Where to live if you want suburbia?

Submitted by OldManJames10 t3_11ptqjw in newhaven

My wife just got a job offer at Yale and we’ll be moving from Charlottesville, VA.

We know next to nothing about Connecticut and the neighborhoods. Where would you suggest we live if we want the following:

  • safe, clean suburban family friendly neighborhood

  • good Public schools for a 5th grader going to middle and high schools

  • easy, accessible access to all the typical suburban shit (Target, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Home Depot, malls)

  • plenty of yard space, some hiking trails and outdoorsy shit

  • don’t mind 45-1hr commute to Yale

  • somewhere relatively close to train line to go to NYC or Boston

House budget would be somewhere in the 500-800s.

We’re up for anything and don’t necessarily need to be that near city life. What would you recommend?

EDIT — thanks for the Milford and Orange recommendations! Inventory seems to be low in these areas. Guess we’re SOL until something we like comes along.

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ks15611 t1_jbzrrrh wrote

I think Milford would check all of those boxes. Worth a look.

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OldManJames10 OP t1_jc09npk wrote

thanks!!! Inventory seems to be low in these areas. Guess we’re SOL until something we like comes along.

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whosmellslikewetfeet t1_jc3xpus wrote

During the pandemic, floods of people fled NYC and bought up all the homes around here. Prices have gone insane, but they are slowly getting better. Everyone is suggesting Milford, which is a very nice town, but Stratford has some nice areas, along with Woodbridge and Wallingford

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CatsNSquirrels t1_jc41933 wrote

Can confirm that inventory is impossible in Milford and Orange. And it doesn’t seem to be improving. At all.

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HouseKaylord t1_jbzs9b3 wrote

If the Trader Joe’s/Whole Foods aspect is super important to you then I’d look in the Orange/Milford area as CT doesn’t have that many of those particular chains but they do have them in that area!

If it’s less important then I’d recommend Guilford. My husband grew up there and they have a great school system, very safe, and there’s a train station in town. Only about 30 minute drive to Yale.

We currently live in Hamden now in the Spring Glen/Whitneyville area. We love it for now, however, I’ve heard the high school is just okay and we’ll likely move when we have kids.

My husband happens to be a realtor who works with a lot of incoming Yale staff. Yale often will connect people moving to the area with possible realtors who are very knowledgeable and can help you look at the best spots. My husband takes people of tours of towns all the time which I think helps give a good feel for the area. May be worth connecting to the hiring team to see if they might offer that to your wife!

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peanut5855 t1_jbzt7bm wrote

Yeah if you want land vs beach orange is just so much more. And really good schools

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oknarfnad t1_jc01ylt wrote

Woodbridge. Great schools. Lots of open space, hiking, etc. Depending on where you are in Woodbridge it’s about a 20 minute commute to New Haven/Yale. You can get to RT 1 in about that to mention all the stores and whatnot you mentioned as well.

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Plane_Ad_9526 t1_jbzzfg3 wrote

I currently live in Charlottesville, but am originally from CT and will be moving back relatively soon. What part of town do you live in? Towns in CT are basically the equivalent to the different ‘sides of town’ or neighborhoods here (Ivy, Downtown,Pantops, etc).

Madison, Guilford, Cheshire, Woodbridge, Orange/Milford, and Fairfield are all within 25/30 minutes of everything you mentioned. Milford is more commercial and not as quaint. All towns offer excellent public school systems, especially compared to Charlottesville/Albemarle. These places are essentially the equivalent to Ivy.

What I miss most about CT/New England is the ability to take weekend trips to all different types of destinations (mountains, ocean, cities). Being in central Virginia, I feel rather isolated and miss that freedom.

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peanut5855 t1_jbzsqav wrote

So I’m in Milford. We kinda have everything. Beach, smaller businesses, but then you have the post road with target, Walgreens, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s ect. I’ve lived in several towns in the general area but Milford is by far my favorite. And our taxes are some of the lowest around

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NCM728 t1_jbzx9mt wrote

Milford, Branford, Guilford, North Haven

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viceversa t1_jc0ocvz wrote

Just my humble opinion but Milford is kinda gross.

Look up Gilford, North Branford, Cheshire, Bethany, Bethel, and Newtown.

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NurseRatchet20 t1_jc1ss3j wrote

Since your budget allows, I’d say Fairfield for sure. Milford is also a good option with access to everything though I’d say some areas are nicer. Trumbull is very family oriented, clean has 2 targets and is close to everything else.

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SkeezySkeeter t1_jbzzeqa wrote

Milford or Stratford.

Wherever you can get a better deal.

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rachelvmd t1_jc02lq3 wrote

Woodbridge, Branford, guilford

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heathercs34 t1_jc0b1zf wrote

Orange has one of the top 5 high schools in the state. Easy access to all the amenities and a nice quiet town.

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lolaya t1_jc349y4 wrote

Source?

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heathercs34 t1_jc34o9m wrote

Amity is the only high school outside of Fairfield county to ever hit the top 5. Apparently, their ranking has dropped, but theyre still in the top 20.

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Feisty_Reaction3057 t1_jbzycfj wrote

Milford. We came from Charlotte and also was looking for regular ol’ suburbia. Schools are decent, not the worst, not the best but comparable to the South. Sometimes you just wanna eat at Chili’s lol

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bh06511 t1_jc2nz5g wrote

I'd definitely recommend coming up and driving around a bit to see the different towns suggested. I think Orange/Woodbridge or Madison/Guilford (though farther from Whole Foods) fit the bill, but I also want to mention that Connecticut suburbia is very different from Virginia. There aren't a lot of subdivisions here,l; the towns themselves are older (though Woodbridge and Orange don't have much of a town like Guilford and Madison do) bit then outside of that the houses are a lot more spread out. A lot of these areas are wooded with no sidewalks. I have one coworker who lives on a neighborhood in Orange where kids can walk to friends' houses, but that is not common. Again not sure if that's something you want, but wanted to make that distinction.

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bh06511 t1_jc2o765 wrote

Also I used to shop at Whole Foods regularly in VA, but don't here. There are other options though I do go to that area of the Post Road once or twice a month for Costco and Trader Joe's

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lolaya t1_jc34375 wrote

Fairfield

Better schools than Milford, 30-35 min commute, many beaches/walking trails/dog trail/lake, closer to NYC than NH and easy trip on Metro North

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k__clark t1_jbzz2yr wrote

I second anyone who has said Milford

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Ecofre-33919 t1_jc0mw8d wrote

I’d say either milford/orange area or the guilford/madison area. All four towns on the train line.

Milford/orange will have the shops you are looking for.

Guilford/madison have nice schools - but less of the shops. But you can visit the places you are talking about from those towns. The kids would have to pretty much be in to either soccer or tennis as far as sports goes. (Grew up there)

Give old saybrook/old lyme areas a look too. Its on the train. Nice town. You could commute to the shops in either milford or in the crystal mall area. It would be about 40 min from new haven. Actually old lyme is not on the train, but old saybrook is. But they face each other across the ct river.

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_nousernamesleft_ t1_jc1khc4 wrote

Not really adding any new suggestions that haven't already been said but just reiterating really how many options you have based on what you're looking for.

Guilford and Madison are both great choices and would put you about 20-maybe 30 minutes from Yale. They're both kind of "long" towns so closer to the shoreline will be closer to their downtown and North Madison/Guilford is a bit more wooded. Both have great school systems. Closest Whole Foods and Trader Joes would be Milford but there's also a Fresh Market in Guilford, plenty of other shops and restaurants in both towns, and about 15 minutes (give or take depending on which town you end up in) from Branford in one direction and Old Saybrook in the other which both have Walmarts, Kohls, etc. Both also have train stations but to get to NYC or Boston you'll generally have to go to New Haven or Old Saybrook (there is a connecting train to either often driving to the other station is easier).

Branford and Milford are also great. Both are a bit more commercialized than Guilford or Madison but also have areas that are just as quaint and "New Englandy" if that's something you want.

Westbrook, Old Saybrook, Essex, Old Lyme area also has a lot of what you're looking for though you are getting farther away from Yale at that point. These tend to be smaller towns than the first four I mentioned. The Waterford/New London area has a lot of chains so even though you're farther from the New Haven area you'll still have access to many of the same stores/restaurants.

Having grown up on the shoreline I know less about these towns but as some others have mentioned: Trumbull, Orange, Woodbridge, North Haven, and Cheshire are all worth looking into as well.

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GunsouBono t1_jc1nrav wrote

Although on the other side of New Haven, Guilford and Madison have great schools, on the water, and a train to get to New Haven (which you can then take to NYC).

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bingybunny t1_jc1ussz wrote

Yale used to or still does have a big listing of rental properties that's secret and not available to outsiders.

I'd use that first. MIL's friend got us the password back in 2005, got hooked up renting a tiny house in the woods 15 from Yale. Rented from a nice retired couple of Yale professors, no management company

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dirtysoup t1_jc27qf4 wrote

Orange and Milford probably fit best but inventory, as you noted, is low. North Haven would be my second choice.

Orange shares a school district with Woodbridge and Bethany. Also great towns. A bit less convenient to the shops and restaurants you listed, but they are quieter.

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mozzzking t1_jc2rgf7 wrote

I’m from Guilford. Amazing town and place to raise a family. Easy commute to New Haven. Town green is beautiful and has a brand new highschool.

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Morgan_3D t1_jc2wh54 wrote

north haven ct. My wife works for yale and can get there in 10 minutes. North haven is safe nice, lower taxes than hamden. close to everything. Love it

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sillysagittarius10 t1_jc30dc1 wrote

Cheshire. Super close and very cute community. North Haven has many shopping centers 15 minutes away.

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[deleted] t1_jc32o5x wrote

Woodbridge (or general Amity school district) or Cheshire.

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Appropriate_Carrot_9 t1_jc3yib0 wrote

Shoot me a message, I work in the area and have relocated people all over the county for years and would love to help you out. 👍🏼

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aestheticallyeclecti t1_jcrkvmv wrote

guilford is definitely more small town vibes—think gilmore girls. Milford is good. We just bought a place in Hamden and love the area. I work for Yale and can take the new haven bus if I don’t want to drive. Only 10 minutes to campus. Close to groceries, target, home depot, tjmaxx, etc

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abnerkravitz860 t1_jc1p9f2 wrote

Old Saybrook checks all your boxes except access to all the stores. Just a Walmart and a couple of grocery stores, but plenty of restaurants. You can buy a house with 1-2 acres, as long as you don't mind not being by the water. Train to NH/NYC.

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