Anyone from Dix Hills? I have few Q's. (New York, Huntington: HOA, condo)

[tailgunner_ed]

I am considering Dix Hills in addition to Syosset and Woodbury as part of our "better living" move from city, mainly for better environment but primarily for schools.

Houses seem to be reasonably priced, very comparable to Woodbury and Syosset, but with much larger lots in much greener setting.

1) Is it difficult to maintain a 1 acre lot with a house that's only 2000sqft? How much is your landscaping cost?

2) Seems like there is no sewer, how often do you have to get your tank pumped/serviced? We never lived in non-sewer property.

3) Wife claims it's too "secluded" since she is stay-at-home mom. Does it feel that too remote, it looks like a safe neighborhood on paper.
I don't see a lot of stores/supermarket nearby.

4) How are the elementary and middle schools in comparison to places like Herricks, Syosset, Roslyn, etc? I see that high schools are pretty good, ranked 15th in Long Island by total SAT scores.

5) Is traffic horrible? I checked the traffic, it seems like add'l commute between somewhere like Syosset and Dix Hills is only about 10 minutes on a normal day and 20 on bad/rainy day, because majority of the traffic looks to be up to exit 44 during rush hour anyway. I wonder if the house prices are the way they are because of the commute?

Any other comments you'd like to add, would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

[gx89]

I do not live in Dix Hills but looked there extensively and am very familiar with the area. I assume you are referring to HHH I am in contract in the western portion of the district.

Dix Hills is very wooded most likely your acre is half woods. Budget 2200k a year.

Septic or cesspool is no issue once every few years for a couple of hundred bucks.

It is secluded that’s part of the appeal to many. There is not much shopping in Dix Hills you are close enough to Commack, jericho turnpike and the lie and northern state. It is completely safe. If your in western parts 110 is close enough as is the plainview shoprite that is 1/4 mile from Suffolk border.

Your buying in a top LI district in Dix Hills. Non issue are some schools rated better yes.

I used to drive from Plainview(next to syosset) to Vanderbilt rd area of Dix Hills took me 14 min. 22 if it was jammed on the highway. Houses are cheaper because it’s further from the city. Taxes are lower once again I assume you are referring to HHH due to the comercial base in and around 110 in melville.

Dix Hills is a beautiful neighborhood with a top school district. Syosset and Woodbury are closer to the city and pricier. You really can’t go wrong. Syosset is becoming very Asian I believe it’s about 40% now. HHH SD is more diverse about 60% white 10% black 10% Hispanic 14% Asian etc.

[WH59]

The houses in the Strathmore development, south of the LIE all have sewers. The lots are just under an acre about .85 or .90 of an acre it is called a builders acre. This is a nice neighborhood and has an HOA since they have a pool and tennis club for residents. I lived there and hated to move.

[jiggs1219]

We are moving to Dix Hills from Forest Hills Queens and I agree, Dix Hills would feel secluded. I think that was the point though, to feel exclusive and not worry about the commercial side. We will be moving this coming weekend and its going to be a big change but we love the neighborhood and I am sure it will take us time to adjust. I am south of LIE, near the Ostego park and also have a ceptic tank. From my research it did not make it a deal breaker, you can get it pumped every couple of years or so. Previous owners of my house pumped it a year ago so lets see what happens. Mine is a half acre land which has a slope, I am paying a lot for landscaping $65 each week compared to my bro in law who is paying $45 in Plainview. I am getting a lot more services than him and I have a lot more yard so maybe its not a good comparision. We looked in plainview and syosset for the past 3 to 4 years and we just did not want splits and anything other than that, we either got outbid or we just didnt think it was worth the asking price. Syosset especially was nuts, there were so many people during the open house that it just turned us off. Plainview was more affordable but one way or another, it just didnt work out for us. Either the deal fell through because the seller was being dificult or we just got outbid. I am working remotely from the house for now and my wife works in Garden City, if we had to commute to city then I know it will be a long commute from deer park or driving to Hicksville and taking it from there. The one main thing which I loved is that the half hollow school district is very diverse which is what we loved and we hear its excellent so that sealed the deal for us. We have a half acre land, a bigger house (2900 square foot) and a swimming pool for what it would cost for a 1800 to 2k square foot split in Plainview. Syosset, I wouldnt even bother unless you want to compete with cash buyers or want to spend a lot more. My taxes are also $16k currently, I am sure in plainview for a similar house it would be $19k-$21k. I am right near Commack so any time I need to go to the store or anywhere else, its a quick 5 to 8 min drive away. The lowes in Commack is excellent and so are other places there. You can PM for more details.

[tailgunner_ed]

Thank you very much for the replies, they are very insightful.

Honestly I always thought ceptic tanks were trouble and did not think any neighborhoods still had them in this day and age anywhere close to New York city. I expected it needed constant service and I assumed releasing of fluids and other particles to the soil would create damp and odor in nearby area. Also aren't they sensitive to cleaning materials like bleach etc? How do you know when it's time to empty it?

gx89, yes, HHH school district mainly.

I checked the stats on city-data, it's slight more diverse. City-Data is showing 71% White and 15% Asian, 6% Hispanic, 5% Black, compared to Syosset is 66% White, 26% Asian, 5% Hispanic with almost no Black. I couldn't find historical data on this to see how much changed because these stats don't always reflect the diversity in the school which is more important than just habitants of the area since the stats count older generations with no kids in school and lower percentage in general population might still have higher percentage in schools.

For shopping, you are right, once driving down Deer Park or up north there are few options, just not your corner 24hr pharmacy nearby that we got used to here.

WH59, I did see the area, yes it's great, but prices are above our budget. There are two pockets in the area with Sewer service, I'll use that map to check for other properties, just south of LIE, although I prefer to stay on the north side.
I also found another community 22 Sabrina Ct, but I don't see it in Long Island index, even though listing mentions Sewer: Y.

jiggs1219, thank you very much, and congratulations. Wish you many happy years in your new home.
This is very helpful.
I love Forest Hills, we considered moving there before deciding to stay put in LIC/Astoria/Woodside/Sunnyside area. It's funny you should mention, one of the open houses in Syosset that we went just 3 weeks ago, we had to wait outside by the door until the horde of people were done walking through property. Both me and Realtor was thinking if someone arranged a bus tour to the place, it was that packed. The place wasn't even special, just slightly below market, split with a lot of work that needed to be done.

We are past the TLC stage, we just want a livable move-in condition even if it's not brand new, and if necessary we can make few changes here and there over time. There are some truly beautiful properties in Dix Hills and after seeing those with beautiful gardens, with or without a pool, it's hard to find something that will satisfy us in Syosset.

If anyone has any suggestions or pointers, especially on some pitfalls that I don't happen to notice, or certain areas prone to flooding or road closures in the winter, please share. My only worry is that during heavy snowfall, we might get stuck. Is this a valid concern?

Also we never really lived in Long Island Mineola, and that area was no different than Queens, so maybe there are things we are not considering when it comes to living in the wilderness of L.I.

[chetstash]

Dix Hills here. We spend about $160 a month on lawn maintenance from April to November on a 3/4 acre lot. I do my own fertilizer, pest control, weed killer although the lawn guys use roundup in my gardens for better or worse. Spring cleanup is around $250 and fall cleanup around $400-$500.

Watch out for Dix Hills clay soil. The soil here frankly sucks and there's a lot of drainage problems. Other than that, it's a great place to live and the taxes are among the lowest in the Town of Huntington because of the 110 Corridor. PM me if you have other questions.

[tailgunner_ed]

Thanks Chet.

I'd like to give an update, today we were out there. Despite not having many open houses (compared to Syosset, there were practically non) we just drove around to see 10 properties, and we loved at least 5 of them. We'll be calling the agents to schedule viewing.

Are they building a condo community next to Strathmore park to the east?

I realized there are other neighborhoods still within HHH school district, but we really liked two areas particularly. The area between 495 and old country road west of Deer Park Ave and wide blocks closer to Carlis Straight Path east of Deer Park Ave. There was one that felt truly secluded and in nature, closer to north state parkway just north of HHH HS West.

Is there any difference between HHHS HS East and West?

While checking for houses in nearby neighborhoods, we went further north to Huntington, as part of Harborfields SD. This SD scored higher than HHH and Garden City in 2017, but the neighborhood didn't feel as serene as parts of Dix Hills.

[gx89]

Originally Posted by tailgunner_ed

Thanks Chet.

I'd like to give an update, today we were out there. Despite not having many open houses (compared to Syosset, there were practically non) we just drove around to see 10 properties, and we loved at least 5 of them. We'll be calling the agents to schedule viewing.

Are they building a condo community next to Strathmore park to the east?

I realized there are other neighborhoods still within HHH school district, but we really liked two areas particularly. The area between 495 and old country road west of Deer Park Ave and wide blocks closer to Carlis Straight Path east of Deer Park Ave. There was one that felt truly secluded and in nature, closer to north state parkway just north of HHH HS West.

Is there any difference between HHHS HS East and West?

While checking for houses in nearby neighborhoods, we went further north to Huntington, as part of Harborfields SD. This SD scored higher than HHH and Garden City in 2017, but the neighborhood didn't feel as serene as parts of Dix Hills.

Don’t get caught up in east vs west they are the same. East is larger than west. They could rezone the district anyways and you could be west and become east. The areas by HS west are very pretty especially by Caledonia rd. Due to limited inventory you should also be looking in Melville. Be careful if you a do a small portion mainly north of old country rd goes to south Huntington not HHH. Prices are very similar but generally a bit higher. Many areas have the same secluded feel.

You mentioned Sabrina ct. I looked there it’s very nice. IIRC hoa was very pricey around $500 a month.

[BBCjunkie]

OP, one important thing to remember when looking at any house that has a cesspool is to determine (either by documentation from the seller or by having a cesspool company do an inspection) whether it is an original block-construction cesspool or a newer precast one.

You do not want to buy a house that still has its original block-construction cesspool without getting some kind of concession in price that will cover the replacement that will be necessary, because said replacement is not cheap. Figure on at least $5000 and quite possibly more depending on where the existing one is, the new one must go, and the amount of destruction and reconstruction that will be needed to the landscaping.

We had to have ours replaced last year (old one was in back yard, new one had to go in front yard) and it was $7000 just to do the replacement. Then an additional $2500 to have a landcaper regrade the front yard (cesspool companies only do rough grading and you will have nothing but crappy subsoil on the surface), bring in 16 yards of topsoil, final grade, and seed. No new plants involved at all; that still needs to be done.

It should cost between $150 and $200 to have a cesspool company come at the same time as your home inspection, put a camera down the existing pools, and tell you what they are made of.

Suffolk County is in the midst of an upheaval re: replacing old cesspools. As of this July 1st you will need to get a permit to repair or replace, and then you will not be able to simply replace it with a new precast pool the way we did. Supposedly one of the fancy new installs will be required, costing more than $10K just for the install. I have not been able to find out what the status of this "new plan" is, other than it did go into effect at least partially last year (which is why we did ours before the new rules were to kick in.)


https://projects.newsday.com/long-is...k-septic-plan/

But anyway, do make sure you know before buying the house whether the existing cesspool is block (which WILL need to be replaced, they are all on borrowed time now for sure) or is precast with any problems that could necessitate replacement in the future.

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by BBCjunkie

OP, one important thing to remember when looking at any house that has a cesspool is to determine (either by documentation from the seller or by having a cesspool company do an inspection) whether it is an original block-construction cesspool or a newer precast one.

.

The year of construction can also be used as a guideline.

Prior to 1960, it most likely is block (unless it has been replaced); between 1960 -1965, it could be either block or precast. After 1965, it would be precast.

With Precast Cesspools you should always try to pull the whole cover on the main pool, which is 32 inches in circumference, to allow all solids to be pumped out. It is generally recommended that this be done every two to three years.