Lexington KY area info. wanted

[ChrisinNJ]

My DH has a job opportunity in Lexington KY. We are no where near sure he will take it but I am wondering what it would be like to move there.

We currently live in NJ.

I am wondering what areas in or around Lexington are nice for housing.
How about schools?
We would need a 4 bedroom home, and would like to have about an acre of land, What are property taxes like? (they have to be lower than what we are paying now)
What do you love / hate about the Lexington area?

Thanks for any info.....

 

[TiffanyK]

We love living in Lexington. It will be hard to find a house with that much land though, unless you live out of town. Lots of people live in northern Madison County so they can have more land. Depending on where you work, it's not a bad drive.

 

[sam_gordon]

I'm one of those in Northern Madison County & work in Lexington (north side). It's a 25 minute commute for me because it's all interstate. An acre of land will be EXPENSIVE in Lexington. I highly suggest looking in one of the surrounding counties. Madison, Clark, & Scott Counties are all connected via Interstate. Woodford & Jessamine counties have four lane roads (but traffic lights).

What I hate about the area:
*Snow removal/school closings. They just don't seem as "prepared" as when I was growing up (Northern Indiana) and schools will close when a delay would suffice.
*Heart of University of Kentucky sports. I am NOT a UK fan and the arrogance of some fans just rubs me wrong (I might insult some readers on here who worship Big Blue, but such is life).

What I like about the area:
*The changes in seasons.
*The scenery
*Ease of getting around.

As far as property taxes, I'm sure it depends on the area.

There are a number of homes for sale in our neighborhood (including our neighbors). Minimum 1 acre lot (neighbors have 3acres).

 

[polishprincess]

I live in Lexington too and I definitely agree with what everyone else is saying. There are gorgeous houses in Lexington for reasonable prices but you'll be lucky to get half an acre.

 

[My3kiddos]

I live in Lexington and to get an acre of land you would need to either live in a surrounding county (Jessamine, Woodford, Scott, Madison, or Clark) all of which are about a 25-30 minute commute to Lexington or live on a McMansion horse farm. Schools vary depending on what area you are in. Also don't equate high class neighborhood with great school when it comes to high schools here. I love Lexington because of its central location to larger cities like Louisville and Cincinnati;it's large enough to have some good shopping and restaurant choices,but small enough to get around easy;there are lots of family things to do here like the horse park, Keeneland, the children's museum, the arboretium, lots of parks, and nice public pools; we have 4 pretty distinct seasons; and while we have had a long winter this year it usually isn't too terribly bad.

I don't like the snow removal system here. It sucks to be frank! I also don't like the humidity in the summer and my allergies all year long.

If you are thinking about a move I say take a long weekend and come here to check it out. We have an airport here, but really the only cheap fares are to Orlando , but you can fly into Cinci/Northern KY or Louisville and it's only 1hour - 1.5 hours to get here.

Property taxes - in Lexington it varies depending on the neighborhood because some areas include trash pick up, street lights, etc while some parts of town do not have city trash pick up and have to get trash pickup thru a garbage collection co. Property taxes range from .9216 per $100 assessed value to 1.0951 per $100 so really it's not too bad. I know Fayette and Jessamine Co PVA's have websites that you can check out.

 

[pperfectmom]

Sorry OP, but I have to respond to sam gordon. Yes, you did insult at least one person on these boards. UK basketball is not just a Lexington thing. It is Kentucky thing. I am from a very economically depressed area of the country that has never had a lot to be proud of but the one thing that unites us all is our love for the Cats. It's not arrogance. It is love and pride.

To the OP, you should take time to visit this spring. Try for April when Keeneland is in session and you will fall in love. I also second the idea from the previous posters to look for a house/land in adjacent counties. I actually live about 45 minutes away but have had several jobs where I commute. The property prices will be much cheaper the farther away you get. Good luck!

 

[momof2TNboys]

I think Lexington is a great place to live. I would have probably stayed if my family was not so far away. I lived nine years in Lexington during my medical school and residency. I loved it there. It had big city amenities, but a small town feel. It is safe and you get alot more bang for your buck, homewise, than in the north. You can get a much larger home in the surrounding counties with more acreage as others have mentioned. I actually lived in Jessamine county and commuted to the hospital which took about 25 minutes.
To those that complain about the snow, get over it. When I lived in Lexington, they hardly ever were out for snow. I should know because my husband was a teacher there. Try living in rural parts of Kentucky.

Also, yes, Lexington has a lot of fans. Guess what? It is a college town. I live in Knoxville and it is the same story. Others would have you believe that people walk around with their face painted blue and yell "UK" in your face all the time. My husband was not a fan of UK and was fine.

 

[CruiseBoundnKY]

I live in Nicholasville which is just a few miles south of Lexington. I live on 5 acres and LOVE it. Lexington has so much to offer and KY is beautiful in the spring. Just take a drive down any country road and you'll see God's beautiful gifts in the form of baby cows, baby horses, baby goats...It's just beautiful!!!

Schools in this area are good. We've had a few issues, but nothing other than the occasional bully. I don't have any complaints to speak of and they are very understanding of my educational Disney vacations.

I did not know there were so many dis'ers in the area. We should have a "get-together" sometime and talk Disney.

Karen

 

[sam_gordon]

Also, yes, Lexington has a lot of fans. Guess what? It is a college town. I live in Knoxville and it is the same story. Others would have you believe that people walk around with their face painted blue and yell "UK" in your face all the time. My husband was not a fan of UK and was fine.

In my defense, I said *SOME* UK fans are arrogant. I won't get into reasons, but the OP asked what we liked & didn't like, so I gave my opinion.

I did not know there were so many dis'ers in the area. We should have a "get-together" sometime and talk Disney.

I knew there were some from previous threads, but didn't realize this many.

 

[kydisneyfans]

Add another from the Bluegrass here. We moved from Ohio in 2003 and have never looked back. We live in southern Scott County and it takes 20-30 minutes to get to central Lexington. My job brought us here but my wife's career has exploded from the move-she is in medical billing/coding.

I have to agree that the snow removal system here sucks. We haven't had 25 inches of snow this winter and missed 13 days of school.

Sports revolve around UK. Like very school, there are people who take it too far. Lexington is really an oversized college town. Horse racing is huge here too. Our sportscasts don't talk about many other things-we have converted to UK fans.

You might want to look at the area of town your husband's job is located and try to match the area of living to that. If the job is around Hamburg, look at Clark, Madison, or even Bourbon/Scott Counties due to easy interstate access. If the job is in Beaumont, look at Jessamine or Woodford. You will likely need to live outside of Lexington to find the house you describe, but a 30 minute commute is doable.

We have a 2,000+ sq ft house on a 90x150 lot and pay just over $1,000 a year in property tax. You could probably take a 25% pay cut and still have the same standard of living as NJ. Licensing a vehicle is much higher than Ohio, and it seems like insurance is higher here too. State taxes are higher than most states, but if you do long form deductions on Federal taxes, then it will make a big dent in your state taxes too.

If Lexington doesn't have what you are looking for, Cincinnati and Louisville are each a little over an hour away. There are no beaches but the mountains are close.

Best wishes on your move to the area if you make that choice. There are many of us here to help.

 

[momof2TNboys]

In defense of Lexington, this winter is very unusual. Lexington schools usually on miss 2-3 days of school a year. The PP is talking about a county outside of Lexington that has more rural areas. Yes, it is not the north, but honestly, winter weather is not bad enough here to invest in a ton of snow equipment. I live in Knoxville and the schools here have missed more than anyone can remember.
Also, yes Lexington is a college town. However, you are not surrounded by UK all the time. I worked on campus and it was not an issue.
I think it is a great town to raise children. It is beautiful with horse farms surrounding the city. Horse racing is big in the area. I would recommend to visit for a weekend to see what you think of the area. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Wadecool]

I'm one of those in Northern Madison County & work in Lexington (north side). It's a 25 minute commute for me because it's all interstate. An acre of land will be EXPENSIVE in Lexington. I highly suggest looking in one of the surrounding counties. Madison, Clark, & Scott Counties are all connected via Interstate. Woodford & Jessamine counties have four lane roads (but traffic lights).

What I hate about the area:
*Snow removal/school closings. They just don't seem as "prepared" as when I was growing up (Northern Indiana) and schools will close when a delay would suffice.
*Heart of University of Kentucky sports. I am NOT a UK fan and the arrogance of some fans just rubs me wrong (I might insult some readers on here who worship Big Blue, but such is life).

What I like about the area:
*The changes in seasons.
*The scenery
*Ease of getting around.

As far as property taxes, I'm sure it depends on the area.

There are a number of homes for sale in our neighborhood (including our
neighbors). Minimum 1 acre lot (neighbors have 3acres).

Yeah, you did manage to do a pretty good job of insulting Big Blue fans, but it's not your fault, no one is perfect. FYI, Cat fans are pretty much everywhere else in KY too, from Paducah to Ashland, except maybe Jefferson County where that other team's (won't say the name) fans outnumber us.

To the OP, you probably want to cross Woodford Co off the list because that is where most of the big horse farm country is, so it's very expensive. As an EKU graduate who spent several years in Madison Co, I'd cross that one off the list too, unless you get far away from Richmond, the student traffic is ridiculous. A couple other areas you may want to check into are Anderson (Lawrenceburg) and Mercer (Harrodsburg) counties. Lawrenceburg and Harrodsburg are within a 30 minute commute from Lexington and are very pretty areas that still are rural enough where you could get an acre of land for a decent price. Of
course, I'm partial to Hardin Co, but that's over an hour from Lexington, so its out.

 

[LizabethSwan]

.

 

[wdwmaw]

Another Scott County person here. We love this area and have never looked back since we moved here 16 years ago from Eastern Kentucky. Georgetown is about 20 minutes from center of Lexington, has a great College http://www.georgetowncollege.edu/, great schools, and like someone said before we are on I-75 so very easy commute to Louisville and Cincinatti (less than an hour to each). At our school we have several families that have moved from New York and they love it here!!!!! Give us a try and if you need anything let anyone here know and I am sure they would help you in a heart beat.

 

[sam_gordon]

In defense of Lexington, this winter is very unusual. Lexington schools usually on miss 2-3 days of school a year. The PP is talking about a county outside of Lexington that has more rural areas. Yes, it is not the north, but honestly, winter weather is not bad enough here to invest in a ton of snow equipment. I live in Knoxville and the schools here have missed more than anyone can remember.

Except this is the second year in a row of "unusual" winter weather leading to extra days off.

Also, yes Lexington is a college town. However, you are not surrounded by UK all the time. I worked on campus and it was not an issue.

I don't think there's anywhere in the state you can go and not be surrounded by UK (except maybe downtown Louisville).

Yeah, you did manage to do a pretty good job of insulting Big Blue fans, but it's not your fault, no one is perfect.

. I could make a joke about BB fans needing better reading comprehension skills since I said "some" fans are arrogant, so only the arrogant fans would be insulted, but I'll just let it go.

As an EKU graduate who spent several years in Madison Co, I'd cross that one off the list too, unless you get far away from Richmond, the student traffic is ridiculous.

I agree student traffic is bad in the area immediately around EKU when class is in session, but there's lots of subdivisions in northern Madison county that have homes (4 bdrm, 1 acre) like the OP is looking for. Depending on where in Lexington you're looking for these are 15-30 minute commutes.

I agree with the PP who said look for the surrounding counties near where DH's company is. If you want, you can PM one of us with the company and we can point you in the right direction.

Oh, I also wanted to point out if you or DH golfs, there's lots of inexpensive golf within an hours drive of Lexington.

 

[Wadecool]

Except this is the second year in a row of "unusual" winter weather leading to extra days off.
I don't think there's anywhere in the state you can go and not be surrounded by UK (except maybe downtown Louisville).

. I could make a joke about BB fans needing better reading comprehension skills since I said "some" fans are arrogant, so only the arrogant fans would be insulted, but I'll just let it go.

I agree student traffic is bad in the area immediately around EKU when class is in session, but there's lots of subdivisions in northern Madison county that have homes (4 bdrm, 1 acre) like the OP is looking for. Depending on where in Lexington you're looking for these are 15-30 minute commutes.

I agree with the PP who said look for the surrounding counties near where
DH's company is. If you want, you can PM one of us with the company and
we can point you in the right direction.

Oh, I also wanted to point out if you or DH golfs, there's lots of inexpensive
golf within an hours drive of Lexington.

Letting it go is probably a good plan on your part, especially since the argument you were considering making was not likely to hold up too long.

OP, if someone else hasn't brought it up yet, you could also check out the Clark County & Winchester area. It is an easy commute to Lexington from there on I-64, but as another PP said, it would help narrow down your choices knowing which area of town your DH's workplace will be. What you absolutely do not want if it can be avoided, and I think others will agree, is to have to commute all the way across town. Travel on New Circle RD at rush hour is horrible. I do think you will thoroughly enjoy living in KY, regardless of which county you end up living in.

 

[ChrisinNJ]

Hi,
Thanks for all the replies.
The company is off Georgetown Road near I 75.( just a little south)
You suggested several counties but do you know which have better school systems than others, Or which areas we should look at and which should be avoided.
Thanks again.

 

[wdwmaw]

Hi,
Thanks for all the replies.
The company is off Georgetown Road near I 75.( just a little south)
You suggested several counties but do you know which have better school systems than others, Or which areas we should look at and which should be avoided.
Thanks again.

Scott County Schools is great. Your husband's work will be near the Scott/Fayette county line. We travel Georgetown Rd to go to Lexington. I work at Anne Mason Elementary and we rank as one of the best schools in the state. Here is some info and Scott County is right there with or above surrounding districts. http://www.greatschools.org/kentucky/georgetown/Scott-County-School-District/

I wonder how old your child/children are? Please let me know if you need any help or have any other questions.

 

[kydisneyfans]

Definitely look at Scott County, Franklin could also be an option. I would rule Jessamine completely out due to traffic-Madison would be some miles, but a quick and easy ride.

Our son had 6 wonderful years in elementary school at Southern, but unfortunately the middle school experience at Georgetown Middle leaves alot to be desired-we're transferring him to another middle school for next fall. This is the ONLY problem we had encountered living in Scott County.

The place of employment is 10 minutes from downtown Georgetown and US 25 is undergoing a much needed widening to make the ride smoother. You really shouldn't have a problem finding the home with some land at a reasonable price here. PM me if you would like the name of a realtor or 2, we attend church with several.

 

[kydisneyfans]

This is also a little confusing, even though US 25 crosses I75 a couple of times in the same area, there is no direct exit. If coming for a visit, you would need to exit at 115 (Newtown Pike) south to Citation Blvd west. You can also exit at 120 (Iron Works Pike), head west about a 1/2 mile, and then south on 25 to the destination. I take the 120(IWP) 4 times a day for work.