moving to richmond this summer (Mechanicsville, Glen Allen: rental market, houses, job transfer)

[np21]

Hello

This summer , we are looking at moving to Richmond VA from SC ( after living here for 10 years :-) ). My husband got a job transfer and will be working in Glen Allen area.

Currently we have a 7th grader and 2nd grader, both honors students doing advanced courses, active in multiple extracurricular activities like band, piano, chess, theatre.

We are looking for a safe family friendly neighborhood. Please tell us about some schools with nurturing & challenging environment.

Also, what are our high school choices? How does high school application works in Richmond/Henrico etc. Does zoning matter?

regards

[sls76]

Originally Posted by np21

Hello

This summer , we are looking at moving to Richmond VA from SC ( after living here for 10 years :-) ). My husband got a job transfer and will be working in Glen Allen area.

Currently we have a 7th grader and 2nd grader, both honors students doing advanced courses, active in multiple extracurricular activities like band, piano, chess, theatre.

We are looking for a safe family friendly neighborhood. Please tell us about some schools with nurturing & challenging environment.

Also, what are our high school choices? How does high school application works in Richmond/Henrico etc. Does zoning matter?

regards

Top high schools are Deep Run and Godwin. There are specialty centers in all the Henrico high schools that you can apply to as well. Look in 23233 or 23059. Many of the best elementary schools in the state. The resources I used when relocating were:

SchoolDigger.com - School Rankings, Reviews and More - Public and Private Elementary, Middle, High Schools (this site ranks schools based on SOLs--you will see how many very highly ranked schools Western Henrico has)
GreatSchools - Public and Private School Ratings, Reviews and Parent Community

My recommendations for neighborhoods to start with: Twin Hickory, Wellsley, Wyndham.

Also, here is a recent article on the 2012 Governor's Excellence Awards:

http://www.downtownshortpump.com/2012/01/09/west-end-schools-among-receipients-of-2012-governors-excellence-awards/ (broken link)

It sounds like your transition will be easy. This area is very family oriented and filled with high achieving children and very involved parents.

[np21]

thankyou sls76, for your inputs. I'll look into these areas and schools.

We are also natural food aficionado and would love to know more about some good local farmers market and dairies.

regards

[PickPatrick]

Here is a good Resource:
Henrico County Public Schools

[ellieb128]

Originally Posted by np21

thankyou sls76, for your inputs. I'll look into these areas and schools.

We are also natural food aficionado and would love to know more about some good local farmers market and dairies.

regards

We have a load of farmer's markets - this is a partial list - the South of the James Mkt on Forest Hill is the biggest one.

The Market Umbrella | Local Farmers, Local Business, Local People – coming together under one umbrella

Averys Branch Farms Store They have farm days on occasion - tons of fun for the kids.

Scroll down on the right side of this blog page - lists of all you are looking for and more....

Richmond Food Collective: One Great Winter Food Co-Op

[np21]

Thank you ellieb128 and PickPatrick for your links. I'll check them out.

btw how is Mechanicsville and its houses/school compared to Glen Allen?

[sls76]

Mechanicsville, Midlothian, and Short Pump have the best schools in the area on paper. Any of them would be fine. You will get more for your money in Mechanicsville or Midlothian than Short Pump.

[richmondpics]

South of the James Market is great... check out Ellwood Thompson's and Tom Leonard's market as well. Forgot to mention Good Foods Grocery.

[ShannonMilligan]

My husband works in Innsbrook in Short Pump. We looked in both Glen Allen and Midlothian. We ultimately went with Glen Allen as his commute is 10 minutes, door-to-door where as in Midlo it was going to be 20-25 minutes, and coming from an area where we had LONG commutes, we wanted something short. That being said, we could have built the same house (b/c they offered the same home) for a lot less. (Can't be sure of the exact number, but maybe $30-40K less)

[Marie12]

Glad I found this site moving to Va gle Allen in the summer. My husband to has accepted a position in glen Allen. How is the rental market in this area. Wanting to wait to buy to be sure we like the area.