Asian/Caucasian family Mont/Bucks Co (Washington, Montgomeryville: apartment, rent, condo)

[3littleblessings]

We are looking into a move to Montgomery/Bucks co in the next few months. We have one child in middle school, one in elementary school, and a special needs preschooler. We'd like to be about 15-20 minutes from Ft Washington in a great school district with some diversity. Excellent special education services are a must. We prefer newer or updated homes, but would consider an older community too.
We've looked at Doylestown, but would like a little more diversity. We are planning to visit Abington in a few weeks.
Thanks for any tips or advice!



When are you moving? Probably this summer
Where are you coming from? NYC
Why are you moving? job
Where will you be working? Fort Washington
Have you been here yet? Yes - to Bucks co.

Will you buy or rent? Possibly rent to start and then buy later
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend? $400,000 - $450,000 4 br house
If renting, are you looking for an apartment, a townhouse or loft? How much can you spend? townhouse or house
Do you prefer hi-rise or walk up? house

Are you married or single? Do you have children? Married, 3 kids
Do you prefer public or private schools? Public
Do you have pets? No
Do you want or need a yard? Need space for outdoor play, but not necessarily private - park is fine.
Are you keeping a car? Yes
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet? Quiet, but not country like.

What do you want to be closest to? less than 10 min to a large grocery store, possibly train/bus to NYC
Work
Shopping
Basic services (supermarket, drugstore, etc.)
Nightlife
Train or subway stations

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood?
We are a bi-racial family - husband is Chinese, I am Caucasian, kids are mixed, and would like some diversity, and a family friendly community.

Coke or Pepsi?
Water

[Angus215]

I would recommond the communities along the Ft Washington Expressway (Rt 309) north of Ft Washington, as they would give you excellent access to ft washington and generally have significant asian populations (>10%).

Specifically, I would recommend Upper Dublin/Ft Washington (Upper Dublin SD), Ambler/Lower Gwynedd/Witpain Twp (Wissahickon SD), and North Wales/Upper Gwynedd/Montgomery Twp (North Penn SD). These areas all border each other as you go north on Rt 309, have large asian populations, are nice suburban areas built out between the 1960s and 2000s, have easy access to the Montgomeryville Rt 309 commercial corridor (big box stores, supermarkets, mall), and have excellent schools (ie. top 10% in the state, 10 on GreatSchools, etc). Generally, as you go north within that area housing prices will be slightly cheaper and housing stock will be newer.

[3littleblessings]

Thanks for the response. I'll have to look into some of those other towns. We'd like to be a closer drive to NYC as opposed to farther, for visiting family. Are any of those towns walkable? Not necessarily to the grocery store or anything, but for a walk around the neighborhood. Do they have sidewalks?

[Angus215]

Originally Posted by 3littleblessings

Thanks for the response. I'll have to look into some of those other towns. We'd like to be a closer drive to NYC as opposed to farther, for visiting family. Are any of those towns walkable? Not necessarily to the grocery store or anything, but for a walk around the neighborhood. Do they have sidewalks?

Walkable downtowns in that area would include Ambler and North Wales. The rest of the area consists primarily of suburban neighborhoods (many of which will have sidewalks). There isn't much difference between them in terms of access to NYC - you would take 309 to the PA Turnpike to the NJ Turnpike, or drive to trenton and take the Amtrak from there (which is what i do when i have to go to NYC).

[3littleblessings]

What about the areas south of Ft Washington like Abington and Glenside?

[Angus215]

Originally Posted by 3littleblessings

What about the areas south of Ft Washington like Abington and Glenside?

Those are nice as areas well, as far as I know. They are older and more congested, so depends on what you like. I'm sure others have more familiarity than I do. In terms of Abington SD, while it's also a very good district and somewhat diverse, i think you'll find its diversity comes in the form of a larger black population and a smaller asian population than the areas i mentioned, so depends on what you're looking for. I'd look at all of these areas - it really comes down to atmosphere, age/style of housing, convenience, and price point and everyone comes out differently on those factors.