Moving to Dayton, Ohio. Need help with Areas!! (Kettering, Beavercreek: homes, best schools)

[SLCBakeaholic]

Went to Dayton over the weekend to do some house hunting. We checked out Centerville, Bellbrook, Beavercreek, Springboro and Oakwood. We looked into new construction as well as existing homes. We started with Springboro and ended in Oakwood.

We decided we definitely didn't want to build a new home! The neighborhoods we looked at were very bare with random homes here and there and construction was really slow. One particular neighborhood had around 15 homes and needed at least 50 before they would put in a clubhouse/pool. A little scary. This particular neighborhood was suppose to have 1,000 homes! We looked at Ryan, Gold Key and Drees homes. The sad thing with new construction is all the homes come standard with linoleum flooring, laminate countertops, cheap lighting, etc. Ick. Very basic (out-dating looking) materials throughout unless you upgrade. And really, once you walk through the model, you'll want to upgrade everything. Not for us.

We loved, loved Oakwood!! We found a house we're going to put an offer on this week. If that doesn't work out, we'll continue house hunting in Oakwood. That's definitely the area we want to be in. Very charming, super friendly, tree-lined streets, lovely parks, walking/running/biking, great schools, clean, very safe, community oriented, family friendly... Also Dorothy Lane Market and Trader Joes close by!! Love those both. We'll have to factor in the monthly payment with taxes to make sure it will work, but we're very excited for the move!!

Any restaurant recs., good parks, trails or fun things to do in the Oakwood area are welcome!! Thanks for all the helpful info.!

[dayton_ohio]

Oakwood has three nice parks -- Smith Gardens (peaceful flowers, pond), Shafor Park (kid's play area, near pool and tennis courts), and Orchardly Park (newer, bigger kid's equipment and water fountain area).

The local Metroparks are fantastic; you should explore them all.

There is a big, very nice nature preserve near Yellow Springs. I forget the name (maybe John Bryan park?), but someone will know it.

One weakness of Oakwood is not many restaurants in the city proper. I think the Oakwood Club is overrated, but some people love it.

In Dayton on Brown Street, there are dozens of student-oriented places (Jimmy Johns, Chipotle, Panera, etc.), plus the Pine Club, which is excellent. Oakwood is about five minutes away from Oregon District restaurants, many of which are quite good.

In Kettering, to the south and east of Oakwood, there are a bunch of restaurants -- pizza (Donatos, Papa Johns, LaBullBoxer31, Marions, Cassano), fast food, local places (Thai place on Wilmington Pike, China Cottage are both good). The Greene has nicer chains like Cheesecake Factory, Mimi's Cafe, and Flemings, and some good local spots (Pasha Grill is my favorite there). El Meson (fifteen minutes from Oakwood) has very good Latin American food.

Oakwood has lots of fun activities throughout the year. I would recommend joining the pool and going to the fall festival and "That Day in May". You'll meet a lot of people that way.

[SLCBakeaholic]

Just for a comparison, our realtor sent us some listing in Kettering. A lot cheaper! What does everyone think of Oakwood vs Kettering for homes, taxes, surrounding neighborhoods and areas? Is Oakwood worth the price tag?

[dayton_ohio]

Consider the big differences --

Schools: Oakwood has some of the best performing schools in the state in Harman, Smith, Oakwood Junior, and Oakwood Senior. Oakwood parents (almost every single one I've met) put enormous value on the quality of the schools and are very active. I can't speak to Kettering schools, but I believe every Oakwood school outscores even the best Kettering schools.

Police/fire: Oakwood is one of the few communities in the country that have a single public safety department (for fire, police, EMS). Response times for all three are some of the lowest in the area.

Neighbors: Most people decide to live in Oakwood by doing the same math you are doing, comparing the extra cost to the extra quality of life. People in Oakwood are invested, quite literally, in the continued high quality of life, which makes people more involved and neigborly. I haven't lived in Kettering, but I've never found this sense of community anywhere else.

Price appreciation: There are a finite number of homes in Oakwood, with the only new construction at very high prices. The quality of the schools, parks, library, neighbors, safety, walkability result in relatively high and stable demand for Oakwood. Kettering has very nice areas, but there really isn't a lot to push someone moving into the area to choose it over Beavercreek, Centerville, Vandalia, or elsewhere.

Taxes are quite similar, but Oakwood is a little higher in both income and property taxes, but it's not that different.

[Crew Chief]

SLCBakeaholic, there are nice parts of Kettering, but IMHO, Oakwood is a FAR better choice if it'll fit your budget. maybe not a fair assesment but: We enjoy the Oinker Doodle Moo Restaurant in Kettering. (BBQ) Anyway, we circle around thru the adjoining neighborhood to go back South on Far Hills. Kettering takes FOREVER to plow their side streets after snowfalls. Centerville/Washington Twp and, of course, Oakwood do a MUCH better job.

[CFoulke]

Hi and welcome to Ohio!!! Wrightflyer gave some EXCELLENT advice and perspectives. My hubby and I currently live in Beavercreek Twp. and are moving to IL mid July and I was formerly a dispatcher with the PD in Centerville. If you find a home there - stop in and ask about their local crime trends - they will be happy to share. There are some lovely areas with beautiful homes in Centerville, the schools are top rated year after year, crime is very minimal (and handled in a prompt and efficient manner), they have an annual Americana Parade every year on 4th of July weekend (really big deal), some decent restaurants and lots close by. If you have kids - you won't be far from King's Island Amusement Park in Mason OH, excellent libraries. Beavercreek is also a good, safe community and home to WPAFB which offers a free Space museum, good eats and plenty of shopping. I-675 can take you anywhere you want to go. You will be around an hour outside of Columbus (state capital) and they have a Great Zoo and museums. Downtown Dayton is pretty scary - lots of areas to just plain avoid, however every summer from first of July through end of August at Riverscape MetroPark they have free concerts (We love the Big Band concerts) and ice skating in the wintertime. The scenery here will not be anything as majestic as you will find out west, but people are friendly and I'm sure you'll find your niche. Good luck to you all!!!!!

[joe from dayton]

+1 to Five Rivers Metro Parks. Alos check out the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery (children's museum) and Sunwatch Indian Village.

[SLCBakeaholic]

Thanks again for all the great advice and tips! We are still combing through listings in Oakwood. Hopefully we'll find a home soon! If any of you know of a nice home in the Oakwood area, send it our way!

[Crew Chief]

Originally Posted by SLCBakeaholic

Thanks again for all the great advice and tips! We are still combing through listings in Oakwood. Hopefully we'll find a home soon! If any of you know of a nice home in the Oakwood area, send it our way!

Welcome!!! Glad to have you! And once you've arrived, don't foget us; we want to know what you think of your new home!

[CFoulke]

I sent you a link to the Realtor.com website with Oakwood homes attached. Don't know if you have scoured this site or not, but there is lots of information to be found here and I used it when we were searching for our new home (moving next month!!!) If you don't find as many pictures (or any) of a house you may want to look at, copy the mls# and in a new window type mls and then paste in your number. Sometimes other sites (Trulia, Zillow, etc) will have more info and or photos. Good Luck!!!!!


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