Can't get it all - Looking for the perfect neighborhood for our family (Columbus: credit, house)

[lulabuckeye]

I've been searching and reading these forums for a few weeks and I've finally come to the conclusion that we can't have it all! We are looking to move to Columbus in the summer of 2018. My husband has the option to switch offices, so he'd be working in Grandview South. We'd like to keep the commute to 30 minutes tops including traffic.

I have family in Clintonville and Westerville, so we don't want to be too far removed from them - the reason we're making the move. We have 3 young boys under the age of 5, so schools are a top priority. It seems the best schools are very wealthy and white. We're white, but live frugally. Not sure if these areas are snobby or not, but I also prefer some diversity.

We'd like to stay around $350k since property taxes are so high in the area. We could push it up a bit for something perfect though.

The most important thing to me (besides good schools) is that the neighborhood is a community. I want a neighborhood where everyone knows everyone, and there are lots of young kids.

The most important thing to my husband is that the house is nice. His wishlist includes .25+ acre lot, 2000+ sq ft, newer open floor plan, some updates.

Areas that I've been researching are Dublin, Upper Arlington, and Worthington primarily. Dublin might be far to commute, but it is probably the best bet at a newer house. Upper Arlington is a great location, but no newer homes and pretty pricey. Worthington seems to have a bit more diversity, but also older homes. I looked at Hilliard a little also, but I have a hard time compromising on the schools.

Could anyone tell me more about these areas and which one might be the best fit for our family? Any others that I should consider?

[Jbeechuk]

Hilliard schools are very good, but not quite excellent, as Dublin/Grandview/UA are. But the property taxes in Hilliard are among the highest in central Ohio. Worthington is a nice area.

[Eaglealum]

I just recently bought a home and was looking for the of the same features. I can tell you $350,000 isn't going to be enough in Upper Arlington or Dublin.

We actually moved out of the Hilliard school district to Powell, which is Olentangy. However Hilliard schools are good.

[lulabuckeye]

Thank you for the replies! I was thinking that Powell would be a farther commute. How bad is the rush hour traffic on 315?

[kevinbelt]

It depends on what you're comparing it to. If you're coming from LA or somewhere where traffic jams last for hours, no, it's not bad. Nothing in Columbus is really terrible by big city standards. But I personally wouldn't want to drive on 315 in rush hour every day. That's the big reason I didn't immediately recommend Worthington, which is otherwise perfect. But I have a pretty low tolerance for traffic.

Hilliard is probably better than your research is giving it credit for. I know a lot of people with kids in Hilliard schools, and while none of them are going to grow up to win Nobel prizes like UA kids... Ha. But seriously, I think school ratings are a little worthless. The quality of education is more about the kid, the home situation, and the relationships with teachers, which can't be measured. As one little data point, my district had the lowest test scores in the state of Ohio the year I graduated. I still made dean's list at Ohio State and got accepted to law school, and I wasn't even in the top 10% of my HS class. If you've got a kid who likes school and a family who supports him, any district will probably be ok. Hilliard is certainly good enough, and it checks several of your other boxes that other suburbs probably won't.

[lulabuckeye]

Thank you, kevinbelt! We're from the Akron area and my husband is spoiled with a 10 minute commute into downtown. With traffic it's often 15 minutes, although sometimes it's worse due to weather or an accident. He said that he's fine with the regular commute being up to 30 minutes, so I'm not sure if the 315 drive would be over that or not. His work hours are a little flexible, so he could try to avoid the worst of it by going in early.

I attended a high school that has a rating of 2, although it was probably more like 4/10 when I attended. It's gone downhill due to open enrollment allowing many to enroll elsewhere. I was at the top of my class and I know I was limited in opportunity because of the schools - even going through the gifted program. My 4 year old is a brainiac already, so I definitely want him to have all the opportunities that I didn't have. I'm sure Hilliard schools are good enough and way above the school I attended, it's still hard to give up on wanting the best.

[kevinbelt]

Well, if he's cool with a 30 minute drive, you'll be fine. Worthington should be well under a half hour, and their schools are solid. I'm not a morning person, so I can't say if it's better earlier, but I can confirm that it does get less crowded later. If he wants to go in at like 9:30, he shouldn't have any traffic issues. Good luck!

[Clever nickname here]

Southern end of Powell to Grandview is under 30 minutes as long as he commutes outside of rush hour. Leave by 7:05, 20/25 minutes. Leave at 7:15 and it is 45 minutes.

Keep in mind that unless you're a top 10% income($350K joint filers) your property taxes are deductible from your federal income taxes.

[rulingtherooster]

I agree with others that Worthington sounds like your ticket. That was one of the communities we looked in. The two high schools are relatively on par with one another academically, but we noticed when we were looking that there is a lot of disparity at the middle and elementary school levels. As such, we limited our search to areas feeding into Evening Street elementary. This would mean Olentangy Highlands, Riverlea, and areas to the west of High Street in Old Worthington.

[lulabuckeye]

Thank you for the help! We are going to concentrate the search in Worthington and possibly up into Powell. That's very helpful to know about Worthington schools, rulingtherooster. Thank you!!