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A big thank you to everyone who could contribute to this thread.
We're a family with a toddler and both parents working. Husband works in Briarcliff Manor, Westcherster, and wife (me )in Midtown West NYC. We both commute to work daily.
We recently moved to NY, and currently rent in Tarrytown, Westchester. We love NY/NJ and hope to settle down here, buying a house/townhouse/condo in a pet-friendly building within the next 6-12 months.
We'll need excellent public schools and affordable housing (~$450K). We already looked very closely at Westchester communities and real estate and decided to explore North NJ as well -- hoping to find a town with all of our "must haves": great schools, inexpensive real estate, walkable and vibrant neighborhoods. Is it too unrealistic?
The plan is for my husband to drive to Briarcliff Manor Westchester and for me to take a train. Hence the area should have a nearby train station.
Examples of the school districts we may be interested in are:
Pearl River, Upper Saddle River, Park Ridge, Northern Valley, Tenafly, Cresskill or even Nanuet, NY
What do you guys think? I am concerned that my husband's daily commute via Tappan Zee Bridge may become unbearable (I heard of frequent congestion and accidents on the bridge).
Westchester does seem like an obvious better option and it's a nice area. But for us, it's a bit too quiet, and areas with nice schools and affordable houses are neither vibrant nor walkable. We're young (in early 30's) and we love to be around other young families or singles, and love people of artistic/creative professions.
Thank you again for your opinion. I also provided a summary below.
Where will you be working ? I work full time and every day in Midtown West Manhattan. My husband will be driving to Briarcliff Manor NY every day for work.
Will you buy or rent? Buy What is your budget ? about $450K What kind of place are you looking for ? House or a townhouse in a Great schools district, or a spacious condo/coop in a pet friendly building.
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? 4 year old kid and two small dogs Do you need/want good public schools? YES
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
Since I dont want to drive it is important that we live in a "walkable" town with easy access to a train to Manhattan. Something that has walkable area and nice community. We are in early 30's with a small kid, and we love being around families as well as singles of artistic/creative types.
List three things that are important to you in order of importance. 1) Top notch schools 2) Good commute to BOTH NYC and Briarcliff Manor, NY 3) Vibrant and walkable neighbourhood
$450k is on the lighter side budget wise for the communities(which are all fantastic) you are looking at but there are still plenty of listings to chose from as long as you manage your expectations. I'm not really familiar with the downtowns of the towns you listed, aside from Cresskill, which your budget is really too low for. There are lots of Bergen county people on this board, I'm sure one of them can take time out from their busy bergen county promotion schedule to give you the 411
A big thank you to everyone who could contribute to this thread.
We're a family with a toddler and both parents working. Husband works in Briarcliff Manor, Westcherster, and wife (me )in Midtown West NYC. We both commute to work daily.
We recently moved to NY, and currently rent in Tarrytown, Westchester. We love NY/NJ and hope to settle down here, buying a house/townhouse/condo in a pet-friendly building within the next 6-12 months.
We'll need excellent public schools and affordable housing (~$450K). We already looked very closely at Westchester communities and real estate and decided to explore North NJ as well -- hoping to find a town with all of our "must haves": great schools, inexpensive real estate, walkable and vibrant neighborhoods. Is it too unrealistic?
The plan is for my husband to drive to Briarcliff Manor Westchester and for me to take a train. Hence the area should have a nearby train station.
Examples of the school districts we may be interested in are:
Pearl River, Upper Saddle River, Park Ridge, Northern Valley, Tenafly, Cresskill or even Nanuet, NY
What do you guys think? I am concerned that my husband's daily commute via Tappan Zee Bridge may become unbearable (I heard of frequent congestion and accidents on the bridge).
Westchester does seem like an obvious better option and it's a nice area. But for us, it's a bit too quiet, and areas with nice schools and affordable houses are neither vibrant nor walkable. We're young (in early 30's) and we love to be around other young families or singles, and love people of artistic/creative professions.
Thank you again for your opinion. I also provided a summary below.
Where will you be working ? I work full time and every day in Midtown West Manhattan. My husband will be driving to Briarcliff Manor NY every day for work.
Will you buy or rent? Buy What is your budget ? about $450K What kind of place are you looking for ? House or a townhouse in a Great schools district, or a spacious condo/coop in a pet friendly building.
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? 4 year old kid and two small dogs Do you need/want good public schools? YES
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
Since I dont want to drive it is important that we live in a "walkable" town with easy access to a train to Manhattan. Something that has walkable area and nice community. We are in early 30's with a small kid, and we love being around families as well as singles of artistic/creative types.
List three things that are important to you in order of importance. 1) Top notch schools 2) Good commute to BOTH NYC and Briarcliff Manor, NY 3) Vibrant and walkable neighbourhood
You might want to consider Ramsey, NJ. It has a nice downtown as well as the rail connections you need. I can't speak to the specifics of the school system. The Tappan Zee bridge traffic can be brutal; evaluate this CAREFULLY beforehand. Good Luck.
A big thank you to everyone who could contribute to this thread.
We're a family with a toddler and both parents working. Husband works in Briarcliff Manor, Westcherster, and wife (me )in Midtown West NYC. We both commute to work daily.
We recently moved to NY, and currently rent in Tarrytown, Westchester. We love NY/NJ and hope to settle down here, buying a house/townhouse/condo in a pet-friendly building within the next 6-12 months.
We'll need excellent public schools and affordable housing (~$450K). We already looked very closely at Westchester communities and real estate and decided to explore North NJ as well -- hoping to find a town with all of our "must haves": great schools, inexpensive real estate, walkable and vibrant neighborhoods. Is it too unrealistic?
The plan is for my husband to drive to Briarcliff Manor Westchester and for me to take a train. Hence the area should have a nearby train station.
Examples of the school districts we may be interested in are:
Pearl River, Upper Saddle River, Park Ridge, Northern Valley, Tenafly, Cresskill or even Nanuet, NY
What do you guys think? I am concerned that my husband's daily commute via Tappan Zee Bridge may become unbearable (I heard of frequent congestion and accidents on the bridge).
Westchester does seem like an obvious better option and it's a nice area. But for us, it's a bit too quiet, and areas with nice schools and affordable houses are neither vibrant nor walkable. We're young (in early 30's) and we love to be around other young families or singles, and love people of artistic/creative professions.
Thank you again for your opinion. I also provided a summary below.
Where will you be working ? I work full time and every day in Midtown West Manhattan. My husband will be driving to Briarcliff Manor NY every day for work.
Will you buy or rent? Buy What is your budget ? about $450K What kind of place are you looking for ? House or a townhouse in a Great schools district, or a spacious condo/coop in a pet friendly building.
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? 4 year old kid and two small dogs Do you need/want good public schools? YES
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
Since I dont want to drive it is important that we live in a "walkable" town with easy access to a train to Manhattan. Something that has walkable area and nice community. We are in early 30's with a small kid, and we love being around families as well as singles of artistic/creative types.
List three things that are important to you in order of importance. 1) Top notch schools 2) Good commute to BOTH NYC and Briarcliff Manor, NY 3) Vibrant and walkable neighbourhood
I commuted for three years over the Tappan Zee Bridge from Paramus to White Plains. Awful, Awful, Awful. Three hours to get home on a Friday in the summer. Sun glare is awful during the change of seasons which causes huge traffic slowdowns. And the car accidents on the Tap are terrible. Forget this commute.
Have you looked at Hartsdale/Scarsdale, NY, along Central Ave/Rt 100. There are a bunch of condos and townhomes in that area. Edgemont/Scarsdale schools are great and there is a lot of shopping/Restaurants along Central Ave/Rt100. There is an express bus to Manhattan and drive to briarcliff Manor should be around 30min (and you will be going against the traffic for most part).
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)in Midtown West NYC. We both commute to work daily.
