moving outside of the city (Yorktown, Carmel: rent, condo, affordable house)

[thatemtguy91]

Looking into places to move to that are less than an hour and a half drive to manhattan (not including traffic in the city). NY, NJ, or CT are acceptable. I am looking for lots of trees and hills. I do not want rural though. I am looking for an area that would still have a mall, movie theater, etc. I guess I want the foresty feel without the feeling of desolation. Looking to buy for under 400k or rent under 2k. It would be my girlfriend and 1 year old son moving.

[beakers91]

I would suggest the Wayne/Pompton Lakes area in NJ. Areas such as Pequannock Township have a lot of houses on larger lots backing up to wooded areas. Wayne is busy, with shopping, movie theaters and restaurants. Not as rural are Scotch Plains/Berkeley Heights/New Providence/Long Hill Township areas. Nicer suburban feel with good schools and some affordable housing. You would have the Great Swamp and Watchung Reservation close by for some green space. These are the areas I'm familiar with, but there are obviously many more towns in NJ.

The farther northwest you go in NJ the more rural (and generally cheaper) you'll find but the commute may be atrocious. I have family that lived in Stewartsville, NJ (north/central-west NJ, along PA border) and one of them commuted into the city half the week. In traffic on route 78 it took at least 2 hours each direction, but they found an affordable house out there. Eventually the commute and the under performing schools took a toll and they downsized closer to the city.

[UAE50]

Bedford or Pound Ridge, NY. Gorgeous!!!

[bmwguydc]

$400k would be okay for a condo in Bedford, but not much else. You could look at parts of Lewisboro if you are okay with a smaller house, but there is more at that price point in the Yorktown area if you want a single-family home. You could find a townhouse in Cross River for your budget, and get Katonah-Lewisboro schools, which is a plus. However, for a single-family home in Westchester, with an abundant supply, and decent schools, I would tend to recommend looking to Northwestern Westchester, around Yorktown and perhaps Croton, though Croton can be a tad more expensive.

In Putnam, Mahopac and Carmel would be good considerations, since you would not be far from the Jefferson Valley Mall in Yorktown. Pawling, which is a bit far, at the outer limit of your commute range, in Dutchess County might be another consideration, but it can become very exurban, and semi-rural quickly. In Rockland, areas like Pearl River have good schools and are close to nature, and the huge Palisades Mall. It is suburban, but there are nature preserves and such in the northern areas of Rockland, though you do want to buy with schools in mind as not all are equal. Westchester tends to have better schools in a general sense, though prices are higher, and taxes can be exorbitant, even when considering a purchase price around $400k for a single-family home.

In Connecticut, you could look at areas like Bethel and Danbury, and be close to the Danbury Fair Mall. However, I would tend to be judicious in Danbury because of the schools, as not all are equal. Bethel does have good schools. You could find a smaller house, like a ranch or raised ranch in your preferred range in Ridgefield, as well. Ridgefield tends to be an expensive town, but you can find some houses that would work for a family, and it's such a lovely town with much to do, and good schools. Taxes in CT will be lower than Westchester and many areas in NNJ, as well.