Moving From Texas to Connecticut

[McKennasMoma]

My daughter and I will be moving to Connecticut before the end of the year and I was wondering if anyone could tell me more or less what  the job availability is in the West Haven/New Haven area for nurses? Also would anyone know the going pay rate for someone with 1-2 years experience. I have researched housing and I realize it is quite expensive especially compared to the area of Texas we are moving from, so I was wondering if the pay will be enough for us to afford a place safe enough for a 6 year old. Also I was wondering about school districts, it is important to me that the school is safe and will give my daughter the best education available. Are there any affordable dance/cheer/gymnastic classes in the area. Any information regarding Connecticut will be greatly appreciated. My boyfriend is from West Haven, and he has helped me quiet a bit, but there are just some things other mothers understand better. Thank you for your time. : )

[emmy526]

it would help to know where in ct you are looking to move.. all the towns here are vastly different in regards to ethnicity and incomes, services, and esp the school..some towns are REALLY bad for their school system. 

fyi, i would def NOT be moving to new haven..VERY crime ridden.

[McKennasMoma]

well my b/f is from West Haven, that's the only part of Connecticut that I have actually seen besides driving through Hartford back and forth from the airport, I am somewhat open to the idea of living anywhere in Connecticut I just want to make sure it's safe enough. Any recommendation is appreciated thank you for your reply

[emmy526]

the NE part of Ct is nice, as is the Farmington valley, they're both moderatly priced..the really expensive towns are all east of bridgeport, closer to newyork.   Litchfield County, where i live is in the northwestern part of the state and has more hills, historic stuff, and some pretty ritzy towns. Most major cities here are not too desirable for living in and having kids go to public schools in them, as they are on top of the lists of failing schools for our state.  

[McKennasMoma]

ok thank you so much for your replies i do look forward to moving to Connecticut it was beautiful the time i was there for a visit again thanks so much

[Ramzubo]

Have you've tried neighborhood scout to check on schools and crime. We're originally from Texas and used that website to compare a place we knew in our local area to where we wanted to move. New Haven is certainly known for it's crime and I personally wouldn't feel safe there with children. That being said Connecticut doesn't quite understand how crime/schools are in the rest of the country. I've met people in CT who would sell a kidney before sending their kid to a certain school district that would be considered one of the better ones back in Texas. Besides a few places, Connecticut is very lucky in terms of education and crime.

I'm not sure where in TX you're coming from, but it is likely much cheaper than CT. Any job you get up here will be based on the cost of living for CT so that should be ok. The main thing is the price of houses, if you're not looking at buying right now the rental market is not too bad.

Good Luck!

[McKennasMoma]

thanks so much for your reply what is the name of the site? i actually wasn't aware there was a site like that before so thanks again :) and i'm coming from south texas deep south, so it will be quite a shock for me, i'm not looking to buy a house at the moment, do you know of any rent to own type places though that might be doable. thanks again so much for your reply, i'm really excited about moving and i can't wait to get there. my b/f tells me he believes that nurses do pretty well there so i just hope it doesn't take long to find employment. take care 

[Ramzubo]

The website is http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ 

I know there were a few rent to own places when first looked, but I don't know any specifics. I think after finding a job and living here a while then you would be better able to see how that would work. It's hard to really tell how the cost of living is going to affect you until you actually move, but I don't think the costs will be any more of a shock than the snow

[McKennasMoma]

lol ah yes the snow, i did live in kentucky for 2 years so i'm kind of used to snow sorta but i'm sure it's much worse there, i've already warned my b/f that he is the car warmer person as well as the shoveling snow and scraping the ice of my windshields :) and he can't argue about it, thank you so much for your help i will check out the website :)

[farrah skye]

hi! yup nurses make good here. try applying to Yale or  children medical center. all good hospital. i live in south eastern part. new London is nice. Waterford. noank is a cute little village town. ledayrd/gales ferry are nice too. STAY OUT OF NORWICH. this is a ghost of a town..crime... all the best... also farther down 165 is good. Marlborough is country area. i want to move out there. we have to deal w no car right now... so we will see what happens when our lease is up..... 
 

Originally Posted by McKennasMoma 

thanks so much for your reply what is the name of the site? i actually wasn't aware there was a site like that before so thanks again :) and I'm coming from south Texas deep south, so it will be quite a shock for me, I'm not looking to buy a house at the moment, do you know of any rent to own type places though that might be doable. thanks again so much for your reply, I'm really excited about moving and i can't wait to get there. my b/f tells me he believes that nurses do pretty well there so i just hope it doesn't take long to find employment. take care 

[McKennasMoma]

thanks for your reply :) do any of you all know much about West Haven, from what i've seen it doesn't seem too bad and my b/f says it's pretty chill but that's all he's know besides wallingford where he went to high school so other opinions are greatly appreciated :)

[JodiAriel]

West Haven is not a bad town but not the best schools.  You would be better off in Orange or Milford which are the next towns over but they can be a little bit more expensive.  If you are going to be in West Haven, try to live in the West Shore area which has better elementary schools.  Also, there are a lot opportunities for nurses around here, try Yale, the VA, Milford Hosp.  I live in New Haven now but have lived in West Haven for the last ~10 years but we don't have kids yet.  HTH!

[McKennasMoma]

thanks :) the area he lives in is actually on the orange/west haven border i can't remember the street name that he told me but if you cross the street you are in orange, i do remember that. i know it might be a long shot but if he lives on baker street would anyone know the name of the elementary there, this might sound crazy b/c she's only in the first grade but for high school we will be sending her to lyman hall i think i spell that right, that's where he went to school and even he says West Haven High isnt good i looked up schools last night and unfortunately the one that was only a minute away from his house has closed i did forget the name of the other that was closest according to the map, i'm assuming that's how it works. again thanks you guys have really been a great help 

[KenzieBee]

Welcome to Connecticut!  I grew up in central CT, what you'll hear referred to as the "Greater Hartford" area, and still live here.  Many of the towns surrounding the bigger cities, i.e. Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Stamford, New London, are fairly nice towns, but with kids you don't want to live *in* the cities themselves.  The schools are atrocious.  I second whoever above said to check out Milford or Wallingford (which includes Lyman Hall btw) as next best options - could do better, but could do worse.  For the New Haven area, you may want to check out Hamden - it's a nice little town with better schools than West Haven for sure (lots of crime and drugs there).  Stratford and Trumbull are also nice but more expensive to live in, and I'm not sure what renting options are.  I would not live in West Haven, personally, but I have met people who grew up there ... they have this tough "from the streets" personality that I do admire.  I used to do some legal work for the West Haven schools and sadly, many many of the kids were caught up in crime and drugs. 

I have to laugh and agree somewhat with the comment about how CT people think our schools are horrible when we're really not so bad compared to some places.  I grew up here so I think I am probably one of those people!  A lot of people send their kids to private schools, either the nicer "prep" schools or the Catholic or Jewish schools, which are more affordable.  Oh and the COL will definitely be reflected in your salary so don't worry about that ... although we have been hit with hard times here and have a budget crisis on our hands.  But I guess that's just about everywhere.  Good luck!

[JodiAriel]

Malloy School is the closest which closed and I am not sure where they would go but the elementary school you want if you have to be in West Haven is Seth Haley which is down by the beach going towards Milford.  Hamden does have better schools but also has some crappy areas as well.  I do agree that kids in West Haven grow up with a tough attitude.  I grew up in Trumbull and then moved to West Haven as an adult.  As an adult it's nice because you are convenient to everything and 2 mins from the beach but it is not where I want to raise my kids if I can help it.

[McKennasMoma]

Well i know at first i wont be able to help living in West Haven but i don't plan on staying there long i will definitely check out the places u all have suggested, i want my daughter to not only have book smarts but street smarts as well but i don't want her exposed to drugs and gangs at any age so i will definitely not keep her in West Haven, i would like to go to Wallingford for the mere fact that, that's where she will be going to high school so therefore she can stay with the same group of kids, again thank you guys for all the suggestions i already feel welcomed in Connecticut and I'm not even there yet :) but i can't wait!! just about 2 months away i believe if all goes as planned :)