Hewlett and also North Woodmere and West Hempstead

amother

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 12:09 pm

Hi!

we really need help deciding deciding where to move. I went through all the applicable threads mentioning long island and saw very few mentioning Hewlett

Here is our dilemma, we saw a much bigger house for much cheaper in Hewlett but we have heard there are not a lot of frum jews that live there, even though there are several shuls within walking distance. What is it about it that people dont seem to want to move there or get people to move there? higher taxes?

I wanted to know what people know about Hewlett since we dont really know anyone that lives there.

We are hesitant to move to the five towns cuz of the reputation that its materialistic but we dont want to go to new jersey where there are areas that are more down to earth because we want to stay closer to queens where our family lives.

therefore, we are looking for areas in Long Island that are more down to earth and heard that North Woodmere and West Hempstead are like that -is this true?

and then I happen to look at real estate in Hewlett and found a few houses that were more reasonably priced (even with slightly higher taxes) and was curious what this neighborhood is like.

in terms of hashkafa and what we are like, I would wear a jean skirt, my husband would wear jeans during the week when not at work. I cover all of my hair. I want to feel comfortable wearing scarves and pre-ties during the week -not sure if I'll just have to get over that and wear my shaitel when taking a walk with the stroller but just giving you an idea what we are like. B'H my husband makes a decent parnussah but we don't go out of our way to purchase showy things or wear designer clothes, so we are hoping we will feel comfortable in these neighborhoods.

mostly wanting to know about hewlett- particularly -my main concern is will my children have a less than ten min walk to people's houses on shabbos afternoons? its more important to me about my kids having social lives- hoping there are kids around they can play with.

and of course if anyone can give input on west hempstead and north woodmere and where they see us more.

please let me know if you have any questions so I can better help you answer all of this- we are so confused and really have to move soon cuz very lill room now in our apt. thank you!

jzmom

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 12:31 pm

We live in Hewlett and we sound very similar. The reason we moved to Hewlett at the time was because we bought at the height of the market and could not afford woodmere. We have come to really like Hewlett. Sometimes we have to walk the kids a little further for a playdate but its not terrible. Also, that is for playdates with school friends, shul friends are obviously closer. Hewlett feels just a touch out of the loop but we have made it work. We like our shul, our community and our location is really ideal for commuting. Usually the district 14 taxes are higher than 15 which is another reason people prefer woodmere but our taxes are very reasonable. Let me know if you have more questions.

lovenhappiness

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 1:50 pm

thank you for getting back to me! when looking for houses, can you recommend a cross street that is the best location nearest the most frum families so we can try to get a house somewhat near there?

also, in terms of transportation because you mentioned it's ideal for commuting, is hewlett close by to the LIRR? walking distance or driving distance? because that would def be a plus if it was closer

and if possible, could you just elaborate on one what you mean by "out of the loop"

perquacky

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 2:05 pm

We're in West Hempstead and one of the things I like about it is how openminded people seem to be. I think for most of us, we have a live and let live attitude. There are women who cover all of their hair, some of it, or none of it. There are those who wear only skirts and those who wear pants. And we all daven in the same shuls and hang out together and let our children play together.

Property taxes are high, but maybe not as high as Hewlett. But you'll find high taxes wherever you go in Nassau County.

During rush hour, the railroad runs on a good schedule, but there's no weekend service anymore.

It's a good time to buy. Housing costs have dropped.

Good luck with your decision.

jzmom

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 3:55 pm

It depends on what shul you will go to. If you are going to Anshei Chesed (south shore) I would recommend the area between Peninsula and W B'way and between Mill Road and Eastwood.

Hewlett is definitely great for commuting by LIRR. I do it 4 days/week and it is very convenient.

I feel a little out of the loop because I am a block or two out of the main streets where our friends live.

I dont feel like Hewlett in general though is out of the loop. It is more a personal thing for me because I am on the border and I'd like to be a few blocks over.

I think you'll find Hewlett has a great mix of people and you'll find a niche. Even with the out of the loop feeling, we have made great friends are very happy here.

Hatzlacha!

shabri

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 7:07 pm

I grew up in Woodmere about a block away from Hewlett. Sounds to me that you would fit in just fine in the South Shore community. I think a lot of your question would have to do with the location of the specific house. Hewlett closest Woodmere is different than Hewlett closer to Lynbrook.

By the way there are lots of women in the 5 towns who wear pre-ties and tichels. You just have to be comfortable with who you are

mommydiaries

Thu, Apr 05 2012, 7:26 pm

I live in Woodmere, do you know what school you are planning to send your kids to? If south shore then Hewlett is great.... There are 2 houses for sale on Franklin ave which is a great block with wonderful families, but in terms of play dates, again it depends on the schools.

Just as an aside, Woodmere is a really great place to live as well... There is definitely a strong contingency of gashmius oriented people, but there are also a lot of ruchnius people as well. It all just depends on who you make your friends....

lovenhappiness

Tue, Apr 10 2012, 8:54 am

thank you so much for all of your feedback (especially jzmom-for all the street names etc.) and kind advice/words of wisdom!

I def now have a different perspective on the five towns and also on hewlett-

we are now probably leaning more towards hewlett, because it seems compared to north woodmere, as long as we are in the right area of hewlett we can be in walking distance from cedahurst and woodmere for playdates whereas north woodmere that may not be the case or at least its a longer walk. plus north woodmere is def not walking distance to LIRR so we would have to buy another car.

we also were told about north woodmere- to stay away from some streets- park lane was considered very busy to the point that your kids wont be playing in the front yard, and flanders is near the water so there are mosquito issues and flooding problems. if anyone has any insight on that, that would be great...because some of the houses we were greatly interested were on those blocks so that cut out a lot of our choices.

do you think that hewlett will become a more upcoming neighborhood sometime in the future, like north woodmere and inwood have become? my husband feels that as more people move to the five towns, there will be higher demand for houses and maybe people will start looking into hewlett more- maybe wishful thinking on his behalf? Wink

mommydiaries

Tue, Apr 10 2012, 9:18 am

Hewlett is already very established! But a lot of frum families tent to look elsewhere because the taxes are so high and they keep rising (when the town votes on the school budget it always passes because the majority of the area sends to public school so they always want more money to go to the school)... But I do know a house that is unofficially for sale that is really beautiful. (I'm not an agent but I love making house shidduchim!) so if you r interested message me! Good luck you should have hatzlacha in all that you do!

mommydiaries

Tue, Apr 10 2012, 9:24 am

Btw I have one friend who moved to west Hempstead for the exact reason you stated (materialistic etc.). And she is really happy there it is worth checking out!

Also, I just thought of an idea... You can contact the shuls in the areas you are thinking of and ask if they can find a family to host you for a shabbos... That way you can REALLY see each neighborhood for yourself. (I'm not sure where you are coming from though, so idk how hard it might be for you in terms of travel)

mommydiaries

Tue, Apr 10 2012, 10:05 am

kollel wife wrote:

Reading what everyone is writing, I'm thinking a reliable frum real estate agent who lives in the area could probably help you too, as he/she may have their fingertips on some of these issues.

Hatzlocho to you.

I'm also feeling Mi kiamcha yisrael as I read everyone's opinions.

That is a great idea! I would suggest either Milky Forst or 5 Towns Miller realty. They are very person-oriented. The millers found us our house and sold our last one (the one in Hewlett;) ) but I have heard great things about milky as well

newuser27

Sun, Jan 13 2013, 11:04 am

New here.... We are looking to move to the 5 towns, my husband prefers woodmere although I really want something a little out of the 5 towns but still clsoe enough for the '"amenities" (schools, shopping, etc). so we were looking into north woodmere. went for shabbos, liked it alot, but concerned about it being in a flood zone and seeing the destruction from hurricane sandy, also we prefer a colonial but seems there are practically none of those and the few that are on the market are 700,000 and up. now I'm thinking hewlett but don't know much about it. my husband isn't thrilled about being in a smaller community bc he wants the option of choosing friends, shul, niche in a community, as opposed to living somehwere when you are forced to be part of one shul/community, etc. this doesnt bother me at all, as I grew up in a community like that. hoping to meet somewhere in between. I already know what north woodmere and woodmere/cedarhurst are like, but hewlett is really new to me. it seems more affordable (although I know the taxes are a bit higher). can someone tell me how many frum families there are there and what the shul options/hashkafas are like there? also, we have a one year old daughter...would there be enough kids her age?? (to give you a sense, we are "just plain frum" type I guess. not yeshivish, no black hat, I cover my hair fully) TIA!