INFO on DUTCHESS, COLUMBIA, and RENNSLATER counties (New York, Albany: best city, real estate)

[Northeastcouple]

Hey: MY wife and I are considering moving from Queens NY to upstate New York areas east side of the Hudson River... 3 counties we are considering are Dutchess (prob the upper end), Columbia, and Rennslator (am i spelling that correctly?) Looking for an area with a strong sense of community, low crime, good hospitals,and a decent school district for the little one. In addition a place thats not to sleepy (with shopping, recreational etc.)., but rural enough where you dont have to sit in traffic all day just to pick up a few groceries....Some neighborhoods that have sparked interest are FISHKILL, RED HOOK,CHATHAM and the town of NASSAU.....Any info is extremly appreciated and thanks in advance!!!

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[Northeastcouple]

Also any info on home prices and property taxes are appreciated!!!!!

[ss58yy]

Might that be Rensselaer County?

I live in Rhinebeck, near Red Hook, very close to Norther Dutchess Hospital. If you choose Red Hook, getting to a grocery store (Hannaford in Red Hook) should take only a few minutes. The Red Hook area seems more suburban than rural, however. If you go east and/or north from there, it gets more rural.

[jfkIII]

This reminded me of a previous thread with an article written by someone who did the same.

Here's the link to that thread:
http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-y...c-upstate.html

[Berkshires413]

Originally Posted by Northeastcouple

Hey: MY wife and I are considering moving from Queens NY to upstate New York areas east side of the Hudson River... 3 counties we are considering are Dutchess (prob the upper end), Columbia, and Rennslator (am i spelling that correctly?) Looking for an area with a strong sense of community, low crime, good hospitals,and a decent school district for the little one. In addition a place thats not to sleepy (with shopping, recreational etc.)., but rural enough where you dont have to sit in traffic all day just to pick up a few groceries....Some neighborhoods that have sparked interest are FISHKILL, RED HOOK,CHATHAM and the town of NASSAU.....Any info is extremly appreciated and thanks in advance!!!

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I grew up in Chatham...and I can tell you that the schools are good, it's centrally located to Albany, Pittsfield and Hudson for shopping... and crime is well... let's just say you could forget to leave your doors unlocked for a long time... and not have any problems. Don't know if you are looking in the village or the town... the prices will vary drastically. The rural areas of Columbia County are very expensive... mostly because of all the people from the city moving up there. I think the Northeastern part of Columbia County is one of the prettiest places in the country, with it's rolling hills and Norman Rockwell-ish kind of feel. If you want to look at real estate further for the Columbia County area...and Dutchess, too - Homebuyers Online - CRES Inc.

I live down south now, but can't wait to move back to that area.

[aj123]

LaGrangville is a wonderful area for all the ammenities you are looking for. A little bit of both worlds as far as a rural feeling, yet plenty of restuarants, shopping, entertainment etc. excellent commuting area. The schools are rated very well. Chatham is a bit more rural and much smaller, local shopping includes smaller specialty shops and grocery store. If you are going to commute to the City or Westchester area, than train access (Metro North) would be a good consideration.

[mom2gurls]

lagrange/hopewell/beekman are all wonderful areas.in fact sperlings best places named hopewell junction a finalist in the best city to live in 2005.I think.

Basically any town that falls in to the Arlington School District is wear you want to be in dutchess. You can pm me for more info..I live in arlington schools. But there is a price to pay for living in arlington..taxes and home price are holding.

[Northeastcouple]

Thank you all for your help.Yes I did mean Rensselaer (thanks for the correction). Also checked out the thread with the article quite interesting...."Mom 2 Gurls", "Aj123" I am fairly familiar with Lagrange,(have good friends there),Beekerman, Hopewell Junction etc.. Very nice but may be a bit too expensive, since we are looking to buy a home for under $300k. "Ss58y" I wil check out Rhinebeck when I have a chance, and again THANKS!!!

[jthomasvt]

We live in Nassau / Schodack in Rensselaer County great area 1.5 miles from I-90. Good Schools including a great pre-school. We know of a good realtor and a house as we are trying to relocate ourselves. Send me a message if you want more info.

[averagenyjoe]

I would look in the Kinderhook/valatie area. (pronounced vul-A -sha) They are cleaning up very nicely. there is a new traffic circle with some charm to it. A beautiful sparkling new Hannafords and a very taseful mini-strip mall. ( And I dont ususally say tasteful and strip-mall in the same sentence). It is 2 very small villages side by side but has the feeling of vitality and growth. Valatie was once really run down but more than other towns has spruced up its downtown and attracting some great little stores. Kinderhook has a little downtown itself and certainly doesnt take any back seat to Valatie. both are very walkable and has some BEAUTIFUL old restored homes blended nicely with some newer neighborhoods where you can walk all over town safely. Chatham/Ghent are also two very nice little villages that are clean-cut and worthy of looking into, though a tad bit more remote. If you dont mind being a little more in the country, you really need to check out Malden Bridge and North Chatham or Chatham Center. Just Oh-so-darling. Check them out soon because prices are climbing RAPIDLY in that whole area. Best of luck.