Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I know we can be careful with our wording on internet forums but can anyone expand on this and if you want to PM me that's fine as well. I know Larchmont is wealthier than New Rochelle. And New Rochelle (from what I gather) is more "diverse" than Larchmont. Is that what we're getting at?
Not trying to attack anyone. If people want to be more blunt definitely PM me.
I think on the whole yes. Larchmont has a higher median income than NR, but as someone else put it, there are some sections of NR with high end homes, multiple millions. One of the wealthiest people I know lives there. His kids went to Iona. There are quite a few private school options, so if you are not sending kids to public schools it removes one of the difficult factors in the decision to live there. Of course it will still impact the housing market. Yes, NR is also far more racially and ethnically diverse.
I know we can be careful with our wording on internet forums but can anyone expand on this and if you want to PM me that's fine as well. I know Larchmont is wealthier than New Rochelle. And New Rochelle (from what I gather) is more "diverse" than Larchmont. Is that what we're getting at?
Not trying to attack anyone. If people want to be more blunt definitely PM me.
Right, it's not about race, although NR is certainly much more diverse in terms of skin color. But more so, NR is a city and it has public housing, low income housing, etc., and unfortunately that tends to go along with a higher prevalence of crime, less than stellar schools, etc. Larchmont is a small village and although there are some apartments and not everyone is rich (myself very much included), it's a very different economic profile than NR.
As noted upstream, NR has some very expensive, fancy areas in the suburbs (see "Larchmont Woods", which is in NR), but on average Larchmont is much, much wealthier. I can tell you anecdotally from 8 years of living there, my wife and I seem to be among the very few couples who make less than $300k annually who live in stand-alone homes in Larchmont. Again, not everyone is a zillionaire by any means, but every year in my child's class at Chatsworth we're obviously among the lowest earning families based upon occupations and cost of our house, etc., and we're not even remotely poor. Just my 2 cents...which is worth about 1 cent when you live in Larchmont.
I know we can be careful with our wording on internet forums but can anyone expand on this and if you want to PM me that's fine as well. I know Larchmont is wealthier than New Rochelle. And New Rochelle (from what I gather) is more "diverse" than Larchmont. Is that what we're getting at?
Not trying to attack anyone. If people want to be more blunt definitely PM me.
As Dr Strangelove said, there are some very wealthy sections of NR.
Downtown NR AND northern NR couldn’t be more different. It’s like NYC, there are sections that are Uber wealthy and then there are sections that are Uber poor.
Someone told me years ago that NR was an elite upper class town but when they integrated the schools 50 or so years ago, that’s when it’s reputation went down.
From what I hear, the schools are ok through middle school, but high school is more hit or miss. Kids can thrive there but there were also several stabbings a few years ago and that made us cross it off of our list when we were searching.
NR is a town that a lot of ppl move to if they plan on sending their kids to private school.
I'm curious about something as someone who is considering the move to Westchester County for many of the same reasons other consider it (schools, space, etc), is there a difference in vibe of the "Hudson side" ie Dobbs, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hallow, etc vs the "Long Island side" (New Rochelle, Larchmont, Pelham). Any reason you would pick one side over the other?
I would say the major difference in feel/vibe is Upper vs Lower than Hudson vs Long Island Sound.
First off lets get one thing clear- the major vibe that all of Westchester has in common with the exceptions of the more dense parts of Yonkers, New Rochelle and White Plains is you are living in the suburbs.
It isn't Manhattan or Hipster Brooklyn, and if you think you are finding a magic combination of Park Slope and a 3000 sq ft house on an acre of land with quiet- you are in for a epic disappointment. Living here isn't for most single people under 40 (or even say 50), couples without children that love to go out all the time, or people who hate driving or refuse to own a car. People aren't clamoring to move here because of the food scene.......
Lower Westchester has more of an old suburban feel- but every town has its own vibe. What I mean by old suburban feel is lots of the neighborhoods have smaller, older homes that are closer together on smaller sized lots. You will have swaths of areas of huge houses on large lots that back then and still do generally house rich or very upper middle class families- but most people looking on city-data.com for info cannot afford those houses.
You are more likely in Lower Westchester to find sidewalks in areas other than the shopping district or downtown. Some of the towns even feel like you are in an outer boro residential neighborhood, whereas others will feel more suburban. But once again each town still has its own vibe- just like every neighborhood in NYC has its own vibe. You will find stereotypical stuffy WASP-Y areas in both Lower and Upper Westchester as well as NYC just as easily as you will find more blue collar areas in all three. It depends on the area.
Years ago the NYT wrote an article called "Hipsturbia" about the Hudson River Towns- since it shows up in ANY search someone makes on Westchester real estate it started a belief that the river towns are this huge hippie commune where Pavement moved to raise their kids.
Due to this article, people have this vision the "River Towns" are a mix of Big-Sur, Austin and Bushwick or its a closer to NYC version of what Kingston/Woodstock has turned into. The reality is it isn't much different than the rest of Westchester and you are still in a suburban bedroom community- except the river towns have eye wateringly high taxes even by Westchester standards.
I would say most people consider Interstate 287 to be the dividing line between Upper/Lower Westchester.
Upper Westchester has more of a rural character, but is still solidly suburban- you will never accidentally think you woke up in Maine. Houses are generally larger and on larger lots, and there are still lots of woods and preserved areas. Horses even abound in some of the real northern parts of the county. However you still have older areas that have smaller houses closer together, but they are not as common as they are in the lower part of the county.
Just like Lower Westchester- each town has its own vibe. You will find moneyed and blue collar areas just as easily as you would in Lower Westchester. Train service is still great for a large part of the area- but parts of the area also require you to drive a bit to a train station- notably Yorktown, Armonk, South Salem, Lewisboro and Pound Ridge. There are under 55 min express trains to GCT from Croton, Chappaqua, Mount Kisco- but the further North stations can be well over an hour to GCT.
The biggest decision you need to make is realistically plotting out your current commute and then deciding how long time wise (not how far- the two are not necessarily connected) you are willing to commute. Over the years I have noticed no matter what- people tend to fool themselves into thinking their commutes are shorter than they actually are.
Our previous outer boro commute was torturous during rush hours and once we realistically plotted out that it could easily take my wife 1.20-1.45 min to get home from work on public transportation we realized that a 1.30-1.45 commute to Upper Westchester was not unreasonable. We set that as the limit.
The knee jerk reaction when you decide to move out of NYC is to decide that "only" Lower Westchester will do. But you need to factor in that the lesser commute = a major premium not only on the amount of house your $$$ will buy but other factors such as smaller train parking lots that take years to get a parking permit and the amount of taxes you may be paying- although high taxes exist everywhere in Westchester.
But once you start realizing that even in lower Westchester you can expect and hour+ commute unless you work a block away from GCT you may begin to consider Upper Westchester. We spent 2 years thinking nothing farther north than Ardsley would do- that changed once we realized how little house we were getting for our money ($1M). We also fell in love with Upper Westchester once we realized how beautiful and not like NYC it is- and is less than 40 miles from Midtown.
You also need to be realistic about how much you need a car anywhere in Westchester. Yes it is possible to survive without one- but it is a chore to do so and if you are that car phobic- staying in NYC is probably the best bet for you.
I would say the major difference in feel/vibe is Upper vs Lower than Hudson vs Long Island Sound.
First off lets get one thing clear- the major vibe that all of Westchester has in common with the exceptions of the more dense parts of Yonkers, New Rochelle and White Plains is you are living in the suburbs.
It isn't Manhattan or Hipster Brooklyn, and if you think you are finding a magic combination of Park Slope and a 3000 sq ft house on an acre of land with quiet- you are in for a epic disappointment. Living here isn't for most single people under 40 (or even say 50), couples without children that love to go out all the time, or people who hate driving or refuse to own a car. People aren't clamoring to move here because of the food scene.......
Lower Westchester has more of an old suburban feel- but every town has its own vibe. What I mean by old suburban feel is lots of the neighborhoods have smaller, older homes that are closer together on smaller sized lots. You will have swaths of areas of huge houses on large lots that back then and still do generally house rich or very upper middle class families- but most people looking on city-data.com for info cannot afford those houses.
You are more likely in Lower Westchester to find sidewalks in areas other than the shopping district or downtown. Some of the towns even feel like you are in an outer boro residential neighborhood, whereas others will feel more suburban. But once again each town still has its own vibe- just like every neighborhood in NYC has its own vibe. You will find stereotypical stuffy WASP-Y areas in both Lower and Upper Westchester as well as NYC just as easily as you will find more blue collar areas in all three. It depends on the area.
Years ago the NYT wrote an article called "Hipsturbia" about the Hudson River Towns- since it shows up in ANY search someone makes on Westchester real estate it started a belief that the river towns are this huge hippie commune where Pavement moved to raise their kids.
Due to this article, people have this vision the "River Towns" are a mix of Big-Sur, Austin and Bushwick or its a closer to NYC version of what Kingston/Woodstock has turned into. The reality is it isn't much different than the rest of Westchester and you are still in a suburban bedroom community- except the river towns have eye wateringly high taxes even by Westchester standards.
I would say most people consider Interstate 287 to be the dividing line between Upper/Lower Westchester.
Upper Westchester has more of a rural character, but is still solidly suburban- you will never accidentally think you woke up in Maine. Houses are generally larger and on larger lots, and there are still lots of woods and preserved areas. Horses even abound in some of the real northern parts of the county. However you still have older areas that have smaller houses closer together, but they are not as common as they are in the lower part of the county.
Just like Lower Westchester- each town has its own vibe. You will find moneyed and blue collar areas just as easily as you would in Lower Westchester. Train service is still great for a large part of the area- but parts of the area also require you to drive a bit to a train station- notably Yorktown, Armonk, South Salem, Lewisboro and Pound Ridge. There are under 55 min express trains to GCT from Croton, Chappaqua, Mount Kisco- but the further North stations can be well over an hour to GCT.
The biggest decision you need to make is realistically plotting out your current commute and then deciding how long time wise (not how far- the two are not necessarily connected) you are willing to commute. Over the years I have noticed no matter what- people tend to fool themselves into thinking their commutes are shorter than they actually are.
Our previous outer boro commute was torturous during rush hours and once we realistically plotted out that it could easily take my wife 1.20-1.45 min to get home from work on public transportation we realized that a 1.30-1.45 commute to Upper Westchester was not unreasonable. We set that as the limit.
The knee jerk reaction when you decide to move out of NYC is to decide that "only" Lower Westchester will do. But you need to factor in that the lesser commute = a major premium not only on the amount of house your $$$ will buy but other factors such as smaller train parking lots that take years to get a parking permit and the amount of taxes you may be paying- although high taxes exist everywhere in Westchester.
But once you start realizing that even in lower Westchester you can expect and hour+ commute unless you work a block away from GCT you may begin to consider Upper Westchester. We spent 2 years thinking nothing farther north than Ardsley would do- that changed once we realized how little house we were getting for our money ($1M). We also fell in love with Upper Westchester once we realized how beautiful and not like NYC it is- and is less than 40 miles from Midtown.
You also need to be realistic about how much you need a car anywhere in Westchester. Yes it is possible to survive without one- but it is a chore to do so and if you are that car phobic- staying in NYC is probably the best bet for you.
Certainly not looking for a hipster vibe. Since you're keeping it real I will as well. I have a mixed race family so while most will say "oh you'll be fine anywhere, the real world is still the real world and I'm sure there are certain towns/villages we'll stand out in more than others. Being perfectly honest, at this point in my life I just want some space, a safe area for my family, a nice school for my child, and if I can a sunny backyard so I can get my garden on. I've lived my entire life in apts/condos and I want my child something different.
To be honest, I think you may like or it would be worth it to look into the Nyack area in Rockland County across the Hudson River. It is known for being a bit artsy, with a very culturally diverse population and has solid/good schools. You have the village, which is more urban, walkable and that extends into South Nyack, but you also have more suburban parts of that school district like Upper Nyack and Valley Cottage that are higher end, but still has some diversity. Central Nyack just west of the village is more straight middle class and still quite diverse, but has a higher black/Hispanic population. So, there is a variety within that area/school district.
Certainly not looking for a hipster vibe. Since you're keeping it real I will as well. I have a mixed race family so while most will say "oh you'll be fine anywhere, the real world is still the real world and I'm sure there are certain towns/villages we'll stand out in more than others. Being perfectly honest, at this point in my life I just want some space, a safe area for my family, a nice school for my child, and if I can a sunny backyard so I can get my garden on. I've lived my entire life in apts/condos and I want my child something different.
Honestly- you really shouldn't have much of an issue anywhere in Westchester. Sure you are always going to find people who have an issue, but in this part of the state they are not going to be very vocal in public.
I have friends in mixed race marriages who live in Orange, Westchester and Suffolk counties and none of them have any issues. What I have experienced is people want to live around people who make the same money- regardless of race. Classism rules the day.
So, I still stand by my advice. PM me or ask away on questions here- I spent 6 years off and on researching Westchester before making the move- I wanted to be sure I was making the best move for our kids.
What I have experienced is people want to live around people who make the same money- regardless of race. Classism rules the day.
100% agree. For what it's worth I live in Larchmont, which has a reputation for being lily white, and many of my daughter's friends are mixed race (usually half Asian/half white to be honest), and both of our next door neighbors happen to be mixed race as well.
An African-American family lived down the street from us and although I could absolutely never speak to this issue of racism on their behalf, I can tell you anecdotally that their children very often played outside with neighborhood kids of all different races, including my daughter. They are wealthy - and happened to move away from Larchmont because one of the parents is a diplomat - but from afar I certainly had the impression that they liked living here.
I'm curious about something as someone who is considering the move to Westchester County for many of the same reasons other consider it (schools, space, etc), is there a difference in vibe of the "Hudson side" ie Dobbs, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hallow, etc vs the "Long Island side" (New Rochelle, Larchmont, Pelham). Any reason you would pick one side over the other?
I'm surprised that there hasn't been more talk about the bolded community and White Plains. Pelham is a highly regarded school district that is relatively diverse in between Mount Vernon and New Rochelle, which actually have middle class, predominantly black neighborhoods from those cities(Glenwood Lake in New Rochelle(more diverse) and Oakwood Heights in Mount Vernon) sandwiching the village of Pelham(northern portion of the town).
Also, with White Plains, its has good, diverse schools with pretty much everything you need in the city. Next to it to the north is the Parkway Gardens/Parkway Homes area in the town of Greenburgh, which is one of the more affluent neighborhoods in the country. A portion is in the Greenburgh Central SD, but a portion is in the Valhalla SD, with the latter being in higher regard. Some information about that area, which has had a black middle class presence for several decades: https://greenburghny.com/DocumentCen...dens-Community
If you don't mind going further north in the county, as neighborhood with a similar history is Waterbury Manor in Cortlandt, just outside of Peekskill(a small city with a high black and Hispanic population, black mayor(2 in a row), etc.). That neighborhood and Glenwood Lake are actually mentioned in the 3rd article, which is from 1976. It is in the Lakeland SD and is zoned for Walter Panas HS. Some more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzHD8O2XPog
So, those are some other areas of the county that may appeal to you as well, twiggidy.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
