Town suggestions - moving from NYC (Rye, Eastchester: houses, transfer, neighborhoods)

[cityboy1976]

We are considering moving to Westchester / Northern New Jersey and our reasons and criteria are as follows:

Current situation:
1) Live in Park Slope, Brooklyn with 2 year old in a 2 bed / 1bath brownstone apt
2) Salary $150k base + $100-$125k bonus (total $250 - 275k)
3) Early 30s, I work, wife is SAHM

Reasons for moving:
1) Better schooling (public schools)
2) More space
3) Less bad influence (we see early teenagers smoking and swearing here, not to mention the subway louts!)
4) Less hectic lifestyle, easier to get around with a car especially with a baby
5) More outdoor stuff to do

Criteria (in order of priority):
1) Top schooling district (e.g. Scarsdale, Bronxville, Millburn, Tenafly)
2) Less than 1 hour door to door commute to midtown (50th st and 5th/6th avenue)
3) $750k budget preferable; can stretch a bit for the right reasons
4) Should feel welcome and be able to make friends (we are Asian Indians) - don't have any need for an Indian area, but don't want to feel unwelcome because of our ethnic background
5) 4 bed 2-3 bath single family home in good condition

Appreciate any input on specific areas that fit our criteria. I have named 4 areas above, but think they fall short at least in one or more of the criteria listed above. Thanks.

[jjinla]

You won't get a 4BR in any top district for $750K - at least not the 'coveted' ones like Rye, Scarsdale, Bronxville, Chappaqua, etc. Not unless it is on a very busy street or needs a lot of TLC at least.

Stretch to $900K and then they are possible, otherwise it may be doable in places like Eastchester, Pleasantville and Harrison.

[bg7]

come down to 3 bedrooms and you'll have a lot more opportunities. Most of the very top school district towns you'd feel comfortable in, people tend to be cosmopolitan, tolerant, enlightened and a lot of ex-NYCers moved up here for the same reasons as you.
If you want a less than one hour door to door (real life, not theoretical based on timetables) you'll want a sub-30 min Mtero North train ride.

[mfenimore]

To get less than an hour commute its going to be very hard to find a house in that price range since you would need somewhere in lower Westchester. If you extend your commute about 15 minutes you will have a lot more options in Mid Westchester like Chappaqua, Briarcliff, Pleasantville, Croton and you will be getting a lot more space too. However in that pirce range you would probably need to do some work to the house but you will get good schools. I work right near you and live in Briarcliff. My train ride is a pleasant 42 minutes and then a 10 minute walk from GCT. Winds up being about an hour and 15 minutes including train station driving time.

[YanksRule]

If you are willing to extend your commute to 1:20, you can find a home in your price range in a top school district in Katonah or Goldens Bridge- that is part of the Katonah-Lewisboro school district which is excellent and the towns are very nice.

Katonah is one of my favorite towns in Westchester due to it's small, but quaint downtown. Goldens Bridge doesn't really have that downtown, however homes are very affordable for an excellent school district. Both towns are directly on a train stop. I currently live outside Katonah and temporarily work on 51st and 6th and the time door to door is about 1:20.

[cityboy1976]

Thanks for the inputs.

How do Westchester top schools mentioned above compare to NJ top schools such as Millburn, Tenafly and Princeton? Are they better?

I find that there is more "bang" for the buck in these NJ towns compared to Westchester. Is that because of a) better schools in Westchester than the best in NJ b) better commute to NYC c) better neighborhoods (whatever that means) d) "Jersey factor"

[checkmatechamp13]

Originally Posted by cityboy1976

Thanks for the inputs.

How do Westchester top schools mentioned above compare to NJ top schools such as Millburn, Tenafly and Princeton? Are they better?

I find that there is more "bang" for the buck in these NJ towns compared to Westchester. Is that because of a) better schools in Westchester than the best in NJ b) better commute to NYC c) better neighborhoods (whatever that means) d) "Jersey factor"

I would say it's the commute. Traveling from NJ will often be delayed because the tunnels under the Hudson River (both the Lincoln Tunnel and the rail tunnel), whereas Metro-North is less delay-prone.

Another thing is that for some towns, you have to transfer trains in Secaucus, which is a turn-off for many people.

Another thing is that I think Westchester property taxes are lower than NJ's property taxes.

[Breakaway_Girl]

Consider Pelham. If you look on Trulia, Zillow or another similar site and set your parameters for $700,000 - $900,000 4 bedrooms, you'll see some great houses and your commute to midtown will be 30 minutes or less. Good luck with your search.

[mfenimore]

I don't think westchester taxes are lower than Nj. But the commute is.definitely better out of gct than penn and less delays.

[bg7]

Princeton is really not commutable - that'd be hell. If you're interested in New Jersey try Glen Ridge. You'll get a 4-bed and the commute is one-seat read to Penn Station and the schools are absolutely excellent. Mind you, its a very very white town.