Possible relocation to Philly/DE (Philadelphia, Chester: real estate, condo, how much)

[theTimmy]

Hello - my wife may have a job opportunity in Newark, DE. Both of us are city mice (10 years in NYC and now 6 in Boston) and are unsure about committing to living in DE, so we're looking at Philly as a possible solution:

When are you moving?
Possibly this year or next.

Where are you coming from?
Boston

Why are you moving?
Job

Where will you be working?
Newark, DE, and telecommuting

Have you been here yet?
A couple times over the last 5 years

Will you buy or rent?
Buy

If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend?
House, $400k range

Do you have a preference of living in a NJ or PA suburb?
Prefer PA, but not for any particular reason.

Are you married or single? Do you have children?
Married 2 kids, ages 3 & 6

Do you prefer public or private schools?
Public

Do you have pets?
Yes

Do you want or need a yard?
Yes

Are you keeping a car?
Yes

Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet?
Activity

What do you want to be closest to?
Shopping
Train or subway stations

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood?
Diversity is good, but would like to have some other kids around

Coke or Pepsi?
Coke.

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We've had the Chestnut Hill/Mt. Airy neighborhoods recommended, and looking at the maps it looks like my wife would be able to take rt 1 to go around the city traffic.

We are also not opposed to living in the city proper, but at this point feel like parking and schools are the biggest hurdles there.

Any thoughts would be helpful, especially about schools. Would also love thoughts about the commute - is Philly->Newark really doable? is route 1 a decent way to go?

Thanks!

[PhillyPhan95]

Well in case you were unaware, Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy are in fact in Philly proper, meaning you've got to deal with Philly public schools. I know nothing about the public schools in those areas, however they are nice areas. The commute from those areas in the city would easily be over an hour, and not something I would be willing to do, however you are not me!

I might suggest the suburb of West Chester, as it is a very nice town outside of Philly with quite a bit of activity. The schools are good. It's got a nice downtown, a mid-sized state college, and is within a reasonable distance to Newark. I've never made the WC->Newark commute but if I had to guess I'd say it's about 45 minutes. It is the seat of Chester County.

Kennett Square area is also not a bad choice for you; it has a pretty small downtown area, and although it has noticeably less activity than WC, it's closer to Newark. If you're looking in that area, I'd suggest staying within the Unionville school district, or Avondale school district. I've heard iffy things about Kennett School District. But don't take my word for it, do research.

Media is another option, it's very nice, and it's kinda in between WC and Kennett in terms of size. Penncrest High schools is very good. It's also closer to Philly, and the only one of the three I've suggested that is served by rail to get access to the city It's probably the same distance from Newark as WC, if not a little further. That is unless you take I-95 from there which is a monster in it's own right. Media is the seat of Delaware County. Other than living in city proper, these are the only "real" towns that would be within a reasonable commuting distance; that's not to say there aren't lots of areas to choose from, but the rest are mostly plain suburban townships, or small communities that wouldn't quite qualify as they lack a walkable downtown area.

So overall...

Size (Overall area/influence AND downtown areas):
1: West Chester
2: Media
3: Kennett Square

Commute Distance (shortest to longest)
1: Kennett Square
2: West Chester
2(maybe 3): Media

Shopping (kind of arbitrary ranking, based off of observations and assumptions made based on their size):
1: West Chester
2: Media
3: Kennett Square

Schools:
1a: Media
1b: West Chester
3: Kennett

Proximity to Philly:
1: Media (has rail)
2: West Chester (no rail)
3: Kennett Square (no rail)

[KansastoSouthphilly]

Mt Airy/Chestnut Hill to Newark DE everyday would be an awful commute. I had a co-worker that commuted from Newark and his life seemed awful. The public schools in Chestnut Hill/Mt Airy are not nearly as good as their suburban counterparts.

[TARS]

Agreed with both posters.

I will be in the same boat as you guys here come soon. I am taking a job in Wilmington, and currently my wife and I live in center city Philly. We're looking to start a family next year so we'll most likely look to move out to the West Chester area. It's beautiful out there.

[rainrock]

Absolute Nightmare commute from Chestnut Hill to Newark. The public schools in the suburbs are much better compared to Philadelphia.

Research Garnet Valley. Unionville-Chadds Ford. Wallingford-Swarthmore. Rose Tree Media. West Chester school districts. Those are the best schools within commuting distance to Newark.

[theTimmy]

Thanks for your posts everybody. I figured that the commute from Mt. Airy to Newark was going to be problematic, but was hoping otherwise. Also great info about the schools - I'll take a look at West Chester & Media (the lure of a rail line to Philly may make the decision...)

Thx!

[Pocopsonite]

Commute from Media to downtown Newark would be fairly miserable and often at least an hour when anything at all disturbs traffic flow.

But that raises the question: Where in Newark? It is a HUGE zipcode and the commute could be a lot better (or worse) depending on the location.

Newark is a fairly lively mid-size college town. Would you consider living there? Public schools are lousy, but the real estate taxes are so much lower than in PA, you might think about living in Newark and sending your kids to private schools. Lots of great ones in Delaware because of the public school situation.

There's a lot of discussion about this on both the Delaware and Philadelphia forums. Do several searches using schools, taxes, etc.

[kyb01]

Originally Posted by rainrock

Absolute Nightmare commute from Chestnut Hill to Newark. The public schools in the suburbs are much better compared to Philadelphia.

Research Garnet Valley. Unionville-Chadds Ford. Wallingford-Swarthmore. Rose Tree Media. West Chester school districts. Those are the best schools within commuting distance to Newark.

The suburban schools, generally, have more money to spend on schools. The real estate/school taxes are about 10K in Haverford Twp now which has never been on par with the Lower Merion Twp School District. What are taxes in Lower Merion these days?

[PhillyViaBoston]

Two of best public school systems in PA within striking distance to Newark, DE would be Wallingford-Swarthmore or Rose Tree Media.

You should check out the center of Media along State Street, and see if that's enough action for you. (Media boro is RTM schools, but touches the W-S district.) I, too, feared the jump to the suburbs, but I like Media enough (walking to the bars, restaurants, shopping, trader joes, etc.) not to feel too isolated and bored. Also, you can get into Center City Philadelphia quickly on the SEPTA regional rail or by driving, which is nice (especially if you can work there).

If Media isn't enough "city" for you, you may need to try the suburbs, which might mean jumping into Delaware (or Kennett Square) with two feet. The commute from Center City Philly to Newark would be tough, and combined with the lack of public school options it would probably be a non-starter for you.

The best commute from the Media area (particularly W-S schools) may include taking back roads through Chester to get directly on 95 (avoiding 476 altogether) to Newark. The other option (if you're further down rt 1 in "Media") might be rt 1 to 202. Either way, the traffic through Wilmington would be a crapshoot. As another option, you could drive to the Claymont, DE train station and hop on the Wilmington/Newark train line. SEPTA | Wilmington/Newark Line Regional Rail Schedule | Weekday | to Wilmington & Newark, DE

Good luck!

[theTimmy]

Thanks for the posts.

We're flying down to Philly/DE this weekend & will take a look a Media & West Chester as strong possibilities. My wife's job would be at the U of Delaware, so center of Newark. Also, her commute would (hopefully) not be during rush hour, and it'd be reverse if we lived in Philadelphia. Does living in somewhere like Queen Village (somewhere in the Meredith school district) and being able to jump on 95 seem reasonable, or too much of a commute?

Google Maps says Media PA to Newark is ~40m, but Philly to Newark is ~55m - which doesn't seem like that much of a difference, but I'll believe you if you say it's a nightmare...