South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

DH and I have been casually looking for a house..we really like Babylon Village..it's a nice community and has a good school district. We commute to Manhattan and while the commute from Babylon is a bit long, it's a good train line.

We looked at a few houses in Seaford and Wantagh and are interested in those towns too. Here is where we are torn:

Babylon is nice because it has the Village..we can potentially walk from our house to the restaurants and shops. The Village is lit up and decorated for Xmas every year which is really nice.

Wantagh and Seaford are closer to the city by 15-18 minutes on the LIRR each way. The extra half an hour per day makes a difference. However, neither of them has a "village" like Babylon does.

Does anyone have any advice? I guess ideallly it would be nice to hear from someone who lived in Babylon Village and somewhere else on the south shore who could compare..any tips would be great! Thanks!

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I say you buy my house in North Merrick. but seriously, Merrick has a village feel on Merrick Avenue. You can walk to restaurants and supermarkets and parks. And I'm right off the southern state and on the Babylon line for the LIRR. FM me if you want my MLS #.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

Massapequa Park is on the Babylon train line and has a village - maybe check out that area as well?

Out of the three towns you listed - I like Babylon, but I'm a sucker for villages. They're all decent school districts and nice areas.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

The babylon train has express ones so it might not really be that much longer.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I grew up in Seaford, and now I live in N. Bellmore. My sister is in Wantagh, and I do most of my work in Bellmore and the surrounding towns.

Babylon Village is a really nice area, but as a former commuter (and someone whose DH commutes), I would rather be in Nassau. To me, even adding an extra 15 to 20 minutes on a commute is a lot.

While Seaford really doesn't have a village area, Wantagh sort of does. It's not a true "village" area like Babylon has, but growing up, my friend in Wantagh always called the area north of Sunrise Highway surrounding Wantagh Ave the "town" area. There are plenty of stores and restaurants there.

If you want that "town" feel, what about Bellmore. It does have a village area (on Bedford Ave, north of Sunrise), and there are a lot of community activities in Bellmore -- a Halloween parade and trick or treating at the village stores for kids, a fall street fair, the Strawberry Festival in June, etc. The village area has restaurants, shops, movie theaters (one even includes a community theater with lots of children's productions), candy stores, a pottery painting studio, and more. A lot of my customers who are interested in Wantagh also look in Bellmore and even Merrick, because they are kind of similar communities with comparable school districts.

When I commuted to NYC, my train ride was 43 mins from Bellmore (on the express). The express trains go from Penn to Merrick, Bellmore, and Wantagh only (and vice-versa).

Feel free to contact me if you want more information on Bellmore!

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

My mom and sister live in Babylon Village. My mom works in the city and only takes the express trains. We lived in Massapequa Park growing up, she just bought her house 4 yrs ago in Babylon. She said that her train to the city from Babylon is actually faster than it was from Massapequa because Babylon is express and most of the ones from Massapequa did stops from either Massapequa to Bellmore then became express or Massapequa to Seaford then became express. Only minus, the parking stinks at the station, but I think most stations have tight parking, like you need to get there at 6am to get a spot parking lol.

She LOVES the village as does my sister. Yah, Massapequa and other towns have a village, most Long Island towns do, but to me, they don't compare to say Babylon and Sayville. They both always have fairs and events. Both have a small town feel, everyone knows everyone. Babylon only has one elementary school I believe and the jr and sr high schools are in the same building, it's that small and it's really tight knit. There are so many great shops and places to eat. Sherry's for organic groceries, The Argyle and Horace and Sylvias are great places to eat, the Post Office or Mary Carrolls for a great night out at the bar, or if you prefer to get your dance on... Lily Flannigans lol. There is a town pool in South Babylon, and although I don't live in Babylon like my mom and sister I do live in the Town of Babylon and love it. The beaches are so great and the town has lots to offer, free concerts, the Beach Huts, and great stuff for families.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I moved to Babylon recently, and I adore it! The village is wonderful and the restaurants are amazing. I love having it within walking distance! Our neighbors are great, and it really has that small town vibe we wanted. I also love how close we are to the beaches.

I don't commute into the city often, but when I do I typically try for an express train and the ride is an easy one.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

Thanks everyone! We will check out the village areas of Bellmore, Merrick, Massapequa and Wantagh. We do really like Babylon Village so we will weight the pros and cons when we find a house, wherever it may be.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I really liked Babylon Village but the commute into the city for DH was a bit long. He also needs to be close to major airports as well.

I think the SD in the Village is very small - I actually preferred a larger one. I agree also with the pp on Seaford - not as much of a village feel. Mass Park does have that feel with holidays, etc. But Babylon kicks @ss with restaurants!!

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I'm in Wantagh and don't mind not having the village. Bellmore's is very close by if I want it. Wantagh has excellent schools and is very family oriented. There is great shopping all around it. Plus, it is surrounded by parkways...just hop on one and you can get somewhere quickly. I also love being so close to the beach.

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

Just be careful of houses near the water. A lot of them in many of the towns listed flood. Otherwise everyone gave great advice!

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

i know seaford and wantagh best of the three

i graduated seaford, my husband graduated wantagh and his parents still live there.

i would hands down choose wantagh

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I have lived in 2 towns with a village and I never even go in them. I only use the Post Office:). I would not base my decision on that. But JMO.

I love Seaford & Wantagh. I grew up in Suffolk and now live in Nassau. I love Nassau.

Seaford has a lot to offer to the community. They are a close knit town. Seaford on Merrick Rd has a ton of shops. My Dad owns an Auto Body there

Re: South Shore Girls..Babylon vs Seaford vs Wantagh

I live in Wantagh, I moved from suffolk county. I'm so happy with the school district. We are between the 135 and wantagh pwky and so close to the beach, its a very convenient location.
We don't have a village but If I want to go its a 5 minute drive into bellmore village. My cousin lives in Babylon Village he likes it but has to pay town and separate village taxes plus its a longer commute to the city so for that reason I would look into Wantagh and Bellmore.