pelham (New York, New Rochelle, Mount Vernon: for sale, crime, house prices)

[yosser]

What is pelham like as a place to live? Any village feel? Are the schools any good? It seems prices are lower than bronxville but is there a good reason?
Safety/crime aspect?

[jyyanks]

Bronxville "proper" is probably the most expensive area to live in Westchester County. It's a small village so there aren't that many homes for sale, taxes are outrageous, and its very hard to find an affordable home in the Bronxville school district. You'd be hard pressed to find areas with home prices as high as Bronxville - maybe certain parts of Scarsdale but overall Bronxville has alays been a village for the wealthy (and long ago for the WASP). It does NOT mean that other areas are inferior. Comparing other areas to Bronxville would be like comparing them to Beverly Hills but Bronxville is 1/10 the size.

Pelham is actually a very nice area with good schools, nice town, & proximity to a train line. However, some of the areas surrounding Pelham can be questionable.

[mead]

Yeah Pelham is cheaper because it is bordered by Mount Vernon and New Rochelle. Pelham itself is really nice though. Good schools, nice suburban town feel, but the property taxes are quite high (as they are just about everywhere in Westchester).

[yosser]

what is the difference between pelham and pelham manor? If I am looking for a community feel, easy walk to cafes/train is it a good choice? Are the schools all good in pelham or are there ones to be avoided?

[J&A'sMOM]

Hi,
I'm also very interested in hearing anyone's thoughts on Pelham. SAT scores are good - as most of Westchester. The houses seem rather affordable as compared to other areas. Is Pelham in a down swing?? If not I think I need to tour their schools and get a better feel for it. Is Siwanoy the best elementary school to be in? Anyone who has any info please let me know - We'd love a short commute to the city and also good schools. When we looked I did feel like I'd be boxed in by expressways - has anyone lived in Pelham and did they feel that way or is it not so bad? Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks!!!

[nonny]

Pelham is in anything but a downswing. House prices are rising faster than in Westchester as a whole. (See Zillow.com.) Three of the elementary schools, Siwanoy, Colonial, and Prospect Hill outperform Bronxville schools quite often on standardized tests. Hutchinson is the biggest elementary school, with the lowest income groups, and some special needs classes that doesn't do quite so well, but still is way above average. Nonetheless, people like Hutchinson because of the racial and economic diversity, and will stay there even when they move to other Pelham districts sometimes. Prospect now has a new program for autistic children too. The schools are not bad. You get a lot more house for your money in Pelham than elsewhere, and nice neighborhoods too, and nice schools. The problem with Pelham is the town. There are no swanky stores. There is no community swimming pool. You have to join a country club or go to county pools in the summer. Pelham used to be known as a writer's town. There are many many many writers and editors from the New Yorker and Times and lots of other top publications... this means that even petty neighborhood squabbles,unfortunately, make it into big news. Now it's probably too pricey for new writers. But, Pelham is still a small town. People walk to school and the train. The houses are nice. Neighbors know each other. But it's just not as swanky as other towns. Driveways are not belgium block quite as often. Roofs are not slate as often. Service stores are expected to provide services. Pelham Manor and Pelham both have wealthy parts. Pelham Manor wealth tends to be conservative. Pelham is a bit more liberal. It's an amazingly safe town. Between the police and the culture, you don't have to worry about your safety at all here!

[movetoburbs]

We are looking at Larchmont or Pelham, we are from Bronxville and South Salem, NY and want to move to a good town to raise kids and that's close to NYC. Have heard Pelham is too close to tbe Bronx so crime can be high, but stats don't reflect that. Please tell us more about living in Pelham...good neighborhood feel wherever you live? One area more desirable than others? Thank you!

[demkew]

Pelham and Pelham Manor are wonderful places to raise a family. Pelham Manor is very affluent but Pelham has many affluent areas also. Great neighborhood feel to it. Crime is not an issue at all. Excellent Manhattan commute and sophisticated residents. Much more like Larchmont, Hastings, and Rye. It is very similar to Bronxville but has more economic diversity, just like those other towns have. Bronxville cannot really be compared to any town in Westchester because of the uniqueness of the place...there are literally no middle class area at all, uniformly wealthy. This is not the case for any other town/village that I know of in Westchester. You have to go to Long Island to find a couple of villages like that and even there they pale in wealth compared to Bronxville.