West Hartford, CT ?

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

Hi

Can anyone give me information on West Hartford, CT? There is a very strong possibility that we will be moving there by January. My husband has been offered a transfer with his company - we have been in Florida for several years now and we feel it is time to move. I miss seeing the seasons change so will enjoy that part of it (especially around Christmas!) , but not sure that I will enjoy the snow & freezing temps again !

If there are DIS'er's out there who live in the area - any information on the "good" areas to live in, etc. I would appreciate it. We are not into nightlife at all - we enjoy quiet areas but relatively close to grocery shopping,mall,etc.

I did a search online and it appears that there are several "bedroom" communities that are close.

We would be renting for a while until we could determine where to buy.

Also, does anyone know of a good internet site that can help me determine "guesstimates" on moving costs ? We would be receiving an allowance for moving costs and I would like to stay close to that amt. if at all possible.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Denise W]

I grew up in Avon, CT, which is right next to West Hartford. Very nice town, good schools.


Denise

 

[Stephanie218]

I love the West Hartford area. I grew up about a half hour south of that. The area has really developed - there's Whole Foods up there, Westfarms Mall, and a few other upscale shopping plazas. Hope you enjoy it if your family ends up moving north!

 

[Disneysun]

We live in WH and love it. Very family oriented. Schools are amazing. WH just was awarded a ton of awards this year including:

Top places to live over the next 10 years
Best place to raise a family
....and more that I can't recall

You can PM me if you need more specific info.

Good luck!

 

[herdtoDisney]

I don't live in WH but I work there and it's a pretty nice town. There is the large Westfarms mall (which technically is in Farmington) and another big plaza across the street, Corbins Corner. And a development with fancy stores called Blue Back Square. Housing stock runs the gamut from raggedy multi-families, to huge mansions.

You'd probably be able to find a good rental home somewhere around the Center (West Hartford Center) which is the downtown area. It's quite nice. The further away from the border of Hartford you go, the nicer it gets.

 

[*Meagan*]

I grew up in CT.. not WH but another town and in general I love CT! And WH is really nice! and a great place to live! There is a ton to do in WH Center!

 

[Deb loves Disney]

West Hartford has some really nice areas. I was born around there and visit often. Great shopping, great mall (westfarms). There is a Trader Joes which I love. Great History in the area. You will love it.

 

[hsmamato2]

seems like a great walking town,in the area downtown near Blueback square-probably within a mile or so in any direction,the Blueback area is full of sidewalks and interesting shops,and plaza areas....

 

[LaNina72]

I had the pleasure of living in the Bishop's Corner neighborhood of West Hartford for about 7 years. (Relocated 3 years ago to Upstate NY) I actually drove through the old neighborhood this past weekend and was reminded about how beautiful the area is.

Like all towns there are good and bad. But renting first before taking the plunge to purchase a home is a great way to get your feet wet.

The schools are top-notch, the shopping is fantastic, and being so close to restaurants & entertainment is greatly missed by my family. 5 minutes away was the best sushi!

However, I don't miss the driving congestion, keeping up with the Jones's mentality, and the entitlement factor of some folks. But I guess you are bound to find that anywhere.

If you want any specifics, please PM... I'd be happy to assist.

 

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

Thank you so much for some great replies ! I am a little discouraged since we JUST got settled from our last move and the thought of a major move makes me want to pull the covers over my head ! Yikes .....

We will do what needs to be done, though, and so very thankful that he has employment to go to !

Would I be wrong in searching in the area of Avon or Farmington if he will be working in West Hartford? Someone told me that it would take almost 50 minutes to commute from there - that is a little long of a commute each way.

We also have 2 dogs - and I am being told that it is VERY difficult to get a decent rental if I have more than one dog? Surely, that cannot be right - (I hope not!)

Also, I am still trying to guesstimate moving costs before I start calling movers for in-home estimates.

 

[GeorgiaRose]

We spent 9 years in the farmington valley and just moved back to SC last year. Just wanted to offer Simsbury as a suggestion. It also has great schools and lots community activities. We loved the Talcott Mt. music series with fireworks evey summer. I really don't think the commute from Avon or Simsbury would be 50 min., but the rt. 4 area does bottleneck at rush hour.

 

[kmacht]

Renting around here with just one dog is a pain. Two is going to be hard. You can find places but be aware that most places that take dogs around here either charge quite a bit for less accomodations or require you put down a very large extra deposit. You might want to look into renting a house instead of an apartment. They aren't that much more money and it will be easier to find one willing to accept pets. As far as the commute, if you can find a house that lets you get from home to work while staying off of interstate 91 or 84 you will have a much shorter ride. They are always backed up in the morning and afternoon with traffic and accidents. It is usually quicker to take back roads to get around during those times of the day. Also, get used to longer drives to get anywhere. It takes 30 to 40 minutes to get most places in CT. It isn't because of the traffic, just that things are spaced out alot further from each other here. Avon, West Hartford, Simsbury, are all good suggestions. Stay away from East Hartford and downtown Hartford if possible. You might also want to check out Newignton and certain sections of New Britain.

Keith

 

[SaveTheSeaTurtles]

We spent 9 years in the farmington valley and just moved back to SC last year. Just wanted to offer Simsbury as a suggestion. It also has great schools and lots community activities. We loved the Talcott Mt. music series with fireworks evey summer. I really don't think the commute from Avon or Simsbury would be 50 min., but the rt. 4 area does bottleneck at rush hour.

Thanks for the alternate of Simsbury ! Is that a city?

 

[LaNina72]

Would I be wrong in searching in the area of Avon or Farmington if he will be working in West Hartford? Someone told me that it would take almost 50 minutes to commute from there - that is a little long of a commute each way.

We also have 2 dogs - and I am being told that it is VERY difficult to get a decent rental if I have more than one dog? Surely, that cannot be right - (I hope not!)

Also, I am still trying to guesstimate moving costs before I start calling movers for in-home estimates.

If work is located in West Hartford a commute from Avon & Simsbury isn't fun (did that for 4 years) neither was the commute from Farmington (did that too) which is why we finally moved to West Hartford. The only exeption would be if work hours were different then 8-9a to 5-6p.

But it is hard to fully comprehend until you do it... so if you come to the area for research I'd recommend "doing the commute" as if hubby were going to work normally.

The community of Duncaster Hill in Bloomfield was really nice and just north of West Hartford. Newington is also close by... but as PP stated don't cross the river, the commute through Harford is very bad in the morning.

I can't help with moving costs, because we did it all ourselves... for some reason when you mention West Hartford, Simsbury or Avon... folks think your loaded, and prices adjust accordingly...

 

[maslex]

Thank you so much for some great replies ! I am a little discouraged since we JUST got settled from our last move and the thought of a major move makes me want to pull the covers over my head ! Yikes .....

We will do what needs to be done, though, and so very thankful that he has employment to go to !

Would I be wrong in searching in the area of Avon or Farmington if he will be working in West Hartford? Someone told me that it would take almost 50 minutes to commute from there - that is a little long of a commute each way. We also have 2 dogs - and I am being told that it is VERY difficult to get a decent rental if I have more than one dog? Surely, that cannot be right - (I hope not!)

Also, I am still trying to guesstimate moving costs before I start calling movers for in-home estimates.

Well I don't live in W. Hartford but I "sort of" work there. I drive a school van for two special needs students that go to a school in W. Hartford on Asylum Ave. And they have a half day EVERY Wednesday, so instead of driving the hour/15mins back home, I stay in the area until 1pm, when it's time to go pick them up. When I drop them off about 8:45am, I head down Rt 44 (I think that's what it is) and go through Avon & into Canton to go to a scrapbook store to get some scrapbooking done for a couple hours. That ride only takes me 20 mins. Maybe it's because of the time I'm going through there, I don't know. But like a PP said, if you need to go on Rt 84 or Rt91, it's a traffic nightmare. LOL I hit it every morning but luckily not so much in the afternoon since I go through there about 3pm.

***on a side note for those of you who live in the area of Asylum Ave. I drive that road everyday and just love all the big houses on that road. There's one particular section that gets me every morning though. It's called Goodwin's Corner (looks like a gated community). Is this just a community of really expensive, huge houses? LOL If so....WOW!!! That one right out in front, the big brick one is just gorgeous!!! Just curious if these are peoples home or is it some type of community with businesses in it?

 

[tink519]

WH is a great area, as everyone else has said already. And yes, Rt. 4 is a difficult commute. But I would also say you might be more limited on rentals in Avon/Farmington/Simsbury. You will have better luck with rentals in West Hartford itself. You could also go south to Newington, Berlin/Kensington, or Wethersfield.

Good luck!

 

[jsrj21]

I actually live in Norwalk [which is WAY down - closer to NYC]. However, my family and I travel around the state quite a bit and I have to tell you, WH is supposed to be a very nice town. As a teacher, all I've heard are great things about their schools. Hartford in general does have its tough areas but there are some nice suburbs as well.

I also coach a travel baseball team and back in September, we played in both Wethersfield and Glastonbury. I liked both towns a lot and I heard great things about them from the locals. Personally, I LOVED Glastonbury! I also love historic looking towns with old homes and kept up neighborhoods. Glastonbury was just that. Other than that, I cannot tell you about rentals or routes to take. I always take the usual Rt-91 or I-84 - both of which are nightmares during the am/pm rush [no different from I-4 etc].

Good luck with everything. You'll be just fine.

Jose
Norwalk, CT.

 

[LaNina72]

***on a side note for those of you who live in the area of Asylum Ave. I drive that road everyday and just love all the big houses on that road. There's one particular section that gets me every morning though. It's called Goodwin's Corner (looks like a gated community). Is this just a community of really expensive, huge houses? LOL If so....WOW!!! That one right out in front, the big brick one is just gorgeous!!! Just curious if these are peoples home or is it some type of community with businesses in it?

If I'm correct you are looking at the development that saved the Goodwin Mansion. Actually those aren't individual private homes, but condos. The Mansion went into disrepair and I think there might have even been a fire. But developers came in and saved the shell of the brick mansion to make condos. Then they decided to to it many times over, so what looks like a private gated community is really a condo complex.

But you are correct the homes are gorgeous... coming from Hartford via Asylum, take a right onto Scarborough Street (where Elizabeth Garden starts)... those homes are magnificent! Then take a left onto 44 and take a left onto Prospect Ave (second light)... there are more great homes, including the Governors Mansion. (This loop will put you back on Asylum.)

Apologies to OP... this is more info then she asked...