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Old 11-15-2013, 05:41 PM
 
Location: Groton
8 posts, read 12,381 times
Reputation: 24

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I never left the airport in Minneapolis, but jeez anywhere has to be better than New Haven. (Except maybe Hartford, Bridgeport, Meriden, etc. CT's charm is not in its cities, which are to be avoided like New Jersey, as far as I'm concerned.) New Haven does have a lot of great restaurants...but it pretty much ends there. Yale is nice and has some gorgeous buildings, but even still, you have to go outside eventually and *whomp* there's the hood. There have been some awful instances of mob violence, of late--and I'm not just talking about club shootings. (You go ahead and look it up, lest I be accused of inciting something, heh.) As for those who say the location is so wonderful...ehhh I don't think so. There are plenty of towns between Boston and NYC that are worlds away from the urban blight and criminal rat's nest that is New Haven. Yes, there is the train, but you still won't be particularly close to either city, so bring a book. I don't know what your budget looks like (either way it will go much farther in Minneapolis, I assure you), but a lot of professors live just outside the city in Woodbridge, which is quite lovely and woodsy, and more classically New England, if you're into that sort of thing. If you do end up in New Haven, you must savor the large number of deliciously eclectic and ethnic restaurants; definitely check out Toad's if you're into live music in a very low-key, intimate setting, they have internationally known acts as well as cover bands and DJ dance nights; and keep your wits about you and bring a friend if you're walking around out after dark.

And yes, Connecticut has beaches, but the water in New England is COLD!!! It's something I've never gotten used to, having grown up swimming in much warmer water below the Mason-Dixon line. I can barely handle swimming pools in the summer up here. The beaches tend to be narrow and rocky, and some are far more rock than sand, and some are all rocks--OBX it ain't--but the views can be nice. Get a cheap little sunfish or something like that off of Craigslist to tool around in and you'll have a great summer.

Last edited by unpopularopinion; 11-15-2013 at 05:58 PM..
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Old 11-15-2013, 08:28 PM
 
36 posts, read 93,125 times
Reputation: 22
Thank you all so much for the helpful input. Feel free to keep em coming

Also, CT residents, I am well aware it is much more expensive of an area than Chattanooga (TN), but I am curious as to what sort of house in what kind of area around New Haven that 150k can buy? I live about 20-25 mins from downtown here (considered normal) and live in a nice, safe, middle class neighborhood built in the late 80s, but kept up. I have a 1750 sq ft, two story house with a decent size backyard. Many of the neighbors have the split foyer design. Granted, just like everywhere else, the closer you get to the big stuff, the price increases considerably as the property taxes do. Also, our property taxes are a little under 1k a year. Just curious as its kind of important!
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Old 11-15-2013, 08:53 PM
 
Location: Woburn, MA / W. Hartford, CT
6,006 posts, read 4,985,753 times
Reputation: 4040
You will not find anything for <$150K in any decent area in CT, except (maybe) in the quiet (NW) corner of the state. And property taxes? You're looking at at least 5x what you're paying now (I pay close to $10K myself).

Then again, MSP is not cheap either, although it's easier to find new housing stock there.
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Old 11-15-2013, 09:12 PM
 
4,787 posts, read 11,706,447 times
Reputation: 12757
$ 150,000 is the bottom of the housing market in the New Haven area. That doesn't mean it can't be done. It does mean that you'll be in towns that are fine for living ( safe) but which don't have great school systems as compared to some in the area. You also won't get a home that is newer. If you look hard, you may be able to find homes that have been updated or renovated. In that price range, most of the homes are going to be pre-1970 or much older.

Some possibilities

31 Rochford Ave, Hamden, CT 06514 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

6 Saint Paul Ave, E Haven, CT 06512 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...ail/207-Brook-
St_Hamden_CT_06514_M37258-01927?row=8

As for taxes, anticipate thousands ( maybe $ 3500- 5500) depending on where and what you buy. Look in Hamden, East Haven and West Haven.
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Old 11-15-2013, 11:12 PM
 
Location: Coastal Connecticut
21,553 posts, read 27,789,320 times
Reputation: 6674
Quote:
Originally Posted by unpopularopinion View Post
I never left the airport in Minneapolis, but jeez anywhere has to be better than New Haven. (Except maybe Hartford, Bridgeport, Meriden, etc. CT's charm is not in its cities, which are to be avoided like New Jersey, as far as I'm concerned.) New Haven does have a lot of great restaurants...but it pretty much ends there. Yale is nice and has some gorgeous buildings, but even still, you have to go outside eventually and *whomp* there's the hood. There have been some awful instances of mob violence, of late--and I'm not just talking about club shootings. (You go ahead and look it up, lest I be accused of inciting something, heh.) As for those who say the location is so wonderful...ehhh I don't think so. There are plenty of towns between Boston and NYC that are worlds away from the urban blight and criminal rat's nest that is New Haven. Yes, there is the train, but you still won't be particularly close to either city, so bring a book. I don't know what your budget looks like (either way it will go much farther in Minneapolis, I assure you), but a lot of professors live just outside the city in Woodbridge, which is quite lovely and woodsy, and more classically New England, if you're into that sort of thing. If you do end up in New Haven, you must savor the large number of deliciously eclectic and ethnic restaurants; definitely check out Toad's if you're into live music in a very low-key, intimate setting, they have internationally known acts as well as cover bands and DJ dance nights; and keep your wits about you and bring a friend if you're walking around out after dark.

And yes, Connecticut has beaches, but the water in New England is COLD!!! It's something I've never gotten used to, having grown up swimming in much warmer water below the Mason-Dixon line. I can barely handle swimming pools in the summer up here. The beaches tend to be narrow and rocky, and some are far more rock than sand, and some are all rocks--OBX it ain't--but the views can be nice. Get a cheap little sunfish or something like that off of Craigslist to tool around in and you'll have a great summer.
Minneapolis has its crime too. Not far off from New Haven, and considering it's a much bigger city (over 3x the land area) - if you were to compare the same land area that Minneapolis takes up with the greater New Haven area, the crime would be higher overall.

Also, spoken like someone that claims to know New Haven, but doesn't. You're exaggerating the blight and bad areas of New Haven. Not saying they don't exist, as they do - but the blight is lower than other cities (like Bridgeport) and the bad neighborhoods have become very concentrated over the years. There is no doubt the city is revitalizing. East Rock is almost completely gentrified and Ninth Square doesn't resemble itself 10 years ago in any way. Yeah, if you're on the absolute edge of downtown on Broadway, and go a few blocks north on Dixwell - it's pretty bad. But other than that, it's not like you're in a nice area and then take a few steps and bam, warzone. Anyone that knows the city has no reason to go into those areas. You can go along large swaths from East Rock into Wooster Square, downtown and the Yale campus and it's all nice with gorgeous architecture and not a lick of "blight".

I do think New Haven will continue to grow and improve. There's a ton of new development planned over the next 5 years.

$150k will not get you much house, maybe a nice condo in certain towns. But again, there's a reason this area is more expensive. More people want to live here.
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Old 11-16-2013, 06:53 PM
 
21,553 posts, read 30,971,813 times
Reputation: 9658
Minneapolis:

Cheaper
newer infrastructure
colder
better hospitals

New Haven:

expensive
older infrastructure
milder winters
very well educated (mostly thanks to Yale)
closer to major, world class cities

It really depends on your wants. If you're a foodie, you would love New Haven. If you appreciate a lower cost of living and a slightly slower pace, Minneapolis is for you.

The cities are very different.
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Old 11-16-2013, 07:10 PM
 
Location: Coastal Connecticut
21,553 posts, read 27,789,320 times
Reputation: 6674
Quote:
Originally Posted by kidyankee764 View Post
better hospitals
How do you figure? Yale seems to outperform Allina Abbott slightly.
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Old 11-16-2013, 07:15 PM
 
21,553 posts, read 30,971,813 times
Reputation: 9658
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stylo View Post
How do you figure? Yale seems to outperform Allina Abbott slightly.
Total brain fart. That was supposed to go under New Haven.
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Old 11-16-2013, 07:19 PM
 
Location: Coastal Connecticut
21,553 posts, read 27,789,320 times
Reputation: 6674
Makes sense now
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Old 11-16-2013, 07:22 PM
 
372 posts, read 597,259 times
Reputation: 816
New Haven! You have the chance to move to Connecticut, do it! Hopefully I can one day too.
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