Best Township,Cities to live in near NYC area (New York: appointed, fit in)

[PlazaGirl]

Currently living in Overland Park Kansas and husband commutes to Manhattan weekly. Husband is still in negotiations on his contract so it is not 100% yet that we are moving. Anyway, we are familiar with the city however, not too much with the townships outside of the city.

Other CEO's that he has met in NYC have made suggestions to their towns but I was wondering if there is anyone on this board that can help me narrow down my research hours.

We are in our late 30's. 3 kids, 14 yr old that will be starting high school next year, 9 yr old and 7 yr old. Great schools are a must. We have our kids in public school here and in one of the top school districts in the country. So that is important to us. I know my 14 yr old daughter wants to do cheerleading, same with our 7 yr old, plus dance classes, volleyball, soccer and our son loves soccer, and football.

We are able to fit in the $800,000 - maybe low $2 million range on house based on his new salary. Our current home has 4 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms and 2 half baths. and around 3800 sq ft home. we have a large fenced back yard. and all stores like grocery, target, pet smart, restaurants are within a 3 - 10 mile area. I have lived in a small town environment before so its not a shock for me. And my family moved around a bit when my dad worked for the military. So what do you guys think? Sell me on your township or city. I'm flying in for a trade show Jan 29th so I will have a 3 days before show to drive around.

My husband will want to take the train to work through Penn Station. He and I want him to have a less than one hour commute to work. If there is a town less than 45 minutes, that would be awesome. We know for sure we don't want to live in Greenwich or long island. We did some research and super expensive and not a lot of house. He will also be flying back to Kansas City, San Francisco, and Florida, so we need to be convenient to the airport.

I know, I know, it's going to be a change for me to adjust to the size of house for the price. I found that out from an apartment we rent in the city through our company and its more than our mortgage and the apartment is the size of our home kitchen and dining room.

I dound the mta site, and found this map, MTA Metro-North Railroad but not sure if these are the townships. Should I just stick with this map and google these names. I wish I knew how to google a list of nearby cities within 45 miles of NYC. We are open to Jersey and CT. But from what I have read on these boards, the taxes are going to kill us. Although can't be any worse than all the property taxes we pay here.

Thanks for your help and I look forward to hearing from you.
V.

[jeffcon0]

Plazagirl, welcome to the board. Hope we can help. You certainly will not be in Kansas anymore (sorry, I couldnt resist ) with your move up here.

You are right, what a nice home costs in most of the country will barely get you a studio apartment in Manhattan. BUT you are lucky to have a very nice budget to be able to make a good life for yourselves here.

You said your husband will need to commute to Penn Station. Penn services the Long Island railroad and New Jersey but I would do whatever I could to avoid Penn Station at all costs. It is an unbearable mess compared to Grand Central which services the Metro-North Railroad. Take a day trip to Manhattan when you are checking out property and spend five minutes in each station and the difference will be noticeable.

Now, if I had your budget with your needs I would be looking in CT on the New Haven line. I think it is one of the most beautiful, historic, and cultured "suburban" areas in the US. I put suburban in quotes because it is much more like a cluster of small New England towns than a cookie cutter suburb. Upstate around Westchester county is also very nice and very similar to the areas of CT I am describing. NY property taxes are higher than those in CT so be sure to keep that in mind when looking at places.

You sound like you have already braced yourself for the sticker shock so I won't try to sugarcoat it for you. If you want a fairly nice 4 bedroom home within a 45 minute commute on the New Haven metro-north line in CT you will be looking at 1-1.5MM. Places like Greenwich and Westport may even be out of the question as they are for the ultrawealthy. If I were to give you some general guidlines I would say look at any area close to the Metro-North stops between Greenwich to BEFORE Bridgeport. Bridgeport is the armpit of CT but even the Fairfield stop right before Bridgeport is very affluent and beautiful. All are within ~45 mins of NY and your husband would be commuting with many many other white collar workers going into NY.

Bottom line is that any area in CT on the metro-north line within an hour of NY is going to be great. Wonderful schools, homes, scenery, history, and culture. I do not think you will be disappointed.

Enjoy taking in everything this area has to offer! In my opinion it is one of the best in the country.

[mead]

If your husband really has to come thru Penn Station then Westchester and Fairfield Counties are out of the question.

First off you better get used to living in a smaller house unless you can shell out a ton of cash or are willing for your husband to be on the train for over an hour.

If I were you, I'd look into some of the smaller towns in NJ along the NJ Transit line that have good schools. Places like Summit, Chatham, and Madison all come to mind. I think Summit is particularly nice.

[apvbguy]

Originally Posted by PlazaGirl

Currently living in Overland Park Kansas and husband commutes to Manhattan weekly. Husband is still in negotiations on his contract so it is not 100% yet that we are moving. Anyway, we are familiar with the city however, not too much with the townships outside of the city.

a big part of where you should consider moving to should be based on where your job is in Manhattan, once we know that it would be easier to offer suggestions. If he really needs to go through Penn Sta. he should consider places in NJ that has rail service to Penn sta. or LI which also sends most of their trains there. CT or much of upstate NY would not work for you.

[mead]

Another thought are places like Forest Hills or Bayside in Queens. Good public schools, much more to do than New Jersey/Long Island, and they have access on the LIRR to Penn Station. Alternatively from Forest Hills you can take the E express train into Manhattan from 71st Continental.

Forest Hills is particularly nice and has excellent access to JFK on the E and then the connection to the Air Train at Jamaica.

[Jrock247]

In your price range i'd suggest starting with rockville centre, roslyn and woodmere. all in nassau co. LI.
sorry just reread your post no LI?

[Walter Greenspan]

While New Jersey has townships, New York does not.

For the NYS definition of county, city, town, village and hamlet, please see:
http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-y...-glossary.html

[PlazaGirl]

Thanks everyone for your advice! He will be working off of East 28th St.
Penn Station is right down the street from the office. But you know, if we have to take another train, we can always be flexible. It's really all about finding something to call home, looking for something "reasonably" affordable(LOL) , and something to where it is not going to add more stress or inconvenience him to start his day.

We're pretty laid back and being very open about all of this. Yup, we're not the typical conservative Kansan that's for sure!

Keep your thoughts coming since we'll begin our home search soon.
V.

[apvbguy]

Originally Posted by PlazaGirl

Thanks everyone for your advice! He will be working off of East 28th St.
Penn Station is right down the street from the office
V.

EAST 28 is not just down from penn station EAST 28 is at least a 20 minute walk if you're confusing it with WEST 28 st penn sta. would work well if not, it isn't a good fit

[Pintea]

I will say Forest Hills as well. Beautiful area, great schools, best commute for your husband!