Advice on Moving to the South Shore Area (Boston, Plymouth: tornado, apartments)

[P8riots12]

Hi there,
I am new here. I just found this. My family and I are currently living in the midwest. My hubby is originally from MA. He grew up in the Rockland area. He has been dying to move back to MA for about 2-3 years now. He has turned me into a diehard red Sox fan, and has gotten me to agree to move. I am looking for anyone who can offer advice on moving to MA. I am just trying to gather up as much information as I can. Anything that you could contribute would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[baystater]

We would all love to help you on this board. But would like to know a little more information about what your needs and wants are in a town in The Irish Riviera.

[P8riots12]

OMG I am so sorry. I am still new at posting on boards. I am more used to chatting.

Well, here it is in a nutshell. It will most likely be at least a year before we can move. I like to be prepared before taking this big of a step. I also, of course, will need at save up quite a chunk of money. By the time we move, our kids will be in grade school and middle school. So of course, a quality school system will be a concern. We would also like an area with a small town atmosphere. A place that the kids would feel safe and be able to play in the yard. Commuting wouldn't really be an issue for us. I am somewhat familiar with Rockland, Hingham, Plymouth, Hull, Marshfield and parts of the Cape. I have a general idea what to expect with the weather.

I grew up in the midwest. So I really need advice on what to expect on a practical level. What would be a reasonable price to pay to buy a house or even for a rental? I understand that it will be quite a bit more then I would expect to pay here. For example, here we bought a house (3 br, 1 bath, walk out basement, 1 car attached garage with a half acre fenced backyard) for right around $115K. My hubby told me that a house like that in MA would go for around $300- $350K. Does that sound right? I think we might have to rent for a while why we look for a house. What can we expect to pay for a 3 br apartment? Are the heating bills in the winter really terribly high? Is it true that most houses don't have central AC? What kinds of furnace is the norm (forced air, oil, etc.)?

Thanks for answering me.

[baystater]

OK thanks for the information. You might not get a lot of responses for a couple of days because it seems lighter on the weekend so hang in there.
I kind of good that your coming in about a year you may get a better deal in the next year on a house considering that MA. is in a housing recession (at least I believe it is.) Also just want to let you know that you may be in for a finical and culture shock when come. MA. is very different from a lot of places in the country. Plus every thing is pretty expensive here. But you kids for the most part will get a good education in the Ma. in pretty much any town you choose.
Now I assuming you know all about Rockland so no need to get into that. I'm originally from Marshfield (move 2 years ago hopefully will be back soon). And love my town. Granted it has been built up in the last 5 years but it's still a great town in my opinion. You have the beach, Daniel Webster's wetlands, newer skate park, pretty good library, pretty good schools, 24hour CVS, also have some large chain stores in the center of town with small mom and pop stores spread out though out the town. As for community it probably will be easier for you to make friends since your kids are little. I will warn you most of MA in general is cliquey and it hard for outsiders to be let in to the circle of friends. But on threat to much just be patient and be yourself and you will eventually be accepted. And once you make a friend here they usually stay your friend for life. BTW you kids will make friends pretty fast as kids always do everywhere. As for housing and backyards and stuff. Marshfield it a big town and has different types of areas. Like Hummer Rock, Brant Rock, Green harbor most don't have big yard and the houses are old and small but have character and your extremely close to the beach. As for Marshfield Hills and North Marshfield they have more in the way of land with the houses but are much more expensive. I say if you want to start looking for a decent house you don't have to fix up. I say your looking a 300k at least. I'd say that's pretty much for most of the town in this area. But like I said you maybe in luck because houses ain't moving right now so keep your eyes open when your looking.
As for heating It really depends there are newer houses being build in the south shore in general. So all the newer houses have central air/heat and a lot of house have been retrograded to have a central air/heat system. As for heating bill. Yep it can be pretty bad if you don't have good insulation in the house but if you do have good insulation especially if it blown into your walls it shouldn't be totally awful. BTW what part of the Midwest you out of it does get pretty cold there. Does it not?

As for apartments I could find some example of todays rent but since the housing market slow down I'm not sure if they would be relevant by the time you got here. But Actually when you get close to coming contact this board and a lot of use will try to point you in the right direction.

OK I going to add some treads from some other forum discussion about the towns you mentioned. You may read them at your leisure.

Moving to SOUTH SHORE from NJ
Scituate? It's affordable....but is it nice?
Moving to Cape Cod year-round?
Living in Hingham
Where on South Shore?
Fitting In


Good Luck.

[P8riots12]

Thanks baystater for you help.

I am originally from Nebraska and yes it can get very cold there. Plus the whole tornado thing.

I am not too concerned about the clicky thing. My hubby still has family there so I already know some people. They have all been great to me so far and have introduced me to a few people already. He actually has a cousin that lives in Marshfield. I have just never gotten a chance to go to her house for a visit. I will read over the links that you gave me.

Thanks again.

[surfingatwork]

i currently live in lakeville, ma (near rockland). you can easily find a home in lakeville for $300/$350 (half acre or more). Lakeville's a great little town (10K people). lots of farms, ponds and lakes. my neighbors kids ride their bikes all around our neighborhood. while there isn't much night time activity it's a great little quiet town. oh and it's roughly 45/1 hour from boston and 45 minutes to providence. good luck with your search.

[P8riots12]

Thanks surfing,
I have to admit that I had never even heard of lakeville before. My hubby didn't even know where it was. I am doing a little research on it now. Thanks.

[surfingatwork]

Originally Posted by P8riots12

Thanks surfing,
I have to admit that I had never even heard of lakeville before. My hubby didn't even know where it was. I am doing a little research on it now. Thanks.

A lot of people have not heard of Lakeville that's what makes it so wonderful. (I should probably stop talking about it). I'm originally from North of Boston and when we moved my friends and family all said Lake what? where the heck is that?

[findingmesomeday]

I'd stay away from Rockland and Hull. Hingham has a good school system. I'm not familiar enough with the other towns to know how the schools are.

[MilanoItalia]

NChomesomeday: Why did you say to stay away from Rockland and Hull? I only ask because I have been offered a teaching position in Hull and I am trying to decide between this position and a position in Connecticut. Thank you!