NYC to LI (Hempstead, Merrick, Garden City: buying a home, buying, school district)

[lushizzle]

Hi All,
I will be starting a job soon located in Garden City, and I'm thinking of buying a home.

Here are some of my stats:
-Married with two daughters 9 and 2
-Look at home prices less than $500k
-we own 1 car
-school district is important, but also value a community feel
-My wife works 3 days (thur - Sat) a week in downtown Manhattan and will possibly need to commute via LIRR
-I'm a avid cyclist and prefer to commute by bike (max 10 miles one-way)
-having lived in NYC my entire life, I was hoping to buy something with decent space, but it's not a must since I'm currently living in a closet anyway

Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[Walter Greenspan]

lushizzle, not all addresses that have a "Garden City, NY 11530" mailing address are in the Village of Garden City, a self-governing municipality in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County; many are in East Garden City, a hamlet, that is governed on an at-large basis by the Town of Hempstead, to the immediate east of the Village of Garden City.

You can check to see in which comunity you'll actually be working by using the Census Bureau's online address search function. (CDP, or Census Designated Place, is the Census Bureau equivalent for a hamlet in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.)

Separately, I've sent you a more detailed explanation of the geography of Lawn Guyland by DM.

[twingles]

You might get into Stewart Manor under $500K, barely - it's a really nice (and overlooked) town set between Garden City and Floral Park, with its own train station that is walking distance from any house in town, a great community feel and everyone keeps their house nice.

School district is the only drawback - people are really happy with the K-6 school (which offers PreK as well) but you probably won't want to do the middle or high school (I'd say 90% of the people in S.M. send their children to Catholic school).

Otherwise you might check out Mineola.

[I_Love_LI_but]

Let's put it this way.

You won't be able to afford a house in Garden City, so how long do you want your commute to be .. as in how far away from Garden City are you willing to travel? Once we pinpoint that, we can give you suggestions of communities you can afford which also have good LIRR access to NYC for your wife.

[Kbinspections]

Try North Merrick, New Hyde Park or Stewart Manor

[Walter Greenspan]

Kbinspections, do you mean the Village of New Hyde Park (631 acres) or places that have a "New Hyde Park, NY 11040" mailing address, which is a much larger area (3,339 acres)?

Places that have a "New Hyde Park, NY 11040" mailing address that are NOT in the Village of New Hyde Park are in the Village of Lake Success, the Hamlet of Manhasset, the Village of North Hills, the Hamlet of Manhasset Hills, the Hamlet of North New Hyde Park, the Hamlet of Herricks, the Hamlet of Garden City Park and the Village of Garden City.

[twingles]

Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but

Let's put it this way.

, so how long do you want your commute to be .. .

He said 10 miles max in his OP, as he is going to be bicycling to work.

[Walter Greenspan]

If the OP (= lushizzle) will be working in East Garden City, and not in Garden City, and wants to bike to work, then Salisbury may be a good choice.

[lushizzle]

Thanks all. This site has been a tremendous resource. I've been all over a bunch of your threads.

Yes, personally I'm okay with biking to work within a 10 - 15 mile radius (north, east, west, and south) from my job. My job site is actually across the street from the Roosevelt Mall right off the Meadowbrook. I'm trying to find the best value between a good school district and house size.

Thanks

[lushizzle]

What are your thoughts about Syosset?