Coming from Cincinnati with two small children (Scranton, Wilkes-Barre: real estate, to rent)

[loudeelou]

My husband has a potential job offer with a company near Jessup, PA. We are currently in a rural area between Cincinnati and Dayton, OH. We grew up in suburban Cincinnati and our family is still here. We are both 30 with a 3 year old and almost 2 year old. Before deciding to take this job we will be visiting NEPA. However, I'm looking for a heads up before we embark on our adventure.

1) Since we will know NO ONE, I'm interested in an area where we can meet people at the YMCA, parks, anything child friendly.

2) Safety and good schools are obviously of great importance.

3) My husband would be willing to drive up to 40 minutes or so to get to work, as that is what he does now. I drive 15 minutes to the grocery store and 45 minutes to a big mall now. We would like to be a bit closer but will get over it if needed

4) We are open minded, we could do subdivision, rural (we both love the outdoors, he bow hunts and I shoot a bow), and I also have a thing for cool historical homes that have been fixed up in small towns (however in our area you only find those cool homes in VERY expensive places or not so safe places). So we're open to all suggestions, other than very urban. My concern with the rural aspect would be isolating ourselves more when we already know no one.

5). The house we could afford would be no more than $250,000 and ideally closer to $200-$225.

6) We may only be there for a couple/few years, in which case I don't know if we should buy or try to rent a home. Any ideas about homes that could rent in my ideal areas?


I know I'm asking a lot... thanks to everyone who may have advice.

[FightinPhils]

Maybe your best bet would be to live in Jessup. Its a nice safe, clean small town with friendly people. The Casey Highway (US-6) runs right above town and gets you to Scranton in about 10 minutes. Scranton itself would be a good place, as even though its a city, its not a big city and is safe and has a small-town feel. Most of the area's older historic homes are in Scranton. The outlying small towns in the valley, like Jessup, are usually made up of smaller simpler older homes, as the coal miners lived in these towns back in the area's coal mining days. The money back then tended to be in Scranton, so that's where the larger older homes with nicer architecture tends to be...especially in the Hill Section and Green Ridge section of the city.

My first recommendation would be Scranton, but second would be Jessup and the vicinity, since its a good area, close to conveniences, and close to your husband's work. I live in Scranton now, and grew up in and around Jessup, so I know both very well.

You mentioned a YMCA. There is a YMCA in Dunmore right off of the Dunmore exit of I-81. Its minutes from most places in the valley.

$200,000-$225,000 will get you a very nice house in this area. Growing up here, to me, over $200,000 for a house still sounds expensive. You'll find that real estate costs less around here than most places.

[loudeelou]

Thank you for your suggestions! What would I type in on a real estate search engine for the Hill and Green Ridge section of the city, just Scranton? Also, any good realtor sites? I'm sure we'll end up with a relocation person eventually, but for now any help is welcome!

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by loudeelou

Thank you for your suggestions! What would I type in on a real estate search engine for the Hill and Green Ridge section of the city, just Scranton? Also, any good realtor sites? I'm sure we'll end up with a relocation person eventually, but for now any help is welcome!

Welcome in advance to our area. You will want to go to Greater Scranton Board of Realtors, Inc. - Home , and then click on "Search for Properties." From there you'll want to click on the Scranton School District, at which point you can pick and choose which city neighborhoods you might like to check out. I find that this site is much more accurate than Realtor.com and often has many more interior photos of listings.

Best of luck!

[loudeelou]

That's a great tip! Thanks so much! It's hard to know where to begin when you have no clue. I thought of a couple more questions, too. How far is the drive from the Scranton area to the Wilkes-Barre area, roughly in minutes? Would this be too much of a commute from Jessup? Also, what area's would mostly consist of young families? Any other tips?

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by loudeelou

That's a great tip! Thanks so much! It's hard to know where to begin when you have no clue. I thought of a couple more questions, too. How far is the drive from the Scranton area to the Wilkes-Barre area, roughly in minutes? Would this be too much of a commute from Jessup? Also, what area's would mostly consist of young families? Any other tips?

I live in Scranton and work in Wilkes-Barre and my drive is about a half-hour, But after my walk from the parking garage a few block away, the total trip door-to-door is about 45 minutes. From Jessup to Wilkes-Barre, add maybe another 10 minutes at the most...since the Casey Highway makes travel from the Mid-Valley down to I-81 pretty quick.

As for young families, I'd have to say that this area does have a lot of senior citizens, but as for younger families, its kind of spread out. Where I live in West Scranton there are a lot of younger families around. Jessup was a little on the older side when I was a kid, but that's changing. My family's neighborhood in Jessup has gotten a lot younger in recent years, as the older generation moves and/or passes away, a lot of younger families have taken their place. Honestly, I think you'll have a good mix of young, middle-aged, and old wherever you go in the area. I wouldn't necessarily say that some parts of the area are younger or older than others.

If you're thinking of moving to the Wilkes-Barre area and commuting to Jessup, personally I wouldn't recommend that. Lackawanna County (Scranton area, includes Jessup) is a much nicer place to live than Luzerne County (Wilkes-Barre area). W-B area tends to have more crime, and Luzerne County is just more run-down than Lackawanna, in my opinion.

[loudeelou]

Good to know! We'll stick with the Scranton area, it will be closer anyway. I'll start browsing the above website to get some ideas before our visit. If anyone thinks of more helpful info, feel free to send it my way. Have a good day... I'm off to take my son to the dentist for the first time. =)