Relocating to Boston Area (Job in Waltham) - Advice on Neighborhoods (Framingham: real estate, house)

[Relo13]

Hello All,

First of all thank you in advance for any replies, everyone's input will be greatly appreciated. We are planning to relocate from Europe to the Boston area next spring and are starting to research our options. We have the following requirements/situation and would love advise on where we should be looking to live based on it.

1.) I will be working out of Waltham - Less than a 30 minute commute via car ideal
2.) Our budget to buy is up to $400K although anything lower is always appreciated
3.) We have 2 kids under 5 so good schools is important
4.) We have family in the Albany, NY area so proximity to I-90 is a bonus.
5.) We would like around 2000 sq feet (not too much more as we don't want to heat a huge house if it isn't needed) and a decent amount of backyard etc (.33 acre+)
6.) Tight knit / active community a plus
7.) Proximity to tech companies (In case I'm not working for the company in Waltham in the future - I hear a LOT of tech companies are located in that area though - anyone care to elaborate?)
8.) Access to public transport into Boston on a recreational basis - so 5 miles or so from a train line?
9.) Access to amenities within 5-10 minutes like the movies, supermarkets, etc etc (Too old to care too much about nightlife etc lol)

We are working with a real estate agent to get an idea and are so far focused on Ashland, Framingham, Marlborough (In that order) so even verification of that is useful.

If there is anywhere East of Framingham that is affordable given our requirements, let me know as a shorter commute is always better!

Thanks!!!!
Jason

[kmann-sherborn]

Marlborough? That would not be my top choice based on your criteria. If it were me I'd look at communities a little northwest (Bolton, Berlin, Stow). They're really nice smaller communities. Also, although Framingham is reasonably close on the map, driving from the Mass Pike through to Rt 128 is a real pain. I also would not describe Framingham as a tight-knit community. It's actually the largest town in the state. Part are nice, parts are not so nice. If you prefer to be on the Mass Pike and east of Framingham, you may be able to find a few homes in Natick in your price range (though most likely a little smaller than 2,000 sq ft).

I've seen plenty of tech jobs in Waltham & along the Rt 128 corridor (Woburn, Burlington) as well as some along Rt 495 (Chelmsford, etc).

ps. For school info, greatschools.org is a pretty good resource. There's also an annual ranking of the best public high schools that Boston Magazine puts out but it only includes schools east of Rt 495.

Best of luck! :-)