[NY2Cairo]

Hello,

My husband and I and our 6 month old are moving to the Danbury area. My job will be in Danbury, around Pembroke Rd.

1) The public elementary schools like Great Plains, Pembroke, Hayestown, dont appear badly in greatschools.org....but what is your opinion? There are more choices than in smaller towns like Brookfield, but are they worse?

2) I dont want to buy a house right away, especially when another downturn could be pending that would make my house worth less than what I'd be paying for. I also want to spend the first couple years paying down student loans and don't want to put that money away on property taxes. But are there any good areas of Danbury with decent houses for rent? Around $1000 or less?

3) Any other advice for a young family? I know to stay away from Franklin/Spring/Beaver Streets but we drove down Main St all the way to the end and I was not impressed with downtown. Is all of Danbury proper like that?

[Stylo]

I grew up in the area. I went to one of the better ranked school systems in the area, not in Danbury.

I know several people that went through the Danbury school system. I think it gets a bad rep with school-system-snobs because it's more economically diverse than other surrounding towns, more ethnically diverse, and the test scores are generally lower as a result of that diversity. But most people I know from there had a decent experience and most went on to go to school at WCSU.

Brookfield definitely ranks better and has top rated schools, extremely high graduation rate and a very high rate go onto college. Most people tend to prefer Brookfield for schools and it's the more affluent and more desirable town. It has less economic diversity than Danbury and a considerably higher median household income. Same with New Fairfield, Newtown. Ridgefield is the most expensive and affluent of the bunch.

You won't rent a decent single family house anywhere in that area for $1000 or less. For $1000 you might get a small 1BR condo. 2BR if you're really lucky, but it might not be very nice.

Remember, property taxes are fully tax deductible, so you'll have tax savings along with interest. I personally don't think there's going to be another downturn as prices seem to have bottomed out. Now is the time to buy IMO with record low interest rates. We may not have huge appreciation again though. In the Danbury area, it might actually be cheaper for you overall to buy. You can get a decent condo in Danbury now for the $150k-$200k range. Even some nice condos in Brookfield are going for under $200k. Examples would be Rollingwood and Stony Hill Village. Beware the high common charges at Stony Hill Village though.

I echo your sentiments of downtown Danbury. Kinda lousy. The Danbury Mall is the epicenter of commercial activity in Danbury and kind of ruined the city center. I'm personally not a huge fan of Danbury, except for the western part and around Candlewood Lake, but those are also the most expensive areas. The city just does nothing for me. It's strip mall central for the most part.

If I were you, I'd live in Bethel. It has about the same property values as Danbury (perhaps marginally better), has a beautiful main street with restaurants and shops (Greenwood Ave), nice neighborhoods, good schools, little to no crime. It's my personal favorite town in the area. Brookfield's just too dead. There's literally nothing going on for younger people. The town consists of suburban neighborhoods, some more rural areas, and a single strip with Costco, ShopRite, furniture stores. No town center or activity. People's lives there revolve around their kid's sports schedules. There's not even any decent restaurants in town, except for El Coyote which just opened. Bethel at least has events and gatherings in downtown, more activities for kids, good restaurants, an independent movie theater, a coffee shop with acoustic shows, car shows at the Sycamore, etc.

[NY2Cairo]

Stylo, thanks for your reply! I am somewhat ignorant of condos. I've lived in apartments all my adult life and I dream of gardening in a backyard. My impression of condos is that they are glorified apartments that you can one day own. Am I mistaken?

I see a lot of good things written about Newtown and Bethel. I'd like a little bustle, so thanks for your info on that.

I see maybe 2 Danbury elementary schools that look decent (Great Plains and Western Ct International Academy) but I wonder what the chances would be of getting into them in the lottery (I believe that in CT it is by lottery and not by where you live?).

Lastly, I do wonder about Wooster Heights or the Candlewood Lake area of Danbury; whether they are more affordable; more diverse.

[Stylo]

Wooster Heights is somewhat affordable, but not the most affordable part of town. Candlewood Lake area can be a little pricier. Neither are all that diverse, but I guess Wooster Heights is a bit more.

I wouldn't say Newtown has much bustle, it's a good town but more expensive than Bethel/Danbury.

Condos are similar to apartments. You pay a common fee to maintain the grounds, exterior, etc. Townhouses feel more like a house, with a yard (although many complexes restrict gardening). Some condos have small yards near them. It varies.

The problem is your budget isn't realistic for a house in that area. It's tough to get a decent single family home for $1000 or below even in the least desirable areas.

[NY2Cairo]

I guess I should look into a house. Maybe a mortgage will work out to be less than rental, and I will own it. With my salary I could afford more, I guess I didn't want to start living at my means until I paid down some debts.

[andthentherewere3]

Originally Posted by NY2Cairo

My impression of condos is that they are glorified apartments that you can one day own.


I see maybe 2 Danbury elementary schools that look decent (Great Plains and Western Ct International Academy) but I wonder what the chances would be of getting into them in the lottery I believe that in CT it is by lottery and not by where you live?

That's similar to what a condo is. Although you would typically buy a condo the same as buying a house, with a monthly mortgage to pay it off, unless you have some kind of "rent to own" deal with your landlord.

Public schools are by district, magnet schools by lottery. So if you decide you want your child to go to a particular public school, you would need to find a home in that school's district. And in Ct.'s cities you can't assume that nearby neighborhoods would be districted for the nearest schools, since they often try to diversify them and bus kids around. Suburban towns don't generally do this.

Another more affordable town with decent schools aside from Bethel would be New Milford.

[JayCT]

Your child is only 6 months old so if you are just going to rent, schools should not be of a concern to you yet. If you were looking to buy that would be a totally different story. Then I would agree to look at the schools and I would probably suggest looking in a town outside of Danbury like Bethel, Brookfield or New Fairfield.

As for your concern about losing money if you buy, while no one can predict the real estate market, The economy is improving. I think yoiu will see home price either staying the same or rising modestly. I would only buy if you are sure that you are going to stay in the place for several years (at least five). Also be sure that you like your new job and that it is stable. If not, then you should probably rent for a while. Jay

[jdhall1]

$1000 is very low for a 2 bedroom apartment. Depending on your down payment and property you choose to call home, it can be cheaper to own compared to rent. I went throguh the Danbury school system not too long ago, and there are many postive things that aren't talked about that often.

[jrp1225]

You really should consider Bethel - especially the Stony Hill section of Bethel. The Stony Hill area is at Exit 8 off of I-84. It is centrally located between downtown Bethel, Danbury, Brookfield and Newtown. IMO, the Stony Hill area is the best area in all of these towns with regards to access to the highway and other towns, close to shopping and Bethel schools. From Stony Hill, you are less than 5 minutes to Target (Bethel), WalMart (Danbury) and Costco (Brookfield).

As for the other towns you mentioned - Newtown is a great town but it is expensive and it is BIG. You have to watch where the houses are located because there are many parts of Newtown that sit far away from the highway and access roads. Plus, traffic really picks up past Exit 9 (I-84) and you can easily add 30+ minutes to your commute by buying in Newtown.

Brookfield is also a nice town but very commercial with ALOT of traffic. Getting on and off 7 during the busy times can take forever. It is a nightmare.

Danbury is a more urban town. There is a nicer area of Danbury but if schools are a priority, you need to look elsewhere. I know many people who have moved from Danbury to the other towns because of the school situation.

In regards to the market prices, current indications are that the market in this area is improving slightly. Also, there are grumblings that interest rates may start to rise soon. Now is the time to buy if you are going to buy. If housing prices drop, they are not going to go that much lower than they are now. There is no reason to wait to buy.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by jrp1225

Brookfield is also a nice town but very commercial with ALOT of traffic. Getting on and off 7 during the busy times can take forever. It is a nightmare.

I lived there for years and never experienced much traffic at all. Only on Federal Road coming up to the intersection by Kohl's going towards Danbury. That gets a little snagged sometimes. But I've never experienced any other bad traffic. It can be slow from Costco to Kohl's but it isn't really that bad. If you're local you can EASILY get to anything you need and bypass Federal Road altogether.

I don't find Brookfield very commercial at all. Most of the town is very quiet and wooded. There's only about a mile stretch that's very developed. If anything I would criticize the town for being kind of dead. No restaurants, nightlife, town center, activity. No offense, but you sound like you have only been to a small part of town as an outsider. Living there is very different.

That said, I fully agree with your Bethel reco.