Where to live- eventual empty-nesters starting to think about relocating (Philadelphia: real estate, car insurance)

[Trixie59]

Still probably a year or two out, but my husband and I are starting to think about where we would like to live once our last child is out of the house. Some Facts: We are currently in South Jersey in a Gloucester County suburb with no real public transit options and no downtown. We also own a property in Ocean City which has a mortgage on it. We are both still a good 10 years or more away from retirement. We have three dogs.
What we are looking for:
-a walkable downtown with restaurants and coffee houses
-not more than 1 1/2 hours to the beach
-a house with a yard (preferably single family not twin or row)
-easy access to public transportation ( I work in West Philly, husband currently works from home)
-schools are NOT important
We probably can't get more than $250k for our current home so would most likely need to down size to get what we want.
Places I am thinking about seriously:
Haddon Twp, Collingswood, Haddonfield

Questioning: Mt. Airy, Chestnut Hill, Ardmore, Other mainline?

I know I could post this in NJ suburbs, but I really would like to know more about PA suburbs. Is there anything close enough that is affordable for us. The taxes in NJ are killer (especially Camden county). Not just real estate, but the progressive income tax. (Although it helps that my CWT can be applied against our NJ state tax)
Any other ideas for us?

[FindingZen]

You can certainly find the lifestyle you seek in the PA suburbs you're considering. (I'll defer to others more knowledgeable regarding NJ.) However, your budget might be more appropriate for a condo or TH than a SFH.

Off the top of my head, Glenside could possibly work.

[RightonWalnut]

Idk if you care or not but just so you do know, Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy are both within the city limits of Philadelphia. Aside from Ardmore, another area you could check out is the Jenkinown/Ambler/Abington/Willow Grove area. Do you have any interest in Center City? That seems to be the preferable location among empty nesters. Or would you prefer more space?

[Trixie59]

Thanks, I did already know that Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy are in Philadelphia. I don't think it's an issue. We've thought about Center City, but I think that dealing with parking and the potential lack of yard for the dogs could be an issue. We have two dogs around 65-75lbs and one little one so some sort of yard is essential. Plus, I don't think my husband would really be comfortable in a totally urban environment. I think I may look at Glenside as well as Chestnut Hill. I have a work friend who lives in Glenside and can probably give me an idea as to whether it would work for us. I would love to be able to walk to the train station and to walk somewhere to get coffee and a newspaper on the weekend.

[RightonWalnut]

I think Chestnut Hill will be a fantastic fit for you. It has a great walkable downtown area along Germantown Ave with restaurants and shops. Also, you are close to Manayunk, which has a ton of great shops and restaurants along Main Street. Finally, Chestnut Hill is serviced by two SEPTA regional rail lines that will get you into Center City in approx. 20 minutes, if you ever feel like going down for a night or the day for restaurants, shops, museums, historical sites or whatever.

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by Summersm343

I think Chestnut Hill will be a fantastic fit for you. It has a great walkable downtown area along Germantown Ave with restaurants and shops. Also, you are close to Manayunk, which has a ton of great shops and restaurants along Main Street. Finally, Chestnut Hill is serviced by two SEPTA regional rail lines that will get you into Center City in approx. 20 minutes, if you ever feel like going down for a night or the day for restaurants, shops, museums, historical sites or whatever.

I don't think they'd be able to get a detached single family home with a yard in Chestnut Hill for their budget. Roxborough maybe (and that's probably a big maybe these days)?

[Trixie59]

Thanks for your thoughts. From looking at Trulia, yes, it appears unlikely that we would find a single within our budget in Chestnut Hill. A twin maybe, or a fixer-upper.
However, it really does seem like Chestnut Hill could be what we're looking for, especially since I would be going into West Philadelphia every day for work, not just for fun, so being close to public transit would be great. I currently drive 50 miles round trip every day. Any idea how much car insurance costs in Philadelphia vs NJ? I know NJ car insurance is high so it may not be quite as big a jump for us moving from Jersey as it would be for those coming from other places.
The biggest issue for us would probably be the distance from the shore. We are currently 50 minutes away, Chestnut Hill appears likely to be an hour and a half away.

[newmarlig]

I would stay in NJ close to the High Speed Line. You can take that to 8th and Market and transfer to the westbound EL to West Philly.

[bryson662001]

There are several "downtowns" scattered along Easton Road in Abington Township, Montgomery County, including Glenside and Roslyn Valley with small, inexpensive houses on the adjacent blocks. Each downtown has a train station and is about 30 minutes to 30th St. Part of Glenside is in Cheltenham Township and Glenside in total is quite large and busy with mom and pop type businesses. Use 19038 and 19001. You can look on the attached maps that Trulea gives you to see how close any particular property is to Easton Road. Also Zillow allows you to house hunt bu looking at a map. Drive Easton rd from Rt 309 north to the Willow Grove Mall. to see what you think. What sets this route apart is the number of smaller, less expensive single family houses within walking distance to the main st (Easton) and also the train stations. Here is a typical house. http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1048-Edge-Hill-Rd-Roslyn-PA-19001/9894007_zpid/
IMO that one may be over priced for the area. Inventory is very low and it should have sold before now.

[frankgn87]

To the op. I think you will fond out quickly that taxes are going to be just as high as the desirable pa locations too. There is no exception to this rule.. 'Ya get what you pay for"

That said, I would look at Jenkintown..