Are you planning on buying a home in the Hudson Valley sometime soon and want to know some tips about looking in this specific area? Well I'm here to help! Whether you're looking for real estate in Dutchess County, homes in Westchester County or new construction in Orange County, let's chat about all of it.
Commuting to NYC is a huge topic for my clients. If you're planning on buying a home in the Hudson Valley and need to commute to the city either every day or a few times a week, this will be one of the first hurdles to overcome. You'll need to figure out how much time you're ok with spending commuting, and compare that with your budget. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that prices tend to go down the further north and further from the city you get. That rule is accentuated even more when you move away from the train line cities as well. The trade off is, well, you're further away from the city and you're going to travel longer.
Westchester County has lots of varieties of houses, from coops and condos to gorgeous modern homes tucked away in the woods, that all come at different price ranges, but in general, are the highest priced homes you're going to find in the Hudson Valley, along with the highest taxes. If you've got the budget and you want to stay under an hour in commute time to NYC, Westchester will be the best bet for you.
Putnam County is a small little county sandwiched between Dutchess and Westchester, where prices and taxes are still high, not as high as Westchester, but not as low as Dutchess. If you're looking for more privacy but still need to be commutable, and are cool with a longer time to get to NYC, Putnam may be for you.
Dutchess County is where people start to see some lower prices and taxes compared to Westchester and Putnam (save for towns like Beacon, Rhinebeck, etc.). The tradeoff here, however, is the much, much longer commute time to NYC. As soon as you cross that border into Dutchess County, you're looking at an hour 45 or more to get to NYC. For those that don't need to commute to NYC daily, this is a stronger option. Or if you don't mind long train rides, hey, who am I to stop you?
Orange and Rockland Counties make it even more difficult for commuting as you have to cross a bridge to get to a train station. Rockland is closer to NYC than Orange so it is more feasible, but you're still going to be dealing with bridge traffic which is never kind. And the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge in Orange County seems to be under eternal construction, so what a 10 minute drive should be, becomes 30.
It boils down to your comfort level and what you're willing to give up for a shorter commute time. If you've got the money for higher prices/taxes and want a short commute time, Westchester is for you. If you want to save a bit and don't mind being further away from NYC, consider Dutchess County!
Thanks for listening,
