Relocating from Long Island,need advice (Philadelphia, Allentown: apartment, renting, HOA)

[EMGbano]

Hi,
My family is considering moving to P.A. looking into Lehigh valley or somewhere in the north eastern P.A. area, we would like to be close enough to visit family in NY. as needed. My husband is a retired NYPD officer so I need to consider our healthcare, taxes and schools we have small children. We would like an area that is outside of any major towns with nice size private property, we have Chickens. If anyone can give some input I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you

[rowhomecity]

What is your budget? That is a big factor in recommending areas? Eastern Pennsylvania moves from Moderately pricey to affordable depending on where you want to locate and want amenities you value.

[Patmcpsu]

Lehigh Valley doesn't have defined boundaries, but its main part includes hardly any actual farmland; it's developed and full of people complaining about how crowded yet sprawling everything is.

It's funny that you mentioned chickens, because my old college buddy grew up in New Tripoli and he had a big backyard with a chicken coop. He considered New Tripoli to be Lehigh Valley, but I considered that to be debatable. Anyway, it's more rural than most of Lehigh Valley, has good schools (Northwestern Lehigh) and I believe it's a good value for what you get.

As an alternative, you might get a better value along the I-78 corridor between Fogelsville and Hamburg. There's also the 222 Corridor just south of there, but that stretch seems more depressing.

Also, have you considered the stretch between Nazareth, Stroudsburg and Delaware Water Gap? That might be your best bet.

[toobusytoday]

Please fill out the sticky in this thread for better input: //www.city-data.com/forum/lehig...residents.html

All of Lehigh and Northampton counties are definitely Lehigh Valley, and that includes New Tripoli. There are wide swaths of farmland so I don't get that comment at all. In my Southern Lehigh School district we have Lower Milford township which has hardly any public sewer and is made up primarily secondary roads, farms and woods. As far as chickens go, we seem to be awfully chicken friendly. I can get eggs (and local produce) from four roadside stands within ten minutes of my house.

[EMGbano]

Hi, thank you for responding, we are looking 1st and foremost for a family friendly community, so good schools kind of private but close enough to get to shopping and such within 10miles or so. I would like to stay below325$ if possible trying to get out of NY debit, traffic and hectic ness. I keep looking on those top 10 places to live in Pa. sites but they do not always correlate. Thank you again.

[toobusytoday]

Just a few more questions... Because what you've given us right now doesn't eliminate any towns, just the cities...


When are you moving?
Where are you coming from?
Why are you moving?
Where will you be working?
Have you been here yet?

Will you buy or rent?
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend?
If renting, are you looking for an apartment, a townhouse or loft? How much can you spend?
Do you prefer hi-rise or walk up?

Are you married or single? Do you have children?
Do you prefer public or private schools?
Do you have pets?
Do you want or need a yard?
Are you keeping a car?
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet?

What do you want to be closest to?
Work
Shopping
Basic services (supermarket, drugstore, etc.)
Nightlife
Near Bus stop? Please note that there is NO rail service in the Lehigh Valley.

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood?

How close to you want to live to the state line of New Jersey?

[Patmcpsu]

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

All of Lehigh and Northampton counties are definitely Lehigh Valley, and that includes New Tripoli.

Yes, but is that the definitive area of Lehigh Valley? For instance, the map on Lehigh Valley's wikipedia page also includes Carbon county and a part of New Jersey. You could argue that Quakertown is part of it as well. I'm reminded of this old Morning Call article when I first moved in to the area: No clear answer to what is 'Lehigh Valley'. My point is that the boundaries are nebulous, but of course there are parts (i.e. downtown Allentown) that we all agree are in "Lehigh Valley".

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

There are wide swaths of farmland so I don't get that comment at all. In my Southern Lehigh School district we have Lower Milford township which has hardly any public sewer and is made up primarily secondary roads, farms and woods.

I recommend looking at the satellite view on Google Maps of what I called the "main part" of Lehigh Valley, and approximating how much farmland you see. My guesstimate is less than 10%.

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

As far as chickens go, we seem to be awfully chicken friendly. I can get eggs (and local produce) from four roadside stands within ten minutes of my house.

How many of your neighbors have chicken coops in their backyard? Would they seem like a fish out of water if they did?

[toobusytoday]

Patmcpsu - I agree that one's own perception may frame what each of us considers the Lehigh Valley, but I do think the two main counties are all of Lehigh and Northampton Counties. I live within a mile of the Bucks county line, but don't consider that the Lehigh Valley and I have a couple of reasons. One, the newspaper that has our most local news is the Morning Call and Quakertown and Bucks county in general is not in their coverage area. Two, their schools are not in any of our cohorts - not sports, not Career and Technical Schools, not Intermediate units, and neither are their public libraries. When our school district compares itself to other schools the comparison is always East Penn, Parkland, Salisbury and Saucon Valley - all Northampton and Lehigh County schools even though we also share boundaries with Berks and Bucks county, those school districts are rarely mentioned.

I'm not going to disagree with you on the fact that the area where most people live in the LV is not farmland. It's true but that doesn't mean that the entire area is heavily populated. Again, I think it's a matter of looking at the LV as just ABE (Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton) or a larger swath. Since the OP sounds like they want a less populated area, I think that's where we want to point them.

Chickens! And this is strange, but I like it. It's not that weird for people to have a couple of chickens on their property. I've gotten eggs from a family in the borough of Coopersburg. The place I normally get them now is on a fairly well traveled road just outside of the borough. I know someone in a fairly upscale development that has a coop. I can get them from my hair stylist as well as our local mechanic.

[Wells5]

How close to NYC do you want to be? Do you mind being in an HOA community with lots of amenities but small lots? If that's the case, look at Pike and Monroe counties.


If you want acreage where you can raise chickens, horses, etc. and where the natives are friendly, look at Tioga, Bradford and Potter Counties in north central PA. You can't beat the Guthrie Clinic for quality health care.

[Patmcpsu]

The Lehigh Valley is a metro area, and like all metro areas, there is an urban core, suburban fringes, and countryside past that. This population density map of PA summarizes the gist of things: https://countywise.com/wp-content/up...lation_map.png

Crash course in areas of eastern PA (from south to north):

• Philadelphia is the dark red on the southeast corner of the state.
• The suburbs north of Philly extend far, and continue to grow.
• Lehigh Valley is the Red/Orange/Yellow mixture north of the Philly Metro, its suburban sprawl is also growing outward, and will eventually merge with Philly's (it already does, basically, along the 309 corridor).
• North of Lehigh Valley is the Poconos, which is too mountainous to become a metro-area but has lots of houses where they can fit. This is a popular tourism destination.
• North of the Poconos is Scranton Wilkes Barre (also known as Wyoming Valley). This is similar to Lehigh Valley, but less vibrant and more mountainous.

Based on what you've said, I think you should be aiming for anywhere shaded yellow or light green, which may be north, west, or south of Lehigh Valley. Dark green may sound tempting, but you would be far removed from things.