New Haven CT?

[daisy24342]

Can anyone tell me anything about the area?  City and surrounding areas?

my DH just got a job offer that would move us there in the next year.  Sad to be leaving DC but we are both from NH and happy to be moving closer to our families and friends.  But I know nothing about that area!  

We have a young family and hope to find a cute safe town with good schools.  

[lauren170]

Sent you a PM!

[preppy]

When we lived in CT we were closer to Hartford but some of my favorite areas closer to New Haven are Guilfird, Branford, and Madison. Very cute coastal towns, can commute in on 95 or I the train.

My dad has a summer place off of Branford and I love the area:) I have no idea about the schools in these towns however.

[daisy24342]

Oct 9, 2015 19:45:03 GMT -5 @pennypie said:

My DH is from West Haven. He says taxes suck in most of CT right now. He doesn't know much about school systems, but Milford and Orange are nice. Farther out like Westport is pretty $$ and longer commute (40ish min). Depends on what you're used to coming from DC. He says Fairfield is nice, closer to Bridgeport though.

New Haven has good and bad parts, he says more bad parts unfortunately.

(I transcribed his ramblings, so sorry if it doesn't make much sense!)

Having been there a handful of times, I like Milford myself. Has a cute downtown area, nice houses on the coast, etc. New Haven near Yale is nice, but gets kind of sketchy from one street to the next. There's a cool park on top of a hill in New Haven...East Rock? I feel like there was a nice neighborhood nearby there?

West Haven where DH is from is kind of meh for me. It's got some nice spots on the water and an abundance of Dunkin Donuts, but that's about it.

Thank you, that's what I needed to hear.  I'll add Milford to the potential list!

[awkwardpenguin]

New Haven has delicious pizza. That's all I've got.

[toutsuite]

I lived in Fairfield before which has great schools. I'm not sure what he wants to cap the commute at though. West haven does have some cute areas and I have friends who live in a Middletown which has decent schools and relatively affordable housing in comparison to DC (I live in DC too so can attest to this). As someone noted , taxes do suck though, and much like DC, traffic can be horrible, especially on 95 so probably the closer to new haven the better.

[majesty318]

I used to live in West Haven in 2003-2004. I agree Milford sounds like what you're looking for. I liked West Haven - lived in a townhouse across the street from the beach - but the schools weren't as good as Milford, at least at the time.

[LoveTrains]

My h grew up in Wallingford. It's maybe 20 minutes north of new haven and also commutable to Hartford. I don't mind visiting but know nothing.

New haven is urban and doesn't have the best reputation for schools. Perhaps swank might have suggestions too. Personally I love new haven bc the pizza is amazing.

[huskymom]

I've lived in both Fairfield and Hartford counties (basically west and north of New Haven). Agree you don't want to actually live in New Haven, and while Fairfield cty has a lot to offer, it's by far the most expensive area of the state. I agree with pp about checking out some of the shoreline towns to the east (Branford, Madison, Guilford) - that's the area I would want to live in if I worked in New Haven. I do have friends in Wallingford that also like it but don't know much about the town. Commuting into New Haven on either 91 or 95 can be a pretty busy during rush hour, no matter which direction you're coming from. But not as bad as commuting to Stamford area (where I work).

Bonus: IKEA and the pizza.

[soxin2]

I grew up in SECT by the casinos (before them, actually).

New Haven has a split personality: Yale & everything else

Guilford is good, I know several people from there.

I have a friend who grew up in near Stamford-etc: that's "Stepford" county.

[countthestars]

Definitely check Milford and Orange. I've lived in both if you have any specific questions. Stratford is another option. While I love Fairfield, I would not want to commute to New Haven from there with plenty of other options in Nee Haven county. you are also going to get more bang for your buck in NH county than Fairfield County.

[daisy24342]

Thanks for all the replies! This helps a ton. Not looking forward to the taxes but I'm very excited about the pizza !

[swank]

You've gotten some good suggestions but most of the towns mentioned are on the shoreline. It's nice but pricier than inland towns which can have great schools and other amenities.

Personally, I'd never want to commute from Madison/Clinton into New Haven but Guilford would be okay. Milford and Orange are nice and close to the post road where most of the big shopping is (whole foods, trader joes, Costco, etc) but it's still only 20 minutes from NH.

For less commute and better taxes, I'd suggest Woodbridge, north haven, and Wallingford. The problem with New England is everything is town-centric so there can be a learning curve to figuring out what you want and which town offers it. If you have specific questions please PM me and I'll be happy to help.

[daisy24342]

Oct 10, 2015 6:35:19 GMT -5 swank said:

You've gotten some good suggestions but most of the towns mentioned are on the shoreline. It's nice but pricier than inland towns which can have great schools and other amenities.

Personally, I'd never want to commute from Madison/Clinton into New Haven but Guilford would be okay. Milford and Orange are nice and close to the post road where most of the big shopping is (whole foods, trader joes, Costco, etc) but it's still only 20 minutes from NH.

For less commute and better taxes, I'd suggest Woodbridge, north haven, and Wallingford. The problem with New England is everything is town-centric so there can be a learning curve to figuring out what you want and which town offers it. If you have specific questions please PM me and I'll be happy to help.

Thanks for this.. My husband was wondering about north of the city.  After some search on Zillow it seemed like we could afford more house in that area, so I'm glad to hear it's a good area as well.  

[bdubs419]

I live in the Hartford area but know a decent amount about the New Haven area too. There are plenty of great towns within easy commuting distance to New Haven. Check out Milford, Orange and Branford to name a few.

[swank]

Oct 10, 2015 8:42:00 GMT -5 daisy24342 said:

Oct 10, 2015 6:35:19 GMT -5 swank said:

You've gotten some good suggestions but most of the towns mentioned are on the shoreline. It's nice but pricier than inland towns which can have great schools and other amenities.

Personally, I'd never want to commute from Madison/Clinton into New Haven but Guilford would be okay. Milford and Orange are nice and close to the post road where most of the big shopping is (whole foods, trader joes, Costco, etc) but it's still only 20 minutes from NH.

For less commute and better taxes, I'd suggest Woodbridge, north haven, and Wallingford. The problem with New England is everything is town-centric so there can be a learning curve to figuring out what you want and which town offers it. If you have specific questions please PM me and I'll be happy to help.

Thanks for this.. My husband was wondering about north of the city.  After some search on Zillow it seemed like we could afford more house in that area, so I'm glad to hear it's a good area as well.  

You can absolutely get more bang for your buck inland than on the shoreline plus the 95/91 interchange traffic is no joke.