Cheaper jewish communities

Ima2NYM_LTR

Fri, Mar 21 2014, 10:29 am

Id also like to recommend Albany. We are only 2-3 hrs from the city, so if you have any family there, you can make it an easy day or weekend trip. We are a growing community.
Our MO shul has got new Rabbi a year and a half ago, and since he has come, the community has really grown. It is a family friendly shul and they plan a lot of fun activities- community dinners and lunches, parent child learning, weekly Torah class, etc.
There is a lot of nice housing. Our 3br, which is a little less than 3/4 mile from the shul cost us $150k about 9 years ago. There is also slightly nicer housing near 'the pond" (summer Shabbos afternoon hangout spot).

There are 2 schools; a community school that has everyone from unaffiliated through Orthodox (most MO go there) and a school that is mostly Lub. and Yeshish students. My kids are at the community school and we love it

We dont currently have a restaurant, but we expect one to open very soon (final planning stages). We have a large kosher section with fresh meat and bakery at our local grocery store.

If you decide you want to look at Albany, let me know and I can host you for a Shabbos. (We are also very friendly up here!)

amother

Fri, Mar 21 2014, 10:47 am

Have you considered the Washington DC area--cheaper than NY, various options for schools/shuls, but higher wages.

A couple of the jewish schools in the area are really looking to grow. MJBHA has an affordability initiative for families that will move into the Rockville MD neighborhood where the school is located. It's MO, has an eruv, is close to kosher eating, etc.

Kugglegirl

Fri, Mar 21 2014, 12:21 pm

Didn't OP say her husband is a teacher? I can't imagine Rockville/DC on just a teacher's income. My brother lives way out in Germantown MD & still struggles with 2 incomes. Philly is less expensive than NY too. But I would not call it a "cheaper" community.

Maybe Baltimore is still possible on a teacher's income. They had housing grants there, from Federation a few years back.

Cleveland or Detroit are much more affordable than anywhere on the East Coast.

amother

Fri, Mar 21 2014, 12:41 pm

Kugglegirl wrote:

my husband is on a teachers income, we live in baltimore. no it is not possible to make it ANYWHERE on just a teachers income. I also have to work, no choice about it...

amother

Fri, Mar 21 2014, 1:32 pm

amother wrote:

my husband is on a teachers income, we live in baltimore. no it is not possible to make it ANYWHERE on just a teachers income. I also have to work, no choice about it...

I was just thinking relative to NYC, both Silver Spring and the Aspen Hill neighborhood are "cheaper". Obviously, compared to Cleveland or Cincinnati, they would be more expensive, but not sure where OP was looking to land in the spectrum. I agree with this poster, it would be difficult to make it anywhere on just a teacher's salary, but OP referred to "jobs" so I assumed she might also be looking for a job. The economy is pretty stable in the DC area thanks to the federal government, so it's not such a struggle to find a job as it might be in a smaller economy.