Job in New Cumberland...where to move? (Philadelphia, Lancaster: rental, crime rates)

[va_lucky]

I am close to closing in on a Defense (DLA) contract in New Cumberland that will last a little under 2 years. I live in the Fredericksburg area of Virginia, so commuting daily is a bit much.

I'd like to rent a house on a month to month basis since I have a wife and 2 kids along with a few pets.

I don't mind a commute of up to about an hour.

Since I am going to continue to pay a mortgage on my house in Virginia and not have it occupied...perhaps just come down on weekends, I'd like to possibly look into a location that is South of New Cumberland.

Looking for good schools for the kids and to keep to ourselves. Just want peace and quiet.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

[va_lucky]

Seriously? Last person who posted the same question under the same scenario (Moving from NOVA for a job at DLA) got 5 answers. That was a few years ago. Is this a dying area?

[g500]

The Harrisburg/York/Lancaster forum is relatively new and not as many people know about it. It is not a dying area, in fact South Central PA is one of the few growing areas in the state (Cumberland County is way up there on the list of fastest growing). Harrisburg is a pretty sprawled out area and New Cumberland is part of that sprawl. If you want to live closer to Virginia you'd want to look more at York PA or maybe Shrewsbury, Gettysburg, Chambersburg or Hanover which are within 1 hour assuming light traffic and might even closely resemble Fredericksburg on a smaller scale (lots of history too). The traffic on I83 between York and Harrisburg can get heavy. It's even worse because that part of the highway is your standard 2 by 2 lanes. Overall you can find nice areas you just have to look around and do some research. The west shore of Harrisburg and further south in PA tends to be more conservative. Also the weather is not that bad, it is 4-5 degress warmer than central or 7-8 degrees warmer than northern PA depending on the time of year. Will be 3-4 degrees cooler than Fredericksburg/DC.

[va_lucky]

Originally Posted by g500

The Harrisburg/York/Lancaster forum is relatively new and not as many people know about it. It is not a dying area, in fact South Central PA is one of the few growing areas in the state (Cumberland County is way up there on the list of fastest growing). Harrisburg is a pretty sprawled out area and New Cumberland is part of that sprawl. If you want to live closer to Virginia you'd want to look more at York PA or maybe Shrewsbury, Gettysburg, Chambersburg or Hanover which are within 1 hour assuming light traffic and might even closely resemble Fredericksburg on a smaller scale (lots of history too). The traffic on I83 between York and Harrisburg can get heavy. It's even worse because that part of the highway is your standard 2 by 2 lanes. Overall you can find nice areas you just have to look around and do some research. The west shore of Harrisburg and further south in PA tends to be more conservative. Also the weather is not that bad, it is 4-5 degress warmer than central or 7-8 degrees warmer than northern PA depending on the time of year. Will be 3-4 degrees cooler than Fredericksburg/DC.

Thank you for your post. I appreciate it. I remember posting the same thing in the Frederick forum a few years ago and no one responded. I thought that there was a commonality due to relative proximity since I am often greeted with responses and fast. As a contractor, I am often faced with possibilities that might or might not come to fruition at the drop of a hat.

I am looking at the map and commute times. It seems that anything heading South on Route 15 would save some time. I am alarmed at the crime rates that I see in York and Harrisburg as compared to the area that I live though. What's up with that?

Conservative is fine. Thanks for the note on the temperature.

How about Dillsburg? Shippensburg is a bit further from DLA, but it actually cuts off about 15 minutes to Fburg-Virginia. Then there is Gettysburg as you mentioned. Cuts off about 40 minutes to Fburg and is still about 45 from work like Shippensburg.

[g500]

So you can do Dillsburg but I will warn you that it has stop lights on US 15 and traffic gets backed up there pretty badly at peak times. Harrisburg and York cities proper have some crime problems in a serious way, but it is isolated to certain areas like Alison Hill, Uptown Harrisburg and West York. They both have gang and drug activity as expected for cities their size and due to their proximity to Baltimore and Philly. But overall they are great communities with loads of history and there are lots of things to do in both cities. Both are surrounded by massive suburbs that far exceed the city proper in population and housing options. I would look to the suburbs if you are not as price sensitive. dillsburg is the furthest south I would definitely consider to be part of the Harrisburg metro area. A co-worker of mine lives there. Nice area. There's a cool drive in movie theatre there too. Growing big time since its all along US 15 and the fastest way to get to the DC metro area from the Harrisburg metro area and south central PA.

[Dequindre]

Originally Posted by va_lucky

Thank you for your post. I appreciate it. I remember posting the same thing in the Frederick forum a few years ago and no one responded. I thought that there was a commonality due to relative proximity since I am often greeted with responses and fast. As a contractor, I am often faced with possibilities that might or might not come to fruition at the drop of a hat.

I am looking at the map and commute times. It seems that anything heading South on Route 15 would save some time. I am alarmed at the crime rates that I see in York and Harrisburg as compared to the area that I live though. What's up with that?

Conservative is fine. Thanks for the note on the temperature.

How about Dillsburg? Shippensburg is a bit further from DLA, but it actually cuts off about 15 minutes to Fburg-Virginia. Then there is Gettysburg as you mentioned. Cuts off about 40 minutes to Fburg and is still about 45 from work like Shippensburg.

York and Dauphin traditionally have much higher crime rates than surrounding counties. Personally, I wouldn't want to move to the York area for that exact reason (although, Hanover seems like a nice place).

Shippensburg would likely be a good fit for you. It's along I-81, which makes commuting North and South a fairly painless procedure. Homes in the Shippensburg area are very reasonably priced, so that's also a plus. Shippensburg is also home to the Luhrs Center at Shippensburg University, a venue which gets surprisingly big name celebrities considering the size of the area. Suburban-type shopping and dining would likely be done in Chambersburg if you decided to move to Shippensburg. Chambersburg's dining and retail scene has improved drastically over the past few years, so that would give you more options.

Gettysburg is a very nice town, and it has access to Route 15 which also takes you North and South. Gettysburg is a bit pricier when it comes to homes, and there isn't a lot of new home construction taking place due to land preservation. Downtown Gettysburg can't be beat; it has numerous shops and restaurants to explore. Gettysburg also has the battlefields, which make excellent recreational land for residents. However, Gettysburg is severely lacking suburban-type retail and dining. Attempts to bring retail to the area have been met with opposition from local governments, so it's likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future. Most Gettysburg residents shop in Hanover or Chambersburg, depending on which side of Gettysburg the person lives.

[va_lucky]

Thank you very much for the posts. Shippensburg drops my commute time to F-burg under 3 hours as well. Wouldn't seem like it by looking at the map. Commute is about an hour to work in rush hour which is still a joke by F-burg to DC standards.

Thanks for the warning on Dillsburg.

[teachbeach]

Dillsburg is a cute community, but not much happens out there. Travel/traffic during snow storms (fortunately they are few and far between) would be sketchy, and the school district, although solid is small and somewhat isolated.

If school age/good district is priority you want to look at York Suburban, Central York and Dallastown School districts, which are all close to 83 in the York area. The "high crime" of York is concentrated to a few blocks in the city itself, an area you can easily avoid. The intersection of George/Philadelphia/Market Streets are fine and populated with trendy stores, boutiques and great restaurants as well as the Strand Capitol Performing Arts Center. You can live as far south as Loganville, Glen Rock and your children would still attend Dallastown schools. There are usually nice homes for rent in/around York Hospital that prefer professionals (residents, college professors on short term assignments etc) and there are a number of town home communities whose owners have kept them for rental income...The remainder of York is typical suburban sprawl (not in a bad way). Eastern part of York has a great Friday farmer's market, wonderful recreation/parks programs and all the stores you could think of or need. There is a large mall and a second mall on the west side of town is undergoing a huge overhaul and bringing in some great retail options. Route 30 can be a breeze or a slow crawl, you learn the back roads around it and times to avoid.

If staying over near 15 is a better option, I would hunt around the Southwestern school district, near Hanover.

If you would like more information or have specific questions, please feel free to PM me. I lived and worked in Southcentral PA for 23 years. I can also recommend a few realtors who might be able to help.

[va_lucky]

I chose Chambersburg. My job ended up being largely remote work so what the heck. The people have been very nice here. I am not used to it.

The only thing that is annoying is the smell of manure in the air all the time. I lived right next to farmland in Virginia and never noticed anything like this.

54 minutes to New Cumberland if I leave at 9am. I am enjoying it here. Cost of living seems to be just like the Fredericksburg area of Virginia though. Rent is pretty doggone high IMO...but the crime is low.

Thanks for the information.

[Dequindre]

Originally Posted by va_lucky

I chose Chambersburg. My job ended up being largely remote work so what the heck. The people have been very nice here. I am not used to it.

The only thing that is annoying is the smell of manure in the air all the time. I lived right next to farmland in Virginia and never noticed anything like this.

54 minutes to New Cumberland if I leave at 9am. I am enjoying it here. Cost of living seems to be just like the Fredericksburg area of Virginia though. Rent is pretty doggone high IMO...but the crime is low.

Thanks for the information.

Welcome to the area! I'm a Chambersburg resident as well.

The manure thing only happens for a few weeks in the Fall, so fresh air will soon be coming our way.