Help me move to PA! (Wilkes-Barre, Butler: rental, crime, houses)

[RKBADUDE]

Howdy, folks. I'm a soon-to-be former NJ resident who's gotten fed up with the taxes, social engineering, congestion, crime, anti-gun laws, and cost of living in the Garden State and looking to make a life in NEPA. I need some help finding properties in the region and was hoping you guys might be able to give me some input, because I'm reading some less than flattering things about some areas which seem to center around the Rt. 80 corridor.

I'm still not giving up on areas like Bushkill, Tobyhannah or Wilkes-Barre, but things I've read give pause for concern so I'm hoping for feeback because there seem to be a number of nice properties in that area. I've been looking primarily along the I-84 corridor in the Milford area for now, but farther West would be alright. My hope was to stay within a one-hour drive of the NJ border so I'm within reasonable distance of my aging parents in Bergen county (Northern NJ) should there be an emergency.

Though I'm concerned about some things I've read here and other websites about crime and "the element" moving in (gangs, drug dealers), sometimes things are a matter of perspective. Coming from NJ, what we consider "light crime" would be considered absolute anarchy in another state. However, my intent is to apply for my CCW as soon as I'm settled in, so personal defense both in and out of the home is less a concern. In fact it's a key reason why I'm moving out of NJ - the gun laws in PA are far more normalized and citizens can actually DO something about thwarting crime by defending our persons, property and neighbors.

Any feedback you can offer about which areas or communities are good, and which ones to stay away from and why would be appreciated. For example, I know that some lake communities will have problems with their dams, others intend to put in central sewer, and that sort of thing is valuable information.

Anyway, thanks for listening. I'm anxiously looking forward to your feedback.

[RKBADUDE]

Wow. I feel like I farted at a cocktail party. Thirty views but no replies. Anyone?

[lamessino]

you might want to take a look at the Canadensis area, nice 1 acre properties at a reasonable price. No cocktail parties here...lol. Ck out "The Hamlet"

[DE_NePA]

The closer and more accessible to NJ/NJ, the more the area has the bad elements from those places.

[auntieannie68]

this area has enough of it's own locally grown bad elements and could use a boost of intelligent people from other states-----i would stick to the west pittston to wyoming areas and observe the nearby houses before u rent and half doubles cause the quiet neighbor you meet on rental day could change into the red neck drunk from hell tomorrow(and that's just the women)in my own experience

[peppermint]

Milford is very nice, but to locals, it's also a bit expensive.

My husband and I lived in Bushkill for five years. We loved it, and only moved when he was transferred out of state. We had wonderful neighbors, whom we miss a lot. We never saw any gangs or had any problems with the "bad element". People say very negative things about the area, which I can't understand because we had a wonderful experience. I would take people's comments on this message board with a grain of salt.

For background, my husband and I were raised in the rural, deep south, and moved to PA after I graduated from grad school. We were not used to communities (paying dues to have roads plowed, etc), and "rural" PA was more like the big towns in our home states. All this to say, we weren't city people who felt like we were in the country. We were country people who thought we were in suburbia. And despite that, we liked Bushkill and Milford.

Good luck to you!

[Summering]

Hi, and welcome to PA. ( soon)
I think you might like to head down 33 to towns like Sciota, Saylorsburg or even into the Wind Gap area. This way you would be just a skip to route 80 and NJ to visit your family.
We also like living near NJ for family reasons. Plus, its always fun to visit NYC for shows and entertainment.
Those towns are in a good location for someone wanting to be near New Jersey.
There are many communities that feel wonderful and safe. No matter where I visit on journeys there is always an issue of crime. I think it is a commonality of many areas. It just means staying away from the noted crime spots, as we all have to find our way around and through that anymore.

[PA-native71]

Originally Posted by RKBADUDE

Howdy, folks. I'm a soon-to-be former NJ resident who's gotten fed up with the taxes, social engineering, congestion, crime, anti-gun laws, and cost of living in the Garden State and looking to make a life in NEPA. I need some help finding properties in the region and was hoping you guys might be able to give me some input, because I'm reading some less than flattering things about some areas which seem to center around the Rt. 80 corridor.

I'm still not giving up on areas like Bushkill, Tobyhannah or Wilkes-Barre, but things I've read give pause for concern so I'm hoping for feeback because there seem to be a number of nice properties in that area. I've been looking primarily along the I-84 corridor in the Milford area for now, but farther West would be alright. My hope was to stay within a one-hour drive of the NJ border so I'm within reasonable distance of my aging parents in Bergen county (Northern NJ) should there be an emergency.

Though I'm concerned about some things I've read here and other websites about crime and "the element" moving in (gangs, drug dealers), sometimes things are a matter of perspective. Coming from NJ, what we consider "light crime" would be considered absolute anarchy in another state. However, my intent is to apply for my CCW as soon as I'm settled in, so personal defense both in and out of the home is less a concern. In fact it's a key reason why I'm moving out of NJ - the gun laws in PA are far more normalized and citizens can actually DO something about thwarting crime by defending our persons, property and neighbors.

Any feedback you can offer about which areas or communities are good, and which ones to stay away from and why would be appreciated. For example, I know that some lake communities will have problems with their dams, others intend to put in central sewer, and that sort of thing is valuable information.

Anyway, thanks for listening. I'm anxiously looking forward to your feedback.

I don't know what you do, but if you want someplace that is relatively safe affordable and peaceful there is plenty of places like that in western PA like in Clarion county, you can get yourself a place with a few acres close to the river near the woods for a 1/4 of what a house in Jersey runs plus if you are concerned you could actually consider buying a place to add a place for your parents so they can have a little independence plus you would be close by just in case, a lot of people are doing this because it is easier and more affordable plus if there is anything that happens you are right next door to get them what they need or give them support they may need, plus the properties in NW PA is some of the most affordable, the prices start dropping north of Butler,PA here is an example,Mod cut - Please do not post single house listings these type of deals come up all the time, the homes are quite livable and well built, but they are affordable and a lot big enough to build a small cottage for your parents or if you need to go back to jersey in case something happens you can be there in 3 hours or so since I80 is 10-15 minutes up the road on 208 along the river.
Hope this gives you some ideas and helps you out.
Good luck

[auntieannie68]

bottom line--avoid scr-wb city areas unless you want to deal with horrendous residents

[okaydorothy]

Look at Wayne County. Honesdale is a great little town, Hawley is just behind it.