Horsham questions (Pottstown, Lansdale, Doylestown: HOA fees, house, neighborhood)

[AvidGamer]

Hi out there - in my (seemingly) never-ending quest to find a new place of residence, I came across a house in Horsham within a development (it's right off of Horsham Road, near 611). I've never lived in a development (and I'm usually a quiet, private person, but I have kids) and I wanted to know everyone's experiences/views on them.

I've also heard the Horsham/Hatboro is one of the better school districts around, so I'd be happy to hear those experiences, as well.

Thanks in advance.

[thekish]

Originally Posted by AvidGamer

Hi out there - in my (seemingly) never-ending quest to find a new place of residence, I came across a house in Horsham within a development (it's right off of Horsham Road, near 611). I've never lived in a development (and I'm usually a quiet, private person, but I have kids) and I wanted to know everyone's experiences/views on them.

I've also heard the Horsham/Hatboro is one of the better school districts around, so I'd be happy to hear those experiences, as well.

Thanks in advance.

Do you want to know about Horsham or developments?


Horsham is nice but it is boring. The problem with Horsham is there isn't much there other than developments and a couple of corporate developments. You pretty much have to drive to everything. The one thing I like about Horsham is the Power Line trail which is a running/biking trail that runs between most of the developments. I would also checkout neighboring Hatboro. It is the same school district but there is a small town with a few shops and restaurants.

[FindingZen]

Horsham is a solid bedroom community. Nearby Hatboro has a quaint downtown. The H-H school district has a good reputation as well. I would predict that the atmosphere of the development you're considering would be just fine.

[andreaspercheron]

I live in Horsham! Love it and don't even have kids (they are now adults). We don't live in a development however but I have friends who do. Their take on developments is that they like them especially because they do have kids. Horsham is a great town if you like to get out. There are a ton of parks with walking trails, the town has "Horsham Day" every year with a huge turnout.
They have tons of shopping and while yes you do have to "drive" to everything it's not like you are driving hours away LOL
If you like some nightlife, you can go to Doylestown which is about 10 mins down 611. If you want more than that, Philly is a train ride away or a drive (35-40 mins) depending on the time of day of course.
Overall, for kids, my friend refers to Horsham as "Pleasantville". It's a great community and I'd advise it to anyone looking.

Whatever your choice, good luck!

[solibs]

I don't think Horsham would be bad . . . but if I were a kid I'd much prefer Hatboro. Train station, shops, stuff to walk to, etc.

I actually really like Hatboro it's just a little too far from the city for my tastes. Too many downtowns in this region are either lined with restaurants and boutiques or are falling apart. Hatboro has a solid downtown that is neither, you can actually get a lot of day-to-day stuff there.

[AvidGamer]

Thanks for the info. A couple of replies:

thekish - yes, I'd like to know about developments as well. The one we were looking at didn't have any of those HOA fees, but I'd like to know what's generally involved in the upkeep of something like that.

Andrea - I'd like to know more about Horsham. Read on this site that the cost of living index is actually more than the normal average. Not that I'm worried about it; just made me more curious. Getting to the city isn't a problem for me - been riding SEPTA so long I can catch it in my sleep (which sometimes happens, haha).

After 30+ years of city living, I've gotten tired of it, actually. I'm ready to settle down someplace quiet anfd safe for the fam.

[andreaspercheron]

Originally Posted by AvidGamer

Thanks for the info. A couple of replies:

thekish - yes, I'd like to know about developments as well. The one we were looking at didn't have any of those HOA fees, but I'd like to know what's generally involved in the upkeep of something like that.

Andrea - I'd like to know more about Horsham. Read on this site that the cost of living index is actually more than the normal average. Not that I'm worried about it; just made me more curious. Getting to the city isn't a problem for me - been riding SEPTA so long I can catch it in my sleep (which sometimes happens, haha).

After 30+ years of city living, I've gotten tired of it, actually. I'm ready to settle down someplace quiet anfd safe for the fam.

Sure! Well, as you know in any nicer community the property taxes are going to be higher. In Horsham, you have an excellent school district, the roads are newly paved in some areas and recently widened to accomodate the growing numbers. There are a ton of parks and they are nicely kept up. The township puts on a lot of events for the community and it's very safe, we have very little crime.

In the case of property taxes, you do see your dollar at work here vs a place like say Pottsttown where the property taxes are about the same as here but not near as nice and nothing as available as things are here which makes you wonder why you would want to live in a town like that vs here in Horsham. I'm not saying Pottstown is all bad for those who live there, so please it was not a hit but simply an observation.


I think this is a case of you get what you pay for, for us and believe me we always consider the property taxes - at least in my experience of living here 10+ years, I do see the tax money at work. Hatboro may be a little lower but not by much, some of the area though in Hatboro though are really run down and lacking. I'd much rather live where I do now than in Hatboro. The town itself is quaint and historic but beyond that there anything there you can't find in Horsham.

The cost of living really isn't noticeable. I moved from Hatboro (on the border of Hatboro) to Horsham 10 years ago, I never noticed anything. The jobs are good here, schools are excellent, tons of shopping, a few train stations nearby, such as Hatboro, Lansdale, Doylestown, and several others all within about 10 - 15 mins.

If you are working in Philly you could easily take a train. I can also answer about HOA fees, you pay a monthly fee in addition to your mortgage, that fee is set aside for things like general maintenance within the development, a certain degree of living, etc... each HOA development will have different reasons for their fees. I'd stay away from them because also with those, come restrictions and some are worse than others. My old colleague lived in a developmentwith an HOA fee, when he planted flowers in his garden outside of his house, he came home to a letter on the door that the flowers didn't compliement the general look they were going for and that he could have flowers but only what they approved. If he wanted to put up decorations, it was what was allowed, not what you wanted.... so while HOA's have some good purposes, generally I find that a big pain.

Hopefully this answered a lot of questions for you.

[AvidGamer]

Yes, ma'am, you've definitely answered some questions that I've had. Thanks much!

[phlydude]

If you are not a conformist, do not buy a house in a neighborhood with HOA

HOA are big talk but they don't have much authority - they hope people conform with those letters but when you challenge them, there isn't really much they can do besides sue you in civil court - the expense of that is usually too great to even pursue for things like flowers or christmas decorations

In my neighborhood, they can't enforce the parking rules because the towing services charge the HOA a fee to patrol or to be called in and the law says that if a car is inspected, registered and insured, there is nothing they can do to take it off the street anyway.