HELP relocating to orange county (Monroe, Warwick: to rent, low crime, credit)

[Jenoz11]

My husband and I have been transfered from Staten Island NY correctional facility to work in Orange county. We own our home here on Staten Island and never thought that a jail would close civil servise jobs are supposed to be the safest, well not the case. Now we both must travel over 2 hours to get to work at correctional facilities in upstate ny. We have 5 children the oldest will be attending pennstate in the fall, we have two high school age, 1 middle school and 1 elementary school child. We are looking to rent a home in great SCHOOL DISTRICTS a must. Some place that has shopps and parks. If anyone can give me advise on what some of the best places to rent until we buy a new home please help! Its really scary we know nothing about this area and want to make good decisions for our children, we hope to find at least a 3-4 bedroom house rental...thanks to anyone that can give any advise.

[Dreamshot]

Sounds like you and your husband have quite the commute right now! I have lived in Orange County for the majority of my life so I will provide you with information on some of the most attractive locations within the county.

I assume that you and your husband are working at one of two locations: Orange County Jail (Goshen) or Downstate Correctional Facility (Fishkill).

First off, there are a few locations that you want to avoid in the county: Downtown-City of Middletown, City of Newburgh, and probably the City of Port Jervis. These locations have the highest crime rates and unsurprisingly the worst schools, statistically speaking.

Despite this, there are many attractive locations in the county that are worth your time in investigation. It would be nice to know your budget, but I'll lay out a general list for you:

Montgomery, NY
Trulia
Wiki
Small and affluent village just inside the eastern crest of the Catskill Mountains. Superb schools (Valley Central School District). I graduated from this district and was very well prepared for college and left with a whopping 21 college credits. Grocery store (Shoprite) and other stores in-town. Major retail 10 miles away in either Newburgh or Middletown. Plenty of parks nearby. Right on I-84 and near 17/87.

Washingtonville
Trulia
Wiki
Another small and upscale village. Excellent schools. Stop & Shop in town. Major retail a short ride away in Newburgh or Harriman. Plenty of parks nearby.

Goshen
Trulia
Wiki
The county seat of Orange - one of the most expensive spots in the county. A nice village with excellent schools. Major retail 5 miles away in Middletown. Plenty of parks nearby. On Route 17.

Chester
Trulia
Wiki
Village in the southern part of the county. Great schools. Good amenities. Right on major Route 17. Plenty of parks nearby.

The aforementioned locations will provide you with a good starting point and are a reasonable commute distance from either the Orange County Jail or the Downstate Correctional Facility (again, not sure which one you are working at).

Some other locations that may be worth looking in to: Monroe/Woodbury, Central Valley, Cornwall, Warwick, Florida

*Major retail in the county is in the Town of Wallkill, Town of Newburgh, and Harriman.
*Many commuters to NYC, but I wouldn't call any community a 'bedroom' community.
*Rail service to NYC is abundant (stations at Port Jervis, Otisville, Middletown, Campbell Hall, Salisbury Mills/Cornwall, Harriman, and Tuxedo with service to Secaucus). Other option would be direct service to Manhattan out of Beacon. Buses also plentiful.
*Second fastest growing county in the state according to the 2010 census. Growth started in earnest following 9/11. I would expect property values to be stable or potentially rise slightly in the near future.

Bottom line:
You won't have any issues finding what you are looking for here. State College [Penn State] is 3.5 hours away (easy drive) - I'll actually be working there shortly.

If you have any other questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to ask here or message me.

[Dreamshot]

One more thing: you can use this map as a search-guide. All of the towns that I mentioned above are within the red bounds.

[Jenoz11]

Thanks for your detailed information, it will be really helpful lookimg at homes friday.

[zakas80]

*Second fastest growing county in the state according to the 2010 census.Thanks to KirYAS jOEL trying to pump out the messiah Growth started in earnest following 9/11. I would expect property values to be stable or potentially rise slightly in the near future. Im not so sure about that living next to the poorest neighborhood in the country!

Check this out The Poorest Town In America Is Closer, And More Jewish, Than You Think: Gothamist

[VA Yankee]

They might be at Otisville vice Downstate.

[Jazzii]

You can look into the town of Newburgh also, if you are in the town of Newburgh you may belong to Wallkill or valley central schools- you'd have to check though because part of the town of Newburgh belongs to the Newburgh enlarged city school district.

[ccc123]

Look into Goshen low crime rate, excellent schools etc. Avoid Middletown and Newburgh.