NYC Family looking to relocate (Allentown, Bethlehem: townhouse, job market, to buy) - Lehigh Valley - Pennsylvania (PA) -Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton - City-Data Forum

HERNANDEZ11369 · 10-11-2018, 02:30 PM

Hi everyone,

We are from Queens, NY. Me and my husband have been discussing to move out of NYC for quite some time and have focused on Lehigh Valley, PA. Even though New York has its "Opportunities", it is so expensive to live and raise a family here. We have a 4 year old boy and want to give him a better living environment. We visited friends in Emmaus and fell in love. Though I have noticed it can be a little more expensive to buy a home than other areas. We want to avoid Allentown since the school district isn’t very good. We are still open to buy anywhere around but with an excellent school district. Our Budget is $250k to start off with on a home.

My main concern is how’s the job market for both me and my husband. I currently work in the Fashion wholesale industry (administrative side). I have Bachelors in Business (BBA) so I’m open to any administrative jobs. My husband is a CDL local truck driver.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Patmcpsu · 10-12-2018, 05:40 AM

Emmaus is the most charming town in the area (besides Bethlehem, which is more of a small city with a bad school district). You're right that you have a pay a premium to live there though.

If you live in Lower Macungie, you're close enough to Emmaus that it's only a short drive - there are lots of houses in that price range there. It's the same school district as Emmaus (East Penn School District). I lived in Ancient Oaks (a "town" which is a glorified housing development) and there are plenty of standalone houses going for $250k there.

Upper Macungie is a little further away from Emmaus, more expensive than Lower Macungie, and in a higher-regarded school district (Parkland). A $250k budget will probably force you into a townhouse here.

And just so you're aware, Upper Macungie and Lower Macungie are townships. There are various towns within those townships, which is confusing. To make things even more odd, Macungie Borough isn't in Lower Macungie or Upper Macungie; it's its own thing.

Upper and Lower Macungie are opening a tons of new warehouses, which most people hate because of the truck traffic, but it should be convenient for your husband to find a job.

As I warn everybody, western Lehigh Valley is "slow". As you move east, things get more fast paced. Moving from NYC, you might get frustrated with the pace of things in western Lehigh Valley.

blazerj · 10-12-2018, 06:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HERNANDEZ11369

Hi everyone,

We are from Queens, NY. Me and my husband have been discussing to move out of NYC for quite some time and have focused on Lehigh Valley, PA. Even though New York has its "Opportunities", it is so expensive to live and raise a family here. We have a 4 year old boy and want to give him a better living environment. We visited friends in Emmaus and fell in love. Though I have noticed it can be a little more expensive to buy a home than other areas. We want to avoid Allentown since the school district isn’t very good. We are still open to buy anywhere around but with an excellent school district. Our Budget is $250k to start off with on a home.

My main concern is how’s the job market for both me and my husband. I currently work in the Fashion wholesale industry (administrative side). I have Bachelors in Business (BBA) so I’m open to any administrative jobs. My husband is a CDL local truck driver.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Any of the suburbs will have good school districts and there are a lot of warehouses looking for drivers (sorry, I have no insight into admin jobs).

My advice is to find a home in an area and local commute that you like

pruebas · 10-16-2018, 09:03 PM

Why not look in Easton? There are some real nice areas, but I’m not familiar with the schools.

JohnZ963 · 10-17-2018, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pruebas

Why not look in Easton? There are some real nice areas, but I’m not familiar with the schools.

They aren't good.

ringler24 · 10-19-2018, 08:57 PM

We were very happy with the schools as were the vast majority of our neighbors.

Wells5 · 10-20-2018, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HERNANDEZ11369

My main concern is how’s the job market for both me and my husband. I currently work in the Fashion wholesale industry (administrative side). I have Bachelors in Business (BBA) so I’m open to any administrative jobs. My husband is a CDL local truck driver.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Good luck trying to find a job of any kind in the fashion industry in the Lehigh Valley. That business does not exist there. But there are many large businesses and industries in the area so you'd have to retool and try and find an entry level position in a new field. You could also commute to your current job in NYC and there are people in the Lehigh Valley who do but it would be a hardship.

M250 · 10-20-2018, 02:45 PM

Try Palmerton, Pa.

charmed hour · 10-23-2018, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wells5

Good luck trying to find a job of any kind in the fashion industry in the Lehigh Valley. That business does not exist there. But there are many large businesses and industries in the area so you'd have to retool and try and find an entry level position in a new field. You could also commute to your current job in NYC and there are people in the Lehigh Valley who do but it would be a hardship.

If she's willing to work outside of fashion in an administrative capacity (as noted above) there are jobs, especially within the hospital systems. Though, she may find the pay scale a bit shocking (I know I do and kept my NYC job because of it.)