considering move to Stamford area

Hello all

we are former LIers considering a move back to the greater NYC area....DH has a job offer in Stamford...on Stamford ave if that helps....we are trying to figure out if we can swing this financially and life-wise....we have 3 kids and schools are a huge priority...we want his commute to be less than 30 minutes....he usually leaves for work at 6 or 6:30 so hopefully that will help...but leaves work around 5:30 pm to get home to see the kids...

we want to keep the home price to around 800,000 (yikes!!!)...we would love an old house in a town with a real center....also, we are not keep up with the Jones types....we value our kids and family time, we want a nice house and great education but we worry about finding a place where people are down to earth and not pretentious...we have looked on line at Fairfield, Westport, Darien, Weston and Wilton....any opinions out there

Thanks so much

Theresa

considering move to Stamford area

There are probably a lot of thread out there on this topic. Your price will be tough if not impossible in Westport or Darien. Weston does not have any town center (nice if you like rural). Fairfield has the most ';downtown'; center of your choices, and there are a mix of price points there as well. Wilton has excellent schools, a small town center with movies, a few restaurants and shops. The price will also be tough there, maybe not impossible as things have slowed down somewhat from a year or two ago. I would definitely give Wilton a lot of time in your search. Have you considered North Stamford? Norwalk has some areas that may fit your bill and prices are less, but the schools are not considered as top notch as Wilton. Good luck!

considering move to Stamford area

Fairfield would definitely fit your needs - with the exception of the commute - the Traffic on that stretch of 95 is absolutely horrendous, and what should be a 25 minute drive will take an hour or so at 5:30 - in the Am he should be okay. Part of the problem with moving north of Stamford is the commute - the prices might be good, but the commute will be awful - although you can take the train.

I would look at North Stamford - try the area around High Ridge or Long Ridge Road, and I think you will find what you are looking for - You also might want to go up the line in NY and look at Mount Kisco or Pound Ridge -

Ridgefield is another nice town with a good school system and nice community-

I agree that Ridgefield is a great town and meets most of the requirements except the commute. It is not on the Metro north line, so it is not as easy to have the train as an alternate. Some NY communities may fit your bill, but take taxes into consideration. I live on the NY state line, and my neighbor less than a quarter mile down the road (into NY) calls himself ';your neighor from the high tax section';.

If schools are a priority you can%26#39;t go wrong in Darien, New Canaan(not on your short-list but should be), Weston, Wilton or Westport.

Personally, I would avoid Stamford and Norwalk unless you plan on sending your children to private schools.

I%26#39;ve enclosed a couple of links to websites that report standardized test results across the state as well as a link to an article published recently comparing SAT scores for the class of 2006. Granted this is only one measure of the quality of a school system, but it may give you at least some basis for comparison.

acorn-online.com/news/鈥rticle_9137.shtml

http://www.captreports.com/

http://www.cmtreports.com/

If you haven%26#39;t contacted a realtor, you should do so since you may be surprised at what you can actually afford. Reply back if you would like some names and phone numbers.

Commuting to and from the part of Stamford you mention in 30 minutes or less will be difficult from Weston, Wilton or Westport. Much easier from Darien and lower New Canaan.

Best of luck to you.

Thanks for all the good info....we are still on the fence about this job but if we decide to go for it I will be back with more questions!!

I guess I%26#39;m late to this, and I%26#39;m also confused. You said you husband has a job offer on Stamford Ave., in Stamford? That%26#39;s a street of single family homes down by Long Island Sound. Are you sure about the street? (I%26#39;ve lived there).

If that%26#39;s the right area, then yes, the commute would be awful if your husband is going to drive. However, I know a number of people who work within a decent distance to the Stamford train station that commute that way.

Hi Theresa,

I have to tell you other important information that was left out. We recently moved from a Westchester suburb (Purchase, NY) to get away from the all white elitism that exists there. We can afford to live in any of the above mentioned areas twice over, but have absolutely fallen in love with Stamford. We send our kids to the elementary school Rogers International Bacheloriate (spell? - awful I don%26#39;t know that!) school which has a district of half affluence (the Shippan Point area) and half not. The parents that are invloved have been so down to earth and the teachers are incredibly well trained for this approved International program. We also place great emphasis on schools - our kids attended Dr Rolph%26#39;s Montessori and Knioghtsbridge Kindergarten in London, and the Purchase school is rated one of the very highest scoring in Westchester. However, I don%26#39;t think you can put a value on having children grow up with kids from all backgrounds and realize you don%26#39;t need to be white and wealthy to succeed in life. The scores of Stamford and Norwalk are lower because half the district are more inner city children with about 25% with English as their 2nd language. My kids are taught differentially (they have to be) and will always be the kids who score 99% on testing (yes, they are the blond haired blue eyed typical looking suburban kids). They also have great empathy for those who are not as fortunate as us and will not be raised as snobs. They know to not discuss petty things (and mean things in certain circumstances) such as house size, tennis courts, clothing, etc. Please don%26#39;t let the test scores of city schools scare you. Go to the open houses of a few elementary schools where you%26#39;ll see what I mean. My kids have never been pushed harder acedemically because of all the differential teaching and can see their achievements in a true world-like surrounding, Their confidence level has soared and their friends they have chose make me very proud. My kids will be sitting along those other suburb kids at Harvard, Yale, whatever, but they will be fully developed people not out to outdo the Joneses.