[olive03]

I really do sincerely appreciate and value everyone's input. I think I'm going to cross Fairfield Co off the list for now based on our desire to avoid the general NYC metro.

So that leaves me with -

Hartford Co
Simsbury
Avon
Farmington

New Haven Co
Orange
Woodbridge
Bethany
Madison
Guilford


Any other towns to add?

Looks like Hartford and NH are about the same in size. Is there one county/metro that has higher performing schools than the others? What about the towns? I realize I might be splitting hairs at this point, but I'm curious. Anything else to add based on our wish list?

[TripleEight]

I sounds to me as if Weston might be what you are looking for - you'd be in a semi-rural area with the best schools in Fairfield County yet still about 35-40 minutes from Westchester Airport with direct flights to ORD. And you'd get an amazing house with your budget.

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by olive03

I really do sincerely appreciate and value everyone's input. I think I'm going to cross Fairfield Co off the list for now based on our desire to avoid the general NYC metro.

So that leaves me with -

Hartford Co
Simsbury
Avon
Farmington

New Haven Co
Orange
Woodbridge
Bethany
Madison
Guilford


Any other towns to add?

Looks like Hartford and NH are about the same in size. Is there one county/metro that has higher performing schools than the others? What about the towns? I realize I might be splitting hairs at this point, but I'm curious. Anything else to add based on our wish list?

IMO, the best town on that list is Madison, solely because it’s a New England paradise. Guilford isn’t far behind. That said, they are a bit remote and shopping isn’t too close. The airport is an hour away.

I’d lean Hartford due to your desire to be near an airport. Avon is a top notch community. I’d add Glastonbury to the list also. You’ll find prices in greater Hartford to be far more affordable than southwestern CT. Tax rates are insanely high in many Hartford area towns, but seeing that you’re from IL, it shouldn’t be much different than what you’re used to. $1m makes you top dog in Hartford County - you can spend 500k and get what you want.

I’d also suggest you look at other states. MA is generally a little more affordable away from Boston. Greater DC is awesome but not as quiet as Hartford will be.

[olive03]

Originally Posted by TripleEight

I sounds to me as if Weston might be what you are looking for - you'd be in a semi-rural area with the best schools in Fairfield County yet still about 35-40 minutes from Westchester Airport with direct flights to ORD. And you'd get an amazing house with your budget.

This is good to know! I took Weston off the list because I assume that since it was in Fairfield County, we'd be most likely to utilize the NYC airports.

[olive03]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

IMO, the best town on that list is Madison, solely because it’s a New England paradise. Guilford isn’t far behind. That said, they are a bit remote and shopping isn’t too close. The airport is an hour away.

I’d lean Hartford due to your desire to be near an airport. Avon is a top notch community. I’d add Glastonbury to the list also. You’ll find prices in greater Hartford to be far more affordable than southwestern CT. Tax rates are insanely high in many Hartford area towns, but seeing that you’re from IL, it shouldn’t be much different than what you’re used to. $1m makes you top dog in Hartford County - you can spend 500k and get what you want.

I’d also suggest you look at other states. MA is generally a little more affordable away from Boston. Greater DC is awesome but not as quiet as Hartford will be.

I'll add Glastonbury.

And yes, I'm open to MA. I just have no idea where to start. Any suggestions based on our criteria?

Thank you!

[KH02]

Longmeadow in Mass is on the CT border and quick commute to Bradley airport. It is a beautiful town with great schools!

[hvexpatinct]

Cross Avon off your list if you want laid back. IMO, Glastonbury is probably the best choice in the Hartford area for that more friendly collegial vibe.

Just know that living in that part of the state will limit your airport access to basically the Hartford airport - it would still be quite the hike to NYC or Boston for most international travel. Probably not a huge deal for someone who is mostly traveling to Chicago but keep it in mind.

[RiskReturn]

You can definitely hit your mark in Westport (2500+ sft on a "decent sized lot" assuming decent= 1/2 acre or more). Property taxes are low in the Fairfield County (FFC) shoreline suburbs, so that is something to consider when assess housing budget (if you haven't already).

Westport along/north of the Merritt has a more secluded feel - and a lower average price/sqft, so I would start your search there.

Other towns in FFC to consider:
- Ridgefield
- Wilton
- Weston
- Farfield

You should be able to find suitable homes in your budget (or even below) in all of these towns. New Canaan might be doable as well, but the inventory is going to be tighter.

As far as airport access goes, it's definitely a trek to LGA/JFK in NYC from FFC (generally 1-2 hours depending on time/town/traffic). As others have mentioned, the Hartford towns will give you easy access to BDL (albeit not a true 'international' airport, it has decent domestic coverage/frequency - with direct flights to Chi).

Hartford area towns to consider (all within 30 mins of BDL airport):
- Simsbury
- Glastonbury
- Avon
- West Hartford (more urban/suburban but the western side of town is more spaced out w/ access to numerous hiking/running trails)
- Farmington

With the exception of maybe Farmington, property taxes in these towns are markedly higher than the towns in FFC (think approx double the taxes for a comparably priced home in lower FFC), so you may have to adjust your budget accordingly. That being said real estate is much more reasonable in the Hartford area and you should have no trouble finding homes that meet your requirement (I'd personally start by looking at homes in the 500-600k range). You won't even have to look at the 800k+ price point unless you want to.

I personally would not look in the New haven area as it sort of puts you in "no man's land" as far as airport access goes.


As far as schools go.. when I think "best of the best" in Chicago, New Trier comes to mind. If that is your standard for school quality, I would slightly scale back your expectations of the schools in CT. New Trier is a step above even the best schools in CT in terms of academic performance and academic/EC offerings. Also, due to its sheer size, New Trier a will have notably higher concentration of high performers (i.e.- more potential peers depending on your kids' academic calibers). The closest you'll get to New Trier around here (combination of size, performance, and offerings) is Westport & Greenwich. I'd say the Hartford area suburbs listed, while still offering excellent schools, are a good 2 steps down (I know sort of an arbitrary metric, but I hope it helps paint the picture) from New Trier in overall quality & placement.

I can't speak for the sports programs vis a vis New trier and CT, however I do know the sports programs are top notch in most of the towns I listed (with the FFC towns generally having more robust sports programs across the board).

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

Suburban Connecticut, specifically the area you’re looking at, is fairly transient. People there are no different than people in other metro areas. It’s when you get into the small towns, like anywhere, that you might experience a bit of caution amongst residents.

I agree. New Englanders do respect other people’s privacy which is often mistaken for being unfriendly. That is not the case though. They just do not get in your face or business without being invited in. Jay

[olive03]

Originally Posted by Sri

As far as schools go.. when I think "best of the best" in Chicago, New Trier comes to mind. If that is your standard for school quality, I would slightly scale back your expectations of the schools in CT. New Trier is a step above even the best schools in CT in terms of academic performance and academic/EC offerings. Also due to it's sheer size, New Trier a will have notably higher concentration of high performers (i.e.- more potential peers depending on your kids' academic calibers). The closest you'll get to New Trier around here (combination of size, performance, and offerings) is Westport & Greenwich.

This is BEYOND helpful because the New Trier tier is exactly where we would be coming from. We're in the Stevenson district (Lincolnshire), which consistently ranks even higher than NT:

https://www.usnews.com/education/bes...inois/rankings

Stevenson is a powerhouse of over 4,000 kids and the opportunities are endless due to the size, academics, and wealth. My husband is a SHS grad.

So it sounds like there's not an equivalent in CT?

Don't get me wrong. We LOVE our schools, and we would have to find almost the perfect location for us to make the move, but if there's no "Stevenson on a coast" option, remaining where we are will be a no brainer.

THANK YOU!