Looking for the right Main Line Community for us

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by thwanko

OP should look into the part of Narberth that is within Merion elementary school's attendance zone. It is walking distance from the school, various shops, and a SEPTA regional rail station. The parts of Merion north of Bowman Ave are also basically an extension of southern Narberth.

Good thinking (that's the part of Merion I was referring to before). Wynnewood is the same way between Montgomery Avenue, North Wynnewood Avenue, East Wynnewood Road, and Penn Road. IIRC, your kids would be zoned to Penn Valley Elementary and Welsh Valley Middle School, which require busing, but they could easily walk to Lower Merion High School.

[ThirdCultured]

Thank you for all of the great suggestions. My partner and I will be visiting later this month and exploring, and this gives us an idea of which areas to focus on.

It does not appear as if Craigslist, or any of the other online sites I am used to finding rentals on cover these areas very much. Where should I be looking?

[mls128]

Originally Posted by ThirdCultured

Thank you for all of the great suggestions. My partner and I will be visiting later this month and exploring, and this gives us an idea of which areas to focus on.

It does not appear as if Craigslist, or any of the other online sites I am used to finding rentals on cover these areas very much. Where should I be looking?

Craiglists has more apartments. If you're looking for single-family homes try going on realtor.com and searching under rentals.

[cpomp]

Originally Posted by ThirdCultured

Thank you for all of the great suggestions. My partner and I will be visiting later this month and exploring, and this gives us an idea of which areas to focus on.

It does not appear as if Craigslist, or any of the other online sites I am used to finding rentals on cover these areas very much. Where should I be looking?

Also rentals in the burbs are much fewer in quantities than in the city. Again, Realtor.com. Its more likely that you will find a small townhome or rancher to rent, as most newer or larger homes are likely for sale not rent.

You may also want to contact a local Realtor.

[rainrock]

Some great suggestions given. Wayne,Bryn Mawr,Ardmore,Narberth,Wynnewood.I would add Haverford and Merion Station possibly into the mix.


Media would be an option but rarely do houses come up for sale nearthe walkable part of town. Swarthmore usually has more houses that go up for sale but the downtown area is so small. The towns between Media and Swarthmore are terrific but autocentric.(Nether Providence,Rose Valley,Wallingford,Upper Providence,Rose Tree,Newtown Square).


Chestnut Hill is tucked away in NW Philly. Awesome neighborhood that should probably be considered. Public Schools are good up until High School where you begin to run into issues due to poor schools in the city.

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by rainrock

Chestnut Hill is tucked away in NW Philly. Awesome neighborhood that should probably be considered. Public Schools are good up until High School where you begin to run into issues due to poor schools in the city.

You can do a lot worse than Jenks (by Philly standards), but it isn't really up to snuff for people seeking "great" public schools. It's one of those schools that "should" be good, but isn't.

[JBot]

My wife and I just moved to Wynnewood back in August, and we really like the neighborhoods around here. We're right next to the shopping complex with the Giant etc. I would agree Ardmore and Narberth are very walkable. Wynnewood, well, we usually drive to Ardmore and park around suburban square, then walk around places, or just walk across E Wynnewood Rd and walk into Narberth. Though, the shopping complex with the Giant, DSW, Sabrina's, etc. are right next door to the apartment area we're in, so I guess there's that.

On weekends, we often walk into Narberth, and do lunch at the Narberth Cafe, or sometimes we'll go in to see what's playing at the local cinema there. Other times, we go into Ardmore for grub, and to shop around, check out the Lower Merion Art & Repro shop, or hang out for awhile at the corner bakery cafe or Saxby's, depending on the parking situation.

I can't speak for any of the schools since we don't have kids (and no plans for any).

[ViolaNova]

I think you would love Narberth. I know several young families who live in Narberth but are from all over the world (UK, France, Ireland, Japan...). There is an adorable walkable downtown, it's close to Philadelphia and is well served by the R5 train.

I should mention that my friends live in twin houses (shared wall) and the population density is greater in Narberth than in some of the other places mentioned and is in general less super-wealthy and more artsy.

Wayne is the biggest of the Main Line suburbs and it is very nice, but it's more single family mansions and fewer transplants. Ardmore is closer to the city, but the vibe is more shopping mall and less rootsy community in my opinion. I live in Bryn Mawr now and it's very nice too, but again, it doesn't seem to have that special community spirit I see in Narberth.

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

I think you would love Narberth. I know several young families who live in Narberth but are from all over the world (UK, France, Ireland, Japan...). There

is an adorable walkable downtown, it's close to Philadelphia and is well served by the R5 train.

I should mention that my friends live in twin houses (shared wall) and the population density is greater in Narberth than in some of the other places mentioned and is in general less

super-wealthy and more artsy.

The bolded are recent developments. Narberth was historically (and to a great extent still is) mostly multi-generational Irish and Italian, with strong blue collar traditions. Certainly, Narberth has become more diverse as walkable town centers (especially those with strong transit access) continue to rise in cachet.

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

Wayne is the biggest of the Main Line suburbs and it is very nice, but it's more single family mansions and fewer transplants.

The 19087 zip code is the most populated (including Chesterbrook, Strafford, and St. Davids), but Wayne itself is fairly small and doesn't have all that many mansions. Wayne happens to have a quite charming historic business district, whose village center forms a "T" along Wayne/Lancaster Avenues. The adjacent residential areas are mostly smaller, older homes on smaller lots, not dissimilar to Narberth.

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

Ardmore is closer to the city, but the vibe is more shopping mall and less rootsy community in my opinion.

You just described Suburban Square. The core of Ardmore, which ranges from working to conventionally middle class, is one of the "rootsiest" parts of the Main Line. Ardmore's African American community in particular dates all the way back to the Great Migration period.

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

I live in Bryn Mawr now and it's very nice too, but again, it doesn't seem to have that special community spirit I see in Narberth.

Most of the affluent, strictly residential neighborhods people associate with Bryn Mawr are in fact in Rosemont, which sports a Bryn Mawr mailing address. Bryn Mawr itself is a historic, less wealthy Irish and Italian community that hugs Lancaster Avenue. The village center isn't as hopping as Wayne, Ardmore, or Narberth, but it's getting better.