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Hi, we are a young family (2 children under the age of 3) interested in relocating to the extended Upper Cape Cod area, a coastal town somewhere between Braintree and Hyannis (so many options!). We have a long list of things we're ideally looking for, and are overwhelmed with where to start... any thoughts on a town that checks the most boxes?
Public Education - probably the most important thing to us. Rankings are important and helpful tools, but we'd love a culture that values personal development and hands-on, real-world experiences over MCAS scores.
Ideal Community - open-minded and progressive (socially accepting, not necessarily politics), and a place where you know your neighbors. Cute downtown with shops/restaurants, farmers markets, and quick drive to a beach would be nice. Diversity would be ideal, but I know that's hard to find around here.
Ideal House - we're hoping to find at least a half acre, for chickens and goats and room to grow much of our own food. Our budget will be around $500,000.
My husband will work remotely and I teach high school math, so we're flexible in that area. It'd be great to be closer to highways/Logan for visiting family members, but that's a perk, not a necessity.
Do you know of any places like this? We're able to take weekend trips to explore any of your suggestions! Thank you in advance for your help!!
Thanks! We're currently in Waltham, MA but with the family growing we're ready for more space. I know it's idealistic, but we're trying to be proactive about finding our "perfect" place. Call me a dreamer! I have a sister in Falmouth and my inlaws will likely retire somewhere on the Cape in a few years, so it'd be nice to plant our roots in that area. We just don't know where to start looking...
Make sure you look into the neighborhood situations if you want chickens or goats, although the Cape has some agriculture here, there are people that are not open to that sort of thing. There are farmers markets in every town down here and agriculture is growing - the community aspect you are looking for here exists but its hard to come by - finding it in farmers markets and through the local food avenue will be your best bet.
Falmouth is a little more farm friendly but the schools are better in Sandwich. Sandwich has higher taxes.
I am not sure about lot size requirements and owning chickens and goats in any of the communities.
For your budget, desired location and schools, I would suggest Sandwich. For budget and lot size you would most likely be in South Sandwich or Forestdale.
Schools here are good but more importantly I would say there is some progressive thinking taking place. The district is currently re configuring grades. A STEM Academy is servicing grades 7&8 at the high school and their is a cooperative approach with WHOI and MMA. Heritage Plantation announced a new STEM preschool set to open this year. When your children get to high school, they will have many choices, including Sturgis- a charter school which fills by lottery and has an excellent reputation. My kids have gone through the Sandwich Schools and we have been very pleased.
The downtown is definitely cute- there is a water bubbler for refilling spring water, a farmer's market on Tuesday, artisan markets every weekend and many events throughout the year. It is very Americana.
The negatives, high taxes (hopefully some new plans in the work for currently vacant land will help), the only diversity is economic diversity, and in some circles, a "you haven't lived here long enough to have an opinion" attitude- but that can happen anywhere on Cape. The only other thing I would add is the naivete that sometimes exists with kids who grow up here. It is good in some ways but negative in others but I feel parents can offset that.
Other than that, I would suggest Duxbury, near the Kingston line. Great schools, not much of a downtown but that particular area is not perceived as being as snobby as the rest of the town. Unfortunately, the rest of town does have their attitude about that area. Plymouth could be a good choice too. You would just want to check into individual areas as to which school district they are in. Plymouth however has a tax rate close to Sandwich.
Have you considered South Coast at all? Mattapoisett could work. I have friends who moved there from Hingham and LOVE it. I don't have a lot of info but it is definitely more laid back than the South Shore and very agriculture friendly.
I live in Brewster and the Cape is great. It is crazy busy now with the Summer tourists but that drops off when the kids go back to school which means it gives us time to relax and enjoy the shoulder season. I like the feeling of going over the bridge it is like hitting a chill button. Whenever we head off Cape, to Boston, Plymouth and towns like Waltham the traffic wears us out. The pace of life seems so much faster and hectic "up in the real world".
Good paying full time jobs can be tough to find on Cape but since your husband works from home and you as a math teacher you should be all set.
Your housing budget is good and you should be able to find a nice place that fits your needs. Generally speaking the prices of houses go up the further you get from the bridges and they peak in Chatham and Provincetown. On Cape you are always close to a beach and close to the highway Rt6.
Tax rates are lower on Cape compared to off except for Sandwich and I bet the rate in Waltham is a higher percentage which means you can buy more house here.
Good luck.
Thank you all for the helpful responses! Sandwich (somewhere we weren't familiar with before) is now at the very top of our list of places to check out. I'm so excited!
Beachcomber4 - I just checked out their website... the Sturgis School sounds AMAZING!! If we make the move to that area we will definitely be entering that lottery when the time comes. And maybe they'd be hiring South Shore is something we hadn't considered but is now on our radar.
Thank you everyone!!
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I have a sister in Falmouth and my inlaws will likely retire somewhere on the Cape in a few years, so it'd be nice to plant our roots in that area. We just don't know where to start looking...
South Shore is something we hadn't considered but is now on our radar. 
