Relocation questions: Cities/Neighborhoods? (Philadelphia, York: house, employment, to buy)

[ElphinKnight]

I'm sure you all are tired of relocating people asking the same sorts of questions. I tried to read other posts and get an idea but I'm not feeling like other people want what my wife and I want, and I'm getting mentally exhausted trying to assemble all this. So, here we go, I'm going to be another one of those people.

In 1999 I was in the Philly area for 2 weeks, near West Chester. I loved WC, but I think it may also be a little far out from the city if we were to move to the area. We are early/mid-30s, looking to have children in the next 2-3 years, and good for around $70-90,000/yr in income (potentially more) in a major metro area. She is in health care and I split between higher education and broadcast media.

We're looking at Philadelphia as a place to relocate to once she finishes up an employment contract she has here in SC (moving to SC has been a major mistake, but that's another story). If anyone could suggest some cities/neighborhoods, we would be very grateful. We like areas with their own character, local shops and restaurants. We hate sprawl and strip malls. When we're ready to buy a home, we'll want a smaller home (1400-1700 sq ft), preferably not a new construction, under $300k if that's reasonable. We'd like to live as close in to Philly as possible - perhaps even in it - but want safe, family-friendly neighborhoods and above-average schools. Public transit is a huge plus for us and we'd make use of it as much as we could. We're the type that shop at Trader Joe's and bring our own cloth bags. We're generally pretty anti-consumerist so we don't care about trendy shopping or "keeping up with the Joneses." Other big positives: walkable, farmers markets, dog-friendly parks, local bakeries, a decent coffee shop.

So, does this sound like anything we could find in the Philadelphia area? What parts?

[sbhubbell]

Well, part of what your looking for might fit with the Media or Wallingford Swathmore areas. Excellent schools, close to the city, downtown charm, somewhat walkable. I grew up in Media and loved it there.

Otherwise I might recommend Phoenixville, but it might be a bit farther out for you. It has one of the best farmers markets in greater Philly, and now lots of great coffee shops, bakeries, etc. We lived in Mont Clare, which was a short walk across the river to Phoenixville but had better schools overall than Pville...that was great

[rainrock]

Another vote for Media/Swarthmore/Nether Providence area. Sounds like the best fit for what you are looking for although it may be a challenge finding the exact house you are looking for in the $200's. Ridley Park has a similar small town feel and is more affordable than Media/Swarthmore.

[solibs]

I would third the Media/Swarthmore area. Phoenixville is also a cool town but the transit is not so good. And here's the list of towns that I repeat because I think they're solid places - Ambler, Narberth, Bryn Mawr, Ardmore, Drexel Hill, Jenkintown, Glenside, Abington.

In the city, Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy east or west as well as Germantown as long as you stay west of Germantown Ave. Andorra and Roxborough are also worth looking into. The express bus service in Andorra boggles my mind sometimes. If you want to be able to walk to the Whole Foods or Trader Joe's check out Passyunk Square in South Philadelphia and neighboring East Passyunk Crossing. Lots, and I mean lots of young families are moving there now as Bella Vista and Queen Village have gotten way too expensive. The K-4 is ok but you'll have to get on the waiting list for the charter school as soon as your kids are born b/c as of right now the upper grades aren't that great. There's also a reputable catholic school (k-8) in the neighborhood and if we're still living in the country that's probably where my kids will go.

If I had to give you a short-list it would probably be Mt. Airy, Narberth and Collingswood in New Jersey. They're all full of people who would describe their housing preferences just as you did. Collingswood might be the cheapest of the three as well as the closest to Center City (and the best rail service) Neighboring Oaklyn is much the same but the train station is in Collingswood. Westmont, NJ is also worth checking out but I would probably put Media ahead of it.

The Regional Planning Commission also just put this out - basically to help people like yourself. Explore Classic Towns | Classic Towns of Greater Philadelphia

[ElphinKnight]

Thank you tremendously. This is all very helpful. The Classic Towns site is really excellent and I'll have to explore that further. Chestnut Hill/Mt.Airy really looks great too, and I've just started looking around (Google Street View is sweet!). I appreciate any other suggestions.

[maestro]

Originally Posted by sbhubbell

Well, part of what your looking for might fit with the Media or Wallingford Swathmore areas. Excellent schools, close to the city, downtown charm, somewhat walkable. I grew up in Media and loved it there.

Otherwise I might recommend Phoenixville, but it might be a bit farther out for you. It has one of the best farmers markets in greater Philly, and now lots of great coffee shops, bakeries, etc. We lived in Mont Clare, which was a short walk across the river to Phoenixville but had better schools overall than Pville...that was great

What school district is Mont Clare in?

[maestro]

Originally Posted by ElphinKnight

I'm sure you all are tired of relocating people asking the same sorts of questions. I tried to read other posts and get an idea but I'm not feeling like other people want what my wife and I want, and I'm getting mentally exhausted trying to assemble all this. So, here we go, I'm going to be another one of those people.

In 1999 I was in the Philly area for 2 weeks, near West Chester. I loved WC, but I think it may also be a little far out from the city if we were to move to the area. We are early/mid-30s, looking to have children in the next 2-3 years, and good for around $70-90,000/yr in income (potentially more) in a major metro area. She is in health care and I split between higher education and broadcast media.

We're looking at Philadelphia as a place to relocate to once she finishes up an employment contract she has here in SC (moving to SC has been a major mistake, but that's another story). If anyone could suggest some cities/neighborhoods, we would be very grateful. We like areas with their own character, local shops and restaurants. We hate sprawl and strip malls. When we're ready to buy a home, we'll want a smaller home (1400-1700 sq ft), preferably not a new construction, under $300k if that's reasonable. We'd like to live as close in to Philly as possible - perhaps even in it - but want safe, family-friendly neighborhoods and above-average schools. Public transit is a huge plus for us and we'd make use of it as much as we could. We're the type that shop at Trader Joe's and bring our own cloth bags. We're generally pretty anti-consumerist so we don't care about trendy shopping or "keeping up with the Joneses." Other big positives: walkable, farmers markets, dog-friendly parks, local bakeries, a decent coffee shop.

So, does this sound like anything we could find in the Philadelphia area? What parts?

my situation was somewhat similar (I'm around the same age, my budget is about the same, etc). We went with Phoenixville. It is a bit farther out as some posters have noted, but the neighborhood is decent, the Bridge St. restaurant/shop district is cool, and the housing is reasonably priced (though there are some more sketchy areas so you need to do your research).

As far as distance to downtown, I drove down to Malvern and it was a 35 minute train ride to Suburban Station. Not bad at all.

[sbhubbell]

maestro, Mont Clare is in Spring-Ford school district. Some people debate which school districts in that area are better than others, but I found that people generally preferred Spring-Ford over Phoenixville. Pville undergoing a lot of demographic change though (for the good!) so the schools may really improve in the near future. They aren't "bad" schools there anyway! Yeah I looooooved living within walking distance of downtown Phoenixville, so much exciting stuff going on there in recent days. All the street festivals and concerts, new shops, bars and restaurants...it's a major renaissance there!

By the way, from Mont Clare/Phoenixville we used to drive to church in Wayne (mainline) and on Sunday morning it took us no more than 15-20 minutes. There were occasions (rare) when I could be in downtown Philly in 30ish minutes! I loved living close to the King of Prussia mall but not in the middle of that traffic mess, and now they built those awesome outlets in Limerick and that new Providence Town Center at 422 and 29....it's amazing. (Can you tell I'm a fan of retail?) Taxes are also lower in Mont Clare/Upper Providence because of the big pharmaceutical R&D centers.

[juniperbleu]

I agree with the suggestions for Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy, Jenkintown, Glenside, or Abington. Elkins Park and Melrose Park are also two small neighborhoods in Cheltenham (between Jenkintown and the city border) that are also very nice. All of these areas have train stations (~20 minutes to Center City). There's a Trader Joe's in Jenkintown, as well as a Whole Foods a block away. There's not much new construction in that area, so whether you liked it or not you'd probably end up in an older house anyway. Since these 'burbs are a little older, they're not very sprawl-y and have cute little areas of their own with shops and local non-chain restaurants.

If you're using street view, all of these areas are covered. Most retail and traffic is on Old York Road (rt. 611). For the "small-town" type feel with shops, etc., look near Keswick Ave & Mt. Carmel Ave in Glenside, Old York & West Avenue in Jenkintown, the Elkins Park train station in (where else) Elkins Park, or Germantown Avenue in Chestnut Hill. There are other areas too, these are just what I'm most familiar with.