Howdy folks

I have accepted a job in Blue Ash and will be moving my family to the area in the next month (elementary school age kids).  I am originally from KY and have spent a lot of time in NKY and Cincy proper, but don't know the outlying suburbs as well.  When my family moved from Seattle to DC, it was ARFCOM that found me our place to live, so I'm coming to the hive mind for input.

We are presently looking in the NE quadrant between Mason and Milford Twp, outside of 275.  I'm trying to keep my commute to 30 minutes or less.  We have chosen this side primarily because of the abundance of good schools.  Specific areas we are considering are Mason, Maineville, Milford, Loveland, and maybe West Chester.

I would greatly appreciate some ground truth about neighborhoods, schools, crime, and commute times.  One special point of interest is that I am an amateur radio guy, so would love to wind up somewhere without an HOA or at least a reasonable one (Simpson Creek Farm subdivision in Mason has an HOA, but they allow antennas up to 10 feet above your roofline, which is very reasonable for me).

Thank you in advance for your input.

All the areas you reference are decent. Not too much in the way of crime. There are newer subdivisions along with some older homes in the area. It all depends on what you are looking to spend out that way for size and location. My ex wife lives in Mason and I did too years ago. It's crowded is my only complaint. And expensive. If i were moving that direction, i'd be looking east of i-71 and north of 275.

Check out the repeater 145.390.  It has awesome coverage of the entire tristate area and its pretty busy. Also, Dayton has hamfest every year. It's not too far away.

Joe

Thanks for the feedback - one of the best parts about this move is saving $600+/year because I don't have to drive from DC to Dayton and pay for hotels and food!

Maineville looks appealing for the amount of house you get, and their schools are well rated, however I have heard that their SD has some financial problems and could be dissolved in the future, which would probably impact home values.

I'll second what Googanelli said about them all being good choices.

As posted Mason is going to be more crowded, as is West Chester. They'll both have a lot of shopping, dining, and entertainment though.

Mason, Loveland, and West Chester are going to all be pretty comparable in terms of cost which is on the higher side. Some parts of Loveland are more reasonable than others though. Of the places you listed the least expensive will probably be Milford. Also least crowded.

The worst parts of your commute (assuming you take 71/275) will be between Montgomery Rd. and Pfeiffer Rd. exits on 71. Always gets busy around there. Another problem with the commute could be parts of Milford where you have to take State Route 28. It can make for some slow going during rush hour. Fortunately it looks like they are working on widening it out to improve that. It's been a problem for years. Around Loveland on 275 can also get backed up.

Maineville might be borderline in terms of a 30 minute commute during peak traffic as it is a little further out from the interstates. I'd say it's pretty close to Milford in terms of cost though.

Like Googanelli posted east of 71 and north of 275 is a good area in general. Personally, I'd amend that to just anywhere east of 71 (I'm in the south eastern quadrant) but for your 30 minute commute to Blue Ash, where you're looking is spot on.

I don't have any kids so can't speak to the schools portion as an expert but from what I've heard from those that do, the Loveland schools are pretty well regarded. Hopefully someone with more knowledge than I can chime in on that.

If I had to pick, Milford (and the further out Goshen area) would be my 1st choice with Loveland a close 2nd. Of course I'm a little biased though as I grew up in that area.

I think in your realistic 30 minute window you're looking at Mason, West Chester/Liberty Twp.  Those are Lakota or Mason School districts which are both very good.  

I've lived in West Chester since 1976 so I grew up here and know the most about this area.  Mason is right next door.  I can be in Mason in 5 minutes.  I commuted from West Chester to Blue Ash for years.  To Glendale Milford Rd and Reed Hartman then later to the P&G Facility on Reed Hartman.  It's a damn busy area, Blue Ash and I75, I275 are no joy in the morning.  From West Chester to Blue Ash you can stay off the highways if you want to.  May or may not be faster, I haven't done it in the morning in years.  Depends on where you live.  Access to 75 can be minutes or more minutes depending on where you are in WC or Mason.

If you narrow it down to WC/Liberty or Mason and want more specific info, message me.  Lakota has 11 elementary schools, 4 junior schools and 2 high schools.  It's a big ole conservative community.   West Chester and Mason both conservative areas, love guns etc.  But I think so are the other places you are looking at so you're good to go politically assuming you aren't an AR15 loving Democrat.  Cause there aren't many Democrats outside cincinnati proper in SW Ohio.  

Wanted to add, crime is low in all the places you are looking.  Violent crime and murder nearly non existent and all those suburbs rarely if ever make TV news.  Not to say nothing ever happens but your looking at pretty good places to live.  For instance, West Chester had it's first murder since 2013 in Jan 2015.  And the guy who did it is from Cincinnati, Wayne Ave in Lincoln Heights.

http://www.journal-news.com/news/news/crime-law/police-identify-west-chester-homicide-suspect/njhx3/

Even as the township — Ohio’s largest — has expanded in population, going from 37,894 in 1990 to 54,895 in 2000 to 60,958 in 2010, its homicide rate has remained lower than cities that are similar in size.

There’s only been one homicide in the township in the past five years, one in 2013 that was the result of a domestic incident that led to a suicide in Mason, police said.

“West Chester Twp. is fortunate that for a community of the population that we have, the size that we have, that this type of crime is very rare for us,” said township spokeswoman Barb Wilson. “We’re not immune to the societal issues that other communities face, but we’re also fortunate that the community has invested in a police department through approval of levies and such that we have a highly trained, professional police force that helps support and promote a safe community.”

I've lived in Maineville all my life. The school district with issues is little miami. The reason they have issues is that they passed large expansion levys while the market was booming, then after the bubble burst they never got the operating levy passed. They are slowly bringing it back around but until the market truely comes back the school district will likely struggle. However, Maineville also has another school district that is one of the better in the area, kings school district.

One of the best parts of this area is that it takes about 30 mins to get from one end to the other in any dirrection, but rush hour traffic can be very brutal sometimes. And the blue ash area can be one of the roughest. Of the areas you listed, you should be fine anywhere, but I would caution there are areas in Loveland that can get rough. I would advise to look in the twp areas surrounding the villages and cities you mention. Doing so avoids local income tax for the privilege of living in their community.

As mentioned before Milford, Loveland, or Goshen are nice area's.
I live between Loveland and Goshen and it takes me 7 minutes to get to 275. Less than 20 minutes to Blue Ash. I work 2nd shift so your times may very during rush hours.

Also a good shooting range near by Miami Rifle and Pistol club they have a long wait to join but you don't have to be a member to shoot matches there.

Thanks folks - this is great information, please keep it coming!

echomancer
I suppose you already have a Real Estate agent your working with.
If not I could recommend a good one.

i live in the kenwood area, indian hill schools....  hard to beat it

Yes I am. She is provided by the relo company so I have no say in that matter but thank you for the offer.

Hello echomancer,
Having any luck with the home search?

Thanks for following up!  We made an offer on a place in Milford and I think we'll be happy.  Unfortunately, inventory was just nil, and no houses were put on the market the week before we had to do something.  I wish the HOA situation was better, but there's a good chance that Federal law will shift in our direction this year to allow ham antennas regardless of HOA/restrictive covenants.

You will like Milford nice area.
I have a good friend that is Ham Radio crazy he goes to Ham Fest in Dayton every year.

Well welcome to the Buckeye State.  Always happy to have another pro 2A person/family in the ranks.  :D

You'll be fairly close to Miami Rifle and Pistol Club.  Better get on the waiting list ASAP if you are interested in that club.

http://www.miamirifle-pistol.org

Roger that!

W-E-L-C-O-M-E, Brother!

Word to the wise--back in the Commonwealth of Virginia, I have found, to my great delight, that they have maintained what is commonly termed "good manners" and even that rarest of commodities: "common sense."

Beware of a few Ohioans who have never learnt either one. Do not hold their deficiencies against the rest of us.

The whole area from Mason, West Chester and Liberty Township have grown a lot in the last 15-20 years. If you want a little more space you are looking at Liberty Township. Mason has gotten very crowed and the traffic can really suck in places. We have been in Liberty Township since 1988. It's changed a lot. Property taxes are typically lower and we don't have a city tax.

welcome echomancer!

...grew up in the cincy area, but haven't lived down there for years...  the areas you are looking at are all very nice areas, ...though I don't know much about the east-side (milford, etc...)

...west-chester, mason, liberty twp, loveland, etc, ...all very nice, there all quite a bit of HOA-style communities in these places though...

Thanks for the welcome folks!  We close on our place in Milford on 3/13.  I'll be looking for more ranges and restaurant recommendations in the near future

Get on the list for Miami Rifle Pistol Club ASAP. Long wait, but worth it.

Welcome to Cinci!

ETA: I see gaspipes already covered that first part.

Fellow Milforder here.  Actually my neighbor just sold his house... you might be my new neighbor!  The food is good in Milford.  Butterbees just opened and has a pretty good beer selection, Shooters up off of Branch Hill has the best dry rub wings around, and Chiportolet is always liberal with their meat.  I must echo what the others have said and tell you to get on the waiting list at MRPC.  I was on it for a good 11 months.  But its 10 minutes from driveway to driveway which is nice.  

Welcome to the area!



Sean

You don't have to be a member to shoot matches at MRPC.
Go shoot some matches, make friends and get invited back as a guest this will get you shooting while your on the waiting list.
Any Skyline Chili joint will be good.

Welcome to the area.  I"m in Loveland and a member at MRPC.  We should do a local meet & shoot once it warms up.

I'm in the area.  Look me up when your here and I'll help you get squared away.

Are you getting settled in and how do you like the area?

Bombay Brazier in Montgomery is the best Indian food I've had anywhere in the U.S.

If you like to hunt, Indian Creek Wilderness Area is just a short drive East from Milford on U.S. 50.

We are settled.  Seem to have wound up in a very good neighborhood with close neighbors.  Went to an easter egg hunt this morning and at least two of the dads were open carrying!  The funny thing is that SOMEWHERE near here there is a range of some kind.  Rounds are going off from daylight to dark every day.  They are close, but I haven't figured it out yet.  Any ranges off of Round Bottom Road?

Not related to the house specifically or anything, but I will say that this move was the right decision.  I'm happier now than I have been anytime in the last four years!

Thanks for the tip!  I just left several awesome Indian restaurants behind and I have a hankering for some Gobi Manchurian, Chilli Chicken, Butter Chicken, and Garlic Naan

Probably
Miami Rifle & Pistol Club
5462 Stonelick Williams Corner Rd
Batavia, OH 45103

Could be this club as well.

http://www.milfordgunclub.com/

548 Roundbottom Road
Milford, Ohio 45150

I hear someone shooting all the time on the weekend and I don't live anywhere near either of those ranges.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner - thanks for solving that mystery for us!  I'm over 6 miles from the other club.  In about another month or so, I'll be ready to get out and shoot, but I'm rusty.  I didn't get ANY hot trigger time in the past 14 months...