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Hi all
I have been lurking and have benefitted from many posts on this forum.
I will be moving with my husband, four year old, 18 month old and 4 month old to nyc from London ( previously lived in Amsterdam, Dubai, Spain and Ithaca).
-Husband needs a reasonable commute to Grand Central Terminal
-Daughter needs a fabulous non sectetrian school private or public as schooling is paid for.
- I need a full time housekeeper/ nanny. ( no one fancy with qualifications, my previous spoke no English and current had very little child are experience. But both became a lovely part of our family )
Questions
1. Which towns do you recommend? Will need the following;
-Within 1 hour commute of GCT.
-Either an excellent non sectarian public school or a non sectarian private school.
-Safety. Low crime rates.
-Some demographic diversity would be nice.
2. How do I get a nanny/ housekeeper full time, not live in? Will it cost more than $2000 a month.
3. What to look out for in houses? (Slopes, floods, neighbourhoods,quality of fittings, heating)
-Budget will most likely be between $7500 and $7800.
-Need min 4 bedrooms.
4. How are manhattan commuters getting to the station? (Walking, driving and parking?)
5. What 7 seater (plus spacious boot ) car do you recommend? What 2nd commuter (to station) do you recommend?
Bronxville and Scarsdale are both excellent options. Both are 30 minutes to GCT and have outstanding public (ie, state operated) schools. Check listings on Houlihan Lawrence, which is the top estate agent.
Yes, but with your budget, unless you have a lots of $ to put down on a house, it will be a tough go in Bronxville or Scarsdale, especially if you want 4 bedrooms. Plus the property taxes are quite high. It will cost close to 2M and approaching 50k or more in property taxes.
For great schools, an approx one hour commute relatively more reasonably priced area wiht a larger inventory consider Briarcliff, Armonk (train from North White or Chapp depending on where you live) or Chappaqua. You can also consider Katonah and Bedford (Bedford more diversity in school district due to Mount Kisco) but the commute will be over an hour)
In the areas discussed, you will not find much diversity aside from Bedford.
Our live in nanny is over $2500 per month. Not sure about non live ins - prob more more expensive. Check Care.Com.
The Buick Enclave and GMC Arcadia are great 7 seaters with second row caption chairs to allow easy access to the third row. the Q7 and Mercedes new GL are nice - but the GL is a pain to get to the third row with booster seats, car seats in the second row. Acura MDX is another good choice...the list is quite long..
Thanks.
Our 7500/7800 dollar budget is for monthly rental.
We will most likely only be there for 2-3 years.
I've seen houses in bronxville and scarsdale in this budget
Do a google search on "briarcliff manor fill for fields" and see what comes up.
RE Bedford - Took a drive there recently and I'm curious. Considering the relative wealth of the population, how do the residents there manage their commute? Presumably they need to juggle busy schedules and all.
Do a google search on "briarcliff manor fill for fields" and see what comes up.
RE Bedford - Took a drive there recently and I'm curious. Considering the relative wealth of the population, how do the residents there manage their commute? Presumably they need to juggle busy schedules and all.
Many people don't actually commute to NYC at all - rather to Stamford, Greenwich, WP etc. Those that do commute use metro north or drive - or have a driver. It's about 1 hr to GCS. And lots of SAHMs, nannies and au pairs. If you're talking about the guys living on the huge estates they do whatever the hell they want. There was one guy that commuted by helicopter till the town shut him down.
Yes, the ones who use Metro North to NYC. Was wondering because it's still a bit of a drive from the Historical Hall to either Mt. Kisco or Bedford Hills. Maybe it's because of the SAHSs or drivers that they can manage.
Scarsdale's homes have more property than Bronxville's. One caveat: Scarsdale is VERY Jewish, and its residents tend to be very pushy. From a cultural perspective, Bronxville, Rye, and Larchmont would be more of fit culturally for someone coming from London.
Yes, the ones who use Metro North to NYC. Was wondering because it's still a bit of a drive from the Historical Hall to either Mt. Kisco or Bedford Hills. Maybe it's because of the SAHSs or drivers that they can manage.
Bear in mind that 5 miles in Bedford/Pound Ridge/etc = 1.5 miles in southern Westchester - virtually no lights and you're driving 40-50mph. The only thing to avoid is getting stuck behind a school bus on one of the arteries.
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