When Sally Cuneo Ajello and her husband, Tom Ajello, went house hunting a few years ago, their three children, now ages 9, 7 and 4, were uppermost in their minds. “We wanted open spaces for them to run and play and a school district that we felt confident in,” said Ms. Ajello, 39, a freelance marketing consultant.

The couple, then living in Bridgeport, Conn., ended their search in Bethel, a town in northern Fairfield County. There, in 2013, they bought a 3,500-square-foot, four-bedroom farmhouse for $767,000. Situated on four acres, with a pool, a barn and a two-bedroom cottage, the house was constructed in 1796, with an addition built in 2000. Ms. Ajello called it “a true gem.”

She also praised the town’s natural beauty, the excellence of its schools and the possibility of commuting to Manhattan, where Mr. Ajello, 40, is a partner at the product design and innovation firm Makeable. (He alternates between riding Metro-North Railroad and driving his electric car.)

Ms. Ajello said the family enjoys the stretch of Greenwood Avenue downtown that is lined with restaurants and shops, among them an ice-cream parlor, a toy store, a yoga studio and three bookstores.