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This is my first post on this site, although I have been reading a lot of the helpful advice in response to prior posts on many of the pros/cons of Westchester towns. My husband and I are currently living in Brooklyn, and I am seriously considering a job in South Norwalk, CT. He works in Time Square and plans to stay there for the near future. If I take the job, we would like to move to Westchester where my husband would have about a 35 minute commute by train and I would be able to cut down my commute a bit. I would mainly be driving to South Norwalk but ideally would like the option to take a train if weather is bad, etc.
We would love some advice on towns that would be best for a couple in their late 30s/early 40s without kids. We would be looking to buy a single family home (about 3 or 4 bedrooms) and our budget is $900-950k. We love kids, have loads of wonderful friends with kids and have absolutely nothing against them, but we would like a town with a bit of a social scene where we won't feel out of place without a child (and won't be paying crazy taxes and not getting the school benefit). We are fairly active, running in the morning and taking our dog for long walks so somewhere with a walkable downtown with restaurants, etc. would be great. We don't need sprawling land but some yard for our puppy would be nice. We currently live in a condo and aren't really interested in moving into another one.
We are originally from Long Island and New Jersey and know very little about Westchester towns. Based mainly on proximity, we were thinking Mt. Vernon, New Rochelle and Larchmont. Any advice/suggestions are much appreciated.
Most westchester trains don't go direct to south Norwalk. You would have to change in Stamford. If you both plan on taking trains to work I would recommend living in Stamford itself. Convenient trains for both of you, low taxes, and should have the downtown you are looking for.
How about the Portchester area? Lovely area with lots to do for a couple with reasonable taxes, commute is a little longer to GCT than 35 mins and the commute to South Norwalk would not be bad as you are close to 95 and dont have to cross Westchester County every day.
Most westchester trains don't go direct to south Norwalk. You would have to change in Stamford. If you both plan on taking trains to work I would recommend living in Stamford itself. Convenient trains for both of you, low taxes, and should have the downtown you are looking for.
This.
Driving to/from Westchester through Stamford on the 95 at peak hours is a nightmare (if you leave super early and come home early or late you'll fare better). You have express trains into/out of the city from Stamford and you'll save some of the headache of the drive to SoNo, if you don't want to take the train that is, since it will go direct from Stamford.
Otherwise I'd recommend Mamaroneck. Plenty going on, lots of restaurants, and convenient location to WP, New Rochelle and Port Chester for shopping and more restaurants. Trains into the city are about 40 minutes but the drive to SoNo would probably be about 45-60 minutes in rush hour.
Mamoroneck crossed my mind but I think of its as a less desirable place for a couple w/0 kids and you are paying higher taxes while not using the schools. In other ways similar to Portchester but In PC you have the Capitol Theatre, movies, more new restaurants, close to Greenwich etc.
Thanks all for your suggestions! I was favoring Stamford but thought it may be too far for my husbandto commute. It seems fairly large. Are there certain neighborhoods anyone would suggest that aren't too far of a drive from the metro north station. We are going to check out various westchester villages and CT this weekend. We will add Portchester to our list. I had read some posts (albeit a little outdated) suggesting it was a little "rough" in spots. Is it a fairly safe area such that we wouldn't need to worry walking around at night or running in the wee hours of the morning.
Portchester has changed quite a bit in the last 10 years. There remains a sizable hardworking immigrant population. Downtown Mamaroneck has IMHO a similar vibe but to a lesser extent. Mamaroneck on balance is wealthier - but I am referring to the respective downtown areas.
I really don't think there is much crime but its not like downtown Bronxville, Scarsdale or Larchmont. There is more diversity. I was also focusing on the fact that you mentioned not paying property/school taxes for schools that you will not use and taxes are a little more tolerable in Portchester where you can find a nice home in your price range.
Dumbo Gal - I live in Stamford and commute to NYC every day. It's not the best commute, but not the worst. If you don't have kids, your husband can certainly do it if you both decide Stamford is the best fit for you. I moved out here to get more away from a constant social scene and more into married life, etc. As far as CT towns go, Stamford defiinitely probably has one of the best, but know that it's different from Brooklyn (we moved from Greenpoint and Astoria).
As far as neighborhoods, I live in what is technically Westover and referred to the locals as "Pepper ridge". You'll notice Stamford has a busy downtown section, more of a suburban section and then up in North Stamford it's like country. My section is on the border of the suburban and country part and I think it's the best fit. Gives you easy access to the busier parts, but is quiet and suburban and a nice neighborhood feel where you have neighbors you'll get to know and aren't in the middle of nothing. It takes about 15 mins or a little less to get to the main train station in downtown Stamford.
Check out the area between Newfield Drive and Vine Road. I'm in that section and love it.
Sorry, my neighborhood is technically Turn of River, not Westover.
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