Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My wife and I are strongly considering purchasing our first home in Fort-Hill, Roxbury. It makes a lot of sense as it is one of the last affordable places, close to downtown where we both work. While it is close to sketchy areas, Fort-Hill seems safe enough for being in the city. Our main concern right now is making the right financial decision, especially since this zone is still in development, with Bartlett Place project in the works. In your experience, how did similar project affect the immediate surrounding and market value?
I've heard from local Boston politicos Fort Hill is a microcosm of intense, extremely involved citizens. The closer to the tower, the more activist they are. If you're into community involvement and want to be part of an active community, this is the place to be.
I'd probably compare the Bartlett project and its impact on the community to the lower part of Centre St, JP. The community and Boston at large is actively keeping it mixed economically and racially...kicking and screaming they will stop it from excessive gentrification.
IDK if the property will hold its value the same as other locations in the city.
The newer stick built condos they built four-five years ago abutting Fort Hill are already in shambles. Poor construction. No maintenance.
Not on Fort Hill, but adjacent to BHA housing, are mixed value condos on Tremont heading to Ruggles (past the Piano Building). These have been here about 10-15 years. They have undergone exterior renovations twice due to poor materials. They still look like crap. I'm assuming, but have not researched, issues with condo fees and maintenance with mixed value properties are an issue.
The area is OK, but it is not equal to, say, Tent City. Tent City in the South End was a hit... but, the area is not really comparable because everything surrounding Tent City is so high end. That's what would be missing from this development. It would be the "high-end" component. The other development south on Washington are lower income. IDK if they are owner occupied or rentals. That would a factor.
On the other side, Northeastern would love to extend its husky paws into more of the Lower Roxbury area. RCC is in flux -- prime real estate next to the Orange line. Who knows what the USPS will do?
Dudley is a hub for the Silver line and buses. The Silver line is NOT a train (I loathe it). Is it on par with other neighbhorhoods with a dedicated subway station? Not in my book (again, I loathe the Silver line, I know, some people don't mind it). But, if it gets you where you need to go, then it works.
Came across this listing on Curbed... the comments are worth reading.
I agree with:
It is a food desert.
You will drive everywhere.
You don't really have the same walkability as other neighborhoods.
Thank you flowbe202 for your feedbacks. We've been to the area a few times now and we do see most of Fort-Hill is well taken care of. We do see Bartlett Place project as a great initiative for the area. It does look good on paper, but we cannot know for sure how it will impact the area. Regarding walkability, indeed there is not much close by, but we do not mind driving for grocery shopping once in a while. Going out can be done using orange line, to go to JP or back bay in minutes. We do not mind walking a bit to Roxbury Crossing.
I'm a city person through and through... And i even looked at Fort Hill four years ago. Places i looked at were right on the top of the hill. Wanted the full sun. however, no places were in my range and, i really felt cut off from the rest of the city.
Lots of pluses, lots of deltas.
--will always be cut-off from rest of city by Tremont and Washington.
--wont be as walkable as many other areas
--being on wrong side of hill = dark apartment in the winter
--no neighborhood coffeeshops, etc 'right next door'
Prices are so high right now... Its a tough call. I don't expect it to be a Somerville in the rough, though.
For purposes of full disclosure, I'm probably one of those "extremely" involved Fort Hill citizens flowbe202 referred to. My wife and I bought a condo in Fort Hill two plus years ago and we couldn't be more happy about our decision.
As others have mentioned, you have to drive to find a grocery and there isn't a local coffee shop, which are inconveniences. The flip side is that it's pin-drop quiet at night and surprisingly free from crime which I think is a byproduct of it being a relatively low activity area. The area surrounding Fort Hill isn't great. You see reported incidents on Washington Street, occasional reports on Columbus, and for whatever reason the JP side of Egelston Square has been one of the worst areas in the city this summer. Fort Hill itself, however, is isolated and has had almost no reported serious crime over the last half decade plus.
As much as everyone is correct that Fort Hill is easier to navigate if you have occasional access to a car, it's only ten to twenty minutes to downtown via the orange line. We have neighbors who do all of their shopping at the Haymarket farmer's market and then T it home so it is possible to live here without any use of a car if you're really committed. If you drive, Fort Hill is well positioned to 93, 90 and downtown Boston. My wife and I actually end up ubering quite a bit ($8 to Backbay, $10 to the Financial District) during the winter when we get lazy.
As far as neighborhood characteristics, Fort Hill has some of the prettier housing in the city once you get off of Washington and Columbus. There are a number of country estates, Edwardian brick row houses, and the like up on the hill. The area was originally built for people of means, and although some of the more recent planned developments are disappointing, especially those on Washington and Columbus, there are a lot of impressive homes when you work yourself into the neighborhood. There also have been a large number of neat energy neutral green home builds recently and they seem to be selling quickly at small fortunes.
Fort Hill is a great dog and gardening neighborhood, with numerous open spaces, community gardens and parks. One of the things you don't really realize about Boston is that many parts are built on landfill. When you get into an area that was around in colonial times, everything grows better. You see giant old growth trees in Fort Hill, which you don't get in many Boston neighborhoods.
Fort Hill has some of the better parochial and public school options in Boston, although if we we're being completely honest, almost all of Boston's schooling options leave a lot to be desired. Nathan Hale elementary is one of the highest ranked elementary schools in Boston, and John D. O'Bryant School of Math & Science and Boston Latin are close by. Mission Church Grammar School seems to be the big draw for parochial students.
As for property values, according to Zillow, 02119, the zip code encompassing Roxbury highlands, has seen the highest property value increases in Boston over the past several years, hitting a total of about 50% appreciation over the last two cycles. I know Zillow isn't the most reliable source but those numbers are consistent with what I've seen. Fort Hill appears to me to be running slightly less than fifty percent on the whole with the area of 02119 around Dudley Square seeing the greatest appreciation.
Even with the recent appreciation, I'm not convinced the run is coming to an end. The development of Dudley Square has been the biggest driver for these increases, and has pushed up the property values in Fort Hill all the way down through the Roxbury side of Egelston Square. Fort Hill is never going to be Davis Square, with its lack of commercial activity, but Dudley Square looks like it's in the early stages of becoming one of the next highly active neighborhoods. I wouldn't really place too much importance on the Bartlett Place development in isolation, especially if you live back in Fort Hill -- the development at Dudley is the main player, and while the price of real estate in Dudley has jumped, the neighborhood is still just beginning to really find its legs. There's still a ton of headroom.
A secondary driver of the increase in real estate prices is the continued expansion of the colleges along the Southwest corridor. For better and worse, more students seem to be moving into the area as the colleges expand and push students outwards.
I don't see any reason why Fort Hill can't continue its appreciation run. It's one of the safer Boston neighborhoods; it's well situated to the orange line, 90 and 93; it has nice housing stock and decent schooling options; the colleges provide a steady stream of renters if you want them; and it's really quite beautiful up on the hill in the summer. The real roadblock still holding back property values in Fort Hill is the Roxbury name, but that kind of thing only lasts so long. I don't think it's an accident that the precipitous growth in real estate values here have coincided with the development of better web real estate research tools.
Last edited by such sweet thunder; 09-09-2015 at 12:07 AM..
^^Nope. You've only been there 2 years. Talking the 20-30 year veterans. You know, the ones who have told you what you're doing wrong with your recycling and how to park on the street ( i.e. not in their spot).
I don't know about the walk-ability factor being so poor--I mean that hill is basically all residential with schools around the perimeter, and some convenience stores and stuff too, like alone Washington, but basically anywhere on the hill is going to be short walking distance to Roxbury Crossing or Jackson Square stations, and depending on where you are not a very far walk from Dudley Square where you can grab food, go to your local coffee shop, or grab the Silver Line or buses (for example the 8 if you wanna catch a movie at the Landmark, or 66). As for supermarkets, you have Tropical Foods right there on Melnea Cass Boulevard. If you have a car that's like...5 minutes. There's also a S&S in Brigham Circle. I think it's a great neighborhood to consider.
I don't know about the walk-ability factor being so poor--I mean that hill is basically all residential with schools around the perimeter, and some convenience stores and stuff too, like alone Washington, but basically anywhere on the hill is going to be short walking distance to Roxbury Crossing or Jackson Square stations, and depending on where you are not a very far walk from Dudley Square where you can grab food, go to your local coffee shop, or grab the Silver Line or buses (for example the 8 if you wanna catch a movie at the Landmark, or 66). As for supermarkets, you have Tropical Foods right there on Melnea Cass Boulevard. If you have a car that's like...5 minutes. There's also a S&S in Brigham Circle. I think it's a great neighborhood to consider.
I think this is right. Fort Hill is very walkable in terms of being serviced by the Orange Line, the commuter rail, and the Southwest corridor bike path. And it's plenty close to a number of supermarkets -- the two of which you mentioned, the S&S in Brigham Circle and Tropical Foods on Melnea Cass, as well as the S&S and Whole Foods in JP on Centre Street.
I think the reason why I'm still okay with it being called a food desert is the atrocious state of the supermarkets on the Boston side of the Charles. All of the supermarkets I mentioned above strike me as both overpriced and carrying substandard produce. I feel like until a Wegman's or Market Basket break into the neighborhood, it's going to be slim pickings for local shopping.
I've lived in Fort Hill for a year after having been in the South End for a long time (tired of my rent going up!). I LOVE it here! It feels like home, and it's truly a close community, the friendliest place in Boston I've lived - so many neighbors have introduced themselves at the park. Great place to live with dogs especially. I don't have a car but I'm a biker, so the southwest corridor connects me to my old spots in the South End in 10 minutes, or Jamaica Pond the other direction, and the Orange line is very accessible as well. As for the food desert thing, Stop and Shop is a 5 minute walk but even if it weren't, hey, you can get groceries delivered for $5 a load, and that's a lot less than it costs to own a car in the city! Some people like more of a "city" vibe, but I like that the neighborhood is quiet and suburby-feeling - I actually think that's why the crime rates are almost nil, that there's nothing over here to draw people in who don't already live here (except the park, which I walk my dog to at ~11 PM every night and have never had an issue, as a 20 something woman).
Fort Hill itself is a fun mix of hippies who bought here in the 70s, and middle class people from all backgrounds. The one thing I don't like is there are MAD STRAY CATS - mostly attributable to one (very nice, old hippie) couple who takes in as many as they can and lets them roam outdoors. (No mice, though, so hey!)
People just don't KNOW about Fort Hill... I've lived in Boston 10 years and when I tell people where I live, they have no idea where it is. It's this amazing little pocket that defies what people associate with Roxbury. I think the continual gentrification is inevitable just due to the location, the beautiful brownstones and park, and most of all the supply and demand issue with Boston housing. Dudley is getting a lot of attention, new buildings, and jobs. And Fort Hill by the park is just beautiful. Hoping it gets ENOUGH attention to get the services Roxbury hasn't always received from the city... but not enough that gentrification ruins it
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
however, no places were in my range and, i really felt cut off from the rest of the city. 
