[mbenay]

Hi,

My husband and I are looking for a house within a 1-hour drive to Torrington, Connecticut that has the following characteristics: (1) walkable; (2) a food market within 2 blocks (about 2/10 mile) and a supermarket within 4/10 of a mile from the house - with sidewalks and not too hilly; (3) a few restaurants including, hopefully, a diner, within 4/10 of a mile from the house - with sidewalks; (3) a 1500 square foot house plus basement for under $300,000; we'd like a ranch or at least have a bedroom on the main floor. (4) the lot size can be quite small.

(We'd also consider a building lot that meets our location criteria for $45,000 or less.)

I've been searching listings in Connecticut, southwest and central Massachusetts, and New York along the Connecticut line -- and for every listing that looks possible, I plug the address into a google map that shows where food markets and restaurants are, and so far, I've been coming up short.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!
mbenay

[willow wind]

Your problem is that what you're looking for what does not exist in north western Connecticut, which is where Torrington is. You want city amenities in what is a very suburban to rural section of the state.

You have in my opinion, just two options. My first choice is the town of West Hartford. No, not the west part of the city of Hartford, but the town of West Hartford. Two different places. It's very walkable, has a couple of diners, has food stores, sidewalks, streetlights, many, many restaurants, lots to do. etc. You would have to work with a real estate agent for the rest of your wish list as far finding a home with exact distances to things and of particular style and price.

It's about 25 miles, maybe 45 minutes or so of driving from Torrington to West Hartford, depending on where you live and work.

Your other option is to look in Torrington itself. Although the better parts of Torrington are away from the more developed town center. Personally, I'd look in West Hartford first and most. I think it meets what you have in mind for a place to live and is perfectly safe..

Forget about buying a lot. $ 45,000 is not in the realm of possibility.

[kidyankee764]

West Hartford.

[JayCT]

I agree with the others that West Hartford is likely your best option. It fits most of your criteria. Another option but on a much smaller scale, may be the Collinsville section of Canton. It is much closer to Torrington, has a cute but small downtown with a few interesting stores and most shopping needs nearby.

As for a lot for under $45,000, I doubt there are any buildable lots in the state at that price. And certainly none in a town like you want. Jay

[Stylo]

Agree on West Hartford. Only town in that area that meets that criteria. For more towns, you have to go to the coast.

[mbenay]

Thanks for the responses. I didn't mean to suggest that we're looking only in Northwest Connecticut. As long as the commute to the Torrington area is not much more than 1 hour, the location would qualify on our "search" list. Three areas of West Hartford are on our list -- West Hartford Center, Bishops Corner, and Elmwood. So is the Amity section of New Haven and the north end of Bridgeport.

The reason for my post is that with so many shopping areas in the State of Connecticut, there are areas we don't know about. For example, this week I was driving through Berlin, Connecticut, and passed a Stop & Shop and saw that there's housing nearby with sidewalks. Who knew? When I got home I searched for homes in that area and didn't find anything that would work for us. Some smaller towns have nice downtown walking areas, like the downtown areas of Colchester and Cheshire. We've driven through a lot of Connecticut and still there are so many areas we don't know about.

I'm looking to expand our list of locations to search particularly within Connecticut since we have some limitations on the house we buy -- i.e., that it have sufficient interior space to be convertible to handicapped accessible without too much renovation. The more locations that are possible for us, the better the chance we'll find the house we'd like.

Thanks!

[kidyankee764]

Will you be working in Torrington? If so, you don't want to be commuting from Colchester.

I would also suggest you look into New Milford.

[LRPct]

Actually you could prob find that in Litchfield, Kent and others.

[parentologist]

You're describing parts of West Hartford exactly. Sidewalks, restaurants, several supermarkets (Whole Foods, Stop and Shop, ShopRite, Big Y, a Walmart "neighborhood" supermarket, a kosher supermarket/deli/bakery/butcher) and you can get a 1950s -1960s era 3 BR ranch for under 300K, a two bedroom for quite a bit less than that. Look on Zillow and put in the search parameters you require under "filter". Pay attention to the areas near these intersections: North Main and Albany Ave (Bishop's Corner), has a great branch library, a senior center, four supermarkets, and several inexpensive restaurants, even an inexpensive clothing store and a gym. There are sidewalks - you have to be very careful crossing the streets here, but it is possible to walk all through the area. This area is safe and the neighborhood is very stable. Also look closely at the area near Farmington Ave and Mountain Road. There is a supermarket here, along with some shops, including some inexpensive restaurants. It's also close to a great town indoor pool and skating complex. Next look at the town center, in the area of Farmington Avenue and Main St. It's wonderful - main branch of town library, movie theater, lots of restaurants (but mostly upscale, some inexpensive ones), shops but again largely upscale - very interesting to walk around, very lively. However, the only supermarket here is Whole Foods, which is colloquially known as Whole Paycheck. If you are in the area between the town center and the area around Mountain Road, you theoretically could walk to both - they are about a mile apart. However, most of the houses in this area are colonials. Another area to look at is Elmwood, near the intersection of New Britain Ave and Newington Rd. There are lots of shops and inexpensive restaurants here, a big community center with lots of activities, another very nice branch library, and there is a Stop and Shop nearby. Houses are less expensive here. The neighborhood is still safe overall, but it is less stable than Bishops Corner and the town center. It's closer to Hartford, so more vulnerable to "spillover" of Hartford's socioeconomic issues. Still, I would not hesitate to live in this area - it's got lively energy, and seems to be up and coming. There is public bus service in all of these areas.

If you are going to be commuting to Torrington on a daily basis, I would not choose to live in West Hartford. It's just too far a drive, with no highway connection. It would take 45 minutes with no traffic, over secondary routes with lots of lights. During most of the day, it could take much longer, what with rush hour and shopping traffic. If you only need to get to Torrington less frequently, West Hartford would definitely be your best bet.

[Stylo]

Well, I still think West Hartford is your best option as it's a really substantial downtown and nearby.

Fairfield and Milford are roughly an hour to Torrington. Milford maybe slightly less without traffic (Route 8 is never really that bad). Both have fantastic walkable downtowns with nearby amenities. Fairfield is considerably more expensive, but a pretty exceptional town. Milford is more in line with West Hartford's pricing.