[Seattlegirl01]

Hello everyone.

I’ve been looking through several threads and I thought it’s time for me to post. My husband and I are looking to move after our kids are all off to college. There are many options for me in either city. I work in healthcare and participate in research from time to time. My husband can work remote during the day and on the side teaches computer science courses at our local university.

We are both tired of the high cost of living in Seattle, a shack runs you over a million. The traffic is getting out of hand and the crime down town is getting of our hand. We will be in our early fifties when we move. We enjoy traveling, the symphony, opera and eating out.

We need around 2000 sq ft since it’s just us but room when the kids visit. We both make 6 figures.

I appreciate any insight. My apologies if this has been asked before.

Thank you

[kidyankee764]

If you work in healthcare, I’d suggest you focus on New Haven. Because you like the symphony and opera, living in New Haven also allows you to take the Metro North train into Manhattan in less than 2 hours.

You don’t really specify what type of community interests you. Do you want rural, suburban, urban? Do you want a small, quaint town center or homes on an acre of land that are spread out with no real business district? How far from New Haven (or Hartford) are you willing to drive? Do you prefer salt water or does coastal living not matter to you?

Also, how far out is this move? The way you’re talking, it sounds like it may be 5+ years down the road. A lot can change in that time.

Are you looking at other major metro areas?

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by Seattlegirl01

Hello everyone.

I’ve been looking through several threads and I thought it’s time for me to post. My husband and I are looking to move after our kids are all off to college. There are many options for me in either city. I work in healthcare and participate in research from time to time. My husband can work remote during the day and on the side teaches computer science courses at our local university.

We are both tired of the high cost of living in Seattle, a shack runs you over a million. The traffic is getting out of hand and the crime down town is getting of our hand. We will be in our early fifties when we move. We enjoy traveling, the symphony, opera and eating out.

We need around 2000 sq ft since it’s just us but room when the kids visit. We both make 6 figures.

I appreciate any insight. My apologies if this has been asked before.

Thank you

Wow, you guys sound like us! (except for the two 6 figure incomes ) I'd have suggested the Boston area just in terms of a broader range of opportunities, but the traffic and cost of living have surpassed those of Seattle by most metrics.

I'd suggest New Haven, because of Yale and rail access to NYC. I love Hartford...we lived there several years...but you might find it a bit too sleepy. Good luck with your decision & move!

[Seattlegirl01]

Good questions. I went to school in State College and I loved the small town feel, but still 2 hours away from major cities. I prefer a quaint town center.

I’m not so keen on suburbs. I’d rather have urban or country feel. No in between.

We are 2 years away. We have one kid off at school in the Boston area, so looking at the east coast in general. I love Boston but I want our son to fly on his own.

We are fine taking trains to the major cities when needed.

I looked at Stamford but I’m not really wanting to work in NYC and join that rat race. We could go to most major cities but that isn’t appealing as much anymore. Having the ability to access once a month is perfect.

I’ll look at New Haven again.

I love the coast. We would be open. We’ve looked at the Providence area as well.

I did an internship in Baltimore and I really have no desire to return.

Thanks!

[JayCT]

As Kidyankee said it would help to know more about the type of community you like and budget. Without this I would suggest considering the shoreline towns east of New Haven. Branford, Guilford and Madison are beautiful suburbs that have a nice semi quiet beach feel to them. The OP could work in New Haven which is about 20 to 30 minutes away. It’s a very beautiful area. Good luck, Jay

[The_Quiet_One]

Based on your criteria, I'll throw out three places to look into more:

New Milford (not near the coast). Commute to Danbury
Middletown. Commute to Hartford/New Haven
Westerly, RI (coastal). Commute to Groton/New London

Each has a nice town center. None are far from urban areas/trains, but are also close to rural areas. None really fit the typical definition of "suburb." If you were to chose a city, I think New Haven would be best. For small towns, the other coastal towns mentioned above are also very nice.

[Seattlegirl01]

Thank you.

Budget for a house is 800k we could go up to a million, but I’d prefer to stay around 800k or below.
We are looking for a quaint town that has a town square, shops, restaurants and 2-2.5 hours from major cities.

[parentologist]

I wouldn't write off the Greater Hartford area. We have a decent symphony, ballet, lots of local theater and touring productions, local music conservatory, low crime outside of Hartford, and you can buy a very nice 2000 sq ft house for under 500K. It's about a two hour drive to NYC and Boston, about three hours to the Cape for beachy stuff, and two hours to Vermont for skiing. Lots of nice hiking nearby. Plenty of healthcare jobs in the area, with probably five major hospitals. UConn med school is here for research opportunities. There's a state college here, branch campus of state U, two really good private Universities and several smaller colleges, also community colleges, so should be comp sci teaching opportunities.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by Seattlegirl01

Thank you.

Budget for a house is 800k we could go up to a million, but I’d prefer to stay around 800k or below.
We are looking for a quaint town that has a town square, shops, restaurants and 2-2.5 hours from major cities.

With these added criteria, I would strike New Haven off the list, and ask you to look hard at West Hartford. It's nearly self-sufficient but if not, downtown Hartford is merely 4 miles east, and you'd have good access to Bradley airport for travel.

You mentioned Providence. I love the city...I think it has more going for it than Hartford in fact. You could look at the east side (around Brown)...I think you'd love it. Several towns in Greater Boston would meet your criteria too.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by Seattlegirl01

Thank you.

Budget for a house is 800k we could go up to a million, but I’d prefer to stay around 800k or below.
We are looking for a quaint town that has a town square, shops, restaurants and 2-2.5 hours from major cities.

That’s a decent budget. Again I would suggest you check out Branford, Guilford and Madison. You would get a really beautiful home there in your price range. You might also like towns in the beautiful lower Connecticut River Valley. These include town like East Haddam, Haddam, Chester, Essex, Deep River, Old Lyme, Lyme and sold Saybrook.

Another area you might consider is the beautiful Farmington River Valley west of Hartford. It’s separated from metro Hartford by a line of small mountains giving it sort of a Shang-ra-la feeling. Check out towns like Farmington, Avon, Simsbury, Canton, Burlington and Granby.

If you want to be closer to New York City, your budget could get you into affluent Fairfield County. Depending what you want, you could get a modest house in Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Wilton, Weston or Westport. Fairfield is another more affordable town you might want to consider. You would get a nice house there in your price range. Jay