[kdjack]

Hi, We are considering a job in New Haven, but have never been to the East Coast. Although from the midwest, we currently live in Switzerland, so we need as much advance info as possible. I have 3 boys, 2 already in school and need a town with really great schools. I prefer districts/towns with gifted programs, as one son currently is in private school for gifted kids. Hoping to get a 5 bedroom (although 4 is fine) for under 600K. For the commute, when I say reasonable, I mean under 1 hr by car. Currently we work with that, but obviously shorter is better. If I had to prioritize, I would say I need 1)best schools, 2) good community, value for money and 3)commute time. Also, any info about recommended towns (like character, highway access, young/old, etc.) is appreciated. Thanks!

[JayCT]

The New Haven area has many wonderful and beautiful places to live that would be witihin your price range. Many of these towns have public school systems that are considered excellent so private schools are generally not necessary. The closest towns with excellent schools would be Woodbridge, Orange and Bethany. These three towns share a highly rated middle and high school. Woodbridge is a somewhat rural upscale suburb located just northwest of New Haven but may be a too pricey. Orange is located directly west and is a little bit more suburban in character. Bethany is located to the north and is somewhat rural.

Another great area to consider are the shoreline suburbs to the east of New Haven: Madison, Guilford and Branford. These are great towns with excellent schools and a lot of charm and character. Madison is the eastern most of these communities and is an upscale and somewhat pricey community. There should be some homes there in your price range. Guilford is a little less upscale but has a wonderful charming town green area. There should be more homes there in your price range. Branford is a bit more diverse but also has a lot of charm.

The link below will provide you with information on each of the school systems in the state. I hope this helps. Jay

Strategic School Profiles by District

[kdjack]

JayCT,
That was a really helpful reply! I have been looking at Greatschools.net, and can get an idea of which towns have decent schools, but I never find the number to be enough. Also, it's much easier to get an impression of what the towns might be like if you hear an opinion. Thanks!

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by kdjack

JayCT,
That was a really helpful reply! I have been looking at Greatschools.net, and can get an idea of which towns have decent schools, but I never find the number to be enough. Also, it's much easier to get an impression of what the towns might be like if you hear an opinion. Thanks!

To help you a bit, I always look at the student results to see how many score at or above the State Goal on the Connecticut Mastery and Connecticut Academic Performance tests. To me, towns with scores generally higher than 80% are excellent. The towns I recommeded I believe meet this.

I also look at class sizes. To me class sizes much larger than 20 to 22 students per teacher is getting too big. I do know that some towns have class sizes that are higher but do offer in-class para-professionals to assist teachers. I do not know how you know if this is what the town does or not so I am a bit cautious when looking at the class-size. Jay

[nico7]

Originally Posted by kdjack

JayCT,
That was a really helpful reply! I have been looking at Greatschools.net, and can get an idea of which towns have decent schools, but I never find the number to be enough. Also, it's much easier to get an impression of what the towns might be like if you hear an opinion. Thanks!

Jay's suggestions are spot-on. Each of those towns has its own character. Orange is a nice suburban residential community with a developed retail strip. Woodbridge is a secluded enclave of residential neighborhoods with somewhat of a reputation for wealth. Bethany is semi-rural to rural in character. From these towns, you would likely be commuting to New Haven on Route 34.

The shoreline towns on the list (Branford, Guilford, Madison) have a commuter train service that stops at two stations (State Street and Union Station) in New Haven -- Yale has its own shuttles to and from the train station. I would describe Madison as having primarily the feel of a beach community, but with some small-town wonders like a fantastic independent bookstore. Guilford has the archetypal New England town center with a 10-acre green and many buildings from 1600's-1700's. Branford has a great variety of attractions including the Thimble Islands, good restaurants, and is a bit more commercially developed than other towns on the list except Orange. With the shoreline towns, Madison is a bit more isolated from the cultural center of New Haven, then Guilford is somewhat more culturally connected, and Branford is yet closer to New Haven and has some demographic diversity of its own (Madison and Guilford are somewhat homogeneous).

Good luck and please post or DM any questions you have.

[MacBoo]

Don't just think North on i95...broaden your horizon and why not think Shelton. Commute to New Haven is less than half hour and Shelton boasts a very low tax rate, lots of included town services (ie: Garbage/large item pick up) and in the north area you get a beautiful farm area with large lots and Elizabeth Shelton Elementary is great!

[weesy68]

Just out of curiousity what part of Switzerland are in you right now? I worked in Geneva for a year and loved it, my brother now lives at the opposite end on the Austrian border.

[kdjack]

We started out in Zurich for the first 3.5 years, and have been in Basel for the last 4 or so. My kids are getting to the age where I'd like to get them back into the U.S. school system, plus I miss having family around on all the birthdays and holidays. I know we won't relocate close to family (Chicago) but anything in the U.S. is closer than Switzerland! Anyway, we love it here, but also want our kids to grow up in the states. My husband's job will likely get us to one of the coasts so I'm trying to find out about the places he is interviewing. There are huge differences between them (We're looking at Boston, Philly, CT of course, and also CA-San Diego/San Fran/Orange County). So I'm spending a lot of time looking at commutes, home values, schools etc. Thanks for asking, and for all the advice!

[molpel]

You may also want to consider Milford - it isn't far from New Haven (you can definitely drive but if you really want to you can take the train - it is only 1 stop away), has good schools, lots of activites, shopping, taxes aren't bad, etc. Also, you can definitely get a 4-5 bedroom house for under $600k.

[usmcfamily]

kdjack,

Not all the school districts in the state offer gifted programs. Make sure you check, I would even call the school and get info about the gifted programs and what they offer. Many programs are being cut, I guess, due to lack of funding. Unfortunately, we just assumed there would be a gifted program and we didn't do our homework. Sadly, now my 6th grader is paying the price. We love the town and moving is not an option. His teachers are very honest about lacking material/time to challenge him. We provide the "extras" and high school will offer him more of what he needs.

Being relatively new myself, I don't know much about other school districts, however, Orange, North Haven, Durham, Madison have excellent reputations and are beautiful towns. Housing is in a slump now so there maybe something in your price range.