York,PA...yes or no? (Harrisburg, East York: real estate, new house, neighborhoods)

[Njrover0216]

My husband is thinking about applying to York, PA police department. We currently live in Maryland. After doing some research we see that we would be able to afford a newly constructed home for 250k or less.

[jdhall1]

I went to college down there and graduated in May. It is certainly affordable. You can get a new house for about $200,000 which is completely under off my in area where they are about $500,000. York is kind of stuck in it's own time. One of the good things it has going for it is the proximity to Baltimore and it's affordable housing. The college is good, though most of the locals don't seem to really support it though the students are the ones keeping the local economy going. There are a lot of nice county parks and golf courses. I can think of about 4 within 10 minutes of York College. Downtown York is starting to improve with the new minor league baseball stadium. There are some nice 'rural' areas within about 15 minutes to the Square.

There are some negatives about York. For a smaller city, there is an awful about of traffic on the local roads and major arteries, such as Rt 30 and I-83. York City taxes are considerably higher than the suburban towns around it. There is not much to do in terms of cultural activities, outside of a couple small museums and a small historical playhouse. Almost all of the shopping and eating options are national chains. York City does have some rough areas and the area behind the college was a late night haven for things such as muggings. The west side of town does have an odor from the Paper Mill Factory over in Spring Grove. It takes about 6 months to get used to the smell.

Your best bet is to read to local paper, the York Dispatch and York Daily Record, and to go up there to see for yourself. Good Luck

[trlstreet]

Does your job require you to live in the city? You can fins a real nice home for cheap in the city, but property taxes are extremely high. I looked into purchasing a home last year that was assessed @ 110,000, the taxes would have been around 5,000/year. I came from Allegheny County, where property taxes are notriously high. They can't hold a candle to York taxes! And for what you pay, you don't seem to get much. Until York can sustain some sort of downtown retail/business/entertainment area (hopefully the area around the new ballpark will take hold), there isn't much to bring people into downtown. Hence, its not a place I feel comfortable being in at night. If you are going to live in town, look @ areas around the hospital and college, and neighborhoods east along Mount Rose Ave. Also check out "The Avenues". There are some very nice neighborhoods in that area (west).

Do you have school-age children? York School District is not great, there are some private alternatives.

If you don't need to live in the city, York improves dramatically. Most of the local school districts are excellent. I'd suggest taking a look at the towns of Spry, Manchester, Emigsville, and New Salem. All are a quick commute into town (10 mins or so) and have great schools. West York is good, too.

[shenny86]

You should look at Springettsbury Twp. It's in East York, has all the stores you could want, good schools, and lots of new home construction. I often see openings for their police force. West York also has a good police force and is a nice area. A family friend is about to retire as an officer from West York, and has always enjoyed his job.

[rockky]

Don't forget West Manchester Twp. I suspect it's a larger force, and it's hooked on to West York.

Many new retail areas have opened up there in the last year.

I sure is nice to see positive statements about West York! 'Course that's where I grew up. Back then it was a two-officer operation.

[cityguy225]

I moved to York a couple of years ago and am delighted that I did. Before I moved here, I thought is was so close to so many places that I would always be hopping in the car and driving to Baltimore, Harrisburg, DC or Philly. Now that I'm here, I find that there is so much to do right here. York has a beautiful performing arts center - the Strand-Capitol, a new baseball stadium, great restaurants, antiques shops, interesting historic sites and wonderful old homes begging for a bit of tender loving care. Yes, the taxes are high in the center city thanks to an antiquated governmental system and boundaries that go back to the 1700's, but real estate prices are still reasonable. Don't expect to learn much from the local paper but there are other sources of information. Oh, and don't miss the farmers' markets!

[EclectikSoul85]

Well east york sounds nice.