Confused about Bronxville (Yonkers, Eastchester, Scarsdale: middle-class, real estate, houses) - Westchester County - New York (NY) - City-Data Forum

VTP · 09-28-2007, 06:14 PM

Hi. I'm hoping someone can settle some confusion about Bronxville. I am somewhat familiar with the downtown village area and the houses nearby, especially to one side of it. This is very, very nice. However, I also hear discussion of Bronxville in a negative light. I have heard that certain neighborhoods have Bronxville addresses but are not really considered to be in Bronxville. I have also heard that children from these areas do not attend Bronxville schools, even though they have Bronxville addresses. Is this true? If so, what areas are these, and why are they bad, and which school districts are we talking about? How bad is bad?? I know I threw a lot of questions out there -- any info would be appreciated! (I actually used to live in Bronxville proper long, long ago but I was too young to understand any of this). Thanks so much.

rubygreta · 09-28-2007, 10:42 PM

You have to live within the Village of Bronxville to attend the Bronxville School District. The area to the west of the Village of Bronxville has a Bronxville mailing address but is located in the City of Yonkers. Overall, the Yonkers School District is not well regarded. A small area to the east of the Village of Bronxville that has a Bronxville mailing address is located in the Tuckahoe School District, which is a decent/good district that is mostly comprised of middle-class families.

Property values and real estate taxes for houses that have a Bronxville mailing address but are located in the City of Yonkers are SIGNFICANTLY lower than Bronxville village properties, even though the neighborhoods are gorgeous. It is a very good option if you are considering sending your kids to private school.

VTP · 09-29-2007, 05:50 PM

Thanks so much, rubygreta. There is an area near the Hutch, near Exit 14 (to the left of the Hutch if you're heading north) that I suspect may be the area of which you speak -- is this the area that's in the Yonkers School District? I know that district is very bad. I wonder if it's the same area, because the houses in the area I mentioned are not gorgeous. They are sort of old but not in that well-manicured, charming way. But I do know they have Bronxville addresses. As to the Tuckahoe school section of Bronxville, could you provide a little more info, like streets or landmarks? How about Palmer Road? Is that in one of these sections? I think it might be... Thanks again!!

karen824 · 09-29-2007, 09:14 PM

Hi,
I grew up in Scarsdale, not Bronxville, but we had the same thing there, with some areas having a "Scarsdale PO" but not being in the Village of Scarsdale, therefore not being in the Scarsdale school district.
You just have to read the real estate listings carefully. If the listing says "Bronxville PO," I can pretty much guarantee you that it is not Bronxville schools. If a home is in the Bronxville school district, it will most likely say so in the listing, because this is considered a big advantage. When in doubt, ask a realtor which school district a home is in.
By the way, some listings that say "Scarsdale PO" are in Edgemont, which is an excellent school district, too.

dma1250 · 09-29-2007, 10:21 PM

Almost every town in Westchester has this issue--houses that have one PO address, are physically in another town, and are in yet another school district. If you're searching online, with most sites you can search by school district.

rubygreta · 09-30-2007, 08:07 PM

Yonkers is not located near the Hutchinson River Parkway. Yonkers is located west of the Bronx River Parkway. There are two gorgeous neighborhoods there that in my mind rival just about anything in Westchester County - Lawrence Park West and Cedar Knolls. Unfortunately, you are stuck in the Yonkers School District.

The area you are talking about (Exit 14) has a Bronxville mailing address but is located in the Tuckahoe School District.

The perception of the Bronxville School District is that it is one of the best in Westchester County (along with Scarsdale, Chappaqua and a couple of others). I always thought that perception was BS. The reason these districts are the "best" is not because they somehow they have the best teachers, best principals, best programs, and best administrators. They are the "best" because they are the wealthiest. The parents of the children are highly educated and wealthy. They have huge expectations of their children and can provide them with every advantage. Many want that Ivy league window sticker on their car for their own egos.

Unfortunately, some children of affluent and well-educated parents turn out to be average or even lousy students. Because Bronxville and Scarsdale are pressure-cooker district, it can cause great difficulties for lots of kids.

Tuckahoe has much lower SAT scores than Bronxville. Does this mean they have lousy teachers and no discipline? Absolutely not. Tuckahoe is a low-key district that I'm guessing is about 15% minority. Most of the residents can be described as ranging from working class to upper middle class. They do not have the wealth or education of the typical Bronxville resident. And they are not all trying to get their kids into Harvard.

Personally, I would rather be in the Tuckahoe district. Other nearby districts that are just fine but are lower key than Bronxville are Pelham and Eastchester.

Good luck!

VTP · 09-30-2007, 08:13 PM

Thanks again, rubygreta and others. All of the info is helpful. So what else feeds into Tuckahoe? I imagine Tuckahoe does. Anything else? What what about Crestwood? What's that like? Schools there?

rubygreta · 09-30-2007, 08:53 PM

Crestwood is a lovely neighborhood that is located in the Yonkers School District.

The Tuckahoe School District is comprised of the southern part of the Town of Eastchester (Eastchester or Bronxville mailing address) and most of the Village of Tuckahoe (Tuckahoe mailing address).

Too make matters more confusing, some residents of the Village of Tuckahoe are in the Eastchester School District.

VTP · 10-01-2007, 11:38 AM

Is Crestwood expensive? So basically if you live there you need to cough up the dough fro a private school?

rubygreta · 10-01-2007, 05:49 PM

Crestwood is not cheap, but you get the same property for about 40% less than if it were in the Bronxville School District. And the taxes are probably less than half of what they are in Bronxville. Also, in Crestwood you have a Tuckahoe mailing address, which the market perceives as more desirable than a Yonkers mailing address.

Yonkers has several good elementary schools. Unfortunately, the Pearls "magnet" school is very inconvenient to Crestwood. You would have to discuss the elementary school situation with a broker.

The middle schools and high schools are on the rough side, and some are downright awful. But I heard that a couple of the high schools have gotten much better in the last five years.