Croton-on-Hudson, NY
Population: 8,127
Median home value: $446,766
Median household income: $108,424
% of the population with white collar jobs: roughly 91%
% of the adult population who are college graduates: 58%
Individuals below the poverty level: 4%
Racial Makeup / Most prominent races: 87% White, 11% Hispanic or Latino (of any race), 4% Asian, 3% Black
Residents would hang out with NYC folk from: Bay Ridge? Upper West? There weren’t any people there to see!
Croton-on-Hudson is a village in the town of Cortlandt in Westchester County on the Hudson River.
Metro-North train from the Croton-Harmon station to Grand Central Station: 47-71 minute train ride, depending on time of day
By car to Grand Central Station: 40 miles, or 52 minutes
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Looking to buy a house in Croton-on-Hudson? A 3 bed / 2 bath isn’t too hard to find in the $450K-$600K range.
With taxes, interest, and homeowner’s insurance, and 20% down, it’ll cost between $2,400 and $3,100 per month.
(Note: property taxes here do not include the local taxes, which could bring these numbers up $1K more per month. Oh yes. That’s $1,000 more. Per. Month. For exact numbers, ask your realtor.)
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Looking for schools? Here’s what GreatSchools.org has to say:
|
SCHOOL |
GREATSCHOOLS.ORG RATING |
COMMUNITY RATING |
| Carrie E Tompkins School |
9/10 |
8/10 |
| Pierre Van Cortlandt School |
9/10 |
6/10 |
| Croton-Harmon High School |
8/10 |
8/10 |
I had great hopes for Croton-on-Hudson. When I attended Vassar College, I would drive over the bridge that carries the Taconic Parkway over the Croton reservoir and wonder how lovely the rest of Croton-on-Hudson must be. Well, I finally saw it. And… it’s fine. It’s small. It’s cute, don’t get me wrong. A mini farmer’s market was packing up as we arrived, there’s an adorable preschool called Children’s Space, and an ice cream parlor called The Blue Pig, which you really want to go to, just because it has a blue pig (a fake) standing guard outside. They have a wellness center, a frozen yogurt spot, and a few more childcare centers (you wonder if they have enough children in the town to fill these places!) Croton-on-Hudson has a number of locally-owned businesses, including the Black Cow Coffee Company, which was the first micro-roastery-coffee house in Westchester County! (note: I have no idea what micro-roastery coffee is.)
As I was taking photos of the town, an older gentleman stepped out of his parked car and said, “Are you here to raise my property taxes?” Ha ha, I thought. He’s making a joke about how he doesn’t want me promoting his town so that tons of city folk are gonna move in, consequently making his taxes go up. Then I thought, maybe he’s not joking. Maybe he really wants us to… stay. out.
Though Croton-on-Hudson is perfectly lovely with it’s heavily tree-lined roads on the way from the Taconic, there are barely any houses for sale and the town center is lacking a lot of standard necessities, which makes one wonder how far you need to drive to buy milk. It’s got one restaurant, a church, a bunch of childcare centers, yogurt, and a chance to get your wellness on. My husband and I just kept saying to one another, “This is it? Is there another part to it?”
So no, strange older gentleman, I don’t believe I will be raising your property taxes. It seems like a really nice place, but sometimes I just need to buy some milk, ya know?
May I introduce to you… Croton-on-Hudson!
Shopping for NYC Suburbs 
I grew up in Croton and return frequently from NYC to visit my parents, who still live there. While the town certainly has its faults (I couldn’t wait to leave when I left for college over ten years ago), I feel the need to correct a few things. It seems, from the description, that you missed a good 2/3 of the town. There is a large supermarket (a Shop Rite), several pharmacies (including a CVS and Rite Aid, as well as a locally owned establishment), a bagel store, plenty of restauarnts/eateries (both local and chains, such as a Dunkin Donuts and Subway), and no shortage of local pizzerias. There are several churches of various denominations, as well as a large Reform Jewish synagogue, and there is even a gym (NYSC), for those who worship their bodies as well as a diety. Croton also has an abundance of parks, including Croton Point Park, which hosts the Clearwater folk music festival every summer and has a small beachfront on the Hudson (although I am not sure I’d recommend swimming in the river). There certainly is a lack of entertainment (the closest movie theater, for instance, is a solid 15 minute drive away in Pleasantville), and there is virtually no retail to speak of. There are, however, plenty of places to buy milk.
I wish I saw all these places. I asked around while I was in town, and people said for “downtown Croton-on-Hudson”, that was all there was. Thanks for the clarification!
No problem! Just doing my civic duty.