Relocation out of Center City: Main Line vs. Haddonfield (Lancaster: houses, safe neighborhoods)

[MH Montrose]

Hi all...after an exhaustive research, my family and I have decided to move out of Center City and relocate to either a Main Line town close the Villanova/St Davids exit off of 476 (Radnor, Wayne, Bryn Mawr, Villanova-LM or Radnor schools-TE too far) or Haddonfield NJ.

I would appreciate any suggestions on our wish list below, as we have narrowed to these two diverse choices. Wish list as follows:

1. Great, supportive school system/pre school option for kids: ages 2 and newborn
2. Community feel, ability to meet others, great outdoor activities,access to retail/restaurants and religious diversity(ie ok to be jewish)
3. Safe neighborhood, good place to raise children,ok to be dual income
4. Likable house/property/yard under 700k
5.Best long term option:appreciation potential, schools, traffic etc

Down to earth, two income family, one commutes to NE Airport, one to Philly Intl, so close to main arteries is a must. We know there are closer towns, but we liked the combo of great schools, beautiful/safe neighborhoods and access to city/good suburbs that these two areas provide.
All feedback welcome and appreciated.

[sj08054]

Haddonfield could be a lot more "expensive" to live.

1. Property tax is going to be high
2. Both of you are commuting into Philly, tolls prices could really add up and the commuter discount is going away.

Haddonfield school is rated very good and you are close to everything. Lots of activity and plenty of restaurants in the area. You are not too far from Voorhees where there is the JCC.

You can definitely get a really nice home with characters in Haddonfield for $700 but don't be shock when you look at the property tax.

[mikec717]

Hi there -

We moved from Center City to Haddonfield last year and went through the same process that it appears you're going through (i.e., Main Line vs Jersey). I will admit that I was biased towards South Jersey, as I grew up near Haddonfield, but we did do quite a bit of research and legwork on both areas in arriving at our decision. I can comment on some of your questions, as listed by number, below:

1. We have a child in preschool (age 4) and another that just started kindergarten. There are a number of preschool options available in Haddonfield - both Methodist and Presbyterian Churches have preschools, Beechwood School, Haddonfield Friends and at least one of the grade schools (JF Tatem) have varied preschool options. Our kids both liked Methodist a lot. Friends also speak highly of Presby and Tatem. I'm not sure to what extent any of those options are available for 2 and under; I don't believe Methodist takes children before 2. School system is near top in South Jersey.

2. Simply put - Haddonfield is a very pleasant place to live. It's walkable, there are a lot of families with young kids, not as many true "parks" as we'd like (although Knight Park, about 10 minutes away in Collingswood, is quite nice), several town sports, great library, beautiful downtown. We have found people to be quite friendly. Religious diversity - not as much as I grew up with in Cherry Hill, which is heavily Jewish (and has several synagogues/JCC), but I don't get the sense that anyone would hold a particular religion against anyone else. Some good restaurants; lots of those as well in nearby Collingswood.

3. It definitely has a "neighborhood-y" feel. We know a combination of dual-income and single-income families, but I do think that there are more stay-at-home moms there than is typical today. I don't have definitive stats on that, but I do get that impression.

4. There's a wide variety of housing stock below $700k. Keep in mind that it is an older town, and so you're going to be looking, more likely than not, at an older house, with the issues that may arise from that. Property taxes are high, but keep in mind that fed tax deduction for prop tax and NJ Homestead Rebate (state rebates a portion of property tax each year) eases that a bit. You will get more/bigger house for your money elsewhere, but you are getting a very high quality of life (in my opinion), great community, and top schools for your money in Hdfld.

5. No long-term stats on this, but Haddonfield has always (at least since the 70's, when I was growing up) been a desirable place to purchase due to community feel and schools, so I assume it will hold value relatively well. Houses, if priced reasonably for the market, generally seem to sell fairly fast. It is walkable with good access to public transit (PATCO to Center City), and I assume that that bodes well for the future, as gas prices increase. I certainly think it's a better long-term-hold bet than new construction 20 or 30 miles out from the city.

Trip to Philly Int'l from our house is roughly 20 minutes, possibly slightly more. You will have good access to Rte 70, which will get you to Ben Franklin Bridge, and to Walt Whitman Bridge via back roads/cut-throughs. I would definitely try to make the drive a couple of times as a test run before committing to anything, as SJ rush-hour traffic can be heavy on the main arteries.

Hope that helps a bit. As far as the comparison to the Main Line, we just didn't find anything across the river that had as nice a vibe - at least as far as what we wanted in a town - as Haddonfield. It felt less "busy" than some of the Lancaster Ave towns. The PATCO train system is way better than Regional Rail (trains run more often, more quickly and have a nicer feel). The "small town" aspect of it appealed to us - we run into people out-and-about all the time, the way we did when we lived in Center City. If you can find, via the Phila Inquirer archives, a copy of a Michael Vitez article from Feb 16, 2005 ("Old-time ways are still strong - All three of the Haddons enjoy a sense of small-town community along with ready access to the city."), you'll get a much better-written overview of why it is appealing.

The best advice I can offer is to spend some quality time in each place that you are considering in order to make a good assessment of which town best meets your needs. For us, Haddonfield won hands-down. Good luck with your search/move!

Mike

[pman]

why not merion?

[sj08054]

4. There's a wide variety of housing stock below $700k. Keep in mind that it is an older town, and so you're going to be looking, more likely than not, at an older house, with the issues that may arise from that. Property taxes are high, but keep in mind that fed tax deduction for prop tax and NJ Homestead Rebate (state rebates a portion of property tax each year) eases that a bit. You will get more/bigger house for your money elsewhere, but you are getting a very high quality of life (in my opinion), great community, and top schools for your money in Hdfld.

The rules for Homestead rebate has changed quite a bit. For a 2 income family in Haddonfield, I am almost certain that you are not going to qualify for the rebate.

[john_starks]

i know one thing, haddonfield is a much easier commute traffic-wise

[MH Montrose]

Originally Posted by pman

why not merion?

We like Merion, just too far from Blue Route/276 corridor.
City Line Ave is NOT an option, traffic is painful.
Commute to NE Airport is doable on 476 to 276 mode...fairly consistent from my experience.
Therefore, Main Line towns that make the most sense seem to be in that corridor between Wayne, Bryn Mawr, Villanova and Radnor...regardless of in LM Township or Radnor Twp.
Thoughts on specifics?

[mikec717]

Originally Posted by sj08054

The rules for Homestead rebate has changed quite a bit. For a 2 income family in Haddonfield, I am almost certain that you are not going to qualify for the rebate.

Thanks for the clarification, and yes, you are certainly correct. My apologies to the original poster and others.

Homestead Rebate Information for Homeowners Under Age 65 and NOT Disabled - NJ Taxation

[kimrocktherealtor]

Haddonfield all the way - 1) less traffic 2) more community feeling, local shops, walk everywhere etc .. Love it.

[orrmobl]

For a two income household, I would recommend the Lower Merion school district over Radnor. Also have you considered Wallingford-Swarthmore and Rose Tree Media? Everything Haddonfield offers...including high taxes in Wallingford-Swarthmore. The shortest commmute would definitely be a tie breaker for me.