Buying a condo in Lincoln, MA (low income, real estate, power lines)

[cooldw57]

What is the Town of Lincoln like? I visited a property with my buyer agent at Battle Road Farm condo complex in North Lincoln this week and really liked it. I am interested in retaining the maximum resale value of the property, and also a decent school district, safe community. I know the average house price in Lincoln is roughly 1.1 million so it's a very affluent town, but the complex we looked at was initially designed for low income/mix income households that the town of Lincoln put together back in the early 90s. So will that potentially affect the resale value of the condo? Also will that also bring some social problem to this neighborhood?

Another slight concern is about Hanscom Air Force Base, it's literally right next to the complex. The runway is about 1500 feet away from the bedroom window. We talked to the neighbors and they told us they could certainly hear it, but the noise doesn't bother them much. But this is still a high concern for me and I think it certainly impacts the resale value of this home. Could someone maybe shed some lights on this? Thank you so much!

[haberstroh]

My house hunt was in 2007 and I remember Lincoln as unaffordable for us. We would have loved to live there but it was too expensive. Very good schools, very exclusive little town, very New England-ish. I don't know about your specific complex but I don't think you need to worry about social or criminal issues in Lincoln.
Now the runway is another story. I would not buy a house/condo so close to a major infrastructure project like a big street, train tracks or train station, high voltage power lines or commercially zoned neighborhood. Now an airport has almost all of these in addition to the noise. And even if the runway is not used very much right now airbase operations could be increased in the future and it could really impact your lifestyle and the re-sale of your home. I don't think Hanscom is facing base closure in the near or far future. I know you probably wanted to hear that it is not such a big deal if you really like the condo. But my personal opinion is that it is an absolute no-no. I am sure a lot of others feel the same. I'd say keep looking.

[scarletfire]

I agree with haberstroh. Location is everything when it comes to real estate. You may at some point get used to the noise (although that is highly questionable) but the noise & proximity to the base & its unknowns certainly will turn off buyers when you go to sell.

It reminds me of that Blues Brothers line:

Jake: "How often does the train go by?"

Elwood: "So often you don't even notice".