moving to comcast (Philadelphia, King of Prussia, Ardmore: 2009, apartment, renting)

[tentenequals20]

Hi,

I will be working for comcast in phily (in their headquarters 1701 John F Kennedy Blvd, Philadelphia). We know nothing abt the area and are from san francisco(actually first time going east!). We have 1 toddler. Our preference is below:

- Good & economical private schools
- We are east Indians, so a bit of Indian restaurants and shops preferred
- low crime rate area
- less than 30 minute commute is desired
- wife is in IT and she needs to find a job.
- Closer to hospitals and train.
- I may need to travel a bit, if possible easy commute to airport

thanks for any help in terms of locating an area to live

[Tone509]

In case you haven't seen it, here's a thread about Asian Indians in Philadelphia which itself references another related thread:

http://www.city-data.com/forum/phila...-presence.html

Filling out the following form will also help us whittle down the numerous options. One important factor will be your preferred housing budget... although you may find you get more for your money here than in SF, especially if you're cashing out equity.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/phila...residents.html

For now I can say that working at Comcast, you will be walking distance to a number of different downtown restaurants. I know that there are more than a few Indian establishments.

There's a fair chance that you and your wife may be able to commute into Center City for work. There's also a good chance she may go the opposite direction to office parks in NW burbs King of Prussia, Blue Bell, or Plymouth Meeting.

If you do chose a home near a commuter rail station, you will have at most one transfer to the train leading to the airport. All commuter rail trains go through downtown before coming back out on the other side. SEPTA's Regional Rail is not as dazzling as BART but it has good coverage and will get where you need to go in reasonable comfort.

While I respect your preference to send your child to a private school, you should know that many suburban areas have outstanding school districts as opposed to the relative diamonds in the rough of the School District of Philadelphia.

That's all I have for right now. Looking forward to more information.

[tentenequals20]

thanks much. here's the questionnaire completed

When are you moving? june 2009
Where are you coming from? san francisco
Why are you moving? job
Where will you be working?comcast downtown
Have you been here yet? no

Will you buy or rent? rent; later buy
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend?
$500K for a house
If renting, are you looking for an apartment, a townhouse or loft? How much can you spend?
$1.7 to 2K for a house
Do you prefer hi-rise or walk up? walkup

Are you married or single? Do you have children? married, 1 kid
Do you prefer public or private schools? private
Do you have pets? no
Do you want or need a yard? yes
Are you keeping a car? yes
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet? a bit of both!

What do you want to be closest to?
Work - priority #2
Shopping - priority #4
Basic services (supermarket, drugstore, etc.) - priority #3
Nightlife - priority #5
Train or subway stations - priority #1

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood? yes, indian restaurants would be good

Coke or Pepsi? diet coke!!

tax preference : any way to not pay wage tax in phily?

[ooodsie]

I would maybe check the main line area (Ardmore, etc) or possibly even South Jersey near the train line to the city. Maybe Collingswood, Haddon Heights..

[orrmobl]

I would suggest somewhere on the Main Line which runs from Narberth through Lower Merion, Ardmore, Wynnewood, Bala Cynwyd, Bryn Mawr, Villanova, Rosemont, Radnor, Wayne, Devon, Paoli, Berwyn, Malvern (at least parts of it are in the T/E school district).

Not sure where the best Indian is but I know there is a restaurant in King of Prussia and am sure there area few places downtown and probably along the Main Line as well.

The Lower Merion (10th or so in state), Radnor (6th or so in state) and Tredyffrin Easttown (2nd in state, top 100 HS in country) school districts are all so good, I would really question the need for private school, but if that is your preference, the Main Line has scads of them.

The IT corridor is basically Philly and then businesses along Route 202 from Malvern up to King of Prussia. There are also a number of pharma companies up Route 422 towards Collegeville, but even Wyeth has its data center in Malvern. Just depends how much of a commute you both want.

The Main Line has the R5 regional rail train running right through it and most places are about 30 minute drive to the airport.

The Main Line is the wealthiest area around here but coming from San Francisco, the cost of living is comparable - just bear in mind you will be buying an older home (they're all pretty much older), probably 3 bedrooms, half acre or less of land.

You cut the city wage tax in half by not living in the city, but if you don't mind paying for that and private schools, the city may be the best place for your family if less commute time and proximity to a choice of Indian restaurants is paramount. You could also check out South Jersey (Cherry Hill, Haddon Heights, recently revitalized liberal, gay friendly Collingswood) to avoid the city wage altogether and still have a decent commute to work (PATCO high speed line) and the airport. I would imagine Cherry Hill has some good Indian places as well.

[tentenequals20]

thanks much, everyone!
I'll check out mainline or south jersey.

[rosecitywanderer]

For what it's worth, I spent two years in Malvern. Beautiful scenery out that way, close to the SEPTA R5 line into Center City Philadelphia and a great place to raise a child. I hope this helps you out.

[kyle19125]

I too would recommend Collingswood, NJ. It's family friendly, yet liberal/progressive, has a low crime rate and is continuing to strengthen property values. There are plenty of store/services nearby and the commute to Center City Philadelphia is quick (about 15 minutes) thanks to the PATCO trains. The school district is top notch also. The nearby Cherry Hill area has a decent sized East Indian community present and there are plenty in Philadelphia which is very close. I would recommend it over the suburban Pennsylvania towns mentioned by others, because the commute time is much more extensive and they have far less an urban/progressive feel than what you're used to from living in San Francisco/Bay Area. Good luck!



http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...CpJYrMM9fd_cMP

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...CpJYrMM9fd_cMP

[bryson662001]

Since you are prepared to use a private school you have the option of living in a highrise apartment or townhouse in the center of the city and walking to work. Downtown Philly is very much like downtown SF. There are many stores, resturants, hotels, museums etc and very crowded and busy but with quieter residential enclaves mixed in. If you want a suburban lifestyle there are thousands of nice towns around the city with good public schools, rail access into the city and good shopping and other conveniences. Get the map out and study it. Use Web browser and Live Maps are incompatible for birdseye views of different neighborhoods. (yea I know what it says but click on it anyway, it works)