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Kitchen-Spray-1984 OP t1_iuyrfjv wrote

Reply to comment by kkaatt7 in Relocating to Hartford with kids by Kitchen-Spray-1984

Thanks!! Which is more painful (traffic wise): Living in Glastonbury and commiting to Hartford or living in west Hartford and commuting to east Hartford?

Also, are there any other areas/towns that we should definitely avoid?

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Garizondyly t1_iuz1obu wrote

I would seriously recommend considering east of the river, a town like south windsor. But anyways, in my opinion, it depends on time of day. But for average, i'd say west hartford to esst hartford feels worse than gbury to east hartford.

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settie t1_iv0gtkk wrote

I think the west hartford/east hartford commute is much more painful than the glastonbury/hartford commute due to driving THROUGH hartford on the highway, as opposed to driving TO hartford and taking the exit.

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kkaatt7 t1_iuz1jjp wrote

I live in Glastonbury work downtown Hartford, you go route 2 there’s a direct exit off to downtown and you get to miss that 84 E traffic. Exit might get backed up a lil during rush hour, but nothing more than a 5 min wait, less than 10 min drive into Hartford. Seeing your higher budget those were the two towns that you can afford and are desirable (restaurants, schools, housing) Farmington is good, (Avon, simsbury, granby) are further out from Farmington and it’s kinda like a one way in one way out situation getting in through back roads. Lived in collinsville next to Avon and it’s a hippie town super cute tho

I would avoid, and just my personal opinion I grew up here after moving from a big city (east Hartford, Vernon, middletown, rocky hill, new Britain, Berlin, wethersfield) there are good parts of every town I just wouldn’t live there personally and you have kids and want that suburban neighborhood.

Also prices are insane right now too, if you are able too I would look to rent a house then wait for prices to go down. Rentals are also super slim pickings maybe harder to get than buying a house. But you can get the feel for the areas you’d like.

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Kitchen-Spray-1984 OP t1_iuzldto wrote

The prices seem to be plateauing right now I think

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Ronw1993 t1_iv0qlii wrote

Inventory is super low right now, and pricing is kind of wonky: I have a friend who is a realtor in the area and he describes it as follows. 50% houses are over-priced in an effort to cash in and are staying on the market, 25% are fairly priced and go quickly for asking or above, and 25% are homeowners not really interested in selling but testing the waters so price is variable. As a result, buyers are all over the map - I toured two houses at the same price point: one had significant signs of basic concern - foundation, code violations, water damage, and the other had none. Both were in equivalent neighborhoods but the first was under contract for a little under asking within 1 month while the second sat for 6 months and underwent two Price reductions. I’ve bought twice in CT in Hartford county and the current market is just…really weird.

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Ronw1993 t1_iv0pmn7 wrote

I appreciated seeing this answer- I moved to Glastonbury 3 months ago, work downtown Hartford and thought it would be a super easy commute. But the Route 2 ‘construction’ (in quotes because it’s not like lanes are shut down) makes it a solid 30+ minute commute during busy hours (7-830 am and 430-6 p.m.). Have you found the same? It’s a guaranteed 15-20 min drive if I WFH until like 9 am or leave work after 6.

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chinisimo t1_iuzeppt wrote

Crossing the river sucks either way. So try to stay on one side.

West Hartford and Glastonbury both have good school systems. But houses in west Hartford are older and more expensive. Taxes are probably close.

Farmington is a nice area. Lower taxes and very good school system. Avon, simsbury, and Farmington are among the best school districts in the Hartford area.

Now that the housing market is so over heated, depends on what you’re looking for, your budget of 500k might not get you much. Maybe check out renting for a year or two when more houses are available and mortgage rate comes down.

So your employer is in East Hartford? Is it Pratt and whitney by any chance?

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Kitchen-Spray-1984 OP t1_iv2t6bl wrote

Good point. Renting is also on the table. And yes, I'll be working at Pratt.

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2wheelzrollin t1_iv2gxwc wrote

Glastonbury to Hartford is easier IMO. You can take route 3 and head north into Hartford. But coming from WH to EH will mean heavy traffic on 84 during rush hour.

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-PasswordisTaco- t1_iv0tikg wrote

I would also put these 2 towns at the top of your list. West Hartford has a great walkable downtown area and is a bit more developed/urban than Glastonbury. Glastonbury you will be able to get a bigger yard and house for the same price. But both of these towns are more expensive than average because they are desirable with great schools, but if you can afford it then go for it.

Commute from Glastonbury to Hartford is not bad. 10 minutes on route 2 from center of town to downtown Hartford without traffic, but more like 20 during rush hour.

W. Hartford to E. Hartford commute would be a little worse traffic but still doable.

If your wife ends up working in Hartford and you are working in E. Hartford (Pratt & Whitney??) then I’d choose Glastonbury.

I used to live in w. Hartford, now live in Glastonbury. Never lived in South Windsor but that’s next to east Hartford and seems nice too.

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Kitchen-Spray-1984 OP t1_iv2td8v wrote

Is it a reasonable expectation to find a home in Glastonbury with public water, sewer and gas?

Yes, I'll be working at Pratt.

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-PasswordisTaco- t1_iv3nmog wrote

There’s a lot of new housing developments that are probably in your price range that have all that. There’s also some really old ones that might not

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Kitchen-Spray-1984 OP t1_iv3ocir wrote

>that are probably in your price range that have all that. T

Can you point me in that direction? Like construction in progress or recent builds?

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