how is New Hope? (Philadelphia, Scranton: apartment, rent, car insurance)

[nymom]

I've been reading these threads and several have said that Doylestown is somewhat snooty. Is New Hope the same? I'm coming from a snooty town in NY. Don't want to relocate to another one!

[nymom]

Thanks for your reply but why do you think PA is a bad place to live?

[nowaytoknowyet]

Originally Posted by play_my_rekkid

You have to pay an occupational tax to work here. Ranging anywhere from $10 to $52. It gets taken out of your paycheck. Not to mention low wages and crappy benefits(if at all).

Never heard of this tax. How often is it taken out of the paycheck?
I know about the City Wage Tax if one works in Philadelphia County.

I Agree with You about the Low Wages - I've been seeking to relocate into the PA burbs (Delco and Chester County areas) and been finding only $11-$14/hour jobs (gross to say the least) albeit I've seen "some" paying better but there's not enough of these in the case on a consistant basis if I were to get laid off and need to find a similar paying job.

What's with these employers not paying a livable wage anyways where almost anywhere else in the US the pay is better for the same job?

[Danielle]

I absolutely love New Hope, PA. The neighborhood is lovely with plenty of little shops and eateries. I visit a few times every year and everyone I talk to is very friendly. I highly recommend New Hope!

[Phish Head]

Most municipalities in PA levy a "wage tax". You won't see this in the relocation packages and its always a surprise to newcomers to PA. Most towns it's 1% - 1.5% of your gross wages. Only 3 towns in Bucks do NOT levy this tax. Some towns, like Scranton, it is higher (maybe 2% or more). Doesn't sound like much, but if you make $60,000 a year, it's $600-$1200 a year, almost as much as car insurance. There is a reason that property taxes are low in PA, the wage tax makes up for it. Pennsylvania has some hidden taxes that someone from NJ/NY may not be used to. Governments have to make up the money somehow. I found my tax burden in moving from NJ to PA went higher, surprisingly.

New Hope is a nice town, but extremely touristy, especially during the summer and fall months. On nice summer weekends, it can be impossible to walk downtown. New Hope also has a large motorcycle contingent. The town has passed noise ordinances because many of these motorcyclists have "straight pipes" meaning no mufflers. Most of the tourists are from Philly, NYC, and NJ and tend to be aggressive and pushy, to say the least. Fall and spring weekdays, New Hope returns to a quaint country town. Also, New Hope, being right on the river, floods every few years. The town across the river, Lambertville, is just as quaint and not quite as touristy, but close.

All in all, the whole Delaware Valley from Yardley north is a beautful place to live. Don't put any creedence in the words of a certain individual (troll) on this forum that says that all of PA sucks.....

[nymom]

Lots of good information...thanks

[newmarlig]

New Hope is beautiful, but I don't know if I would want to live there. I would suggest Newtown or Yardley in that area.

[nowaytoknowyet]

Originally Posted by Phish Head

Most municipalities in PA levy a "wage tax". You won't see this in the relocation packages and its always a surprise to newcomers to PA. Most towns it's 1% - 1.5% of your gross wages. Only 3 towns in Bucks do NOT levy this tax. Some towns, like Scranton, it is higher (maybe 2% or more). Doesn't sound like much, but if you make $60,000 a year, it's $600-$1200 a year, almost as much as car insurance. There is a reason that property taxes are low in PA, the wage tax makes up for it. Pennsylvania has some hidden taxes that someone from NJ/NY may not be used to. Governments have to make up the money somehow. I found my tax burden in moving from NJ to PA went higher, surprisingly.

New Hope is a nice town, but extremely touristy, especially during the summer and fall months. On nice summer weekends, it can be impossible to walk downtown. New Hope also has a large motorcycle contingent. The town has passed noise ordinances because many of these motorcyclists have "straight pipes" meaning no mufflers. Most of the tourists are from Philly, NYC, and NJ and tend to be aggressive and pushy, to say the least. Fall and spring weekdays, New Hope returns to a quaint country town. Also, New Hope, being right on the river, floods every few years. The town across the river, Lambertville, is just as quaint and not quite as touristy, but close.

All in all, the whole Delaware Valley from Yardley north is a beautful place to live. Don't put any creedence in the words of a certain individual (troll) on this forum that says that all of PA sucks.....

Phish Head or anyone else that could respond to this - I want to ask a followup queston to what you said in your first paragraph.

So, if I was to relocate from where I am in Northern NJ and would rent out a studio or 1 bedroom apartment would I still pay this tax? How does the individual towns/cities collect this or how is it reported? I would be looking to move within the Chester or Delaware county areas.

This possible extra expenditure (tax) if it applies to me would change my "tune" about the possibility of moving into PA altogether.

Thanks

[Karnak]

Originally Posted by nowaytoknowyet

So, if I was to relocate from where I am in Northern NJ and would rent out a studio or 1 bedroom apartment would I still pay this tax? How does the individual towns/cities collect this or how is it reported? I would be looking to move within the Chester or Delaware county areas.
This possible extra expenditure (tax) if it applies to me would change my "tune" about the possibility of moving into PA altogether.
Thanks

Hi,
You will probably be charged a 1% Earned Income Tax, which will be deducted from your paycheck and paid to the municipality where you work. In April, you have to file 3 income tax returns - fed, state, and local. Some places (the cities) are taxed at higher rates - Philly has the highest anywhere!

[nowaytoknowyet]

Originally Posted by Karnak

Hi,
You will probably be charged a 1% Earned Income Tax, which will be deducted from your paycheck and paid to the municipality where you work. In April, you have to file 3 income tax returns - fed, state, and local. Some places (the cities) are taxed at higher rates - Philly has the highest anywhere!

Karnak - Thanks so much for your response.

REALLY?! WOW and I thought New "Jerkey" was bad.

I'm kinda surprised at this extra tax that I never heard of all of these years by anyone till today.

So lets say I earned $35K/year @ 1% that would come out to about $35.00.

Not really a big deal, but the headache of filing a city tax kinda stinks - I wonder if people have benefited from filing that part monetary wise?