which suburbs are the best to live in terms of offers, schools, etc. I am planning on working in Reading, PA - which is about 1.2 hrs away and would like to live closer to Philly. Thanks.

The "best of the best" Phila. suburbs will not be a convenient ride to Reading. How long a commute are you willing to deal with on a daily basis?

30-45 minutes. I am looking for good schools with a greater variety of shopping and more high end stuff nearby. I have heard that people at my future job live in Exton and Oaks. Are these nice places. The commute is for them 40 min. I was wondering about more diverse communities in Chester and Montgomery counties ( I am asian). Thanks

I live near Oaks. Oaks is a very small area and does have some very nice housing. Depending on what part of Oaks, you could be in a couple different school districts. Exton is really growing into a large community. There is a lot of shopping there. Both Oaks and Exton are not far from King of Prussia which has the second largest shopping mall in the US.
Actually, King of Prussia is a pretty diverse community (I work there) and is convenient to all major highways in the area.

Welcome to our area Travelergal. Don't know where you're coming from but this area of PA is very liveable and generally affordable. You have a lot of options. The main routes into Reading are 422 and 276. The time to get to Reading is definitely less than 1.2 hours from many communities in Montgomery, Delaware and Chester counties. There are many well regarded public school districts and plenty of ethnic diversity. I think some of the best values are in Montgomery county if you want good proximity to culture and entertainment in Philadelphia.

I live in Exton and I really love it. There is plenty of shopping and restaurants. There are also moany beautiful parks in the area. It is definitley growing so the traffic can be tough. There is a turnpike exit (Downingtown).
I am not Asian, but it seems to me that there are many Asians in the area.
The schools are pretty good in this area plus there are private schools.

hi travelergal, a second welcome to the philly area. i grew up in valley forge and berwyn. it was culturally and ethnically diverse then and i'm mid 40's now.
if you look at towns on/near "the main line" you will have access to the train into phila which can be quite useful. the phrase refers to the train line itself.
towns to look in/or near might include everything west of bryn mawr out to exton or downingtown on rte. 30. however, the train line stops at paoli. great schools, excellent shopping in king of prussia and along rte. 30/lancaster pike.
longwood gardens is nearby in kennet square if you enjoy gardening. and if has not been moved yet the barnes museum in lower merion has some great paintings. each spring in devon there is a world class horseshow for 2 weeks. valley forge park is very pretty and a nice place to relax and check out a bit of revolutionary war stuff.
these places would be an easy commute to reading on rte. 76/176.
do keep us posted on your plans...