the Bronx Zoo these days.
I hear Kingston is just lovely, so lovely you need a million dollar emergency room insurance on your kids

-J

[Joe L]

Originally Posted by water2moon

West islip is nice but personally I feel there is no diversity and I hear that the schools are not great academically

Not true, Why say that ?
Is it because West Islip teachers don’t spend tax $$ showing 12 year olds how to put condoms on bananas?
Diversity stinks, I have seen what it has done to countys like Los Angeles and Queens NO THANKS !!!
Now if want your kids in overfilled monkey cage with Apes or 3rd world garbage I hear Kingston is just lovely. As a matter of fact so lovely you need a million dollar emergency room insurance on your kids

-J

[OvertaxedOnLI]

Originally Posted by water2moon

West islip is nice but personally I feel there is no diversity and I hear that the schools are not great academically. I have friends who complain that in WI kindergarten is only a half day and they feel the schools feel sports are more important than academics.

My relative's son graduated in 2000 or 2001 (not positive which) through West Islip schools. It is true that the Middle and High Schools do offer a lot of sports, and there are also lots of community sports for the younger kids or those who choose not to go for the JV or Varsity teams at the school.

Academically I believe it can be as good and in some cases better than some other districts. Notice I did not say GREAT. "Great" academically would be a district like Three Village, or a private school like Saint Anthony's (although St. Anthony's is even more sports-minded than West Islip or probably any other public school in Suffolk County: They even have two levels of JV and Varsity teams: the "A" and the "B" teams! And they are notorious for cherry-picking the best athletes from public schools by offering them scholarships.

Your kids will get a decent education in West Islip but in large part it will be "you get out what you put into it". There are definitely better districts but there are as many or more that are worse.

I respectfully disagree with JoeL's comment that the school taxes are low. They are in fact on the high side. In fact if you compare the school taxes in WI to those in a district like Three Village, then compare the quality of education those districts provide, then water2moon is very correct: You will get less somewhat less academically for your dollar in West Islip (Three Village taxes are still higher, and so are most home prices overall). Neither district is cheap, taxwise.

Re: diversity, there are those to whom diversity is a Plus, and those to whom it's a big Minus. Personally I much prefer to live in a homogenous, rather than a diverse, community/district .... but to each their own.

[Joe L]

Originally Posted by OvertaxedOnLI

there are those to whom diversity is a Plus, and those to whom it's a big Minus

Agreed, but these days you must read between the lines.
Most these people fleeing the city want "diversity" so their kids don’t have to assimilate. They start trouble in the schools, next thing you know these RENTERS are suing schools, demanding ESL teachers and special classrooms to be paid for with my tax $$.
Look what happened in Flushing with the Aisens and Manhasset with the Mid Eastern Jews from North Shore LIJ Hospital and Great Neck.
They took over the Town of Nort Hempsted and are forcing all kinds of crap like banning Santa, rezoning for 1 million+ Sq ft Synagogue in Manhasset you could build a 2 space shuttle's in.

-J