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We own a coop 80% paid for (can be sold for 250-275K easily even in this market) and over 100K in cash, plus additional financial resources (100K should be no problem, since I soloed our first coop before I met my wife, with no down payment assistance from my parents) from both of our parents if possible. We Asians save a lot, so we put more in the bank at month end than people with 1.5x our income
My daughter will be born next month, this is thinking way ahead so to speak. By the time we actually make an offer in 1-2 years, I expect my coop to be worth around 200K, the Scarsdale coops we are looking for should be around 400K.
I also expect to increase my income by 10% by then, my wife should also be out of maternity and working which should bring us over 150K (minus baby sitter / day care, of course, but she should make more than the cost of baby sitter easily with her Master's from one of the top 100 schools worldwide).
I went to Brooklyn Tech myself so I am familiar with that process. The elementary school in my current zip code is rated 7 of 10, so we do have a backup plan if I lose my job.
One other question, anyone know what were the prices of 2 Bed / 2 Bath Chateaux coops in 2002/2003? I expect the market to roll back to these prices by the time we make the move . . .
Easily is all relatively speaking. 250K is slashing prices 10% below a comparable listing sold last month or two, and I don't expect to pay a full 500K for the coops in question either.
All in all it should work out, as in if I sell my apartment for less, I should be about to upsize for less as well . . .
I don't think it's a bad idea at all...and from what you say, your income will be pretty decent when your wife starts working again.
Why don't you consider Edgemont too? Also amazing top-notch schools w condos/coops available. I believe possibly more Asians (but am not sure if you compare it with Edgewood school alone). I think anyone would agree it's veeeery comparable.
You may be able to get slightly more for your $$$.
Looks like paying 500k for a coop plus 1200$ maintenance is a lot if you are just interested in just the school district. Does the 1200 include your taxes as well?
Look at Rye Brook ( rated better than Scarsdale High by US news rankings for High schools), and maybe places in Long Island ( Jericho, Syosset, Plainview etc), where you can get a house for your budget, similar quality in schools and similar commute to NYC.
That US News ranking is kind of retarded, Scarsdale was rated behind Yonkers . . . I challenge whoever put together that list sending his own kids to Yonkers.
1200 does include taxes which is not bad at all. And like I said I think I can get mine for 450K (or less) by the time it is all said and done.
I didn't see anything in Edgemont close to train station, any suggestions? Everything is at least 20 minute walk. I would love to be in Edgemont but I don't want to deal with driving to the train station and finding parking.
Jericho, Syosset, Plainview are not "similar" commutes, they are all around 90 minutes. Vs 1 hour for Scarsdale (45 minutes if you catch express).
I did see Yonkers as being ranked higher, and I do not know why. I heard that Yonkers high school had a tremendous improvement in test scores, making them on par with the best in the country, but I do not know enough to comment.
I live in Jericho and the train is a 45 minutes express to Penn Station from the nearest train station (Hicksville). Door-to-door depends on where you live. I have lived in white plains and mineola before, and the commute to the city with Metro-North and LIRR was comparable ( about 40 minutes for both), though grand central is much nicer than Penn station. I have family in Rye Brook and friends in Scarsdale, so just my two cents here.
Yonkers HS is a magnet school that runs the International Baccalaureate degree program, complete with uniforms, longer school day, etc. It's much more akin to a charter school than a regular public school. It ranks higher because of the number of students in AP, which is a key component of the IB, and being a magnet does not compare to a neighborhood school. It's not the only HS in Yonkers, either, so one needs to look at the rest of the pack for a more accurate comparison between other towns/cities/villages in Westchester.
When the score is say 1150 vs 1200 we can make a case about it is not all about the test scores, but none of the Yonker scores are above 1000 . . . that is pretty awful. And Scarsdale is the best in county.
Yonkers may be better than Scarsdale on a "$ for $" basis, taking poverty level into consideration. But that is just special Olympic rules. I look at what matters. The hypocrite editors won't ever send their own children into such a "vibrant and diversified" school.
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