Eastchester or New Rochelle (Yonkers, Mount Vernon: rent, homes, transfer)

[ddqq]

I'm going to take a 2-year University job in Pelham Bay area in the Bronx, while my wife commutes to Manhattan daily.

We are looking for a rent in lower Westchester for no more than $1500 a month for 1 BR, near the Metro-North Harlem or New Haven Line. No need for child/school district considerations. Eastchester (Tuckahoe, Crestwood) and New Rochelle appear to be close and within budget.

Any advice regarding living in these places, and possibly other Westchester locations?

[7 Wishes]

With no school district considerations, you might get more for your money in the Fleetwood neighborhood of Mt. Vernon. Very nice, diverse area, right near Metro North, and very easy drive to Pelham Bay area of the Bronx.

[jeena]

New Rochelle is crowded and has much more traffic than Eastchester, Tuckahoe, or Crestwood. The Eastchester/Tuckahoe/Bronxville area was voted among the best places to live in the U.S last year, according to Money magazine Crestwood is very nice and near lots of shopping, but it's in Yonkers (I live in Yonkers), and you will have to pay Yonkers City Tax on your income, so I would stay out of Yonkers if you can, although cheaper rents in Crestwood or the nicer part of Yonkers near Crestwood (Yonkers apts. and homes may be cheaper than Eastchester or Tuckahoe) might offset the tax issue,

Some parts of Yonkers have a Bronxville zip code, so if you want to move to Bronxville, you would need to ask if your zip code is for the Town of Bronxville (Bronxville is very upscale and expensive), so no taxes go Yonkers.

I live a few miles from Fleetwood, but I wouldn't want to actually live in Fleetwood, it's much too close to Mt. Vernon which is the worse town in Westchester County for lots of reasons, and there used to be a lot of car thefts near that area, I don't know if that's still the case.

Westchester County is a wonderful, safe place to live (with a few exceptions here and there), you will be very happy here. I lived in Florida for 10 years in the 80's and I spend lots of time in San Diego in the spring, but I would never live any place else but Westchester County.

Good luck!

[jeena]

Additionally, you could try Scarsdale (upscale), Hartsdale, which are a little further up from Tuckahoe, along the train route.

[bmwguydc]

Just a clarification on the tax in Yonkers, it's a tax surcharge, meaning that you pay an extra 10% on your state tax that goes to the City of Yonkers. It's not another tax and subsequent return that needs to be filed. So, if your state taxable liability was $12,000, you would owe Yonkers $1200, or $100 a month. I wouldn't call that a deal-breaker if you found something in Yonkers from a tax situation. For non-residents, who work in Yonkers, there's a 0.5% tax imposed, I believe.

I would say that I would look to Eastchester over New Rochelle for several reasons, not the least of which being some questionable areas of downtown New Rochelle at lower price points. If you're bordering Scarsdale, it's a nice part of New Rochelle with expensive housing and nice neighborhoods, but nearer the train station is not nice in many places.

Fleetwood is not close to Mount Vernon, it is Mount Vernon. And, I agree that it's not a bad area at all. You don't want to be in other parts of Mount Vernon, but Fleetwood has more in common with neighboring areas than it does with those to the south, closer to The Bronx, where most of the "action" in Mount Vernon is located.

Eastchester (Tuckahoe, Eastchester, Bronxville) has border areas that are shared with Yonkers that have more in common with Eastchester as they use the train stations at Bronxville, Crestwood, or Tuckahoe. Similarly, part of Eastchester (Garth Rd.) has a Scarsdale address and is close to the Scarsdale station.

One other point is that Eastchester, being on the Harlem Line, is a tad more reliable than the New Haven Line that serves New Rochelle. The New Haven Line transfers from third-rail to catenary in Lower Westchester, so there is a slight delay due to the transition, and there can be reliability issues on this line with the dual power systems. Also, there have been times when cars could not connect to the catenary due to ice build-up, though that's not too common an issue.

EDIT: One other thing to add: You need not worry about asking about the Bronxville P.O. regarding the tax surcharge to Yonkers, since in your price range, you're not going to be in the Village of Bronxville proper as it's more expensive for the school district and services, though parking can be an issue in the Village if you do not have a dedicated space.

[Ekulu]

If you have no need for diversity of any kind I will pick Eastchester over New Rochelle. Eastchester is a decent place but one of the least diverse towns in Westchester except for Tuckahoe. I think the other posters have done a good job of covering other issues.