Should I buy in Norristown? (Chester, West Chester: crime, townhome, neighborhoods)

[Phirstimer]

My husband and I have been looking to buy a townhome for a while and have found some great new construction in Norristown - for way less than anywhere else. I've read a lot about the area and that there are "good" and "bad" parts but want to be sure the "good" parts are at least to the point where I won't be afraid to walk my dog at night. We're looking at a few on Thomas Street and Cedar Lane (btw. Tremont and New Hope). Anyone living in the area have some honest feedback? Have you ever had any issues?? Any and all feedback is appreciated!

[sbhubbell]

Well, I wouldn't buy in Norristown personally. For me it's all about resale value and Norristown has a stigma, mainly because of the gang/crime issues and school district sucking. Yes there are some quite lovely parts of Norristown, but I would (and did) personally choose a different area. My husband's office was in East Norriton and I grew up going to a private school with lots of friends who lived in Norristown, so that's my experience.

[lititzman2003]

I agree with sbhubbell. The borough of Norristown has low resale value and it's not a place I feel safe in. East and West Norriton are great family locations. Good luck with the house hunting

[orrmobl]

Anything within that school district is crapola if you ask me...especially in the current market where you can get homes much more cheaply. If it had to be in the district, I would go with East Norriton first, then West Norriton, not Norristown at all...but honestly you shouldn't buy in that school district at all...have you checked out areas like East Caln/Fallowfield/Coatesville? You can get screaming deals out here as well, more land, more house, a slightly less sucky school district which is supposedly improving over time...

[Phirstimer]

Thanks all for your opinions. Norristown does kind of scare me but we found such great new places that I was trying to convince myself that its just getting a bad rap. We both work in the city - I take Septa and he drives to Temple so we want to stay within a reasonable distance of center city. Further into the burbs isn't really an option. I'll look at the East Norriton area to see what's available there. If anyone else has an opinion on Norristown/new construction please share! thx!

[solibs]

I think the fear of Norristown is overblown. Sure, it's worse than the suburbs around it but from what everyone says about it you'd think you were talking about North Philly. In reality it's only slightly worse than a place like West Chester.

I'm assuming this new construction is near one of the train stations? (he works at Temple but he drives? The R6 stops at Temple too!) If so then you'll have better resale. But really, i wouldn't worry too much about it. We've just seen what happens when values appreciate too quickly. I think the next decade is going to be very slow growth if at all.

[Phirstimer]

Yes the new places we were looking at are about a half mile from the norristown transportation center. Basically if you are on ridge avenue coming from conshohocken, they are several blocks back to your right just after you get into Norristown which might be a bit outside of the rougher downtown area...but I still feel like there is the stigma of "norristown" regardless of where it's located.

Still weighing our options but it's good to hear people's perspective that are more familiar with the area than we are. Trying to take advantage of this buyers market!

My husband has a lot to park in at Temple so it's actually better than getting a pass

[solibs]

I'm not all that familiar with Norristown. My old job had me going to the county complex downtown once a month for about 3 years. I always took the train up there and if the weather was nice and I had the better part of an hour before my train left I would walk around. I've also driven around and it's my impression that the neighborhoods to the north and west of downtown are much nicer compared to those on the eastern end of town.

Also, most of Norristown is within a half-mile of one of the train stations. You really want to be within a 5-minute walk of the station. That's what sells (and resells)a house in a place like Norristown.

[Ohiogirl81]

I live in Norristown's North End (right behind the movie studio that isn't, LOL), about a 10-minute walk from the new construction you're talking about. Anywhere on the fringes of Norristown, east, west or north, like the area you're considering, is reasonably safe and there's no reason to worry beyond any normal precautions about walking your dog at night.

There are a lot of problems in Norristown, there's no sense denying it or donning rose-colored glasses. Sometimes safety seems to be the least of Norristown's problems; there are always the floundering school system, high taxes and corrupt and/or do-nothing city government to worry about. *sigh*

But there are some good neighborhoods and some good people living here. Have you visited the neighborhood yet? Hang around for awhile and get a feel for it and see what you think. Drive by or walk around at different times of the day and week, and make sure you like the area and are comfortable with it.

Good luck and don't hesitate to ask if you have more questions.

[Phirstimer]

Thanks Ohiogirl, that was really helpful. We've been around the neighborhood a bit but only during the day so I would need to do a comfort check by walking/driving around at other times. Really my biggest concern is safety, don't need to worry about the school districts yet and don't plan on it while I'm living there.

I'll definitely keep you in mind for more neighborhood perspective if we decide to go ahead w/ it.