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I am looking for advice on New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia. We are wanting a very family friendly area with great schools. My husband will be working in downtown philly so working with that commute and around a $400K budget what are some areas we should consider. At this point we have heard about Mt. Laurel, Marlton, Sewell, Mullica Hill. We welcome pros and cons for things to consider. Thank you in advance.
When are you moving? August
Where are you coming from? Ohio
Why are you moving? Work
Where will you be working? Downtown Philadelphia
Have you been here yet? Only visited in past before relo came up
Will you buy or rent? Would like to buy
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend? $400K
Are you married or single? Do you have children? married with children (school age)
Do you prefer public or private schools? public
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,802 posts, read 33,841,580 times
Reputation: 10250
Quote:
Originally Posted by skw22
I am looking for advice on New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia. We are wanting a very family friendly area with great schools. My husband will be working in downtown philly so working with that commute and around a $400K budget what are some areas we should consider. At this point we have heard about Mt. Laurel, Marlton, Sewell, Mullica Hill. We welcome pros and cons for things to consider. Thank you in advance.
When are you moving? August Where are you coming from? Ohio Why are you moving? Work Where will you be working? Downtown Philadelphia Have you been here yet? Only visited in past before relo came up
Will you buy or rent? Would like to buy If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend? $400K
Are you married or single? Do you have children? married with children (school age) Do you prefer public or private schools? public
Do you want or need a yard? yes a yard is great
First thing to learn is that "downtown" Philly is called Center City.
Next, follow the PATCO HighSpeedline for housing.
I'm always confused by people wanting family-friendly towns. By their very nature they all are. Towns are generally not single-friendly.
If this means where are the best schools, Haddonfield, hands down. If Haddonfield doesn't have something that you like in your price range, look at Cherry Hill or Haddon Heights. Both are easy commutes to the speedline.
A spur to the speedline will be built into Gloucester County. Pitman has an excellent school system.
Any of the towns I mentioned should have something in your price range.
If family friendly means town-sponsored activities they all have them.
Growing up around there, I can only tell you what towns we were jealous of (from Pennsauken, and you do NOT want to live there if you want good schools). Moorestown and Haddenfield were the big ones. Cherry Hill is also nice, but we didn't regard it at the same level as the other 2. If you are really in Center City, you probably do not want to drive (can be a real pain). You will probably be taking PATCO at some point (from Moorestown, you would probably drive to Camden and take it from there). If you can afford the place you want, in Haddenfield, and walking distance to PATCO, then you would be crazy not to do it. But it all depends on what you really want in a house. Moorestown has larger/newer houses
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,802 posts, read 33,841,580 times
Reputation: 10250
Quote:
Originally Posted by sonofagunk
Growing up around there, I can only tell you what towns we were jealous of (from Pennsauken, and you do NOT want to live there if you want good schools). Moorestown and Haddenfield were the big ones. Cherry Hill is also nice, but we didn't regard it at the same level as the other 2. If you are really in Center City, you probably do not want to drive (can be a real pain). You will probably be taking PATCO at some point (from Moorestown, you would probably drive to Camden and take it from there). If you can afford the place you want, in Haddenfield, and walking distance to PATCO, then you would be crazy not to do it. But it all depends on what you really want in a house. Moorestown has larger/newer houses
I lived in Cherry Hill for many years & commuted to various points in Philly for work. Moorestown has good schools, but the big draw there is Moorestown Friends & the OP is not interested in private schools.
From Moorestown they would go to Haddonfield or Westmont for the train. No need to go to Ferry Ave. (Just drive south on Kings Highway)
However, the OP was asking about towns in Camden & Gloucester counties, so I did not mention Burlington County.
She asked about Sewell. I gave her an adjacent town which has excellent schools. I gave her the 3 best school systems in Camden County. Her housing budget is high enough to buy in any of the towns.
For the best schools and easy access to the speedline, Haddonfield would probably be best, but it can get pricey. Another option that hasn't been mentioned yet is Voorhees near the Ashland station.
There's a lot of good advice so far and you really wouldn't go wrong with any of those towns. I used to live in Moorestown and work in Center City and I used to take 295 down to Woodcrest station to pick up PATCO. Cinnaminson is another option in Burlington County and that gives you pretty easy access to the Riverline and then a transfer to PATCO in Camden to get to the city.
Outside of that if you want the more open space feel the Logan/Woolwich/Swedesboro area in Gloucester County has fantastic schools and a ton of new developments to choose from, but is definitely a "driving" commute.
Let us know where about (cross street) in the city that your husband will be working. A lot of people (myself included) are assuming that he can take PATCO and get to where he wants to go. PATCO services a pretty narrow corridor and if your job is a decent distance from the stations you are either looking at a good walk, a cab ride or hopping on SEPTA. All of which may just create more hassle than driving.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,802 posts, read 33,841,580 times
Reputation: 10250
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoPhils
For the best schools and easy access to the speedline, Haddonfield would probably be best, but it can get pricey. Another option that hasn't been mentioned yet is Voorhees near the Ashland station.
Isn't the high school involved for Voorhees Eastern Regional?
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