Relocating to MetroWest - Reality check needed. (Boston, Cambridge: renting, house)

[Cato the Elder]

Here's another link with more photos: 249 Commonwealth Avenue, Concord MA - Trulia

You would hardly know MCI is there unless you drive past it. Back in its reformatory days, I heard they let those getting "reformed" swim in Warners Pond and farm the land across Comm Ave, but those days are long gone. Now it's full of white collar and petty criminals in a medium/minimum security setting; you see a guard once in a while, but I have yet to spot a "resident."

Main St isn't as bad as it sounds. We live on Elm St. near the Sudbury River, which was actually the old Union Turnpike, and the traffic doesn't bother us at all. They recently built a new playground near Comm Ave at Rideout Playground, so that's probably a good spot for your dog.

Overall, West Concord is relatively down to earth for the region. Very few people have a keeping up with the Joneses attitude. It's not just trust fund kids and investment bankers, but teachers, firefighters, etc. The village center is not huge, but it's practical with just about everything you need (and you can't beat the surrounding natural beauty). The main downside is its commuting distance from downtown Boston, but this is obviously not a concern for your husband. It's close enough for easy weekend visits to Boston (30 minutes by car, 40 minutes by train), but you have all the benefits of a bucolic setting with a bona fide village center.

Though we associate Thoreau with Walden Pond and the area around the Milldam, I honestly think he would have lived in West Concord if he was around today based on his lack of guile or pretense (plus his family progressively moved west from his birth house on Virginia Road to his last house on Main St. near Concord Depot, right near my house, as the population shifted west towards the Cambridge Turnpike and the railroad).

[MikePRU]

I also think Sudbury would be a great fit for you. A really lovely, family friendly town with lots of woods-y feel to it. There are some shops & restaurants in town, but it's limited.

[brightdoglover]

I think the post about West Concord is spot on. I would happily live there if I could afford it (but I have more than one dog, so have had to own). Rental houses are relatively rare around here, not sure why. Maybe a corporate relocation service could help. Best wishes. You haven't mentioned a single town that is remotely at all as unpleasant as you describe your current place. Don't feel guilty about "First World problems," after all, we all have them. It's useful to think that way for a little perspective, but, hey, we still need to find a rental, want a quiet home and so on.
(I lived in rural Haiti for three months. Talk about perspective).

[Cato the Elder]

There's a nice Chronicle HD segment on West Concord at Town Centers: Segment Three - Video - WCVB Boston (http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/26252303/detail.html - broken link).

[cailin_rua]

Originally Posted by Cato the Elder

There's a nice Chronicle HD segment on West Concord at Town Centers: Segment Three - Video - WCVB Boston (http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/26252303/detail.html - broken link).

Thanks for pointing that out. Very heartwarming!

[cailin_rua]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

I think the post about West Concord is spot on. I would happily live there if I could afford it (but I have more than one dog, so have had to own). Rental houses are relatively rare around here, not sure why. Maybe a corporate relocation service could help. Best wishes. You haven't mentioned a single town that is remotely at all as unpleasant as you describe your current place. Don't feel guilty about "First World problems," after all, we all have them. It's useful to think that way for a little perspective, but, hey, we still need to find a rental, want a quiet home and so on.
(I lived in rural Haiti for three months. Talk about perspective).

Thanks for the perspective. My husband travels to some incredibly poor countries for work - he went to Haiti after the disaster - and I'd really like him to come home to a comfortable home in a nice, safe town.

My mother looked at a house in West Concord for us over the weekend, and it seems like it would work out very well for us. There were a number of other people looking at it, however. Hopefully it will work out.

[495neighbor]

Welcome to Massachusetts. Your letter is the saddest and happiest letter I've read on this site in some time.

My two bits on some of these towns:

West Concord is very laid back, walkable and a bit bohemian in flavor with many cute and crafty stores such as the 5 and 10, new crepe/gelatto/expresso cafe, hobby store, its own train stop and Victorian homes. You will see many families with small children enjoying walks, especially on Saturdays. Either West Concord or North Acton would be a 30 min commute to Waltham for your husband (been there/done it). From another fan of safety, a walker, and someone who lives in the area, I never give the presence of the MCI a thought, nor is it an issue with any of my neighbors.

The North Acton/Littleton/Westford route 2A area has many bucolic family oriented activities such as trail rides at Bobby's Ranch, apple and pumpkin picking, hay rides, haunted house and tubing at Nashoba Ski area.

Maynard could be another option. There are many new professional families with small children. It has a quaint walkable downtown. A cute neighborhood is Summer Hill on the Stow side. The commute would be longer, but it would be more affordable.

Sudbury and Wayland are more heavily wooded and spread out. Lexington is not bucolic at all and very hurried.

Other areas you could explore within your criteria: Natick, North Framingham, Reading, Carlisle.

Best of Luck!

[brightdoglover]

I absolutely vote for Concord/West Concord/Acton/Littleton (and less so for the other towns, being more rural, or, like Maynard, not quite up to the schools and history of the named places. If I could afford a free-standing house (meaning, multiple dogs!) I'd go to Concord happily. It's a wonderful place. Acton and Littleton have some of the same flavor. I agree that Lexington, while a great place and location, does likely have high-pressure schools and life. (And if one can afford Lexington, one can surely afford Concord).
I appreciate OP's statement about First World problems and her family's experience with Haiti. Once you've seen Third (or Fourth ) World poverty, it is hard to find validity in one's own concerns, but it is only good for some perspective- such as, it's not that big a deal if you need a new transmission. To feel guilty because you are troubled about needing a new transmission is taking it to far. We all start from a different point.
A dear friend of mine makes documentary films about environment and Third World health. She said a long time ago that it was unsettling to, one day, be attending a baby's funeral in Brazil where they don't name kids until the kid survives to one year, and no one seems particularly distressed about the death- to drinking white wine in Cambridge the next night, talking to friends and funders for her films. She referred to "First World problems," like crabgrass, taxes, and a new transmission. I never forgot that, but only find it helpful for perspective. I have found it unhelpful with people who hold the belief that "everything happens for a reason/you create your own universe," when someone hasn't seen some of the worlds in which people suffer.

[cailin_rua]

Originally Posted by 495neighbor

Welcome to Massachusetts. Your letter is the saddest and happiest letter I've read on this site in some time.

My two bits on some of these towns:

West Concord is very laid back, walkable and a bit bohemian in flavor with many cute and crafty stores such as the 5 and 10, new crepe/gelatto/expresso cafe, hobby store, its own train stop and Victorian homes. You will see many families with small children enjoying walks, especially on Saturdays. Either West Concord or North Acton would be a 30 min commute to Waltham for your husband (been there/done it). From another fan of safety, a walker, and someone who lives in the area, I never give the presence of the MCI a thought, nor is it an issue with any of my neighbors.

The North Acton/Littleton/Westford route 2A area has many bucolic family oriented activities such as trail rides at Bobby's Ranch, apple and pumpkin picking, hay rides, haunted house and tubing at Nashoba Ski area.

Maynard could be another option. There are many new professional families with small children. It has a quaint walkable downtown. A cute neighborhood is Summer Hill on the Stow side. The commute would be longer, but it would be more affordable.

Sudbury and Wayland are more heavily wooded and spread out. Lexington is not bucolic at all and very hurried.

Other areas you could explore within your criteria: Natick, North Framingham, Reading, Carlisle.

Best of Luck!

That seems apt, as this is both the happiest and saddest I've been in a while. Maybe stressed is a better word than sad. I'm thrilled to be moving back to New England, though, no doubt about it.

[cailin_rua]

I wanted to thank everyone for their input, and hopefully pick your brains once again.

When I began our search for a rental, I'm afraid I was a bit ignorant about the realities of the Boston area rental market. I had no idea that it would be this hard to find something. In the past few weeks I have found myself obsessively stalking Craigslist, Zillow, Trulia, etc., hoping to be the first person to respond to new listings - because for the most part, that's how it seems to go. Whoever responds first (and meets income/credit qualifications) gets it. That, or the house isn't deleaded and the owner won't rent to me because I have little kids.

After some very frustrating weeks, I've found myself in a position where I may actually have a couple of possibilities to choose from. The problem is, I'm not in the area and am almost going blind when it comes to location. My parents can look at houses for us, but when it comes to getting a sense of the character of a town, I'm sort of lost. Anyway, this was a long-winded way of asking for some input on some towns that were not originally on my radar and that I have little experience with.

We had originally wanted a house with a decent-sized backyard in the suburbs - perhaps Concord or Sudbury. I'm somewhat familiar with those towns, although very little in the way of rentals has come up in those towns. We may have a shot at a house in Sudbury right now, but it could fall through. If it does, our other options are:

Winchester. From what I hear the town seems very nice, although it's a bit more densely populated than I would like. The house is lovely however, and the owners seem great. The house is in the Lynch school district.

Southborough. We are second in line for a house that I fell in love with at first sight, so this may fall through, although I hope it doesn't (even though it will stretch our budget a bit more than we wanted).

Boxborough. The house certainly meets our needs, and sits on a lovely private lot. I know nothing about Boxborough.

Natick. The house is south of Natick center, on a wooded half-acre lot. House seems to meet all of our needs and the price is definitely right. I'm on the fence about Natick, however. It seems very commercial.

To recap, my husband will be commuting to Waltham, and I will work from home. I would love some place with easy access to parks/conservation land. I live in a city now and miss being out in nature. I have two children I'll need childcare for at least for one more year, then I'll have one in K and one in daycare. I'm also a bit afraid of the isolation that can come from working from home, so part of me feels that an area like Winchester or Natick might be a better option.

If anyone has any insight into these towns - in terms of quality of life, amenities, schools, outdoor activities, etc. - I would certainly appreciate it.