Huntingdon Valley Named Top Place to Raise Kids by Philly Magazine

Last month Philadelphia Magazine put together its list for families who are forgoing the city for the suburbs, and had a variety of factors to compile this list such as urbanity, open space, schools, downtown and much more.

The school district with , and was a major factor in receiving the honor.

Here is the blurb written about our neighborhood:

"Leafy and green, Huntingdon Valley doesn’t have a lot of shopping or decent restaurants, but it does have that rarest of modern commodities: silence. Sit out during the summer, and you can actually hear the crickets—and, blissfully, not much else. What the town lacks in Main Street amenities it makes up for in “a real sense of community,” says mother-of-three Linda Kline—“a sense that people are looking out for each other.” Parents are expected to be involved in the schools, and they are: Lower Moreland sends a staggering 97 percent of its students on to college, a long-standing tradition in one of the most well-educated and successful areas in the state. And while there may be little “there there,” fewer diversions mean more focus on actual family and neighbor connections. Says Kline, “You always have the feeling you’re raising your kids in a positive environment.” Sometimes, it takes a Valley …"

Huntingdon Valley

• Population: 12,982*
• School district: Lower Moreland
• SAT scores: 537 math / 566 reading / 550 writing
• Crime rate: .48 violent crimes per 1,000; 19.11 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $365,000
  * Population for Lower Moreland Township; includes Huntingdon Valley and other areas.

Here are the capsules of the other family-friendly suburbs that made the list:

Narberth

• Population: 4,282
• School district: Lower Merion
• Average SAT scores: 574 math / 589 reading / 576 writing
• Crime rate: 1.49 violent crimes per 1,000; 13.86 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $382,000

Haddonfield

• Population: 11,593
• School district: Haddonfield Borough
• Average SAT scores: 576 math / 572 reading / 577 writing
• Crime rate: .53 violent crimes per 1,000; 15.06 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $272,500

Wayne

• Population: 31,531*
• School district: Radnor Township
• Average SAT scores: 567 math / 606 reading / 568 writing
• Crime rate: .64 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 10.66 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $456,500
  *Population of Radnor Township; includes Wayne and other neighborhoods.

Moorestown

• Population: 20,726
• School district: Moorestown Township
• SAT scores: 587 math / 562 reading / 560 writing
• Crime rate: .92 violent crimes per 1,000; 0.47 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $502,000

Medford Lakes

• Population: 4,146
• School district: Medford Lakes
• SAT scores: 547 math / 524 reading / 520 writing
• Crime rate: Zero violent crimes per 1,000; 15.84 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $268,000

Upper Providence

• Population: 21,219
• School district: Rose Tree Media
• Average SAT scores: 527 math / 543 reading / 526 writing
• Crime rate: .27 violent crimes per 1,000; 2.17 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $293,000

Warwick

• Population: 14,437
• School district: Central Bucks
• Average SAT scores: 550 math / 571 reading / 557 writing
• Crime rate: .34 violent crimes per 1,000; 7.34 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $390,000

Upper Makefield

• Population: 8,190
• School district: Council Rock
• SAT scores: 535 math / 563 reading / 546 writing
• Crime rate: .59 violent crimes per 1,000; 9.28 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $585,000

Wynnewood

• Population: 13,299
• School District: Lower Merion
• Average SAT scores: 574 math / 589 reading / 576 writing
• Crime rate: .58 violent crimes per 1,000; 15.29 nonviolent per 1,000*
• Median home price: $415,000

Swarthmore

• Population: 6,194
• School district: Wallingford-Swarthmore
• Average SAT scores: 559 math / 575 reading / 558 writing
• Crime rate: 1.15 violent crimes per 1,000; 13.83 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $405,000

Solebury

• Population: 8,692
• School district: New Hope-Solebury
• SAT scores: 555 math / 564 reading / 548 writing
• Crime rate: .91 violent crimes per 1,000; 8.64 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $537,000

Lafayette Hill

• Population: 17,349
• School district: Colonial
• SAT scores: 526 math / 549 reading / 522 writing
• Crime rate: .51 violent crimes per 1,000; 12.02 nonviolent per 1,000
• Average home price: $295,000

Jenkintown

• Population: 4,422
• School district: Jenkintown
• Average SAT scores: 565 math / 574 reading / 579 writing
• Crime rate: .93 violent crimes  per 1,000; 3.49 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $160,000

East Marlborough

• Population: 7,026
• School district: Unionville-Chadds Ford
• SAT scores: 573 math / 591 reading / 567 writing
• Crime rate: Zero violent crimes per 1,000; 2.08 nonviolent per 1,000
• Median home price: $390,000

How they ranked them:

"Knowing the importance of schools to parents, we first narrowed districts to those with minimum SAT scores of 520 each for reading, math and writing. Next, since kids thrive among other kids, we selected towns  with populations of at least 2,000 and where, in most cases, at least 25 percent of residents are under 18. Towns also had to have low crime rates (fewer than two violent crimes per 1,000 residents, and fewer than 30 nonviolent per 1,000). Finally, we assigned reporters to uncover intangibles such as community involvement, arts and active sports amenities, green space and diversity, so we could determine the best of the best that remained."