Moving from the Boston area to Philly--Need help with areas... (Philadelphia: real estate market, apartment)

[timojhawkfan]

Hi all, I have a terrific job opportunity at Thomas Jefferson University that would bring my family of 4 (including a 3 year old, 4 month old, spouse) to Philly by the end of summer. We would be coming from the Boston area and have visited Philly several times...

Given the real estate market where we live, we are going to have to rent our place out until the market gets better and thus have to rent in Philly. I have been commuting to downtown Boston for sometime and depending on a number of variables, it can take 60-90 mins each way. I'd like to avoid that...

So, with all of that in mind and knowing what people typically are curious about (crime, schools, etc.) can those of you out there that are Philly experts point me in the right direction for areas to look for housing in? I have heard good things about Manayunk and Mt. Airy...

We're looking for something that would be 3+ BR's, 1.5-2+ baths (if possible) and either a townhouse/rowhouse or free standing, single family home. We'd prefer to stay away from an apartment as we have a boxer and a cat.

If anyone out there knows of good realtors that do rentals or rent to own, please let me know.

Thanks for the help, in advance.

[PhillyViaBoston]

Hi. There are a bunch of nice areas that would fit your bill - both in Center City and the Philly suburbs - and keep your commute time much lower than it is into Boston. I'll throw out a few initial thoughts....

The SEPTA regional rail (equivalent to the MBTA Commuter Rail) is a popular choice for commuters, providing a quick trip into the city. Market East station (11th & Market Sts) is a short walk to Thomas Jefferson. SEPTA | Clickable Regional Rail & Rail Transit Map

The R5 (Thorndale side) West of the city (including Ardmore, Bryn Mawr, Villanova, Radnor, Devon, etc.) is considered the "main line." You will probably find it to be the most expensive of the suburbs. It is safe, has many cute towns with walkable centers, and has very good school systems (including Radnor SD, Tredyffrin/Easttown SD, Lower Marion SD). If you're a Celtic fan you're allowed to ignore Lower Marion as it made Kobe the "man" he is today.

The R3 (Elwyn side) goes Southwest of the city and hits the very good school districts of Wallingford-Swarthmore SD (towns of Wallingford, Swarthmore, Nether Providence, Rose Valley) and Media-Rose Tree SD (Media, Middletown). Swarthmore houses Swarthmore college which helps make this town and it's surrounds pretty liberal. Media has a really cute downtown area with shops & restaurants. It's a very family friendly area with many great pre-schools and parks.

Buck's County is North of the city has the great Council Rock SD (Newtown, etc.) and Pennsbury (Yardley, etc.). Buck's county is beautiful and has a lot of farm land. It would also put you at your closest Pennsylvania point to Boston if commuting back for holidays is important.

Manyunk (R6) and Mt. Airy (R7) are also great spots, but they're more urban (more walkable amenities, higher concentration of people, etc.) than what I've mentioned above.

How urban do you want to go? Is there a town in Boston that you'd like to find an equivalent for in Philly? Maybe that would help narrow things down a bit....

[kidphilly]

I might suggest either the Mainline of PA or an area like Haddonfield in NJ

Both offer a mix of suburb/urban with good transit options and multiple housing type options. Also they are quant town areas and walkable, potentially even to rail and great schools.

Try this link

Prudential Fox & Roach | Real Estate | Philadelphia, PA, NJ, DE & MD

[timojhawkfan]

We currently live in a rural area outside of Boston, and I'd prefer to skip that at this stage, if for anything avoiding the commute. We lived at one point in time in Dorchester and go the heck out of there given the crime and desire to have kids, etc. So, I'd like to steer clear of that.

Personally, I like an urban setting that is artsy with good, family places to grab dinner, etc. and allows a not all day excursion to the zoo or something for the kids due to distance of drives. However, I also prefer more liberal areas, close to university communities like you describe in Swarthmore.

[solibs]

Manayunk isn't great for a family with small kids . . . but nearby Wissahickon or East Falls would be pretty nice. You'd spend about 20 minutes on the train to Market East (the R6) and have a 5 minute walk to Jeff from Market East.

Mt. Airy is kid friendly and the elementary school is respectable. That's also about a 20 minute train (the R8) ride to Market East. I don't know about the school in East Falls but I have heard good things about the one in Wissahickon/Roxborough . . . although you might be considering private anyway.

The other option in the city is the neighborhoods just to the south of Jeff. Bella Vista, Queen Village and Passyunk Square. This would put you within a 20 minute walk of the hospital or, of course, a 5-10 minute bus ride.

Also worth considering is Collingswood, NJ. It would be a 12 minute train ride to Jeff and the station (10th & Locust) is on the campus so walking would be minimal. I'd pick this over Mt. Airy or East Falls. You get the benefit of suburban schools, bigger houses, a cool downtown with shops and restaurants and it's connected to the city by a 24 hour subway that is cheaper and a lot more frequent than the regional rail to Mt. Airy or East Falls. Neighboring Westmont, NJ is more or less the same with a less cute downtown and slightly less dense but better schools.

[PhillyViaBoston]

Okay, with that I'll give you a little more detail on the Swarthmore area...

The R3 train would get you a short walk to your job in less than 30 minutes. The stations you probably want to consider most highly are Swarthmore, Wallingford, Moylan/Rose, and Media. All are in family-friendly, pretty liberal neighborhoods, and with good school systems.

With no traffic it would take you about 20 minutes to drive into the city, closer to 35-40 minutes with traffic. The are a lot of garages in Center City but during the work day they're almost as expensive as they are in Boston. It's also a 20-25 minute trip to the zoo (or Please Touch Museum which your 3-year old would love!) going down route 1.

School district info here:
Wallingford-Swarthmore School District
Rose Tree Media School District

Both Swarthmore & Media borough have town centers, though Media's is larger with far more restaurants, bars, and shopping. Welcome Home: Media, PA (The towns are only a couple of mile apart so living in one gives you the advantage of the other, of course.) Media is also the seat of Delaware County, houses the DelCo court house and, thus, has a ton of law firms for better or worse.

Though both liberal, I'd argue that Media is more diverse than Swarthmore. It also has a good amount of artists who showcase their work in the shops & galleries along State Street, including during "2nd Saturday" events along with the Media Arts Council. Media Arts Council~2nd Saturday~Media, PA (http://www.mediaartscouncil.org/saturdays.htm - broken link)

I'm under the impression that both Media & Swarthmore have healthy rental markets.... I've never used either but I see a lot of Baird & Bird Realty and Media Real Estate signs around.

One thing to be aware of is that the town name, mailing address, and school system name rarely match in Pennsylvania. For example, you could be in the Wallingford-Swarthmore school district, pay taxes to Nether Providence township, and have a Media zip code. It might be helpful when working with a realtor to be as specific as possible about what's important to you. Good luck!

[LibraGirl123]

Originally Posted by PhillyViaBoston

The R5 (Thorndale side) West of the city (including Ardmore, Bryn Mawr, Villanova, Radnor, Devon, etc.) is considered the "main line." You will probably find it to be the most expensive of the suburbs. It is safe, has many cute towns with walkable centers, and has very good school systems (including Radnor SD, Tredyffrin/Easttown SD, Lower Marion SD). If you're a Celtic fan you're allowed to ignore Lower Marion as it made Kobe the "man" he is today.

It's "Lower Merion"...

[PhillyViaBoston]

Originally Posted by LibraGirl123

It's "Lower Merion"...

Either way. As a Celtics fan I ignore it.

[JasmineFlower]

I'd also recommend looking at Jenkintown, Abington, Elkins Park, Upper Dublin, Ambler, Lafayette Hill, and Plymouth Meeting areas. All are closer in suburbs northwest of the city that have great access to Regional Rail and highways.

Also, since you have heard good things about it, look more into West Mount Airy, its a great area. Its going to be the most liberal area you'll be looking in. Also look in Chestnut Hill next to it.

[G Goo]

Originally Posted by JasmineFlower

I'd also recommend looking at Jenkintown, Abington, Elkins Park, Upper Dublin, Ambler, Lafayette Hill, and Plymouth Meeting areas. All are closer in suburbs northwest of the city that have great access to Regional Rail and highways.

Also, since you have heard good things about it, look more into West Mount Airy, its a great area. Its going to be the most liberal area you'll be looking in. Also look in Chestnut Hill next to it.

And don't forget East Mt Airy. you'll get way more bang for your buck than WMA (but as more and more people discover EMA, this is changing, rapidly). I live in the Upper part of E. Mt Airy. There is one trouble spot of EMA, that is relatively poorer with more crime.....specifically the area SE of Gorgas, between the R7 line and Germantown Ave...along Chew Ave. Somehow this area stigmatizes the rest of EMA, despite that it only takes up 25% of the neighborhood AND it borders on WMA as well.

We moved here from the suburbs 3 years ago and couldn't be happier. Great homes, great neighbors with easy access to both the Sedgwick and Mt Airy Train Stations, Germantown Ave in Mt Airy and Chestnut Hill (both walkable).

If interesed shoot me a direct message and I'll answer any questions you may have.