[hotelguy26]

Hi everyone... I need some help. I'm not sure if what I'm looking for even exists, but here goes...

I'm being considered for a job in Stamford (knock on wood). IF I got the position, I won't need a nice city to relocate to. Here's what I'm looking for:

Beautiful small new England town feel, excellent schools, big walkability, quaint downtown with shops restaurants etc. My wife and I are young professionals, so it has to be affordable. If we move, my wife will probably be staying at home with our newborn, so will only be on one income. We will most likely rent, and will be looking for a two or three bedroom in the $1500-2000 range, give or take.

I want that quaint small town feel. Walking the downtown at night, maybe some festivals, etc. Good Schools and low crime are a must. And I would really love to limit my commute to under 45 minutes.

I know I am very picky, but my fingers are crossed that someone can help me. Please be nice. Also, the closer to New York the better as we have a lot of friends and family in that area.

Thank you so much for all your help

[jdhall1]

You might to good in Bethel.

[Mike 75]

It will be very hard to get what you are looking for with a commute time under 45 mins. Bethel will be at least an hour, if not more. Same with Newtown. Stratford and Milford may also be worth a look (especially if you can take the train), but the schools won't be as good.

[kidyankee764]

What you seek exists all over the area, but not at your price point. You won't get a 2-3 bedroom place in a nice town with an easy commute to Stamford for $1500-2000/month. Immediately New Canaan came to mind, but to give you an idea of how expensive it is, you can only get a 1 br outdated apartment in that town for 2k/month. I do see one listing in Westport on Zillow that you might like - and Westport is a fantastic town.

There are more affordable towns, but they come with a long commute. Towns like Milford, Bethel, maybe even Fairfield (pricier) are great towns, but commuting to/from Stamford is very tough with traffic. Not sure where you will be working in Stamford, but Fairfield and Milford are on the train line and if you can walk to the office from the Stamford train station, that's not a bad idea.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by Mike 75

It will be very hard to get what you are looking for with a commute time under 45 mins. Bethel will be at least an hour, if not more. Same with Newtown. Stratford and Milford may also be worth a look (especially if you can take the train), but the schools won't be as good.

Just for clarification - Milford schools test quite a bit better than Stratford, and Foran CAPT scores are very close to Bethel High School's, and exceed them in science.

I'd put Bethel (hour's drive, maybe a little more) and Milford (35 minute train plus transportation to/from) as top of the list. Stratford is a great town, and while the schools aren't bad, they have more issues than the aforementioned towns.

If you can sacrifice some space/newness, Fairfield and Ridgefield are also worth considering.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

Immediately New Canaan came to mind, but to give you an idea of how expensive it is, you can only get a 1 br outdated apartment in that town for 2k/month.

NC also came to my mind immediately. Believe it or not, the "outdated" apartments in New Canaan don't rent for significantly more than a like apartment in a fantastic area in Stamford. The OP might just find a "dumpy" 2Br. half-duplex off of 123 in New Canaan for ~2K.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by Stratford, Ct. Resident

NC also came to my mind immediately. Believe it or not, the "outdated" apartments in New Canaan don't rent for significantly more than a like apartment in a fantastic area in Stamford. The OP might just find a "dumpy" 2Br. half-duplex off of 123 in New Canaan for ~2K.

That's true. A friend of mine rents a very basic 1.5BR (I say 1.5 because one is really too small for humans to habitat) for $1500. It's in what appears to be a normal raised ranch-ish SFH that was split into 2 apartments upstairs and down.

[JayCT]

I would say that Fairfield fits your criteria best. You should be able to find a modest apartment in your price range there though it may not be within walking distance of everything. Jay