[Meganbw]

Hi everyone,

We are moving to CT from near Princeton NJ sometime in the next month or two due to my husband's new job in New Haven. Our kids are almost 5 and almost 2 so having great schools is important as is having things to do, a local community center, etc.

Because we own in NJ, we will initially be renting. Woodbridge, Guilford, and Madison all have rapidly turning over rentals. Cheshire seems not to be turning over as fast--the houses seem fine but people haven't been recommending it to us as the other towns. Why is that? We are trying to figure out where we would most enjoy living. I love the beach but don't absolutely have to live on the shore-- we just want a friendly town where the people are down to earth, a decent commute to new haven, and good schools. My husband is a scientist and I am a psychologist who hopes to set up a private practice.

What are the personalities of these towns? Does anyone have any experience with any of the elementary schools in the areas? Are there other towns we should be considering?

Thanks in advance!

[Stylo]

Budget for rental?

Cheshire is nice. Nothing wrong with it. Kind of always seemed like generic nice CT suburb to me. Good schools, low key. Accessibility to 91 is varied though and it can be a bit annoying to get to New Haven depending on where you are.

It is tough to find rentals in the towns you mentioned because the rental market is limited, they're more "buyer's" towns. I'd open your search to Branford and Milford. They have nice town centers and plenty going on. Milford is a bit more bustling and has more going on but they're both great towns with plenty of rentals and good elementary schools.

Another to consider would be Wallingford.

[NewJeffCT]

Guilford and Madison are on the beach, so that explains the rental turnover, especially at this time of year. Woodbridge is home to a lot of college professors, so with the school year having ended, there is likely turnover there as well. Plus, it's closer to the beach than Cheshire as well.

I like all three among Guilford, Madison and Woodbridge. Woodbridge has a larger percentage of older housing stock, but a lot of it is nicely maintained and often quite unique in nature. Guilford & Madison have their historical charm as well, but both towns also have more in the way of newer homes with modern conveniences.

Woodbridge gives you easier access to shopping in nearby Milford and Orange. Guilford gives you easy access to Branford and North Haven for shopping. Madison might be the most upscale town on your list, but other than grocery shopping, it might be the hardest place to access shopping from.

Cheshire is also a very nice town, but sometimes gets lost in the shuffle because it's not quite a Hartford suburb, and not on the shore like some other New Haven suburbs like Guilford and Madison. Well, I wouldn't say "lost", but maybe not on quite par with them.

[Meganbw]

Thanks everyone. Keep these thoughts coming! Budget for rental ideally around 2500 but could go up to 3,000 (not happily though..)

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by Stylo

Budget for rental?

Cheshire is nice. Nothing wrong with it. Kind of always seemed like generic nice CT suburb to me. Good schools, low key. Accessibility to 91 is varied though and it can be a bit annoying to get to New Haven depending on where you are.

It is tough to find rentals in the towns you mentioned because the rental market is limited, they're more "buyer's" towns. I'd open your search to Branford and Milford. They have nice town centers and plenty going on. Milford is a bit more bustling and has more going on but they're both great towns with plenty of rentals and good elementary schools.

Another to consider would be Wallingford.

I'd probably suggest North Haven before Wallingford, for this particular OP.

[Meganbw]

Why North Haven?

So, can someone talk more about what woodbridge is like? My husbands been getting some vague feedback that it may be more "uppity" than we want? But there is a very tempting rental there. What are pros and cons of woodbridge? I feel like I have the best vision of Madison, not that it's accurate...

[NewJeffCT]

agree also with Stylo that most of the more desirable towns - like those you mentioned - around New Haven are heavily oriented towards buying a home and not renting a home. However, you may be able to find a few homes for rent that are not seasonal/summer rentals... you'd just need to move quickly if you do find them.

[NewJeffCT]

Woodbridge is a nice town, and was cited a year or two back as the town in Connecticut that has the highest percentage of persons with at least a master's degree. To be honest, while I like Madison a lot, it has more of an "uppity" reputation than Guilford or Woodbridge.

Woodbridge, as I said above, will have some nice newer homes in town, but also a lot of well maintained older homes with some unique styles to them. A lot of the homes will have larger lots (1+ acre). It's more rural suburban than Guilford or Madison. Other than a Stop & Shop in town, most of the amenities like restaurants, shopping and big box stores will be nearby on Post Road in Orange and Milford.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by Meganbw

Why North Haven?

Good schools. Relatively quiet and relatively close to New Haven. Minimal "uppity" attitude.

[whattodowhattodo]

I lived in Madison for about a year until recently moving to Guilford. I'm not particularly familiar with Woodbridge, but I'll comment on Madison vs. Guilford.

Both towns have really good schools. Based solely on the numbers, Madison has a slight edge over Guilford. In my dealings with both districts, the staff have been really helpful and communicative. Since you have an almost 5 year old, I think it's important to note that as of the last time I checked, Guilford does not have a full day kindergarten. I believe that full day kindergarten was approved in the budget, but I don't know if that's going to start this coming fall or the following year. Madison has a full day kindergarten.

They also both have very nice town beaches. Surf Club Beach in Madison is definitely my preferred beach since it has a fantastic playground for young children (I have a 4 year old), although Jacob's Beach in Guilford is also good. The real benefit of Surf Club Beach over Jacob's Beach, if you have a young child, is that there is a nicer view of the beach when you're on the playground area (the kayak and whatnot storage kind of gets in the way at Jacob's Beach). Surf Club Beach also has a concession stand, although I've never eaten anything from there because we always bring food and snacks with us. Both beaches have picnic/grill areas.

Guilford's library has a great children's room whereas Madison's library is much smaller. Both have wonderful library staff and there's always the benefit of having access to Museum Passes (if you don't know about this, check into it...great way to get discounts/free passes to museums, the zoo, etc.).

As for shopping, even though Madison has a Stop & Shop, we were constantly driving to Guilford to shop at Big Y since we typically got better deals there. Guilford also has other stores, including a relatively small Walmart (relative to other Walmarts, that is). For other shopping, neither town has a large selection of stores. We ended up going to neighboring towns for this (Clinton, Branford, Hamden, etc.).

I've gotten the impression that Madison's population is a bit older than Guilford's, but City-Data.com says that the median age is the same so maybe it's just who I've come across.

Guilford has a large town green that is the center of town. Madison's town green is smaller and has an odd location right on Boston Post Road. In large part because of the location of Guilford's green, Guilford has a very charming small town feel to it. I know others feel differently, but in my opinion, Madison lacks a lot of the charm that Guilford has.

I would also consider Branford, which is very family-oriented as well.