[gravityhomer]

So my wife and I are moving to CT and looking for suggestions on where to live. We are 31 yo, no kids yet and have both lived in various parts of the northeast our whole lives (Philadelphia, NY, Boston, DC), currently we are in Bethesda, MD just outside DC.

These are the factors we are considering. We want to rent first, at least for 1 year. My job will be in Windsor Locks. We have a car but we are very used to living without one. We would love to live within walking distance to an area with restaurants, stores, a movie theater (we love movies), convenience stores, pharmacies, you get the idea. Another thing important to us is that the place be somewhat ethnically diverse (my wife is asian american).

Right now we are considering West Hartford, West end and Hartford, but I wanted to know if there are any other places that we might be missing out on. Somewhere with a somewhat walkable downtown area but also has some diversity. If you have a suggestion that may also fit and is a doable commute to windsor locks we would love to hear it. Thanks!

[Mayazflower]

West Hartford is a great area...I recently moved out of CT. due to my husbands job, but I grew up in W.Htfd. They have a great downtown area with great shopping and resturants. I myself am a minoritiy and love W.Htfd, it has a diverse community and the people are very accepting. That's probably the best place to live...........then there's Bloomfield but you are gonna spend more money to live in the nicer part of Bloomfield (which is closer to your job). But you guys will love CT.........very diverse.

[gravityhomer]

Originally Posted by Mayazflower

West Hartford is a great area...I recently moved out of CT. due to my husbands job, but I grew up in W.Htfd. They have a great downtown area with great shopping and resturants. I myself am a minoritiy and love W.Htfd, it has a diverse community and the people are very accepting. That's probably the best place to live...........

Thanks for your comment, we agree west hartford could be what we're looking for. we're heading up this weekend to see what we think and check out a few places we saw on craigslist. But I was wondering if there is anything else out there similar, or are we pretty much looking in the right spots.

What's Bloomfield like? I haven't really seen that town mentioned much on here.

[skytrekker]

West Hartford is a great town that has much to offer- and the commute time to Windsor Locks is relatively short and easy.

West Hartford Center- has upscale shops, Cafes, fine places to eat and more. The addition of Blue Back Square adds more appeal, with more shopping, Theater, and restaurants.

West Hartford has genteel leaf streets with fine homes. The schools are excellent as well. South Windsor, across the Connecticut river is a bit more suburban to semi rural- but still is a great town- with an easy commute to WL.

A third option would be Glastonbury, just to the SE of Hartford, an upscale town on the eastern side of the Connecticut river- It has many fine neighborhoods, excellent restaurant's, a pleasant center and Main Street and renowned schools.

[Mayazflower]

I agree Glastonbury is a nice area as well...... I'm partial to W.Hartford. I think you should focus on W. Hartford, you guys are gonna love it......city feel with downtown Hartford 5 mins. away and then the option to relax and stroll the center area of W.Hartford. Take your wife to Westfarms mall she'll love it!!! (If she loves to shop)

[JayCT]

It sounds like West Hartford would be your best bet. It has a nice walkable downtown area that has shops, restaurants and movie theaters that you are looking for. The recnetly opened Blue Back Square has really added to West Hartford Center a lot.

Sadly there are not a lot of other towns in the area that meet your desires. Glastonbury is nice and has many of the things you are looking for but does not have any movie theaters. Bloomfield is a diverse suburban town that has a small somewhat suburban center. There were theaters there but I am not sure they are still open (I haven't been there in a while now).

Keep in mind that Hartford is not Washingotn DC. It is a small city and has nice but limited options for dinning entertainment and culture. What we have is very good and very accessible (meaning easy to use). Even at the top restaurants there is usually just a modest wait which is nice in comparision to big cities where you normally have to wait for hours even during off times. I hope you like it here. Jay

[gravityhomer]

Thanks for the great suggestions! I will look at South Windsor and Glastonbury, but at this point I'm really hoping West Hartford works out. It's a shame there is no movie theater in Glastonbury, we live within walking distance of two here in Bethesda and we love it. Saw three movies last weekend.

When we were first coming to Bethesda, we were used to the renting environment in Boston where realty agents charge big fees to find you an apartment and then you have to sign the lease immediately and put down first, last months and security deposit (1 month), so apartment hunting is a huge ordeal involving a lot of money. We learned to use craigslist and meet with the owners directly to avoid the realtors fee (also usually 1 month).

When we got to Bethesda, we tried the craigslist route but didn't get anywhere and then we found out that most of the good apartments are in managed buildings where you just show up and see what's available. There's no fee. We just had to pay a cheap application fee and the apartment was ours until we paid the first months rent when we showed up 3 weeks later.

So I'm wondering what renting is like in CT. Is it like Boston where you need to have multiple month's rent and realtors charge a lot (assuming we use one)?

[JayCT]

It is not like Boston here and you should be able to find an apartment on your own without paying a rental commission. Check craigslist and the Hartford Courant. Be aware that West Hartford is very popular so good apartments go quickly.

Another less upscale town to consider may be Middletown. It has a nice walkable downtown with movie theaters and is the home to Wesleyan so there is always a lot ot do. Good luck, Jay

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by JayCT

It is not like Boston here and you should be able to find an apartment on your own without paying a rental commission. Check craigslist and the Hartford Courant. Be aware that West Hartford is very popular so good apartments go quickly.

Another less upscale town to consider may be Middletown. It has a nice walkable downtown with movie theaters and is the home to Wesleyan so there is always a lot ot do. Good luck, Jay

Very true. Many complexes, especially those in Hamden and Middletown, have leasing offices and will NOT deal with real estate agents.

[jad2000]

West Hartford is a beautiful town and your commute to Windsor Locks will be a breeze. The town has a lot of character and the residents are sophisticated. I find home prices in WH to be a bargain for what the town offers.

A friend of mine grew up in Glastonbury and now has 3 kids. She says the schools are excellent and it's a nice town but says it's very hard for kids in the schools to make longtime friends because of the amount of people moving into and out of town so often. That really wouldn't stop me from moving there but some people really don't like that.

As for Bloomfield - it's quite odd. The town is beautiful and has some very affluent parts but the schools aren't that great. It's a great town however if you want your kids to be in a diverse atmosphere.