<p>Very Happy, Reading is a lttle like New Haven without Yale.</p>
<p>Wyomissing and the area of Wilson School District are nice. I am not sure where you are in CT., but I think you would want to visit.</p>
<p>I have a friend who works in Reading and lives in the western part of Chester county.
Works well. A little over a half hour commute and the traffic is not bad. I think it would be better than actually living in the Reading area…but of course, it would be more expensive.</p>
<p>I think you are getting some good advice from the posters. As you are coming from an affluent town and working in West Reading, your best bet is going to be Wyomissing. Wyomissing HS will have roughly 130-140 kids per year so it is on the smaller side. That said, it is a very academic public school with a strong reputation with good schools. Roughly 20 students per year will attend “Top 50” schools. In my year (which is a long time ago, I graduated in the early 80’s but my parents still live there so I am in touch with what is going on there) we sent kids to Northwestern, Dartmouth, Virginia (2), Lafayette (3), Bucknell (2), Lehigh, West Point, William & Mary, and Penn to name a few. Extra-curriculars are strong (arts and sports). Given the size of the school there is ample opportunity to get involved!</p>
<p>Having attended Lafayette (as you may have picked up by the name), I encountered many, many Fairfield County kids. I would say I was extremely well prepared for College by Wyomissing. I believe my classmates had similiar experiences at their college of choice. I felt that the kids I went to HS with were very similar to what I encountered at Lafayette. I don’t think this would be true of many of the Berks County schols (Wilson probably the other exception for Public and Holy Name if you are Catholic and/or don’t mind a Catholic School) as many other Berks County schools will have a significant proprortion not furthering their education beyond HS.</p>
<p>As far as private schools go, the two ‘local’ options are Hill School (boarding or day) or for all day, Lancaster Country Day both are about 25/30 minutes commute from Wyomissing. </p>
<p>Let me know if I can be of further assistance.</p>
<p>The OP said schools are not an issue (no kids in school). Can be an issue for property values/resale, though.</p>
<p>OP’s kids are no longer in k-12 school. I don’t know the Reading area but I would think she would be very interested in communities apart from the school stats (other than as noted…as they might affect resale value down the road…if they even intend to buy). I would wonder about which communities in the area have the other things one might want…cultural or recreational opportunities…good community resources, etc.</p>
<p>I have now been officially invited back for a second go-round of interviews with some new people. </p>
<p>It’s true we no longer have to worry about the school district – S2 is a junior in college, so that’s all behind us. However, it DOES make a difference in terms of who one’s neighbors are, and what the local activities consist of. It sounds like Wyomissing has some of “our kind of people,” although we’d prefer to be a bit farther out with the opportunity for more land. </p>
<p>Does anyone know anything about Mohnton?? I saw a neat hourse on-line, with 12 acres, surrounded by farms . . . Very pretty and, compared to what I’m used to, very very reasonable!!</p>
<p>Just fantasizing, still. Lots of things to consider.</p>
<p>You may want to check out the town of Oley. Beautiful area, surrounded by farms, not far from Reading.</p>
<p>[Oley</a>, PA Real Estate. Homes for Sale in Oley, Pennsylvania](<a href=“http://www.weichert.com/PA/Berks/Oley/Listings/?mls=74&dir=ASC&pg=2]Oley”>http://www.weichert.com/PA/Berks/Oley/Listings/?mls=74&dir=ASC&pg=2)</p>
<p>If money wasn’t an object…this would be mine :)</p>
<p>[194</a> Basket Road, Oley PA - Trulia](<a href=“194 Basket Rd, Oley, PA 19547 | Trulia”>194 Basket Rd, Oley, PA 19547 | Trulia)</p>
<p>My suggestion would be to live in Lancaster County and commute to Reading. A good school district in the Lancaster area would be Manheim Township. It’s only about a 30-35 minute commute to Wyomissing from there, and it’s mainly expressway driving. Lancaster has a lot to offer- restaurants, shopping, the best fresh produce, and a reasonable cost of living. Lancaster also has easy access to Philadelphia, Baltimore, D.C. and NYC. Many transients in the Lancaster area are actually employed in Reading but chose to live in Lancaster.</p>
<p>Oley is gorgeous.(Lot’s of very pricey country gentleman estates tucked amongst the picturesque farms…you’ll find more than a few New Yorkers with weekend homes there) I live in Chester County and used to go to Reading fairly often for the blues clubs. There is a pretty strong music scene in the area. Jimmy’s Peanut Bar is a fun funky place to eat that’s been there forever and for really fine dining check out Gracie’s of the 21st Century.(Gracie’s isn’t in Reading however)</p>
<p>Though Reading itself is in decline, you’ll be close enough to many areas where you can find good theatre, music, restaurants, shopping and virtually anything else you might be craving.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t say Reading is in a decline - it already declined. There have been improvements in the past few years but the decline began in the 80’s and it’s really a struggle for a blue collar town to re-invent itself. So far it’s slow going. West Reading has become a really neat town - just across the river and near the hospital they have refurbished the downtown and there are quite a few shops and nice restaurants. </p>
<p>Many areas have become bedroom communities to folks who work in Philadelphia, it’s suburbs and even commuters to NYC. The value of real estate is a good one. You can get a lot for your money in a nice clean quiet safe neighborhood. There are quite a few upscale neighborhoods in the county and many older restored homes like the beauty that laxmom posted.
Mohnton is a great area - south of Reading so Lancaster is an easy drive and not far from the turnpike. Kelly McGillis lives down there somewhere.</p>
<p>Hekau: Reading has blues clubs? Give me some names of them, please. My husband loves blues.</p>
<p>Very Happy,</p>
<p>Wyomissing is a terrific area to live. I know it well having several close friends from there. I agree with the post that the decline in the city has all ready happened. Dedication to business and civic life is strong in Reading. I live in CT currently and I think that life here is overrated. I would move to Reading for the right job in a heartbeat. Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>familykCT, I am going to PM you to get more information. Thanks.</p>
<p>Thanks to JustaMomof4 and slipjig for joining my DH this morning for brunch, along with JustaMomos4’s DD and slipjig’s DH. You gave us lots of information to consider – and the best news is that we now have a carpenter to call on if/when we buy a fixer-upper!!</p>
<p>Well, Very Happy, we do expect updates on your plans! Can’t wait to hear what you decide.</p>
<p>VeryHappy - the pleasure was all mine :)</p>