Recently moved from NYC and wanted to buy single family house (Columbus: new house, safe area)

[MrCoolguy3]

HI All,

I am looking for a nice safe area to buy a single family house, what would be good place start looking at ?
though i want to stay near nice school districts but not willing to pay too much in housing taxes.

with my little research i am narrowed my search to Dublin/worthington/Hilliard/Powel.

My budget is 250-300k.

Thanks.

[Johaun]

There are probably others who would have better insight, but from my own research and experience:

Worthington is generally considered one of the most desirable neighborhoods and is at/near the top of my own list. Great school system, very charming "downtown" area and historic district, and is relatively convenient to downtown.

I dont know too much about Dublin aside from driving thru it on my way to the Dublin Irish Festival last weekend--but from what I could briefly glimpse, its town center was very well maintained and charming in a faux historic way.

Likewise with Powell, all I know is that its a very affluent neighborhood with terrible access--essentially there is only one major street in and out of the area that is somehow still single lane with one traffic light at the main intersection. Traffic can be hellish during peak hours.

[Supergrrl7]

What kind of house do you want? Newer, older, square footage, etc? You can get a giant McMansion in a cul de sac suburban neighborhood for $300k, but it wouldn't be in my idea of a "good neighborhood" but maybe it would be yours? What features do you want in a neighborhood? What are the features you would like your school district to have? There are many threads about the pros and cons of different columbus suburbs, but what matters the most is what you want your living situation to look like. A good realtor would also probably be a good place to start too.

[brianjb]

Where will you be working?
Do you have school age kids? Plans for them in the future?
What do you consider high taxes?

[ieee488]

$250K-$300K buys you an older home in Dublin.
They new construction is much more expensive.

[MrCoolguy3]

Thank you all for the replies to my post, Sorry for delaying my response.

Johaun, thanks for the information about the Worthington area, i will definitely consider that option.

Supergrrl7, i am looking for fairly new house built after 2000, above 2000sft, 3bd/2bath and i am looking for quite peaceful diverse community as i am from India so i always prefer staying where i can be welcomed in the community. I have 8 months old kid so i dont want to pay more in property taxes.

brianjb, I am working near downtown, I have one 8 months old kid. I consider anything above 4k is high as i dont have any school going kids.


ieee488, 10yr old house is ok with me as long as its condition is good.

[ieee488]

The reality is that home values go hand in hand with good school districts = higher property taxes.

The taxes in the Worthington, Dublin, Upper Arlington are going to be above $4000 for the house you are talking about.
My mother who was paying above $4K in Dublin.

[Supergrrl7]

I would say Hilliard, Dublin and Worthington might be a good choice for you. I think your family would be welcome in many suburbs, but Hilliard, Dublin and Worthington definitely have a good number of Asian and South Asian families. If it is important to you, there are a number of South Asian groceries along Sawmill road too. Worthington and Hilliard have a somewhat better commute to downtown than Dublin, just due to proximity.

If you plan to stay in Central Ohio for more than 4 years (when your baby is school-aged), I would suggest thinking very hard about the school district where you buy. It costs much more to sell a house and rebuy a house (realtor fees, closing costs, etc) than just paying slightly higher taxes for four years while you wait until you need the schools.

[brianjb]

Originally Posted by Supergrrl7

I would say Hilliard, Dublin and Worthington might be a good choice for you. I think your family would be welcome in many suburbs, but Hilliard, Dublin and Worthington definitely have a good number of Asian and South Asian families. If it is important to you, there are a number of South Asian groceries along Sawmill road too. Worthington and Hilliard have a somewhat better commute to downtown than Dublin, just due to proximity.

If you plan to stay in Central Ohio for more than 4 years (when your baby is school-aged), I would suggest thinking very hard about the school district where you buy. It costs much more to sell a house and rebuy a house (realtor fees, closing costs, etc) than just paying slightly higher taxes for four years while you wait until you need the schools.

That is an excellent point. It is better to buy a house in a good school district now.

Also check to make sure that the house is in the desired school district, and don't take realtors for granted.

For example, there are some places (in Hilliard, maybe) that have a Hilliard address, but use Columbus city schools.

[sftong]

Originally Posted by MrCoolguy3

... I am working near downtown, I have one 8 months old kid. I consider anything above 4k is high as i dont have any school going kids.

Well, in some school districts like Olentangy they have pre-kindergarten program starting age 4. So your kid would qualify in 3 years 4 months. Think hard about the associated moving cost like what Supergirl suggested, as realtor would charge you 6% commission for selling.

I am not sure which school district would charge you that low of $4k tax for a $300K house. I am sure there is, but the school quality would be a concern.

For top tier schools, my past research says Olentangy school district offer the best value in terms of very top academic scores yet at substantially lower property tax than all peers.