Moving to West Chester (New York, Rye: for sale, townhouses, neighborhood)

[flowergarden]

We recently relocated from Pa to Suffolk County, NY. It was an adjustment, but we found a lovely home and a great neighborhood. However, we are now moving again to West Chester. I have high school age and middle school age children. I currenlty work part time, but will probably not work for a while after we move. My husband does not need to commute into the city; he will work in Ardsley. We came from a nationally top ranked school district in Pa and miss the cutting edge educational opportunities we had in Pa here in Long Island.

We are going to try and find a balance between awesome school and liveable home. We have 3 kids and we are not interested in spending the next ten years renovating a home. Been there, done that. It was a great experience, but now we'd like to focus on our family (we only have them home for a few more years!), not renovating our home.

Our price range is anywhere between $580K and $650K. Pretty low for Westchester, I know, but we'd like to be able to enjoy our life and not fret over the mortgage. I looked at Chappaqua, Scarsdale, Edgewood and Rye Brook. We'd be downgrading our current size home and condition to live in these areas.

Can anyone describe what the difference between these areas is for a new family? Any other suggestions? We're looking for a place where the kids are active and play, and the parents are involved and also have time to socialize, not just work. Thanks in advance for your help!

[Viralmd]

Just so you know: West Chester is in Pennsylvania. Westchester is in New York.

There are various opinions re: the various areas. There are those who say that Chappaqua has the superior schools, while others say it's Scarsdale. It's a matter of opinion. None of the areas you named will be bad.

But, yes, that's not much money for a home in those areas.

[flowergarden]

Jet lag setting in - sorry about the Westchester slip.

I think both school districts would be great for my kids, but now I'm looking for more "lifestyle" detail. I'd like my kids to have friends that go over to each others homes and do things together. That requires parents who are home to supervise. I want my kids to have a local pool to meet friends, and not live in an area where all of their friends are at camp all summer long. I want some place that is friendly, where people talk to their neighbors and are interested in having adult friends too! Which of the areas are more condusive that kind of lifestyle. We want to have kids who study hard and do well, but we also want to have some fun too!

[jyyanks]

Why not consider Ardsley? I would look for house with Ardsley Schools and Greenburgh rec so that you can use the Greenburgh pool (can't use the Greenburgh pool unless you are in the Greenburgh section of Ardsley schools). Everyone congregates there over the summer, its almost like a summer meeting place. Ardsley schools are nationally ranked,the people are friendly and they socialize with each other - I just went to a BBQ over the weekend - my DD's friends parents had a bunch of families over. A lot of moms actually don't work, so if you are like me (I work full time), you almost feel left out. With your husband working in the area, it would be a very easy commute. Besides, now that prices have gone down, you should be able to find some homes in your price range which may be harder in some of the other areas listed above. Also note that the areas you listed above may have a lot of pretentious people because they are more affluent. Not saying that EVERYONE is pretentious, just saying you may find more pretentious people in those areas than in others. Good Luck.

[flowergarden]

Thanks for the information. Sounds like a nice place, and what we were looking for. I was hoping for a "walkable" downtown area b/c I have two teenagers and it would be nice for them to go someplace on a bike or walking. I gues you can't have everything. I know Ardsley is considered a good school, but I couldn't find them on either the Newsweek list or the US World and News Report list.

I think it's very strange that in most of the US and the world for that matter, we'd be considered upper middle class, yet in Westchester, we'll be one of the "have nots". I guess that will take some getting used to!

[havoc315]

There aren't many extensive walkable downtowns in Westchester, depending on your definition of the term. There are small walkable commercial districts near many of the train stations, but they are not usually walkable from most people's homes.
Among the high tier school districts that would suit your needs, Pleasantville and Croton on Hudson may fit. Pleasantville is truly a walking village -- they don't even have school buses. It has a fairly nice downtown, with restaurants, the Jacob Burns Center for film. Your budget though will be tight for a decent house in Pleasantville.
Going a bit further north to Croton, the downtown does not have the greatest commercial center. But if you stick to the village area, it is very walkable to neighbors, parks. And you can probably find a fairly nice house in your budget.
Yes, if I were you, I would not exclude Chappaqua, Briarcliff, Scarsdale, Edgemont, Ardsley, Blind Brook (Rye Brook), Larchmont, and a few other areas.
But you may want to consider townhouses in your budget.
Less maintenance, some amenities, more value within your budget.

Good luck.

[flowergarden]

Thanks for the info havoc315. I'll look into the Pleaseantvill and Croton too. I'm sure we'll find something that will create a good balance between school quality and home value. I think a townhouse would not be a good fit for us, quite literally. We are moving from a 3100 sq ft, 11 year old home with a full basement and a pool. I think we'll need a house. Thanks for your suggestions.

[havoc315]

Yes, a townhouse can be a difficult downsize... but in your budget, many of the houses will be smaller than townhouses. The townhouses will tend to be a bit newer (20 years old, instead of 30-40+ years old), more modern, with amenities such as pools, tennis courts, etc. Some townhouses do have full basements as well.

You will likely be downsizing significantly, no matter where you pick. If I were in your shoes.... I'd put together a list of all the acceptable school districts, and then, within that list, I would put the quality of the house first and foremost. In the more southern and central Westchester towns (Ardsley, Irvington, Scarsdale, Edgemont, Pleasantville, Chappaqua, Rye Brook), you will only find a small handful of homes within your budget in each town. While the towns do differ, most of the differences are pretty nuanced. Going north, such as Croton, Katonah, Somers, Yorktown, you will find more choices within your budget.

[bmwguydc]

Katonah can be tough at that price point, unless you're comfortable with a smaller home, since you need to be in Katonah-Lewisboro district for the schools. Some Katonah addresses are actually in Somers, which comes into play when you need a train station permit, since it's easier for a town resident, and less expensive, and the train is in Katonah.

Pelham might not be bad to consider as well, though the price point is more for an attached home, though the commute is easy, schools are good, and it's close to extensive parkland.

[nonny]

There are definitely places for sale in Pelham that would suit your budget and requirements.