Relocating from CA to Philly area.. What are the best surburban areas? (Philadelphia: best suburbs)

[taylorco]

Hi All,
Thanks for taking the time to read.. and hopefully help! My Husband just sprung on me that his boss wants us to relocate to PA for the next 2 years. He is in Energy consulting, and they have several clients in PA and moving us there is more cost effective then sending my Husband back and forth for the next 2 years. All he was told was it would be "Soon" leaving me in a panic to find a new place to live in a city we know nothing about!

We are not fan's of Big City living.. we've been there/done that. Currently we live in a 4 bedroom single family home with a 2 car garage in Rocklin, CA (pop 50,000) We are not opposed to a smaller town, nor a larger one at that.. what is most important is a since of community, a single family home, no apartments, condos.. basically anything attached.. We have a Cockatoo.. who can be a little loud when he gets excited.. A huge yard is not a must, but a garage definately is! The Hubby is way to attached to working on his car to give it up for 2 years

Also any information on finding a good rental, and rental prices would be appreciated.. We need some data to negotiate the raise with his company. We are willing to relocate, but we are not going to lessin our quality of life/housing to do so..

Thanks!!
Cortney


When are you moving? Late Fall/Early Winter
Where are you coming from? Rocklin, CA (Outside Sacramento)
Why are you moving? Husband's Job is relocating him
Where will you be working? TBD-More then likely from home based office visiting sites throughout the state
Have you been here yet? No

Will you buy or rent? Rent
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend?
If renting, are you looking for an apartment, a townhouse or loft? How much can you spend? up to $1800, but preferably less..
Do you prefer hi-rise or walk up? Definitely walk up.. We are actually looking for a single family home, with a garage (as the hubby needs room to work on his 'toys')

Are you married or single? Do you have children? Married, no children, Yet..
Do you prefer public or private schools? Either
Do you have pets? Yes, 2 cats and a Cockatoo
Do you want or need a yard? Yes we want to have a yard
Are you keeping a car? Yes, we will have 2 plus a 4WD Rock Crawler that will need to be garaged <-- Hubby's toy
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet? More calm/quiet.. but not dead

What do you want to be closest to? Would like to be close to shopping/basic services. But it's more important to be in a safe smaller, homey community
Work
Shopping
Basic services (supermarket, drugstore, etc.)
Nightlife
Train or subway stations

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood? We do like some diversity, but would like to be in an area where we can identify with people to easily make new friends

Coke or Pepsi? Coke

[kimrocktherealtor]

How about Bucks County? It's very peaceful/quiet and only 30 miles outside center city. You can find a decent single family home to rent in Langhorne, Newtown or Yardley for 1800.

[kidphilly]

Originally Posted by ooodsie

How about Bucks County? It's very peaceful/quiet and only 30 miles outside center city. You can find a decent single family home to rent in Langhorne, Newtown or Yardley for 1800.

You will have much more flexibility without a daily commute. Maybe even an area like Doylestown. But honestly depending on all your criteria and where any travel will be you may want consider some other locations. If it is all not Philly area focused there are other areas of the State to look at.

Remember the Philly area is basically the extreme Southeast corner of PA - the state is actually pretty large (not as big as CA)

[JasmineFlower]

Look into West Chester.

I agree with the other poster though, you should definitely inquire about where in PA your husband will travel to most often, if its in the western side of the state in particular, moving to the Philly area could wind up being a pain. Middle of the state has State College, which also meets your criteria, but its up there by itself, closest larger city is Harrisburg and that's an hour and half away, not sure if that is problematic for you. But, living outside of the Philly area, you tend to get a cheaper cost of living.

[JHG722]

This is incredibly vague. We need a lot more information than is given.

[orrmobl]

I would choose Chester County if your husband has to head west or south for work. Caln Township or Downingtown, East Fallowfield, or somewhere nearby - it may have a Coatesville post office but it won't be in the not so great city of Coatesville.

Very peaceful, lower rents and I've seen quite a few rock crawlers around so your husband would most likely find people with like interests.

If you want negotiating power you should choose Malvern or West Chester.

[taylorco]

Originally Posted by JHG722

This is incredibly vague. We need a lot more information than is given.

My husband’s company is still deciding on whether they will send other Engineers in addition to him. In the beginning it will only be him. If they find that they are sending other Engineers regularly they may hire, or relocate others. If that is the case then the office would be located in Philly. If they find that they are not needing other employees based in the area then he would continue to work from home. Because of the possibility that they may at some time open an actual office we would like to be within an hour to Philly.

I am really sorry to have bothered you... I gave all the detail that I had. I guess that I could have given a better detailed description as to why I posted in the Philadelphia Forum asking about the best Suburbs.

[taylorco]

Originally Posted by JasmineFlower

Look into West Chester.

I agree with the other poster though, you should definitely inquire about where in PA your husband will travel to most often, if its in the western side of the state in particular, moving to the Philly area could wind up being a pain. Middle of the state has State College, which also meets your criteria, but its up there by itself, closest larger city is Harrisburg and that's an hour and half away, not sure if that is problematic for you. But, living outside of the Philly area, you tend to get a cheaper cost of living.

From what information my Husband has recieved the majority of the work will be in the Eastern area. It is possible he would have to travel to Pittsburg, the sites he will visit are very spredout, but but not more then once or twice to any single location. Or it is possible that his company would send other Engeneers or Techs to cover some of the other areas.

They are giving him information as they get it from their clients.. the details will be set in stone soon (I hope!)

[rainrock]

Chester Springs
Exton
Downingtown
West Chester
King of Prussia
Valley Forge
Plymouth Meeting/Collegeville


www.weichertrents.com is a decent starter site to give you an idea how much house/condo you can rent with your money. Click private listings.

Here is an example.

http://www.weichertrents.com/search/...325&maxpr=1800

Chester County and Montgomery Counties would be a good start. Bucks County as well.

Good luck.

[taylorco]

Originally Posted by rainrock

Chester Springs
Exton
Downingtown
West Chester
King of Prussia
Valley Forge
Plymouth Meeting/Collegeville


www.weichertrents.com is a decent starter site to give you an idea how much house/condo you can rent with your money. Click private listings.

Here is an example.

HERSHEYS MILL, West Chester, PA Rental Property &ndash; WeichertRents.com

Chester County and Montgomery Counties would be a good start. Bucks County as well.

Good luck.

Thank You! I have been having trouble finding rentals, with the exception of Craigslist, which can be a pain. That site is really helpful!