moving to Boston, but where?! (Lowell, Lawrence: car insurance, buying a house, buying)

[4kidsandadog]

I looked Boxford up on www.greatschools.net as suggested here....the schools were given a 10 out of 10. MCAS scores for 2006 did not show Boxford near the top.....however, our present school system was. Our present system was also given a 10 on greatschools.net.
My husband is feeling quite interested in the north shore now that we are talking about it, since he has an offer to join a firm in Portsmouth, NH. We were kind of intrigued by the idea of being close to both Portsmouth, which is kind of artsy and cool for me, and a business opportunity for him.
But that brings to mind another question.......Is there a NH/Maine school system that would be just as good or better?
Oh boy, one question seems to lead to 10 more! Thank you all for your input and I hope you don't mind putting up with me....

[smarty]

Originally Posted by 4kidsandadog

I looked Boxford up on www.greatschools.net as suggested here....the schools were given a 10 out of 10. MCAS scores for 2006 did not show Boxford near the top.....however, our present school system was. Our present system was also given a 10 on greatschools.net.
My husband is feeling quite interested in the north shore now that we are talking about it, since he has an offer to join a firm in Portsmouth, NH. We were kind of intrigued by the idea of being close to both Portsmouth, which is kind of artsy and cool for me, and a business opportunity for him.
But that brings to mind another question.......Is there a NH/Maine school system that would be just as good or better?
Oh boy, one question seems to lead to 10 more! Thank you all for your input and I hope you don't mind putting up with me....

All MCAS score and town/district info are on MA's department of education website. Boxford elementary goes from K-6. Check Masconomet for grade 7-12.

[url]profiles.doe.mass.edu/home.asp?mode=o&so=-&ot=5&o=2203&view=tst [url]

There are many nice town in the North. Andover, North Andover, North Reading, Newburyport are other towns people like.

Just remember, people can give you names after names of town. It will not help unless you have more concrete criteria.

[4kidsandadog]

My husband is getting serious about joining that firm in Portsmouth NH. So now for my more concrete criteria:
1. Within commuting distance from Portsmouth NH (45 min max)
2. Good schools
3. Family friendly town that is not too small (ie...nothing happening at all, not even a coffee shop, drug store, grocery store) or that is small but is withing a couple minutes of a more interesting town (that has the above and also some interesting shops, galleries, movie theater, stop and shop, rec program for kids, parks, trails)
4. We are willing to pay higher taxes/housing costs to find such a town....

Anything else I should include in my concrete criteria??

[CityGirl52]

Hello 4kidsandadog,

If your husband is going to get that job in Portsmouth, NH. Why not check out the seacoast of NH to live? There's a fairly new Stop & Shop finally over in Exeter, NH. not too far from the fairly new Super Shaw's as a matter of fact AND there's always MarketBasket right near it as well. You certainly wouldn't go hungry, that's for sure. Berwick Academy is in Berwick, ME. Phillips Exeter Academy as you know is right in Exeter, NH. There's the Portsmouth Christian Academy as well as St. Thomas Aquinas in Dover, NH. The regional public High Schools are also in this whole area of the Seacoast. It depends on what town you're going to live in as to what public schools as you know that your children would go to. Hampton Falls is extremely nice and not too far from Stratham or Exeter, No. Hampton, Rye Beach as well as Rye and Hampton are all also quite nice. Mega-homes there, as I call them! Your mouth drops when you see half of them, they're so stunning, especially lately with the homes all done up with Christmas lights! AND some not so big mega-homes, but nice little quaint New England Victorians, Colonials or lovely New Englanders scattered here and there. I think you'd really like the area once you got used to it, myself.

If you really have your heart set on northern Massachusetts, then if I were you I would check out Boxford, Georgetown, Groveland or Newburyport to live in. Any of these towns are easily accessable via I-95. I really don't care for driving on I-495, people can go on that road all they want, I can't stand it, it's not only got crazy drivers on it, but it's filthy in the nice weather! As soon as you drive from I-95 south to I-495, it's so gross! I'm not kidding you either, it's getting worse too with the litter! May be this new Governor Massachusetts is getting will hopefully pay attention to this more than the other guy!

If you can stay near the towns I just mentioned off of the I-95 area it would be so much easier for your husband to get back and forth from Portsmouth. It's a straight run and it'll be so much easier in the long run. The roads in NH are GREAT in the wintertime too! It's just that once you hit Massachusetts, you know you're there because they really aren't as good with the roads as they are here.

Good luck choosing a town to live in. If you go to this site the Eagle Tribune has called in their "Where We Live" section, you'll read up on the northern MA. towns I mentioned, it'll give you really good descriptions of each town that you're thinking about, they're all really nice towns too by the way! I've had to drive through Georgetown & Boxford from No. Andover quite a few times and got to really see just how pretty that whole area is. I think you'd really like it through there a lot! If you go through Boxford and are in the area when it's a nice warm day? Look for Benson's Ice Cream Stand! In the Fall there's the Boxford Apple Festival around late September every year that's really great!

http://plus.eagletribune.com/cgi-bin...boxford.ss-wwl

Wherever you choose to live, MUCH happiness in your new life!

[4kidsandadog]

Thank you so much for all your helpful information. I will do some research tonight! Many thanks!

[4kidsandadog]

One question for you CityGirl52....
My husband is VERY pro public school.......He is a little worried about living in an area with so many private schools (Exeter etc)....He says he's worried about the whole private vs public rivalry/stigma etc.......
My question is....
What NH town in the Portsmouth area do you think has a great public school? Also, do you think there's really any concern with the whole public/private thing?

[CityGirl52]

I sent you a private message regarding your last few questions so look for it when you get the chance! Thanks, and GOOD LUCK to you with your search on finding just the right place to live in New England!

CityGirl52

[smarty]

Originally Posted by 4kidsandadog

One question for you CityGirl52....
My husband is VERY pro public school.......He is a little worried about living in an area with so many private schools (Exeter etc)....He says he's worried about the whole private vs public rivalry/stigma etc.......
My question is....
What NH town in the Portsmouth area do you think has a great public school? Also, do you think there's really any concern with the whole public/private thing?

check out this report.

[url]http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard//pubs/studies/2006461.asp[url]


Again your education level and income is a much better prediction of your child's score. Many of those top private schools are from all over the country or world.

One other thing. If you child require regular special needs, you may be better off with public school as many private school do not deal with learning disability well.

Think about what is important to you and your child? What is your definition of good school?

[4kidsandadog]

Thanks for your advice, everyone. Here is where things are as of now... We have bounced all over the place, but now seem to be settling on a few "finalists" for towns in the Boston area. Smarty, we have tried to take your advice about being more precise about criteria etc. also. Our current list includes:
Lincoln (good location, rural feeling, good schools, love walden pond etc)
Dover (too pricey, but we're browsing)
Medfield (good schools, young families, more bang for your buck)
South Natick (quaint town center, pretty good schools, close to Boston)
Sharon (beautiful, good schools, commuter rail, young families)
Concord/Carlisle (good schools, nice shops, proximity to Boston)

So that's where we are right now....it seems like all these areas are kind of similar, with a few distinguishing characteristics to each. At this point, it seems like it's going to come down to finding the right house.....

[smarty]

Congratulations on your narrowing of the towns.

I noticed one of the theme is good school as your search criteria. I suggest you spend some time visiting the schools if possible. Not just look at the building. Understand their philosophy in teaching and see if you agree. There are some very liberal schools and others are very conservative. For example, some school has minimal requirement for graduation and it depends on your child to pick course. Other may have very strict core course requirement. Some may teach more about different culture like two moms or dads as a family unit. It may help you narrow the towns more. What type of AP classes are offered and how do they pick the kids?

Good luck.

ps.. Lincoln is no picnic in term of price either. I recall seeing a 2000 sqft house for $750K a few years ago.

Check the tax rate and tax bill when looking at houses. It can easily add another $6-12K a year depending on the town. As mentioned, some towns like Dover and Lincoln do not have much commercial revenue.