Possibly moving to Chambersburg, PA (Altoona, State College: high crime, how much, houses)

[amy22]

Hi all,

I may be moving to the area, and recently found a home that I absolutely love. But, I know nothing of the area and I'm hoping somebody can offer some insight.

1. The house is on Main Street in Chambersburg, PA. It's in the historic district, a little bit south of the theater. Is this a shady area? What's the crime like here? What about car thefts & property damage?

2. What are the CCW (concealed carry) laws in Chambersburg? Anything different than the rest of the state?

3. I will be commuting to Germantown, MD every day. How bad might that commute be? Right now, I do 80+ miles, one way and it takes me about 2 hours. I don't even bother going home when it snows. To go and look at the house, it took me a little over an hour. I've got a touch of a lead foot.

4. How are the winters/roads? I totaled a car in the snow a few years ago, and since then I've been 100% terrified of driving in the snow. Are the roads taken care of pretty well?

5. I'm pretty much a country girl, and I'm used to rural living. I've lived in rural areas for about 10 years now, so how much of an adjustment are we talking about? Major downsides to this?

Thanks so much for any advice/input. Greatly, GREATLY appreciated.

[Internet Superman]

Originally Posted by amy22

Hi all,

I may be moving to the area, and recently found a home that I absolutely love. But, I know nothing of the area and I'm hoping somebody can offer some insight.

1. The house is on Main Street in Chambersburg, PA. It's in the historic district, a little bit south of the theater. Is this a shady area? What's the crime like here? What about car thefts & property damage?

2. What are the CCW (concealed carry) laws in Chambersburg? Anything different than the rest of the state?

3. I will be commuting to Germantown, MD every day. How bad might that commute be? Right now, I do 80+ miles, one way and it takes me about 2 hours. I don't even bother going home when it snows. To go and look at the house, it took me a little over an hour. I've got a touch of a lead foot.

4. How are the winters/roads? I totaled a car in the snow a few years ago, and since then I've been 100% terrified of driving in the snow. Are the roads taken care of pretty well?

5. I'm pretty much a country girl, and I'm used to rural living. I've lived in rural areas for about 10 years now, so how much of an adjustment are we talking about? Major downsides to this?

Thanks so much for any advice/input. Greatly, GREATLY appreciated.

Chambersburg is not a high crime area, if you lock your car doors at night and you take care of your house and make friends with your neighbors, you probably won't even have to lock the doors on your house.

My question is - how much is the taxes on this house, did you go to the court house and see how much the last owner paid in taxes per a year?

Gun Permits are obtained from the local sheriff. Most every county does it the same. You give 3 references and they do a background check and if everything is ok, you get your picture took and you pay your $20 or $25 for 4 or 5 years and you are good to go.

Towns around the Maryland border gets a lot less snow then does the upper portion of the state. Most times it is 5 to 10 degress warmer near the MD border then it is in Altoona or State College or Bradford - which is usually one of the coldest places in the lower 48 states in the middle of the winter.

You will probably have to travel to do any amount of shopping other then the walmart or the Rite Aid drug store or the little grocery stores down there. If you are a country girl, you already know that.

[pennsynative]

Have you considered the eastern panhandle of WV? It will be a somewhat shorter ride to Germantown and I would think you could get a little bit more house for your money. The taxes are much better than in PA and other costs as well. It's definitely something you should consider. If you have any more questions about WV, dm me.

[firefightermom]

Hi, I live in Chambersburg and my husband commutes to Germantown, MD for work. We used to live in Germantown.

1. The historic district from my experience doesn't have much crime. Here is a link that may help Search CrimeReports.com. My realtor lives in the historic district with his wife and 6 kids. I don't think he'd live there if crime was a problem.

2. No idea! I don't do guns.

3. My husband always wants to get through Frederick before the rush hour starts there, which he says is 530am. It can take him over 2 hours if he misses that window. When he leaves at 415am, I think he gets to Germantown at about 530am. I will doublecheck with him. During non rush hour times, I make the trip in an hour and a half usually. Hubby does it in an hour. Guess who's the bigger leadfoot?

4. We've only been here one winter, and it was an easy one. But neighbors who have been here much longer have told me that 81 is poorly taken care of. Getting over the mountain on 70 can also present a problem--hubby has been stuck waiting in the snow there b/c of accidents, etc. When a storm is expected, he usually leaves the night before just in case.

5. Chambersburg is a tiny city IMO. The surrounding townships are still very rural. Lots of farms all around. That said, there is some shopping, more than the Walmart and Rite Aid! The mall has Sears, JCP, BonTon, Burlington and one level of shops. There is a Gander Mountain, Kohls, Target, Petsmart, Staples, Michael's, Hobby Lobby, CVS, Walgreens, Kmart. Lots of chain and fast food restaurants, and some great family owned places. We even have 2 Starbucks. For grocery stores, we have 2 Giants, 2 Food Lions, Weis, and Sunnyway. What Chambersburg doesn't have, you can get 20 minutes south in Hagerstown or 30 minutes north in Carlisle.

Hope that helps! Free free to pm me if you have more questions.

[amy22]

Thank you everyone for your replies! I plan on going to Chambersburg this weekend and seeing how the city is and if I could go from living in the middle of a cornfield to living in a city.

I'm mostly concerned with the commute. I know it's pretty hit and miss with the traffic, especially from Germantown to Frederick. If somebody is changing a tire, I can count on an extra 30 minutes.

And I looked at West Virgina - the houses are incredible and the prices are great, but unfortunately I fall in the tax bracket that would make it cost prohibitive to move there.

Again, thanks so much and if anyone has any additional information, please let me know. I really appreciate it!