What are the best SD in Deleware County PA & nice areas (Philadelphia: crime)

[TristansMommy]

Hey all.

Still on my investigation hung.. you all have been so helpful at giving me starting points so far..

So.. in Deleware County. what are the best SD's and the good SD's. what SD to avoid and areas to avoid.

What communities are quaint, with nice people. not too crowded small town like feel with good schools..

thanks so much

[mainlinephilly]

Hello,
Borned and raised in delaware county, Media, Newtown Square, Middletown, Wayne, Springfield, Broomall , Garnet valley, very nice areas, blue ribbon schools. very, very safe, very little crime. Can walk at night and feel safe in neighborhood. Each town has great sports for kids. Also great catholic school. Lower Delaware County, Glenolden, Prospect Park, Norwood also good, Interboro School District won the blue ribbon a few years ago. Hope that helpsl

[mainlinephilly]

If you can afford it Radnor township has the best school in the state along with terdifrin township which is berwyne and paoli area but they are in chester county a few miles outside of newtown squre delaware county. Radnor is the top, then wallingford school district in wallingford in great beutiful area that encompasses the town Swarthmore where Swarthmore college is, tree lined great town. Chester is to be avoided, Darby, sharon hill, upper darby, I would not send my children to school in those districts. Hope that helps.

[orrmobl]

I found this article from Pittsburgh Business Gazette ranking school Districts in PA. So I've spreadsheeted it and have been using it in my own /town hunting adventure.

Tredyffrin, in Chester County is the best in the area, one of the top 100 High Schools in the country. Wealthy area, some green areas, encompasses parts of Wayne, Devon, Berwyn, Paoli, Malvern. People may be a tad snobby.

Now Radnor (Delco) and Lower Merion (Montco), heart of Main Line, snob central and Radnor HS has had problems as of late with grade fixing, kids cheating, and I hear the first few periods are optional as kids skip to do breakfast at local restaurants. I would not send my kids to Radnor, and Lower Merion is pretty much for folks who are into the country club/old money set or can afford a home well above $600k.

Next is Chesco's Unionville Chadds Ford, you can find a a house at a decent price, no real downtown to speak of, very woodsy feeling, people are friendly, as long as it fits in with your commute its a great place...I would pick this over Garnet Valley any day.

Now we get into other Delco Districts:
Wallingford-Swarthmore - this is where I may end up living...best of the bunch, has all you are looking for. Housing is a tad more expensive than surrounding areas and the property taxes are really really high, well above $6k for most places.

Next is Garnet Valley, also has wooded sections but its full of McMansions/new construction, has no town center...not my cup o' tea.

Then Rose Tree Media which is right next to Wallingford and has a quaint walkable downtown...also a great place to live that fits your criteria. Houses are older and on smaller lots generally, and you will pay more as it is the county seat so it is full of lawyers who have the money to pay to live so close to work.

Next is Haverford SD, Havertown has most of what you're looking for cept the quaint walkable downtown...families love it though.

Next is Marple-Newtown which covers Broomall and Newtown Square, which some consider Main Line lite, why you would pay Main Line prices to live there, I have no idea. Also great place for families but no walkable downtown at all.

Next is Springfield, which is smaller, closer to the city, and has older housing stock...lot of bang for your buck in Springfield. But being located so close to the city it can be really congested during rush hour and on weekends...especially Baltimore Pike. Also there is less green space and the next town over, Clifton Heights, has seen better days. But people who live in Springfield generally love it.

By now you're down to Penn Delco SD which covers areas like Brookhaven, which has affordable housing but has an older, rundown looking shopping district. It also borders Chester which is rarely seen as desirable, but then again so does a section of Wallingford, and I almost bought a house there so it all depends on what is important to you.

Next in order are Ridley and Interboro, but considering how far down they are on this list, I would pass on them...Ridley has nice housing, its slightly more upscale than Norwood, and further insulated from the declining edge of that area, Folcroft especially but like I said, these school numbers would make me shy away from either...

[thesixth]

RE: Not too crowded - Areas in SE delco (like Media, Springfield, Marple Newtown, Havertown) will have some congestion. The main roads through these towns - Rte. 1, Rte, 3, Rte 320, Baltimore Pike, Rte. 252 - will see quite a bit of traffic during rush hour times. I-476 will also be very crowded too. But it will not be as bad as major city Phila. traffic.

[bluecountry]

I had a question about Deleware County.
Is this general a well off suburban area of Philly...or is it more urban and often having problems with crime as compared to Burks and other neighbors?

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by bluecountry

I had a question about Deleware County.
Is this general a well off suburban area of Philly...or is it more urban and often having problems with crime as compared to Burks and other neighbors?

A relatively small portion-Eastern Delaware County to be exact(along the west Philly border) and the parts that sit along the Delaware River are very dense, poor + industrialized.

The further you head north + west the more affluent Delaware County becomes. Just outside the industrialized areas is a solid area of middle class followed by wealth as you head near the Chester and Montgomery County borders.


Overall Delaware County is the 4th wealthiest county in Pennsylvania (per capita income) behind Chester,Montgomery and Bucks.Most of the crime in Delaware County will be found in Chester and the border towns of Philadephia.

[Blusey]

Originally Posted by bluecountry

I had a question about Deleware County.
Is this general a well off suburban area of Philly...or is it more urban and often having problems with crime as compared to Burks and other neighbors?

Every county around Philadelphia has its "urban" type areas:
Montgomery County has Norristown
Bucks has Bristol
Delaware has Darby and, sad to say, Upper Darby (I grew up there)
Chester County has Chester