Considering Relocating to Cincy (Cincinnati, Hamilton: fit in, transplants, real estate)

[PetBet]

My husband and I have been considering relocating from Long Island to Cincy. We have two children in elementary school. We currently own a small home, and want something bigger, with room for visiting family to stay. (We are looking to spend around $300K) We need good public schools, especially since one of my children needs a lot of extra help in certain areas. We've been looking at Mason, Loveland and Anderson Township. They all seem great. It's hard knowing where we might "fit in" and be happy. We're pretty down-to-earth, not "typical" New Yorkers. From some of the posts I've read, some towns are more apt to accept newcomers than others. Does anyone have any insight for me? Or could anyone suggest other towns that might be appropriate for us? We don't have jobs in the area, so that is not a concern (yet).

[progmac]

Mason, Loveland, and Anderson Township are all good choices. I really think that a newcomer is welcome anywhere in the greater cincinnati area. There are a lot of transplants here and the locals like to see people moving to the area.

With $300k you have quite a few options. There are some city neighborhoods that offer good schools and safety in that price range. Outside of the city, Mason and Loveland are nice, as is Anderson. Anderson Township is a little closer to downtown. Mason and Loveland trump Anderson in terms of physical layout and planning. All three are your basic suburbs and nice places with good schools where you will feel welcome. Perhaps look into Montgomery, Wyoming, Reading, and Madeira as well.

[Chemistry_Guy]

I would take a good look at Kenwood, Madeira, and Mariemont. All three have fantastic public schools, and you should have a lot of options with a 300K budget. Compared to Lovelend and Mason, I would say that 300K buys you less house, but the schools are better and the location is more desirable.

[PetBet]

Chemistry-Guy, thank you so much for your post. I've heard good things about the three towns you mentioned. Here's my situation -- I'm more interested in the feel of the town, community, etc. My husband just wants a BIG house (well as big as one can get w $300 K) It's one of the reasons he is willing to leave the place he's lived all his life. Out of those you mentioned, which would be the easiest meet-in-the-middle location for us?

[blue60]

What type of community feel are you looking for? We moved to Mason in July from CT. We are originally from NY. Lots of relatives still in LI, NJ, upstate NY, etc. Mason has tons to do for families and my kids love it here. You'll get more house for your $$ and a newer home in Mason than areas closer to the city. Loveland also has some cute areas. I believe that Mason's schools are ranked slightly higher. I don't know too much about Anderson.

If you don't have jobs, what attracted you to Cincinnati? Or is this one of several areas you are looking at? If you will need to eventually find jobs, some areas of Mason may result in a longer commute, but the traffic is nothing like LI traffic. Keep in mind there is also no trains in the area.

[PetBet]

Good question, Blue-60. We love Long Island so much, but are growing weary of the crazy traffic, high property taxes, etc. We don't want to go South, like so many Long Islanders are. And, I have some family in the Cincy area (not in any of the areas where we are looking.) I've asked them for their opinions as well. But, wanted to get some more feedback. Yes, we are going to need to find jobs, which is no small feat these days. So glad you and your family are happy! I really appreciate your help.

[Chemistry_Guy]

PetBet,
Of the three neighborhoods that I mentioned, I would say that you get the most house for your dollar in Madeira and you pay the most for location in Mariemont. I would also add the Blue Ash neighborhood to your list as a compromise between Mason and Mariemont. As blue60 pointed out, Mason and Loveland are both nice suburban areas (almost rural in some spots) where you can get a big house and a big yard and still enjoy good schools. If you work outside of the I-275 loop I think it makes perfect sense to put those areas near the top of your list. However, you will really be forced to adopt the suburban commuter lifestyle, as the outer suburbs were not designed with foot and bicycle traffic in mind.

I recommend you look at the area with google earth, and then plan to spend some time visiting.

Here is an example of a 5 bed 3.5 bath house on a nice street in Madeira that I thought you might be interested in, just based on initial impressions. Let me know if I am way off base from your expectations.
6540 Kenview Dr Madeira OH Listing Details: Sibcy Cline Realtors® Cincinnati Real Estate (http://www.sibcycline.com/viewlisting.asp?mls=1241276&b=CIN&p=RESI&s=SFRD&m= 1&sender=SearchResults&a=6540-Kenview-Dr-Madeira-OH-45243 - broken link)

[goyguy]

My sister and BIL have happily dwelled in Loveland for some eighteen years now. For most of that time they lived in a house that they bought before it was finished, and reluctantly moved to another section of the town when four kids and three cats caused them to max out on space. You could easily find a 4-BR in that particular part of Loveland for $250k or thereabouts. The town's middle school property abuts the subdivision (known as Claiborne) to the south, and there's even a community swim club there. Due to its having been built on a former horse farm, all of the streets in the enclave are named for horses or jockeys; my sister's family was on Shoemaker Dr and the nearest side street to them was Riva Ridge. It was a quiet and very neighborly place, the kind where kids play outside and freely roam between each other's homes rather than hole up and play video games no matter what the weather.
Like many people, I sneer at school-ranking lists as overrated and subjective but pore over them anyway. This year the Loveland public schools broke into the tiptop tier, joining the perennials (Sycamore, Madeira, Wyoming, etc.) More importantly, the OP mentioned having a child with special needs. Sis raved about Loveland's approach to SPED. Where possible, kids needing extra attention for whatever reason are included in a program that parents can opt into for their "normal" children. ("It's always oversubscribed, so sometimes they have to hold a lottery.") Everybody learns in the same classroom, with aides for those who need one. That's a far cry from the Wyoming schools of my youth, where there was always a "special class" in the elementary schools and the stigma that went along with it.
This may not affect the OP at all, but Loveland has had a few Jewish families move there specifically because some neighboring suburbs aren't as inclusive. When my sister struck up a conversation with new people on her block, the mom of the household came right out and said so. "There's no mention of our holidays in the XYZ schools whatsoever." The population and cultural centers of Cincinnati's Jewish community are in the nearby and contiguous suburbs of Montgomery, Blue Ash, and Amberley Village - as well as in Wyoming. All the same, Loveland makes the subtle gestures such as mentioning holidays in the schools that folks pick up on and appreciate. It's not all that diverse of a city (few AA families, not many Asians or Hispanics) but neither is it an intolerant sort of place.
What you definitely won't find in Loveland are older homes with the workmanship and often the charm that goes with them. "Older" there translates into "split-level from the mid-60's." But the same holds true in Mason, Blue Ash, et al.
Best o' luck!

[kelent]

Hi, We also live on Long Island and we are moving to the Cincinnati area this February. We have been out to look at houses and and are headed out again next week. We tried the south, Savannah, and while we loved it there, we didn't fit in with the southerners. I like to think we are pretty down-to-earth, and not typical LI'rs either. We currently rent in a nice community in Bellport but we are looking for a more rural area, with a large property, like 3-5 acres. I want a little hobby farm and we are pretty tired of suburban life. My daughter is in second grade and has an IEP; also requiring some assistance. We don't have jobs lined up either. My husband runs a small business that he runs from home. He is selling off his NY based operations and we will be buying in the 200+ range.

I just wanted to say HI, compare notes and hope to chat more on our similar moves!! Drop me a note!

-Katherine in Bellport

[VideoEngineerAJS]

If you are looking for good school districts I would also check out Sycamore and West Chester (as Lakota schools are pretty good also).

For the person that is looking for more rural, the places I mentioned and maybe also around Fairfield and possibly Hamilton, but those two areas are kind of out a ways from Cincinnati.