Potentially moving to Boston, and need some area info please (loan, house)

[Highlander617]

I am a transplant from the great lakes area as well and second JP.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by mwj119

Eh. Maybe a good introductory brewery for the OP, as it's more traditional (in it's IPAs).

But he'll seen fall in love with New England/Northeast IPAs just like the rest of us, and then he'll forget that the Founders or New Holland types even exist. Not to be harsh, but the beers in Michigan simply aren't overly impressive once you try a Foam, Trillium, Tree House, Hills Farmstead. Not to say that there aren't some solid breweries that way - Shout out to Half Acre, Maplewood, Pipeworks in Chicago.

Speaking of which, NEIPAs are the hot ticket item across the country right now. Some excellent beers, especially up and down the coasts/Chicagoland, doing the style really well. Probably dialogue for another day, though.

Full agree with you. Three Floyds is right there, and great too.

But not too many places (any?) in the midwest do NEIPAs well IMO. They don't have the water for it. I spoke to brewers at Surly and Karben4 and both said to do it they'd need so much water treatment that it's not at all feasible. Most of the IPAs out there (ala Todd the Axeman) remind me of English influenced West Coast IPAs.

Toppling Goliath makes some great brews too.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by timberline742

Full agree with you. Three Floyds is right there, and great too.

But not too many places (any?) in the midwest do NEIPAs well IMO. They don't have the water for it. I spoke to brewers at Surly and Karben4 and both said to do it they'd need so much water treatment that it's not at all feasible. Most of the IPAs out there (ala Todd the Axeman) remind me of English influenced West Coast IPAs.

Toppling Goliath makes some great brews too.

Surly is great- Brewery has some good eats, too.

I've seen some NEIPAs pop up in Chicago specifically- Maplewood has Juice Pants and Son of Juice. Not bad, but nothing like a Julius or Built to Spill. The better NEIPA renditions i've seen come out of Colorado/SoCal. Highland Park, Weldwerks and Cerebral come to mind as doing a great job.

I have buddies from around the country that used to raise an eyebrow when I'd lament about a good NEIPA and the lack of availability. Those same friends text me a new picture of a juice bomb from local brewers seemingly weekly.

[JaredSD]

What area of the Great Lakes? How long have you been there and what do you think? Do you like it overall despite the cost? Any points of view pertaining to my original post would be great. Thanks!

Originally Posted by Highlander617

I am a transplant from the great lakes area as well and second JP.

[JaredSD]

I have been searching around and JP does seem like a good balance of everything for sure. It's still in the city, but perhaps not having to deal with the high rise situation of absolute downtown.

[gf2020]

Honestly, unless this job represents some great new opportunity for you I would suggest staying where you are. From a cost of living standpoint you will be taking a significant step backwards with the proposed salary.

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by mwj119

Eh. Maybe a good introductory brewery for the OP, as it's more traditional (in it's IPAs).

But he'll seen fall in love with New England/Northeast IPAs just like the rest of us, and then he'll forget that the Founders or New Holland types even exist. Not to be harsh, but the beers in Michigan simply aren't overly impressive once you try a Foam, Trillium, Tree House, Hills Farmstead. Not to say that there aren't some solid breweries that way - Shout out to Half Acre, Maplewood, Pipeworks in Chicago.

Speaking of which, NEIPAs are the hot ticket item across the country right now. Some excellent beers, especially up and down the coasts/Chicagoland, doing the style really well. Probably dialogue for another day, though.

oh man these are fighting words. Couldn't disagree more. Grand Rapids alone is many times superior to all of New England combined.

[bjimmy24]

As a native Clevelander, I would take a $70k salary there over 88k here. It's a definite step down lifestyle wise. No doubt about it.

[charolastra00]

Originally Posted by ocean900

I'm in Beacon Hill and pay around $30 a month for electricity, have no gas bill, and landlord pays for heat/water. Where in Boston are the utilities so high??

It depends a lot on the building. My landlord only pays for water and sewage. Oil heat and hot water, even while being super cognizant of keeping the thermostat low, is pricy. I currently live in an older 3 bedroom with ancient appliances and window ACs. At the *lowest*, we pay about $100 a month for electricity - largely because of the refrigerator - and it can go up to $150 or more in the summer with ACs running at night. In contrast, I am moving next week to a place on my own with heat/hot water included and with built in energy-efficient ACs and newer appliances with an expected monthly cost of $30-$40 a month.

Originally Posted by JaredSD

Good info for sure, thanks. Yeah, the car insurance here is freaking awful. I pay about $2100 a year with a spotless record.

How old is your car?

For reference, I have a spotless record, am a woman, and drive an 8 year old Civic and pay roughly that much living in Medford. My boyfriend actually registers his car at his parents' house (where he spends half the time anyway) because even with a spotless record and a 10 year old Nissan sedan, insurance would have been more than that. Boston-area car insurance is incredibly expensive.

[charolastra00]

Originally Posted by mwj119

Eh. Maybe a good introductory brewery for the OP, as it's more traditional (in it's IPAs).

But he'll seen fall in love with New England/Northeast IPAs just like the rest of us, and then he'll forget that the Founders or New Holland types even exist. Not to be harsh, but the beers in Michigan simply aren't overly impressive once you try a Foam, Trillium, Tree House, Hills Farmstead. Not to say that there aren't some solid breweries that way - Shout out to Half Acre, Maplewood, Pipeworks in Chicago.

Speaking of which, NEIPAs are the hot ticket item across the country right now. Some excellent beers, especially up and down the coasts/Chicagoland, doing the style really well. Probably dialogue for another day, though.

While this is veering dangerously off topic, beer culture in New England is out of sight. I have a good friend who lived in central Europe up until recently who would fly out to Vermont for the weekend from across the pond just to go to Hill Farmstead and check out other breweries in the area. Now that he's relocated to the west coast, he does more substantial New England beer trips regularly - and luckily I get to tag along!

Trillium is my favorite, especially the new substation in Roxbury which offers some tap takeovers as well with interesting offerings and collaborations. Nightshift in Everett is solid, and while Bone Up right down the street isn't quite as up to par (yet) but the crew is super friendly so it's worth it.

Breweries do tend to close on the early side, though, so don't expect them to be open past midnight (or often even past 10!).