Possible Relocation to Cincy / NKY. Your knowledge is MORE than appreciated! (Cincinnati: credit, buying a home)

[SWOH]

Happy to help!

Others would be better versed at the nuances of KY tax vs OH tax. What I can tell you is what I found out from my time moving from OH to IN and back again over the past two years, as IN is traditionally considered lower tax than OH.

IN gets you in other ways. For instance, in OH it costs $30 to get a license plate. In IN it's $500. Vehicle taxes are higher too, in OH they are only subject to the sales tax in the county you reside, in IN they are subject to state and local taxes. Roads are not as well maintained in IN. If you aren't always watching out, it's easy to hit many 4-ft deep chuckholes on I-74 ~10 miles west of the OH border in both directions, and there are no plans to fix those holes. That doesn't even include the nightmarish one-lane side roads. This kind of maintenance would be inexcusable in OH. And in turn, you're paying a lot more to repair your car in OH than IN. As far as I know though KY does a good job maintaining their roads, from what I've seen it's on par with OH and not IN or MI level bad.

So overall tax is one good metric to use but with it you have to factor in quality of life too. In general you get what you pay for, and you'll pay for it somehow. But as far as nuances go between OH and KY tax differences I am not sure. If I were you I'd send hensleya1 a private message, they are an expert.

Also Alexandria would be well located for you but it is in Campbell Co Schools, which are not as good (probably on par with West Clermont). KY has some decent private schools, especially private Catholic, so if that's an option it might be worth a look. Otherwise I'd stick with Union / anything that feeds into its school district (in particular anything that goes to Larry A Ryle High). If you've ever read Hillbilly Elegy, almost every community in the area has at least a small population of people who adhere to the characteristics written in that book, but in general better ranked schools = less Appalachian influence, which as a New Yorker you're not going to want to deal with here.

Good luck!

[ms12345]

If your job will be in NKY then it makes sense to live in NKY. If you work at home or have an alternative work arrangement then either side of the river may work.

Outside of rush hour the bridges and freeways are tame. Even during rush hour only a 15 or 20 minute delay is the norm. That based on my 6+ years of commuting to downtown from Florence on I-75 in the early to mid 2000s.

Sounds like you want a suburban lifestyle, with a nicer home that is affordable, and good schools.

NKY is fast growing. There are plenty of transplants that move in. All of the places you mentioned, Union, Hebron, Independence, Cold Springs, and several others are good places to live and will give what you are looking for. I personally like Union a lot and would consider moving there myself. As was posted up-thread the best school districts in NKY are Beechwood and Ft. Thomas. I don't think you will find any bad school districts in NKY. Not like you would find in the inner city.

Boone Co. KY property taxes are probably 1/3 of what you would pay on the Ohio side. Although some have said this gets balanced out by other taxes...it does not. You pay more in Ohio.

On the Ohio side there a several nice suburban communities that provide what you are looking for. These are primarily in the northern and north eastern suburbs. Mason, Montgomery, Blue Ash, West Chester, and several surrounding townships like Symmes and Deerfield. Most anywhere in the Mason, Sycamore, or Lakota school districts will deliver. The schools are considered good. Like most places private schools are better and have a more challenging curriculum than the public schools. There is more to see, do, and experience on the Ohio side than in NKY.

[OhWell...]

SWOH,
Thank you for the response. It sounds like Union / Hebron may be a possibility. I must say I had not heard of the hillbilly elegy term until you posted about it. Obviously there will be some adjustments, but my children are small. On the other hand, it may be a good idea to consider private schools (if better) and we can afford them. I may have to start looking at that too as part of the equation. As every parent, I simply want what's best for my kids.

ms12345,
Thank you for the thorough response. It seems NKY is def the right fit. Also, the towns you narrowed it to are the "front runners" at this point. As mentioned, Ft. Thomas keeps coming up, but I cannot get what I am looking for in my budget. As I mentioned to SWOH above, it may be a good idea to look at what private schools may cost in the NKY area; not because we MUST have them, but solely because it may be nice to have the alternative. The one thing I keep liking about Hebron are some properties that have river views...

[ms12345]

Originally Posted by OhWell...

The one thing I keep liking about Hebron are some properties that have river views...

Hebron has some beautiful homes and subdivisions, particularly north of I-275 winding back toward the river. Some have river views, some have gorgeous secluded wooded lots. Coachtrail Dr, and Grandview Dr are two examples where you might get river views. A river view might be a bit pricey however.

[OhWell...]

Ms12345,
One of the properties is on Grandview Dr. Price is reasonable (considering the location). I think the only question that remains is how weaker the schools are in Hebron v some of the ther NKY areas. That said, I must say, I was fairly in awe...

[Sarah Perry]

Originally Posted by OhWell...

Ms12345,
One of the properties is on Grandview Dr. Price is reasonable (considering the location). I think the only question that remains is how weaker the schools are in Hebron v some of the ther NKY areas. That said, I must say, I was fairly in awe...

This potentially brings up an issue I haven't seen discussed on this forum before, of paying out-of-district tuition for a child to attend a different public school district from the one they live in. I did a quick Google on the very small and highly regarded Beechwood district in the general area of Ft. Mitchell, which is closer to Cincinnati than Hebron and has an older and probably more expensive housing stock than what you're looking for in a home. Given the parameters you laid out in your original posting, this might be something I would investigate. Also whether Ft. Thomas schools accepts tuition students. Not to say that schools in the Hebron area are bad, I just know both the districts I mentioned are considered very good.


http://www.beechwood.kyschools.us/us...ter.pdf?id=195

[cincydave8]

^ Fort Thomas does accept tuition for out of district students. Each grade at Highlands High School will have a half dozen or so kids from Southgate and Newport. A lot of these kids are from the Mansion Hill area of Newport and/or the new developments in Southgate along Fort Beech Dr. Of course, a lot of wealthy non-Fort Thomas families in those parts will send their kids to Newport Central Catholic.

OP...I'm sure your children would get a fine education from Hebron/Boone Co schools.

[motorman]

I'm not questioning your judgment or decisions and I'm sure your wife has good reasons for choosing UC or XU (or their choice of her), but it's unfortunate that NKU isn't being considered because it is the most convenient location. It's a sizable, modern university that's becoming increasingly noticed throughout the region, and its physical presence in Highland Heights is huge.

Here's a recent NKU promo video that might be of interest...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtAiq6STkz0

[New Dawn]

Villa Madonna Academy (K-12) is near Hebron:
http://villamadonna.org

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by OhWell...

Lastly taxes and Cost of living should be a consideration; is there a benefit to one option over another? Any thoughts on these are always appreciated too!

As I said before, thank you beforehand. Your comments, thoughts and ideas are appreciated.

If i were you, I would live and work in Kentucky. The taxes are generally much lower. If you feel you have to live in Ohio, live in Anderson to avoid the local income tax which is generally 2-2.5% in ADDITION to state income tax.

I don't have time to post my usual essay on the complicated Ohio tax system. If you search my posts on this board, you will find that many of them deal specifically on the complexities of taxation in Ohio

Here is a thread on the topic from last year:

//www.city-data.com/forum/cinci...cky-taxes.html