Westchester County vs. Fairfield County, Ct. (White Plains, Rye: real estate, houses, best schools)

[bemn]

All............seeking some input and opinions. We may be relocating soon to the NY area. Hubbie will work in NYC (has clients mostly there). I don't work, stay home mostly and involved with my boys. Three boys.....currently 3rd grade, 6th grade, 7th grade.....in my extensive research on the areas (including NJ which I've pretty much excluded), I'm particularly drawn to upper parts of Westchester County....Katonah/Lewisboro, Yorktown, North or South Salem, Bedfor.....good schools, nice houses with nice lot sizes, near enough to train lines. In Ct., Fairfield County, I really like Ridgefield, Redding, Easton, Fairfield (although I know it's more congested), Wilton, Westport and Weston(the three "W"s are a little more expensive for the type of house we want)......we really want 4/5 bedrooms, 3,500 plus sq.feet, and at least 1 acre for the amount of money we'll likely be spending.....$1,000,000 plus.

My hubbie and boys are Catholic so having a nice church/parish nearby is important (I'm Baptist, but call myself a Baptist-Catholic because I'm involved with both). I really don't want to sit in tons of traffic doing normal, everyday things, especially during the weekends. Living in Northern Virginia, we're used to some traffic issues and know how to avoid the "bad" times.....sports activities are important for the boys.....particularly my middle son who currently plays travel/select soccer, but is thinking of switching to football. The youngest plays soccer, they all like basketball, some lacrosse and we're all into skiing or snowboarding. I know some areas have more to offer in terms of activities/youth organizations for kids so I'm hoping someone can give me input here as well.

Why/why not would you choose to live in NY, Westchester County in these area over the Ct. areas I listed? I really appreciate any advice, opinions, etc.

[MayMove]

Though I can't answer your questions. Your post was very helpful. We are considering a move.

Was wondering if there are train lines that travel from CT to College Point, NY?

[bemn]

MAYMOVE,....I don't even know where that is!!! BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTT, go on yahoo, type in country living associates and real estate, then go to any of there town profiles and you'll get a link to Metro North......that will take you to the train pages, go to map, then you can see.....you may want to start with East of Hudson line, then if not seeing it go to West of Hudson....hope this helps!!!

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by MayMove

Though I can't answer your questions. Your post was very helpful. We are considering a move.

Was wondering if there are train lines that travel from CT to College Point, NY?

Why do you need to go to College Point???

Anyway, there are no trains into College Point. The LIRR and the 7 train stop at Main St. in Flushing. I think you can then get a bus up College Pt. Blvd. Should only be about 5 minutes or so, but I'm not sure.

From CT, you would have to go to Grand Central on the Metro North, get off and head to the 7 train. Going to the LIRR would be even more of a pain. It's not a nice trip.

You could drive and it would take about 25-30 min with little traffic (CP to Greenwich). Toll at the Whitestone Bridge of $4 each way, I think.

[dzona]

I'm close to in the same boat and would love to hear the responses! Thanks

[emikes88]

I live in Katonah and have for my whole life. Schools are great in Katonah/Lewisboro. Town is great, really cute little shops. Other shopping is close by in Mt. Kisco and 20 minute drives to Danbury, Ct or White Plains for the malls. Katonah and Bedford are great central locations to highways. Metronorth railroad runs right out of the town of Katonah. South Salem is in the Katonah/Lewisboro district as well, a little more of a woodsy area if thats what you are looking for. Bedford schools are great as well. The schools are a little more diverse. I would have to say that all the towns you are looking at are great choices. I am biased towards Katonah/Bedford area of course. Good luck with your decision.

[house shopping]

uhhhhh. If you don't want any traffic... stayout of NY. Weekends are a killer and especially now. I stay away from malls and stores as even getting a parking spot can be a major challenge. Also the areas that you mention will be a long commute depending on where in NYC he has to travel to. If you have 1 mill go to south westcester where the commute will be 1/2 hour or less. even better choice will be to live in the city. seems like a better choice if you have the money to spend.

[rubygreta]

Originally Posted by house shopping

uhhhhh. If you don't want any traffic... stayout of NY. Weekends are a killer and especially now. I stay away from malls and stores as even getting a parking spot can be a major challenge. Also the areas that you mention will be a long commute depending on where in NYC he has to travel to. If you have 1 mill go to south westcester where the commute will be 1/2 hour or less. even better choice will be to live in the city. seems like a better choice if you have the money to spend.

The beauty of NYC is you can take a train to get there. So if you want to go on the weekends, you don't have to worry about parking in Manhattan.

[house shopping]

I wasn't refering to NYC in terms of parking... I was refering to westchester. In NYC all you need is $35-$45 fo parking and you are cool. Have you tried going to the malls in westchester lately?

Train BTW is only good within a reasonable distance if you need to commute 5 days a week.

[Tallybalt]

Granted, the charms of upper Westchester and CT are many and varied. Rolling countryside with pretty tree lined lanes, and attractive village centers. Larger houses on larger lots beckons.

But you will spend a lot of time driving and your husband will have a long commute to anywhere in the city. My brother in law commutes from Chappaqua to mid-town, and it is a hour each way.

You might want to take a look at some of the south Westchester towns such as Larchmont, Rye, Scarsdale and Bronxville. They have some of the best schools in Westchester, handsome housing stocks, thriving parishes, bustling town centers with shops and restaurants, and a much, much, quicker commute to NYC. You will probably have to pay more per SF for a house, but the tradeoff will be a shorter commute (and more time with the family).