Moving from Gaithersburg Maryland to Philly (Philadelphia, Chester: apartment, townhome, neighborhoods)

[MrMrsG]

Hello all,
My wife and I moved from our townhome in Gaithersburg Maryland to Philadelphia. Personal reasons aside, Montgomery County Maryland was a great place to live overall and we are looking for similar areas here in the Philadelphia area (suburbs included) . I enjoyed the suburban feel of Gaithersburg and having a town center (The Rio) which gave it a semi city feel, plus not being too far to a major city like DC. It felt very family friendly, lots of trees and clean all around. We accidentally slept with the garage door open a few times and had no worries just to give a snapshot.
Reference: https://goo.gl/maps/Z5yoARpruHK2

We live in the Northeast now and are looking to potentially buy in a few years.

Any recommendations?


Thanks in advance.

[Mayvenne]

As always a little more info would help with suggestions--chiefly where do you work- budget - etc,
There is a sticky with more pertinent information but for starters, any more info would help people offer guidance.

[Patmcpsu]

Suburban towns around Philadelphia with the quaint-yet-happening downtowns: Media, Kennett Square, West Chester, Phoenixville, Ambler, Doylestown, Haddonfield (NJ)

Other suburbs with downtown areas that are just-as-safe, but less quaint: Basically every town on the Main Line

The closest thing to a "Rio" type complex around Philadelphia: King of Prussia Town Center. This specific area is not quaint at all, but neighborhoods get more quaint (and affordable) north along 422. South of King of Prussia (KOP) is the more-expensive Main Line. East and West along 202 or I-76 are a lot of corporate parks with varying price-levels of residential.

A lot of it probably comes down to what you can afford, and how removed you truly want to be from the city.

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by Patmcpsu

The closest thing to a "Rio" type complex around Philadelphia: King of Prussia Town Center.

Technically I believe this is called Village at Valley Forge. Agree This would be worth a look as it sounds close town that the OP is looking for.

Chesterbrook which is nearby might be worth a look as well.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by rainrock

Technically I believe this is called Village at Valley Forge. Agree This would be worth a look as it sounds close town that the OP is looking for.

Chesterbrook which is nearby might be worth a look as well.

Chesterbrook is a period piece that looks a little dated IMO, but it consistently ranks high on places-to-live rankings, so it is worth a look.

King of Prussia is not part of the Main Line, though parts of the Radnor postal district spill into its township, Upper Merion. It's actually a little more affordable than most Main Line communities are. But the Village at Valley Forge contains its only "walkable downtown" - it's what I call an "Instant Urbanist" development. It doesn't look all that urban (save for all the apartment buildings on its residential side), but it's very well put together, functionally speaking. I'd recommend you give it a look.

The walkable downtowns on the Main Line are, in decreasing order of size of business district: Ardmore, Wayne, Bryn Mawr. There are also a few shops near the Haverford Regional Rail station, but it doesn't really qualify.

Patmcpsu: You left Collingswood off your list. Not as quaint as the other communities you listed, but one of the liveliest suburban downtowns in the entire region, with a first-class dining scene. I'd say Media is its Pennsylvania counterpart.

OP: You really should provide a little more detail so we can all be less scattershot in our recommendations.

[chessimprov]

Gaithersburg is near DC and I know that area a bit, so you can probably afford something reasonable to you in this area. KOP/Radnor/Wayne certainly worth looking into. Media is definitely another. I don't know NJ and don't know about the other PA suburbs as much. I suspect someone will say Doylestown, Jenkintown, and Ambler, which certainly aren't bad areas. There are places you could consider further out too. Definitely more information will help you with better recommendations rather than just naming a bunch of neighborhoods all over.