Solid middle-of-the-road school district?

[NewHere2015]

We're new homeowners in Valley Stream 24 and it is perfect for us. At first I was hesitant to buy here b/c the boards are always so negative about this town...but for us, it works out great. The schools are good (kids are in elem and high school), teachers are attentive to our needs and requests, principals know everyone by name and match kids to parents.

Our town is diverse which is great b/c we came from the city where you could see every nationality in one day. Taxes are reasonable and you're close to everything.

Something to consider since I haven't seen it thrown out there.

[I_Love_LI_but]

Originally Posted by Kellygirl24

This has nothing to do with my personal search for a home, but out of curiosity, I looked in Hempstead (the zip code/school district)...are they kidding me with their taxes???? $20k a year on regular looking house (and I'm not talking the ones in that Cathedral Gardens section)...who would buy that??!

I don't know who would buy that.

The problem is Hempstead Village has its own police department. All the police departments have "parity" on salary and benefits with each other. So in Hempstead Village, it's a lot smaller group of people than people living within a NCPD precinct who have to pay the police salaries and benefits. The Village taxes are the killer here. Look at this I found on one of the listings:

The Nassau, school, etc, taxes are $11,865. If the house wasn't in a village, that is all the homeowner would pay per year. The Village taxes (which include police costs) are $9,533. Total taxes are $21,398. I live in a Village. The taxes are less than $2,000 for me and we get a lot of amenities for that (see Village of Valley Stream*). (No village police, we have NCPD thank God.)

Also, the school portion of the taxes in Hempstead are bound to go up because they have a lot of "unaccompanied minors" moving in and you've probably seen the publicity on that and how they are FORCING Hempstead to make accommodations for them immediately if not sooner!

Another Village with big problems because of having a police force is Amityville. Hempstead may end up like them. The new budget in Amityville is $15.4 million. The portion of that which goes to their small police force is $7.4 million.

While raising concerns about police costs, Amityville trustees approve $15.4 million village budget - Newsday

However, budget officer Nick LaLota's announcement at Monday night's village board meeting of a 1.16 percent property tax levy increase for next year was offset by a warning of an estimated $2 million in retirement payments he said the village could face in coming years.

...

Officers typically receive lump-sum payments for unused sick and vacation time at retirement.

So they get the mega-payouts at retirement just like NCPD does.

Amityville Village police officers are the highest paid in NY.

Report shows NY's highest paid municipal workers - New York News

The report from the Empire Center for Public Policy shows the highest average municipal salaries led by the villages of Sands Point, averaging $91,000 for general employees, and Amityville at nearly $176,000 for police.

Sands Point can afford high pay for municipal workers. But Amityville Village?

Survey lists top public salaries - Times Union

Topping the list is the Amityville police department in Suffolk County, where the average salary of 23 officers was $175,818.

So, 23 police officers make up 48% of the budget of Amityville Village.

Hempstead Village taxes are not far behind. And with the "unaccompanied minor" situation, the school taxes will soar.