Possible move to Western MA, where would you live in you had $600k to spend??????????? (Amherst: houses, new construction)

[western mass and love it]

I work in CT and live in MA,I get maybe 50$ back from CT and maybe 100$ back from MA. And how can you say that the Wmass schools are not even in the same league as schools in CT. There are many many fine schools in Wmass that i would trust my kids education to.

[western mass and love it]

Also on top of property tax being higher in CT,gas is more expensive,food is more expensive and i was paying more out for electric and natural gas when i when i lived in CT (i was living in Farmington). And when we moved to MA my kids were a little behind in their schooling compared to what the new school was doing.

[Homer12]

Very odd, Granby, CT is rated one of the best schools in the area.

I am not sure why your paying both taxes and not getting it back, you have to claim non-resident in one state. I looked it up and it was pretty clear that you get it back.

Simsbury is to far down, if I look in CT it will be either Granby of Suffield.

Going to drive through more of the towns this weekend, plan to spend a lot of time in Granby, Suffield for CT and Southwick and Westfield for MA.

[gf2020]

I would agree with the Longmeadow, East Longmeadow suggestions. I would also only spend $400K on a house and then spend $250K on a vacation house in Vermont. ;-)

Simsbury and Granby, CT are very nice but it is further from your work territory and it is considerably more expensive than the MA towns.

[nei]

Btw, why would you want newer construction? Much of the housing stock here is quite old, and I haven't seen much new construction (though there are pockets of it).

I find older construction has more character, looks nicer and often is in more interesting neighborhoods.

[brightdoglover]

With that budget, I'd suggest renting and building a new house. You can get only what you want and pay for it, and not pay for things you don't want.
I personally love new houses, assuming you can have input into the design.
Best wishes on the move.

[wmass]

New community being built in Northampton: Www.villagehillnorthampton.com — Home
Also, Northampton High has been named one of the best schools in the country: http://www.gazettenet.com/2010/07/30...f7fcda31=gnews

[nei]

Originally Posted by wmass

New community being built in Northampton: Www.villagehillnorthampton.com — Home
Also, Northampton High has been named one of the best schools in the country: Enable Cookies | GazetteNET

Didn't know there were building new stuff in Northampton! Looks like a decent place, too. I live in a house in Northampton from the 1860s and most of the houses in my area look like they are from the early 1900s or before. I assume the poster wanted something fancier than village hil if he has 600k to spend, but with 600k he might be able to find a really nice place.

[nei]

Actually I found an article that says the single family homes are going for around 480-590k.

[Homer12]

We have moved several times in the past 6 years and always end up liking new construction. We like the open floor plans and updated fixtures. Most houses 5plus years old have brass lights, faucets, door hardware, ect. We can not stand it. Also outdated Kitchens and/or bathrooms.

With that said, we are not totally against resale, but history has proven they do not compare to what we see in New Construction.

In addition we like the New Communities, they tend to have families with younger kids like we are looking for, most established have older kids. They also have a lot of cul-de-sac's that we greatly prefer.

Thanks for the feedback!!!!!!!