[Buttrfly298]

Hi Everyone!

I am new to these boards but I love all of the recommendations that people on here post! My husband and I currently live in Arlington, Tx. and are considering relocating to CT. We are tired of the hot summers and are looking for a better area to get settled and start raising a family. Does anyone have any suggestions on where to consider a place to live? We plan on renting for a year and then trying to purchase a home. Here are the things we are looking for:

1. Reasonable Commute (An hour or less) to either Hartford or NYC. With my job I currently have the choice to work in either city.

2. Relatively safe area with good schools since we are planning to start a family within the next few years.

3. We are looking to spend about $1000 a month in rent, with at least a two bedroom. (Husband does not want to lose his "Man Room" )

4. Also relatively close to a College, my husband is back in school trying to finish his bachelors.

5. An area with some "New England Charm" would be nice but this is not a requirement.

Thanks for the Help!

[kidyankee764]

You definitely want to focus on the Hartford area.

If you're looking to find a place within a 1,000/month, you will not be able to afford to be in the CT suburbs within an hour of NYC. That will only get you a dated studio in a mediocre section of town. These are towns for millionaires.

In the Hartford area, you will probably like West Hartford the best. Still, $1,000 won't get you much in that area but it's worth a look. Schools are decent, there is a beautiful downtown area and you're close to colleges (University of Hartford, Central CT Univ, Trinity, UCONN, some CCs).

You will likely get more for your money in a town like Rocky Hill or Wethersfield. They don't have as much charm, but the schools are good and you're still close to quite a bit. Being south of Hartford puts you within range of all of the universities near New Haven (Yale, Quinnipiac, Wesleyan, Univ of New Haven, Southern CT Univ). A little south of Rocky Hill/Wethersfield is Berlin and Cromwell. Very nice towns with good schools.

If charm is important to you, you can always live in a town like Essex and commute to Hartford (about 40 minutes). The eastern CT shoreline (Guilford, Madison, Clinton, Old Saybrook, Mystic, etc) is stunningly beautiful so even if you don't rent there, visit it!

Your budget is tough in CT but you may be able to score something.

[Stylo]

You won't be able to afford working in NYC on your budget without being in a bad neighborhood. And definitely not in CT.

Hartford area is much cheaper. You should be able to find something in a less expensive town.

[Appias]

Seconding what Kidyankee already said. They don't call the towns along Long Island Sound the "Gold Coast" for nothing. The southern suburbs of Hartford are where I'd recommend starting.

[MikefromCT]

Look to the Hartford area. Your budget will go MUCH further there. You can find a decent 2-bedroom rental for $1,000 a month. Just don't expect a palace - for that amount, you should be able to find a clean (if older) property in a decent area, but without modern amenities like gyms or pools. Newington, Wethersfield and W. Hartford all fit the bill - good schools, nice communities, and close access to different colleges.

[Buttrfly298]

Thank you all for your suggestions. From some basic research that I had done previously that area seemed like the best bet. Although the renting would only be temporary, a year or so maybe, I wanted to stay conservative due to the fact that I don't know how long it would take my husband to find a job. Also the cost of living up in CT is considerably more expensive than TX so that would take some adjustment as well. However I feel that it would all be worth it to have the quality of life that is available up there!

[Pammyd]

Originally Posted by Buttrfly298

Hi Everyone!

I am new to these boards but I love all of the recommendations that people on here post! My husband and I currently live in Arlington, Tx. and are considering relocating to CT. We are tired of the hot summers and are looking for a better area to get settled and start raising a family. Does anyone have any suggestions on where to consider a place to live? We plan on renting for a year and then trying to purchase a home. Here are the things we are looking for:
1. Reasonable Commute (An hour or less) to either Hartford or NYC. With my job I currently have the choice to work in either city.
2. Relatively safe area with good schools since we are planning to start a family within the next few years.
3. We are looking to spend about $1000 a month in rent, with at least a two bedroom. (Husband does not want to lose his "Man Room" )
4. Also relatively close to a College, my husband is back in school trying to finish his bachelors.
5. An area with some "New England Charm" would be nice but this is not a requirement.
Thanks for the Help!

Not sure I already answered this one, so will give it a try anyhow. If you want to have a reasonable commute to NYC, then your best bet would be to find a place in Southeast Connecticut say in the Fairfield area. Very nice down there. A tad expensive but the schools are great, area is pretty and there is Fairfield University that your husband could look into. All of this will be fairly expensive so check with a realtor up in that area.
For the Hartford area..you would probably be able to spend less money on both rents and schooling. Nice sections to live in close to Hartford would be Berlin, Newington, Wethersfield, West Hartford..all have good areas. There is the University of Hartford that would be close to all these areas where your husband could attend to obtain his Bachelors. The university is in a rougher section of Hartford, but my son was ok there so I think your husband would do fine.
Basically, the whole state of CT is pretty expensive but if you look thru a realtor and tell them what you are looking for you might be able to avoid some of the expense. Good luck and welcome to the "Nutmeg State".

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by Buttrfly298

Thank you all for your suggestions. From some basic research that I had done previously that area seemed like the best bet. Although the renting would only be temporary, a year or so maybe, I wanted to stay conservative due to the fact that I don't know how long it would take my husband to find a job. Also the cost of living up in CT is considerably more expensive than TX so that would take some adjustment as well. However I feel that it would all be worth it to have the quality of life that is available up there!

Connecticut has a great quality of life if you can afford it. We consistently rank 1 on the Human Development index out of all 50 states (and the USA is one of the highest ranked in the nation). It measures life expectancy, literacy, education and standards of living.

Even if you are only renting for a year and not buying, home prices in the Hartford area are much more reasonable than the commuter suburbs to New York, where an average home will cost in the millions. In Hartford, it's 1/4 that.

How much home can you afford once you buy? With 1,000 rent, I'm guessing high 1's, low 2's?

[Buttrfly298]

As far as buying a home goes we were aiming for around the 250k range. We were looking for something in a good area that we might be able to "fix up" a little. We are fairly handy and cosmetics are not too much of an issue It is more important to us to live in an area where I can easily commute and my husband can commute to school. We do a lot of driving in Texas so we are pretty used to long commutes with tons of traffic. With my basic research I was thinking the area for buying a home around East Hampton, although I am open to any suggestions!

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by Buttrfly298

As far as buying a home goes we were aiming for around the 250k range. We were looking for something in a good area that we might be able to "fix up" a little. We are fairly handy and cosmetics are not too much of an issue It is more important to us to live in an area where I can easily commute and my husband can commute to school. We do a lot of driving in Texas so we are pretty used to long commutes with tons of traffic. With my basic research I was thinking the area for buying a home around East Hampton, although I am open to any suggestions!

In this market, you can probably buy into a nice town in the Hartford area. Forget southwestern Connecticut - you can't even find a decent condo for that price.

East Hampton is a beautiful woodsy town. Don't rule out towns like Tolland, Suffield, Berlin, Cromwell, Portland, etc. You might even be able to buy a starter home in Glastonbury or West Hartford. If you don't mind a longer commute and love the water, consider Essex, Chester and Deep River.

Do a LOT of exploring while you're here. There is something hidden around every corner in Connecticut.