Briarcliff Manor (Scarsdale, Chappaqua, Hastings: townhouses, to buy, school districts)

[flowergarden]

We are looking at different areas in Westchester. Schools are a priority. We are looking at the lower end of the spectrum in cost, around 700K. So far we like:

1) Chappaqua - but the taxes are high and the # of house in our price range is low.

2) Armonk - can find a house and the taxes are lower, but a longer commute than some of the western towns of Westchester.

3) Scardale - good commute and suprisingly lower taxes than most of the other "high achieveing" school districts.

4) Edgemont - like the school size and the lower stress, but the taxes are high.

5) Pleasantville - no buses and I don't want to be the bus....! but housing is nice and taxes are high, but not as high as Chappaqua.

Which leads us to Briarcliff Manor. Housing is cheaper. Schools not on par with Scarsdale and Chappaqua, but seems like a very strong district. Except for the # of kids in science classes (26 versus 19 to 22 in other areas).

Can anyone give us some feed back on this community? Is it similar to the other areas and in what way. How is it different? Thank you!

[mfenimore]

Schools are small and very good in Briarcliff but the taxes are high. Taxes in Chappaqua are actually lower. But I do like it here. There is a nice mix of housing from as high as $2 million to as low as 500k for a small fixer upper. Commute is great to NYC-42 min on Metro North. Housing inventory is very scarce though-we have been looking to buy up and there is realy not much out there at all. I feel Chappaqua has much more in terms of inventory. Community is nice. We have a nice town pool which is actually parklike.
Lots of SAHM moms but there are working moms too-lots of men on the train in the morning going to NYC and parking their BMW's and Audis.

[flowergarden]

Thank you for the information, mfenimore. I think we'll add it to the places to look at when we buy next summer.

[havoc315]

Armonk has lower taxes due to corporate presence in the community. (IBM). But the commute can be much more difficult since the town does not have its own train station.

In your price range, in all the towns you listed, your choices of single family homes will be limited to much smaller homes, or fixer-uppers. Though, you may be able to find nice townhomes in that price range. (Chappaqua has some townhouses with relatively reasonable property taxes).

If you are willing to go just a bit further north of Briarcliff, it may pay to look in Croton. Overall, the taxes are high, but you will find homes with reasonable taxes. And overall, the homes are cheaper than the other towns you mentioned. In your price range, you would actually find decent choices. And thanks to the presence of alot of express trains, it's only about a 45 minute commute -- A shorter train ride than Chappaqua, Pleasantville, etc.

[flowergarden]

Thanks Havoc - I have two high schoolers so I'm looking for a high school. Croton wasn't high on my list. My husband with commute to Ardsley, not Mahattan. He had a 15 minute commute for 11 years, and now he has an hour commute. We'd like to be down to within 1/2 hr or better.

We've been looking at houses priced at 750K and below. With the number of areas that would suit our needs we've been able to find at least 5 or 6 houses that may need some work, but not a huge amount that we could live in. Most are 4 to 5 BR and 2700 to 3000 square feet. We will be lowering our current standard of living significantly, but that's the way it goes, I guess.

Thanks for the suggestions; it's great to be able to here about an area from people who actually live there.

[havoc315]

If you are looking for a short commute to Ardsley (plus the other parts of your list), then you should definitely add Irvington and Hastings to your list. And for that matter, Ardsley is an exceptional school district, a bit more reasonably priced than other towns on your list.
Croton is not as well known, but residents swear by the school, which is on the small side. In terms of raw test scores, it's competitive with the best Westchester districts, but supposedly a bit more down to earth.