Aaron and Caroline Sokol with Maxwell in Westchester County, where they recently bought a house after renting for years in Manhattan. James Estrin/The New York Times

Caroline and Aaron Sokol loved their one-bedroom rental on the Upper West Side.

“We would joke that if we never had a kid, we could have lived and died in that apartment,” Mrs. Sokol said.

Then, of course, they had a kid: Their son, Maxwell, was born in October 2023. The couple gave it a shot at first, staying in the rental for another year. “Being in the city with a baby is actually very convenient because everything is so close,” Mr. Sokol said.

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They put up a temporary wall to create a six-by-nine-foot nursery, complete with a crib and dresser, but before long, things felt cramped. “I couldn’t have been nine months pregnant and fit in that room,” Mrs. Sokol said.

They considered renting a larger apartment in the neighborhood, but realized that the rent for a two-bedroom would cost about the same as the monthly mortgage for a house outside the city, even with interest rates still fairly high.

“We felt like the house was really important, and if we have to pay the interest rate, we’re going to do it because we need the space and we don’t want to wait until the market changes,” Mr. Sokol said.

The Sokols, who met in 2009 while attending Indiana University, both enjoyed childhoods in the suburbs — Mrs. Sokol, 34, in Framingham, Mass., outside Boston, and Mr. Sokol, 35, in Scarsdale, the upscale Westchester County town just north of New York City. They wanted the same for Maxwell, and Westchester seemed like the obvious choice because of “the commute and the schools,” Mr. Sokol said.

Mr. Sokol, vice president of licensing at the brand management firm WHP Global, goes to his Manhattan office five days a week, while Mrs. Sokol works remotely as a senior manager at Capital One. After selling some stocks and pulling from savings, they had enough for a 12 percent down payment on a $1 million home, and got a $50,000 penalty-free loan against Mrs. Sokol’s 401k to cover moving expenses and furnishings.

They clicked with the agents hosting the first open house they visited, Nicole Orefice and Janine Hennigan of William Raveis, and the four visited about a dozen listings through the winter. Along with a reasonable commute and recent updates, their wishlist included a nice kitchen and three bedrooms plus a home office. Early in the search, Mrs. Sokol developed an affinity for Cape Cod-style homes.

Among their options:

No. 1

Renovated Scarsdale Four-Bedroom

James Estrin/The New York Times

This fully renovated, four-bedroom, two-bath house from 1955 sat on a 0.14-acre lot. It had about 1,800 square feet, with two bedrooms and a bathroom on each level. On the first floor was an eat-in kitchen with a skylight and breakfast bar, a dining room and a living room with a wood-burning fireplace. Upstairs, the primary bedroom was big but lacked an en suite bath. There was a walk-out basement, a rear deck and patio, a backyard with a creek, and a driveway that sloped down to the garage. It was in the Sokols’ top-choice town of Scarsdale, and was close to Eastchester schools. The asking price was $999,000, with about $17,000 a year in taxes.

Keller Williams Realty Group

No. 2

Hastings-on-Hudson Five-Bedroom

James Estrin/The New York Times

This updated five-bedroom, 2.5-bath house from 1950 had a roomy 2,363 square feet in the popular Westchester river village west of Scarsdale. The red brick exterior was complemented by new black-trim windows and white vinyl siding on the dormers. Inside, there were arched entryways and an open-concept living/family room with a wood-burning fireplace. The kitchen was bright, but lacked counter space. The finished basement walked out to a backyard with a patio. The house was on a 0.28-acre double lot, leaving room for expansion, and was fenced on one side. The asking price was $895,000, with about $20,600 in property taxes.

Courtesy of Anna Lee/Julia B. Fee Sotheby's International Realty

No. 3

Updated Hawthorne Three-Bedroom

James Estrin/The New York Times

Farther north in the hamlet of Hawthorne, this three-bed, 2.5-bath house from 1966 had 1,807 square feet. It was fully renovated, with a living room that opened into an updated kitchen with an oversized island. The dining room had doors out to a new Trex deck and the backyard. The first floor also held the primary suite and ample storage. Upstairs were two more bedrooms and a home office. The walkout lower level had a family room with an electric fireplace, a finished laundry room and access to a covered patio with a hot tub. The $749,000 asking price was appealing, but the other options had more bedrooms, and living in Hawthorne would add time to a city commute. Property taxes were about $14,860.

James Estrin/The New York Times

Find out what happened next by answering these two questions:

Which Would You Choose?

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Renovated Scarsdale Four-Bedroom

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Hastings-on-Hudson Five-Bedroom

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Updated Hawthorne Three-Bedroom

Which Did They Buy?

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Renovated Scarsdale Four-Bedroom

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Hastings-on-Hudson Five-Bedroom

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Updated Hawthorne Three-Bedroom