moving back to philly after 6 years in Cali (Lancaster, Horsham: apartment, rentals)

[andream77]

When are you moving? summer 2011
Where are you coming from? Los Angeles
Why are you moving? be close to my family...everyone lives in Philly/Jersey
Where will you be working? not sure yet...applying to schools (teacher/admin)
Have you been here yet? yep...26 years! born and raised...

Will you buy or rent? rent

If renting, are you looking for an apartment, a townhouse or loft? How much can you spend?
no more than $1400-1600 ideally...we'd like to rent a house with a yard...

Do you prefer hi-rise or walk up? neither

Are you married or single? married...Do you have children? yep. 2. ages 2 and 16
Do you prefer public or private schools? public..free is for me..or free to a degree I guess.
Do you have pets? yes - a cat and dog
Do you want or need a yard? yes...a nice sized yard would be good.

Are you keeping a car? yes, unfortunately...eventually we'd like to get rid of it...but we'd prefer to only use it for grocery shopping and trips to grandmas house..We both would like to take the train to work or ride a bike...And one of us has to do this because we only have one car.

Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet? something not too far from bustling but mostly calm and quiet...

What do you want to be closest to?
Work X
Shopping
Basic services (supermarket, drugstore, etc.)X
Nightlife
Train or subway stations X

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood? I like diversity...

Coke or Pepsi? neither...California has gotten in my blood...it's water or nothing...or wine - does that count?

anyways, we are looking to move back so I can be close to my family. I recently lost my Dad and it has made me realize that weather is not that important. I needed to live far for the time I was away but now I need to be back close to my fam...I am a teacher and looking for a job in a school either as a teacher or school leader. My husband has been a stay-at-home dad for a few years now and he will be looking for general office work.

Initially, we are thinking we want to live near the main line outside of the city...what are some good areas? it has been so long since I lived in PHILLY.
We want to be close to family but not right up the road. My close fam lives in the far NE.
I like the Main Line because it is easy to get to the city and really pretty. I have grown into a health conscious person as well...I'm not sure what markets are out that way? any help with that would be great...we eat from Trader Joes and Whole Paycheck -I mean Whole Foods...mostly.

So I guess what we need help finding is an area where we can rent a house for under $1700 and a nice place to raise a family where the public schools are good...

[FindingZen]

Thanks for filling out all the info. You may not be aware, however, that the Main Line is a string of the more affluent communities in the metro. That said, I checked out a realtor site and it turns out $1700 will get more than I thought. Assuming that you're looking for a 3BR home, it appears that Ardmore may give you the most choices. It's not as glitzy as most other surrounding Main Line communities but it's a fine place to live. You'll be right on the Paoli/Thorndale line (formerly the "R5") to commute into Center City.

Lancaster Avenue/Route 30 is the "main drag" and where you'll find the vast majority of your retail conveniences. Bryn Mawr and Wayne in particular have pleasantly walkable downtown areas. I wouldn't say that the Main Line is the most diverse area but I think that (old) money is the primary barrier to entry these days.

As far as schools go, you'll likely hear two trains of thought on this forum. On the one hand, the school districts that encompass the Main Line area are said to be among the best in the state. On the other hand, some have shared the opinion that the high school experience is rather competitive and that many kids from privileged backgrounds are all too aware of their states.

Trader Joe's and "Whole Paycheck" do exist in Philly. I'm sure a location search on their websites will turn up their locations.

All of this said, you may want to confirm where you're working before you choose the Main Line. The suburban area between NW and NE that I like to call "The V" (e.g. Abington, Cheltenham, Upper Dublin, Horsham) has a lot of the qualities you're looking at a generally better value.

Plenty of water in Philly. As for wine...welcome to the world of state-owned liquor stores.

[Avalon08]

A 3 BR single-family home with yard that accepts pets on the Main Line for $1400-1600? Wow, you can barely get an apartment for that. I did check out some on-line rentals in Ardmore, just out of curiosity, but they look like old homes, mostly twins or townhouses. I don't know what your standards are in terms of amenities...maybe you'd be OK with an older home or less desirable street location. Having recently lived in a Main Line apartment rental, I am somewhat familiar with prices for decent places. There aren't many single detached rentals to begin with on the Main Line (or anywhere in the suburbs, really), but that price just seems unrealistic for your criteria.

[andream77]

Avalon...I have found quite a few in the price range online through some rental agencies and craigslist...the finding the place is going to be a tough one for sure...but LA is pretty horrible when it comes to looking for decent rentals. I've always had good luck in Philly...and we don't mind older houses...

Tone...yes, state liquor stores...I remember that...I have been spoiled here in CA...we can buy alcohol pretty much everywhere..I am surprised they don't sell it in the school cafeterias...ha!

yes, we are looking for work first...Ideally, I would like to work and live outside of the city because of the city wage tax. and I want to be outside of the city for the schools as well. My son goes to a private school in Ca now...he is very used to mingling with the privileged folk...we are definitely not of the stature of most people out here...but I think moving back into the city would be a culture shock for him. He hasn't lived there since he was 9! I think he would do better in the burbs...
we are keeping our options open at this point and wherever the work is will determine where we will end up. Either Main Line or The V as you said...those are the areas we are looking primarily.

what is the percentage of taxes taken from your paycheck if you claim 1? or even 0?