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We're thinking about relocating to the Philadelphia suburbs. Cherry Hill, NJ seems like a nice place to live. Why does it seem like the houses there are less expensive than the ones in the Main Line suburbs? It seems like you can get more house for less money, and have pretty easy commute into Center City. Is there something about the Cherry Hill area that makes it more affordable?
I live in Cherry Hill and it is a great area. Great schools, tons of shopping and restaurants, the best library I have ever stepped foot into and it's extremely convenient as far as location and access to Philadelphia. The downside is the property taxes. My husband and I pay $8000/year - I know some pay lower and some pay higher in our area. Check with your realtor about the homes you interested in to see what the property taxes are. They usually don't list them on real estate sites for obvious reasons.
Other than the property taxes, the only other negative is the traffic. It's a very popular area and therefore lots of traffic! But you need to commute to Philly, you can take the PATCO Highspeedline - there are several stations convenient to CH and you can zip over to Center City in about 15 minutes.
It has nothing to do with Cherry Hill. Cherry Hill ranks up there near the top when it comes to suburbs. It is more a "Main Line" thing. The main line is traditionally a high status, old money area and houses there get a premium for that reason only. Think Kathren Hepburn in the "Philadelphia Story". Tracy Lord represented the perception of the main line lifestyle. People pay extra to live there for no other reason.
Agree with Bryson but we're comparing apples to oranges here. CH is quintessential suburban sprawl; the Main Line is anything but.
The ML is like a lower density urban neighborhood, and it's full of colleges and universities, and little towns which for the most part are very nice but not very walkable. It's also full of expensive private schools, country clubs, etc. The ML was built in part by the Pennsylvania Railroad for their executives.
CH is full of shopping centers, highways, office complexes, and developments, also very nice.
Both have pretty good access to CC via rail, but for driving I would say CH is much better situated to downtown.
A better comparison to CH might be King of Prussia, which is also largely suburban sprawl. For the record, KOP's housing stock is older, and driving down 202 from Norristown to the mall is almost like driving through a time warp, whereas driving through CH, even while sitting in traffic, always seems much more pleasant and aesthetically-pleasing than KOP.
Agree with Bryson but we're comparing apples to oranges here. CH is quintessential suburban sprawl; the Main Line is anything but.
The ML is like a lower density urban neighborhood, and it's full of colleges and universities, and little towns which for the most part are very nice but not very walkable. It's also full of expensive private schools, country clubs, etc. The ML was built in part by the Pennsylvania Railroad for their executives.
CH is full of shopping centers, highways, office complexes, and developments, also very nice.
Both have pretty good access to CC via rail, but for driving I would say CH is much better situated to downtown.
A better comparison to CH might be King of Prussia, which is also largely suburban sprawl. For the record, KOP's housing stock is older, and driving down 202 from Norristown to the mall is almost like driving through a time warp, whereas driving through CH, even while sitting in traffic, always seems much more pleasant and aesthetically-pleasing than KOP.
Very well put, I went to school on the main line and worked in Cherry Hill after I graduated and K of P would be in comparison to CH rather than the main line.
I just moved to Cherry Hill. I used to live in NYC. I am trying to decide between Cherry Hill (East) and Voorhees. Does anyone know which schools are better and what some of the advantages/disadvantages to each area are. Things that I am concerned with are schools and young developments. Any help is greatly appreciated!
I live in Haddon Heights and I just hop on the PATCO every day in Haddonfield to go to work...it literally takes me 2 minutes to drive to the PATCO station and then 15 minutes to get to center city while I sip my morning cup of java and read the Metro!! I can't believe how much I like it now, b/c I am from NC and I have never used public transportation before and I really enjoy it!
I would say that the bad sides to South Jersey (cherry hill, haddonfield, haddon heights, voorhees) are traffic and higher property taxes...that's about it though...the schools are great and it's such an easy commute, but you also have the great community/neighborhood life. Cherry Hill is very large, so I would think there are many different areas there to live...Haddon Heights is, I think, 1 square mile total...so not much choice and everyone goes to the same school - which are great by the way..
The Cherry Hill area is suburban sprawl at its worst. I went to the mall at Christmas and was appalled at the mall itself, the crowds and the cheesy way people dressed - more trashy flash than classy upscale if you know what I mean.
I would take SE and Central PA over most parts of Jersey any day.
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