Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for all of this helpful feedback! So glad that I posted here. I will definitely also look into Swarthmore, Jenkintown and Cheltenham as recommended. And probably stay away from Wayne. Two quick follow ups:

How much longer would the commute be into Center City from Swarthmore vs Bala or Ardmore?

Are there any safety concerns with the Bala Cynwyd/Lower Merion area? I've read online that it may border a sketchy part of Philly. But I also recognize that "sketchy" can mean very different things to different people.

And property taxes higher than MoCo?!?! That is truly frightening...

Honey, if you think MoCo taxes are high then you definitely shouldn't move to a northeastern suburban town. We got it really good here in comparison with the folks in equivalent suburbs in NY, NJ, PA, CT and MA. Of course, you get much better services and schools on the town level there but that's the trade off.

And of course if the Republitards get their way none of those high SALT in PA will be deductible...

Anonymous wrote:There is some diversity in Bethesda. There is seemingly none in Wayne. I am not exaggerating when I said we didn't see any minorities in 4 days. None. Zero.

You can't walk into a grocery store, cvs, or restaurant in Bethesda without seeing at least some people of color. But in Wayne, we didn't see any. It was unsettling to be in a diner packed with only white people...I felt like we were in the 1950s south.

We ventured into Ardmore to shop, and it was slightly more diverse but still very white. And Ardmore was packed (the outdoor shopping area). That area reminded me a bit of Bethesda in terms of outdoor shopping.

I know the point is diversity, but your post is bringing back good memories for me (Minella's Diner! Suburban Square!)

There is some diversity in Bethesda. There is seemingly none in Wayne. I am not exaggerating when I said we didn't see any minorities in 4 days. None. Zero.

You can't walk into a grocery store, cvs, or restaurant in Bethesda without seeing at least some people of color. But in Wayne, we didn't see any. It was unsettling to be in a diner packed with only white people...I felt like we were in the 1950s south.

We ventured into Ardmore to shop, and it was slightly more diverse but still very white. And Ardmore was packed (the outdoor shopping area). That area reminded me a bit of Bethesda in terms of outdoor shopping.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for all of this helpful feedback! So glad that I posted here. I will definitely also look into Swarthmore, Jenkintown and Cheltenham as recommended. And probably stay away from Wayne. Two quick follow ups:

How much longer would the commute be into Center City from Swarthmore vs Bala or Ardmore?

Are there any safety concerns with the Bala Cynwyd/Lower Merion area? I've read online that it may border a sketchy part of Philly. But I also recognize that "sketchy" can mean very different things to different people.

And property taxes higher than MoCo?!?! That is truly frightening...

Honey, if you think MoCo taxes are high then you definitely shouldn't move to a northeastern suburban town. We got it really good here in comparison with the folks in equivalent suburbs in NY, NJ, PA, CT and MA. Of course, you get much better services and schools on the town level there but that's the trade off.

Narberth is nice. Easy commute into the city. It’s a walkable town with a movie theatre, pubs, library and lots of festivals. Under 600 will get you small and/or non updated home, but still better than DC prices.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bala Cynwyd and Swarthmore aren't like Bethesda (and Jenkintown is far away and nothing like Bethesda either). Stick with the towns on the R5 starting with Merion and Narberth and moving west. I spent part of my childhood in Malvern so closer to the end of the line on the western end. The school districts are excellent (Lower Merion, Radnor, Tredyffrin-Easttown, even Great Valley).

Jenkintown is adorable and absolutely commutable. My mother took the train to Center City for 30+ years.

But Jenkintown doesn't replicate Bethesda and isn't on the Main Line. My relative has a lovely house in Media and commuted to Center City for 30+ years but Media doesn't fit OP's criteria. What about West Chester? Doylestown? King of Prussia? Mount Airy? We could just name every area and suburb of Philadelphia but that isn't helpful.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were in Wayne for thanksgiving weekend, and I literally never saw any people of color. Everywhere we went, everyone was white. I can't imagine raising my children in that sort of bubble.

The area is charming with some great houses, but I think the price point is higher than you think. Our hosts paid more than a million for their house a decade ago and I'm sure it's worth more given the upgrades they made.

The public schools seem great from what I've heard, but lots of people send their kids to private school for the experience. There's a country club culture there as well, but I imagine that's comparable to Bethesda.

Um, she said she wanted to replicate Bethesda, so why would she care whether there were people of color?

NP- I agree, OP made no mention of diversity. She was not interested in your desired location based on your preferences.

Anonymous wrote:Bala Cynwyd and Swarthmore aren't like Bethesda (and Jenkintown is far away and nothing like Bethesda either). Stick with the towns on the R5 starting with Merion and Narberth and moving west. I spent part of my childhood in Malvern so closer to the end of the line on the western end. The school districts are excellent (Lower Merion, Radnor, Tredyffrin-Easttown, even Great Valley).

Jenkintown is adorable and absolutely commutable. My mother took the train to Center City for 30+ years.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for all of this helpful feedback! So glad that I posted here. I will definitely also look into Swarthmore, Jenkintown and Cheltenham as recommended. And probably stay away from Wayne. Two quick follow ups:

How much longer would the commute be into Center City from Swarthmore vs Bala or Ardmore?

Are there any safety concerns with the Bala Cynwyd/Lower Merion area? I've read online that it may border a sketchy part of Philly. But I also recognize that "sketchy" can mean very different things to different people.

And property taxes higher than MoCo?!?! That is truly frightening...

PP from Lower Merion here. I would not call the part of Philly boardering Lower Merion sketchy- at all! Belmont Hills and parts of Bala Cynwyd border Manayunk which is one of nicer areas of Philly. If you are leaning towards LM and you are still concerned you can always look a few blocks further in from the city line.

In terms of commute the Cynwyd line doesn’t run very often in the middle of the day. If you are commuting in by train you will want to stay closer to the R5.

LM is incrediably similar to Bethesda in many, many ways. When I went there it was a mostly white school (about 70-80%) with a significant Jewish population (about 30-35%). Easy to get into the city, strong schools, safe neighborhoods.

I have family in Abington and they love it there. Agree with pp about a more crunchy feel than LM.

Anonymous wrote:Look into Swarthmore. Great public schools. More diverse than the mainline schools. Strath Haven is outstanding and is around 25% minority. Great old neighborhoods in the boro and near Swarthmore College. Plus modest neighborhoods that help provide more diversity.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/pennsylvania/districts/wallingford-swarthmore-sd/strath-haven-high-school-17405/student-body

Does this house appeal to you?

https://www.redfin.com/PA/Swarthmore/412-N-Chester-Rd-19081/home/39173183

But, and this is a big caveat, taxes are very high.

This house is cute but appears to be on a main road.

Bala Cynwyd and Swarthmore aren't like Bethesda (and Jenkintown is far away and nothing like Bethesda either). Stick with the towns on the R5 starting with Merion and Narberth and moving west. I spent part of my childhood in Malvern so closer to the end of the line on the western end. The school districts are excellent (Lower Merion, Radnor, Tredyffrin-Easttown, even Great Valley).

Anonymous wrote:We were in Wayne for thanksgiving weekend, and I literally never saw any people of color. Everywhere we went, everyone was white. I can't imagine raising my children in that sort of bubble.

The area is charming with some great houses, but I think the price point is higher than you think. Our hosts paid more than a million for their house a decade ago and I'm sure it's worth more given the upgrades they made.

The public schools seem great from what I've heard, but lots of people send their kids to private school for the experience. There's a country club culture there as well, but I imagine that's comparable to Bethesda.

Um, she said she wanted to replicate Bethesda, so why would she care whether there were people of color?

“Main Line” used to indicate old money. Now it is boorish wannabes. It is beautiful, but no longer carries the class it once had. Think, Queens meets PA stone.

I live in Wayne and it’s lovely (and no, I am not white). Agreed there is little diversity as far as African Americans but we have more S Asians in our school than I did when we lived in NWDC. They don’t all live way out in the equivalent of Gaithersburg or Chantilly). We have a top notch public school district and most of the kids attend through high school. And I don’t think the diversity is that different in Wayne than it is in the closer in Main Line.

Swarthmore has a much longer commute to Center City than Bala.

OP here. Thanks for all of this helpful feedback! So glad that I posted here. I will definitely also look into Swarthmore, Jenkintown and Cheltenham as recommended. And probably stay away from Wayne. Two quick follow ups:

How much longer would the commute be into Center City from Swarthmore vs Bala or Ardmore?

Are there any safety concerns with the Bala Cynwyd/Lower Merion area? I've read online that it may border a sketchy part of Philly. But I also recognize that "sketchy" can mean very different things to different people.

And property taxes higher than MoCo?!?! That is truly frightening...