Relocation to philly suburbs (Lancaster, Westmont: mortgage, buying a house, buying)

[kar1204]

We are relocating to Philly area from Boston and looking at 3 areas; Moorestown or Haddonfield, Newtown, Wayne. We are looking to be in older home, some work ok, walking distance to downtown, good schools, family friendly health club/gym and good montessori school (pre-school), I know this is a big list, please share comments about any or all of the listed towns or anywhere else, we do not want to be more than 20-30 min from downtown. Thank You!!!

[FindingZen]

I don't know a whole lot of details about all of those places but I can say that a door-to-door commute from Newtown (by car) and Wayne (by train) to Center City (aka downtown) would be closer to 45 minutes. All four towns should have most if not all of the amenities you are seeking. Wayne's downtown is very popular; I haven't been to any of the others. What is your preferred price range?

[JasmineFlower]

Agree on commutes. Newtown isn't going to be possible under 45 minutes and there's no train. Wayne is only close to 30 minutes in non-rush hour times and even then, no guarantee. If you catch an express train, Wayne is about 30 minutes, otherwise, its the going to be more like the 45 mentioned above. Haddonfield and Moorestown are two different areas. Moorestown is further out from the city than Haddonfield. You could also look into Collingswood and Westmont in NJ and look into Narberth in PA.

[kimrocktherealtor]

I think Haddonfield is your best bet in terms of walkable downtown, close to center city Phila, etc. Newtown would be my 2nd choice for you, but you would have to drive 10 min to the train to the city, and you'd be looking at approx 35 min drivetime to downtown Phila.

[bigh110]

If you are buying a house beware of the property taxes in Haddonfield, NJ! my good friend lives there and pays $7900 a year in taxes on a modest 3bd 1 bath house. otherwise a real nice town! In my opinion, Wayne would be the closet comute to CC

[templeu]

Originally Posted by bigh110

Wayne would be the closet comute to CC

Wayne to CC actually isn't all the seamless. You'd likely rely on the Schuylkill (I-76)...which is usually a mess. Haddonfield is a breeze of a commute to CC, about 20-25 minutes and the traffic is not bad at all.

Wayne is a nice little town. My problem with is it is the traffic is incessant - bumper to bumper along Lancaster during peak hours (and sometimes non-peak). And the drive to the next town to give you more variety in restaurants is probably about 15 minutes or so.

When you take into account the tax rate in Haddonfield / Haddon Township with the prices in Wayne (super high for a comparable place) - your monthly mortgage about evens out. That said, they are both really nice places.

[PhillyViaBoston]

There's a good chance each of the towns you listed meet your criteria of "older home, walking distance to downtown, good schools, health club/gym and montessori school," though I couldn't provide a specific list for each one.

Have you had a chance to visit each town? They all have similarities, but somehow each feel different to me when walking through the towns. Anyway...

For proximity to Philly, Haddonfield is probably the best and gives you the option of taking the train (PATCO) or driving to Center City. PATCO Port Authority Transit Corporation - Haddonfield Station That said, Haddonfield probably also gives you the least value for your money given the high property taxes in New Jersey.

Moorestown does have a cute downtown (with older homes), but the town has really expanded in the past 5 or 7 years, with new construction popping up everywhere. I've heard complaints from residents that the public schools, while once considered tops in the states, are having trouble keeping up with the population growth. That may be something you want to look into further if Montessori is not your long-term plan.

Wayne is certainly a beautiful and admired community. The SEPTA Paoli/Thorndale Line line (formerly called the R5, and equivalent to Boston's MBTA commuter rail) is popular with commuters and would have you in Center City in 35 minutes. Depending on the time of day, driving could take considerably longer since route 76 often resembles a parking lot (worse than 128 at rush hour).

Newtown is beautiful but has a more suburban feel than the others. A commute to center city would be the longest from here (55+ minutes on the SEPTA West Trenton line from Yardley station), but the nice land may make up for that! It's also 45 or so minutes closer to drive to Boston in case that's important.

On an urban/proximity-to-the-city scale, I'd say Haddonfield is Arlington (if the red line extended there), Moorestown is Belmont, Wayne is Winchester and Newtown is Concord.

Good luck!

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by templeu

Wayne to CC actually isn't all the seamless. You'd likely rely on the Schuylkill (I-76)...which is usually a mess. Haddonfield is a breeze of a commute to CC, about 20-25 minutes and the traffic is not bad at all.

Wayne is a nice little town.My problem with is it is the traffic is incessant - bumper to bumper along Lancaster during peak hours (and sometimes non-peak). And the drive to the next town to give you more variety in restaurants is probably about 15 minutes or so.

That assumes a driving commute. Both Wayne and Haddonfield have easy rail access to Center City on SEPTA and PATCO, respectively. There's absolutely no need to drive (especially on the Schuylkill Expressway, the indisputable BANE of all highways) to Philly when rail stations are as accessible as in those two towns.

[PeeAye Native]

Originally Posted by Duderino

That assumes a driving commute. Both Wayne and Haddonfield have easy rail access to Center City on SEPTA and PATCO, respectively. There's absolutely no need to drive (especially on the Schuylkill Expressway, the indisputable BANE of all highways) to Philly when rail stations are as accessible as in those two towns.

I agree. If you live in Wayne, there''s no reason you should be driving into the city, use the trains.

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by templeu

Wayne is a nice little town. My problem with is it is the traffic is incessant - bumper to bumper along Lancaster during peak hours (and sometimes non-peak).

Only in the wee hours is the traffic along Lancaster Avenue not a PITA.