Moving to Lehigh Valley from DC with 3 kids on a low budget (Emmaus: sale, rent)

[toobusytoday]

It's not a horrible commute like going to NYC or Philly but Whitehall wouldn't be my back up town. At least if you chose Emmaus, there's a few back roads to get to Center Valley and a great downtown.

[gtdnpublic]

MD2PA,

I've done the reverse move of you, going from the Lehigh Valley to DC. While the kind folks on this forum are not steering you wrong, there are a few things they are missing due to their native perspective.

First of all, coming from DC, you will soon realize that what the Lehigh Valley considers congestion is somewhat laughable. No, its not a joy to drive in--there are parts of 22 that are just plain dangerous to drive at times--, but the traffic is not exactly Beltway-like parking lots.

That said, the other thing you need to realize is that public transportation is limited to non-existent. You will need to use your two cars if you are raising a family in the Valley, especially with how inaccessible your husband's future employer is. The folks here are taking it for granted that you realize this. Amenities are spread out over the Valley and none of the small boroughs will provide everything you need nearby. Amenities are a bit more closely organized south of the Valley's cities than in the northern boroughs (though the north side has the major mall). What I am getting at is that the daily commute from home to employer is not the only commute you need to consider. Do you shop at a mall often? Do you go out to the movies often? The theatre? Do you want to be able to walk to a nice restaurant or are you willing to drive 30 minutes into a nearby town?

If you are looking for a small-town feel with libraries and parks, I would suggest focusing on the boroughs or the township neighborhoods adjacent to the boroughs. It may be a stereotype, but I've always thought of the townships as bedroom communities for people commuting to Philly and North Jersey who do not have an investment in the local area besides their own property. Borough houses won't give you a giant rolling lawn, but they very well could be more cost-effective for what you want: access to libraries and parks and organized community activities while still getting some yard.

Rental housing is rare outside of cities and the urban-like boroughs and townships (Salisbury, maybe Fountain Hill). Those areas are not going to have particularly good school systems. The only other place that you might be able to find it is Quakertown. And actually, I think Quakertown would probably be a great place that fits all your requirements as far as parks, libraries, and community, but parts may be a bit too strip-mallish if you like a Lancaster feel. The only issue is I doubt you could find a house there to purchase given your price range. If you have a few years to raise your income, it might work out well.

To summarize my suggestion, which mostly matches what others have said: You should be looking at spots south of the Valley's cities. The northern areas may be cheaper to buy, but they are just too far away from DeSales and generally do not have the public school quality that the southern districts have. Houses in and near the small towns will provide more of the small-town feel you desire, but, of course, you should always scout out the neighborhood before buying. If I were ranking the Lehigh Valley towns given your situation, your top five would be:

1. Hellertown
2. Coopersburg
3. Quakertown
4. Emmaus
5. Macungie

[toobusytoday]

gtdnpublic, I'm glad you came to the same conclusions as the rest of us, but your assumption that everyone that posts in this forum is a "native" is simply not true. I've lived in four other states besides Pennsylvania and have lived in four counties IN Pennsylvania. And, coincidentally, my daughter lives in DC.

I disagree with your assumption that people that live outside of a towns center are somehow just commuters and not involved citizens. Nothing could be further from the truth in my experience. I've been very involved in the community and do not live in the borough. People that live in neighborhoods outside of the borough simply want more space between their neighbors and themselves and perhaps don't want to spend the rest of their lives fixing up an older house. (Been there, done that) There is a certain appeal of living right in the borough, and I would certainly encourage looking at it, especially for a rental.

And perhaps because I'm at the Southern end of Lehigh county, I know very few people that commute out of the area. Many people that live in Southern Lehigh are professors at the local colleges, Engineers that work at Lutron or Air Products and Hospital employees.

I agree that the traffic we have here is nothing like the beltway traffic, or even the traffic that occurs around any major city, but there's enough of it that it is annoying and no reason to deliberately move to a place where driving in it will be a daily occurrence.

[gtdnpublic]

Sorry toobusytoday,

I did make an assumption that most posters were natives (or accustomed to the Valley based on long-term residence, focusing on the issues they have dealt with on a day-to-day basis), but I think Ms. MD2PA did as well. And, of course, people who understand day-to-day issues of a place are great resources. I just wanted to provide an alternative, though not contradictory, take.

As I said, my concern about uninvested township residents was somewhat of a stereotype and not a broad accusation. The townships have been around for a long time, so it's not like only newly transplanted folks live there. As she is looking for a family-oriented place, neighborhoods rather than totally rural properties with acres in between houses seems to be the way to go. I guess my thoughts are that if she dislikes the pretentious attitudes of DC, moving to a newer suburban neighborhood where a good number of people moved there because they get a price-to-square foot ratio better than NJ's is not necessarily an improvement. I could have worded that better so as not to offend and its probably more of an issue in the areas east (towards NJ) and west (towards 476) of where we are suggesting.

I seemed to have glanced over the fact that Southern Lehigh's library is outside of the town, which is a rather odd setup even for the Lehigh Valley suburbs. Of course, it is also right next to her husband's employer. That's basically the only reason Hellertown is ranked ahead of Coopersburg. If the family prefers a more rural township setting, then both areas are great candidates and her family should just find the house that's right for them.

I don't want to take away from the main thrust of this thread for MD2PA: Based on what you desire and are asking for, the Southern Lehigh, Saucon Valley, Emmaus, and northern Bucks areas sound great for you. The places north of the cities may be cheaper on paper, but the investment to raise a family in these other areas is probably worth it. The borough-vs-township debate is a large detail, but one you probably already know your preference for.

[toobusytoday]

No harm, no foul gtdnpublic.

The Southern Lehigh Public library is located in Upper Saucon Park because Upper Saucon gave the library the land for free when they needed to expand 9 years ago, but couldn't at their old location. Many of us were not happy, but it's worked out very well and many young families combine a trip to the park with a stop at the library. Behind the library is the Rail trail where you can walk/bike to Coopersburg, or go the other way and walk to Hellertown. The library was started in a garage 50 years ago in Lower Milford township, moved to a very small property on a semi-busy road, and had never been located in a town. Parkland's library is also not located in a town. Hellertown's library is located within town limits, but it's several blocks from the main street so doubtful that you would walk there with an armload of books anyway. Emmaus's library is at the very end of town, also not that convenient for shopping and stopping at the library. Hopefully, a library on Main street proper is not at the top of the priority list!

[MD2PA]

Wow- you guys are so great and I so appreciate all of your feedback. Very helpful to hear the perspective of someone who knows our hometown DC and give offer that insight. We are rather spoiled here in Maryland with awesome schools, parks, libraries and lots of conveniences like malls, etc. so it will be a transition. But we won't have much extra money for shopping anymore and to be honest, it won't be a huge priority to be in close proximity to every plaza or convenience. Too easy to spend money Just a great neighborhood and community will do!

We found a really cute house in our price range today in Bethlehem but the Salisbury school district. It is on South Mountain, so it seems like the commute might not be so bad. Any thoughts on this school district? I had not heard of it yet.

Thank you thank you all again, and we are very much looking forward to becoming neighbors in 2014!

[toobusytoday]

Salisbury is a nice school district, but there's really not a town center. I've always found it kind of funny, because it's not centered around a town, it's boundaries are Allentown and Route 78. File:Map of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania with Salisbury Township School District Highlighted.png - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

On the plus side, it is really close to DeSales. I would be very cautious though about living so close to Allentown.

I think we also have some pretty awesome schools, parks and libraries.

[PacoMartin]

Originally Posted by MD2PA

Should we count out Allentown completely? I had heard that the West End is nicer- though not sure about schools. Also, what about Macungie or Quakertown? Too far from Desales? Hard to tell reality vs. Google maps.

Thank you all!

The West End of Allentown contains a number of mansions. There are very few homes in allentown that are not part of the Allentown School District (ASD), and they are very expensive. The ASD is one of the most troubled in the entire state.

Macungie and Quakertown are nice, but are apt to be more expensive than Hellertown or Coopersburg. Since Hellertown and Coopersburg are closer and on opposite ends of the bicycle trail to DeSales I would concentrate there.

[MD2PA]

Thanks guys! Going to hold out for that cute little home that is in our price range in Hellertown or Coopersburg then

[PacoMartin]

Map is public use domain (Note DeSales University in center of trail). http://sauconrailtrail.org/