Great places to raise a family? (Allentown, Bethlehem: transplants, real estate, to rent)

[usmcwifex]

My husband and I are currently living in coastal NC, but want to move back up north since he has retired from the Marines. I am from northern (Sussex county) New Jersey and he is from Phila., PA. I would like to be somewhere in PA that is close enough to Sussex county that I can easily commute to my parents' home. We are young, still in our mid 20s, expecting our first little boy this summer. Although we are young, we love quiet areas and would choose "country living" over a city. I grew up near lakes and walked around the woods as a kid so I would love for my son to experience the simple things. I also need an area where I can have farm animals (pigmy goats are considered domestic so I'm not sure if they would be considered livestock). If anyone has any suggestions on areas, that would be great! Also, we have a max limit on a home range of $180,000.

[Wells5]

Why PA? Below is a link to homes in Sullivan County, NY within your price range on at least 5 acres. And this area is very near to Sussex County, NJ.

Sullivan County Real Estate Multiple Listing Property Search

[usmcwifex]

Originally Posted by Wells5

Why PA? Below is a link to homes in Sullivan County, NY within your price range on at least 5 acres. And this area is very near to Sussex County, NJ.

Sullivan County Real Estate Multiple Listing Property Search

Thank you. I've never heard of it but I will definitely look into it! How is the school system there?

[Gerania]

Originally Posted by Wells5

Why PA? Below is a link to homes in Sullivan County, NY within your price range on at least 5 acres. And this area is very near to Sussex County, NJ.

Sullivan County Real Estate Multiple Listing Property Search

I think that people don't look to New York because of taxes and cost of living. It does depend on the area, though. There are plenty of places in eastern PA with high taxes.

Half in Illinois and Connecticut Want to Move Elsewhere

And then there's this: Gun laws in New York - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[theatergypsy]

When you've done your homework and settled on a location, find a place to rent for a year so you can determine if it's a good fit/look around to see if there's a better fit.

The woods are full of people who thought it would be "nice to live where it's peaceful and quiet" until they realized that, coming from a city, peace and quiet meant a 40 minute trip to the grocery store/doctor's office/veterinarian. It also meant a looonngg ride on the school bus for the shorties.

If it's a matter of finding a job, think twice. There aren't very many in PA, and a long commute has soured many transplants.

I've lived in NEPA for 46 years. I came here from "away", so I do have experience with city living. But I've been happy here and see no reason, at this late date, to leave.

Before I took off for parts unknown, however, I'd want to know what day-to-day was like - not take the word of disgruntled (or even gruntled) posters. Good luck, wherever you settle. And thank the hubs for his service.

[ofhs93]

Depending on what you would consider close will help determine a location...North eastern Pike and Wayne counties would for your bill nicely...both have good school districts and are relatively close to Sussex...Pike being closer. Both have abundant acreage undeveloped. Neither have great job prospects...Pike is mostly a bedroom community for great NYC employment...Wayne mainly rural with tourism being the main industry.

[Sugashane]

I live in Pa and have family in sussex county so I might be able to shed some light on this.Pike county would be closest to sussex. county, but it depends where your parents live in respect to the pa border .You can enter to nj through dingmans bridge or milford bridge and come out by sandyston/frankford area but its still a long ride to anywhere from that area.Also in pike the prices on property arent much less in some spots than sussex county.Plus you lose all that supposed extra cash in tolls , car repair and gas.I live in Monroe county which borders pike.To go see my folks in stillwater,nj its roughly 40 min but to my father in laws in sparta is an easy hour.Problem is sussex county has no main highways through it

[ofhs93]

I don't think this person is looking to live in Milford or Dingmans Sugashane....she seemed to indicate wanting acreage and I'm assuming not dealing with neighbor type issues...which would require being more towards Shohola and north. The taxes on the PA side of the river is where your savings are found... Not to mention some of the less than friendly laws towards firearms etc...but I'll try to keep the politics out. Delaware Valley SD and Wallenpaupack SD are both very good schools.

[Gettingouttahere]

That said, we cannot stress enough that there are almost NO good-paying jobs in eastern PA until you get nearer to the cities. And you have said you don't want that.

Del Val school district is very highly rated (in Pike). Schools in Monroe County are average at best -- you can search the forum for plenty of threads on this topic.

But there are few decent jobs in Monroe or Pike. Sanofi does have a large facility in Swiftwater (Monroe), but I've heard it can be hard to get a foot in the door.

You can find decent acreage in both counties, but depending on the school district you could pay a lot in taxes. (Taxes here fund the schools.) East Stroudsburg School District (Monroe) taxes are horrible, e.g.

Some school districts in the Lehigh Valley, closer to Philly, are much better (Parkland, East Penn, Southern Lehigh, Saucon Valley). The Lehigh Valley consists of the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton and surrounding suburbs and country-like region, down to about Quakertown, and Bucks County, where property starts getting *really* expensive.

You will pay more than in Monroe/Pike to live in the Lehigh Valley, though property taxes are often lower than Monroe, ironically enough. And you can still find nice acreage in the outskirts of the LV.

HTH. Good luck.

[Sugashane]

Ofhs93, I know what you were getting at, I just wanted her to get a better idea of how much of a commute she would be looking at , driving pa to her parents would not be an easy commute anywhere in the northeast region.