Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
If Belmont keeps it up, I think they can fall from excellent to merely good. If Waltham could go from bad/average to good, I think they could follow in the footsteps of Arlington. Its location is too good and it's too interesting of a town to be perceived the way it is. I think Waltham's upside is greater than Melrose's for various reasons.
This is why I am interested in Waltham besides Natick, all elementary schools along the belmont and north side of Waltham are starting to get better and better and some have gone upwards from average when you look at test rating as well as parents feedback. In my eyes parents feedback trumps test ratings. I think Belmont will fall to the good category soon, since mismanagement causes people to loose trust faster as it opens people up to the proverb once bitten twice shy, which then makes Waltham even more attractive (if the schools keep moving upward), pricewise. I do not see Waltham ever cracking the top five, but in my novice eyes, I see Waltham in 10-15 yrs being the town which will be a balance between a good school district and a decent cost of house ownership. Most people I speak to abt Waltham, have negative things to say abt it based on their adventures in and ard moody street (called the south side), which is mainly a blue collared community and a college community. That being said, based on which section you are on the north side, you are running either into white collared professional folks that are in their 20's-30's to folks in the far north west whose kids have left the nest completely. The younger they are the closer to moody street they are
When you want to buy in certain neighborhood, forget what realtor has to say. Realtor is not buying, you are.
Educate yourself by visiting playgrounds on weekends, check your potential street different times of day and week, introduce yourself to potential neighbors, and devote some time to reading town newspapers (wealth of info). Try to visit elementary school and talk to staff and parents. Most parents are super happy to share an opinion. Go to greatschools.com.
There are many ways, but many buyers are simply too lazy.
I guess the main debate here is between established towns with top schools and betting on average towns with good potential. My theory here is buying in an accomplished town that everyone wants is not rocket science and is not as smart of investment as in the next up and coming town. Not only it's already overpriced, but it can no longer go up, but could only go down, if the schools are some of the best, when challenged by future contenders.
Every town is different, and you can't predict the future, but you can look at some indicators that will give you a good picture: transportation, location, jobs, nearby towns and whether schools are improving overtime.
Most towns near Waltham are too expensive and that's what will draw more people to Waltham, just because it's a good value. Waltham is at the center of where jobs are near Boston, and is on the radar of not just locals, but many white-collar newcomers who move in for jobs. Without extraordinary efforts the schools will get better when more white-collar families move in, because student population is what changes schools. So I say, go for it.
I guess the main debate here is between established towns with top schools and betting on average towns with good potential. My theory here is buying in an accomplished town that everyone wants is not rocket science and is not as smart of investment as in the next up and coming town. Not only it's already overpriced, but it can no longer go up, but could only go down, if the schools are some of the best, when challenged by future contenders.
Every town is different, and you can't predict the future, but you can look at some indicators that will give you a good picture: transportation, location, jobs, nearby towns and whether schools are improving overtime.
Most towns near Waltham are too expensive and that's what will draw more people to Waltham, just because it's a good value. Waltham is at the center of where jobs are near Boston, and is on the radar of not just locals, but many white-collar newcomers who move in for jobs. Without extraordinary efforts the schools will get better when more white-collar families move in, because student population is what changes schools. So I say, go for it.
From what experience I have, and it's not exhaustive, a major issue with Waltham is a somewhat antagonistic "townie" mentality ingrained in the old timers, which includes the current mayor. Arlington struggled with the exact same thing and still does to a lesser extent.
It's not as fun to study town-gown relations in Cambridge because of the outsized influence both Harvard and MIT have, but this is why Waltham is a good place to study urban planning. Talking to people, Waltham's mayor has taken a somewhat belligerent tone with both Bentley and Brandeis, which usually scores political points among the established populace but is ultimately self defeating. I'm not saying universities aren't at fault as well, but town leaders should subdue some of these feelings for the betterment of the town.
Universities offer a wealth of knowledge without huge consulting fees and they're often willing to invest in the surrounding neighborhoods IF it benefits them as well. Instead, Waltham's mayor (along with Somerville's from what I understand) tries to extort straight out cash from the universities by encouraging lawmakers to institute property taxes and the MBTA to charge a fee for naming rights. She encourages strict city oversight of development both within the immediate campus boundaries and around them (at a level you would never see with local developers). You can't let universities do anything they want, but the opposite approach is not a winning strategy either. Universities have less to lose. They can just turn inwards and create an island unto themselves. One of the upsides of Waltham over a place like Melrose is its universities (and nearby ones like Regis and Lasell). Town-gown relations are always tricky, but I can't think of too many cities getting less out of this relationship than Waltham.
When you want to buy in certain neighborhood, forget what realtor has to say. Realtor is not buying, you are.
Educate yourself by visiting playgrounds on weekends, check your potential street different times of day and week, introduce yourself to potential neighbors, and devote some time to reading town newspapers (wealth of info). Try to visit elementary school and talk to staff and parents. Most parents are super happy to share an opinion. Go to greatschools.com.
There are many ways, but many buyers are simply too lazy.
Well put. I know this website has a tendency to let realtors loose for whatever reason, but they by no means take anything akin to a Hippocratic oath and their industry's policies were a major reason for the bubble. The goods ones put the well-being of their clients as close to their bottom line as possible. The less ethical ones...
From what experience I have, and it's not exhaustive, a major issue with Waltham is a somewhat antagonistic "townie" mentality ingrained in the old timers, which includes the current mayor. Arlington struggled with the exact same thing and still does to a lesser extent.
It's not as fun to study town-gown relations in Cambridge because of the outsized influence both Harvard and MIT have, but this is why Waltham is a good place to study urban planning. Talking to people, Waltham's mayor has taken a somewhat belligerent tone with both Bentley and Brandeis, which usually scores political points among the established populace but is ultimately self defeating. I'm not saying universities aren't at fault as well, but town leaders should subdue some of these feelings for the betterment of the town.
Universities offer a wealth of knowledge without huge consulting fees and they're often willing to invest in the surrounding neighborhoods IF it benefits them as well. Instead, Waltham's mayor (along with Somerville's from what I understand) tries to extort straight out cash from the universities by encouraging lawmakers to institute property taxes and the MBTA to charge a fee for naming rights. She encourages strict city oversight of development both within the immediate campus boundaries and around them (at a level you would never see with local developers). You can't let universities do anything they want, but the opposite approach is not a winning strategy either. Universities have less to lose. They can just turn inwards and create an island unto themselves. One of the upsides of Waltham over a place like Melrose is its universities (and nearby ones like Regis and Lasell). Town-gown relations are always tricky, but I can't think of too many cities getting less out of this relationship than Waltham.
It took Arlington over a decade to rebrand & rebuild its school system. The first thing it did was keep its neighborhood schools & not consolidate hence Arlington has 7 elementary schools, all of which have been rebuilt to state of the art condition, save but one....and that one was remodeled until it gets a new build.
As for the townie issue....yes there is still some tension there, but the old timers have either died off, or sold, and the new-comers have populated the town in such great numbers that they are in almost total control, lol, for good or bad. Change comes & Arlington has reached that point hence the prop 2 override last year to make sure the schools continue on in the direction that they have been headed. There's a new Whole Foods coming to A-Town & with the constant investment in roads & streets & public buildings the town is famous for ( 2 new fire stations ) I expect Arlington to remain the "it" town of eastern MA for the next several years.
When I was househunting, I came so close to buying in Waltham (north part) that I still kick myself for letting the deal fall thru. Anyway, Natick and Waltham were also my top choices because 1) I can use my money to buy something relatively decent still, 2) they are not too far from Boston proper with good access routes. Whereas for the same money, I can barely buy a shack in all the towns surrounding them.
In Waltham, I was never comfortable near the Moody St area (anything south of the river). I was lucky that I know a friend who lives in Waltham for many years and showed me the in and out of the town - which parts to avoid, where teens and druggies hangout, where the projects are, etc. This is by far the best help & advice that no realtor could give me. Waltham does have scary parts that I don't want to live near. However, there are good sections in the North that are quite desirable.
I finally bought in Natick a few months ago. I feel safe in the neighborhood I'm in, neighbors are quiet and keep their yards and houses in good shape, I'm close to everything I need... However, if I haven't bought and still househunting, I would not hesitate on those nice areas of Waltham.
From what experience I have, and it's not exhaustive, a major issue with Waltham is a somewhat antagonistic "townie" mentality ingrained in the old timers, which includes the current mayor. Arlington struggled with the exact same thing and still does to a lesser extent.
It's not as fun to study town-gown relations in Cambridge because of the outsized influence both Harvard and MIT have, but this is why Waltham is a good place to study urban planning. Talking to people, Waltham's mayor has taken a somewhat belligerent tone with both Bentley and Brandeis, which usually scores political points among the established populace but is ultimately self defeating. I'm not saying universities aren't at fault as well, but town leaders should subdue some of these feelings for the betterment of the town.
Universities offer a wealth of knowledge without huge consulting fees and they're often willing to invest in the surrounding neighborhoods IF it benefits them as well. Instead, Waltham's mayor (along with Somerville's from what I understand) tries to extort straight out cash from the universities by encouraging lawmakers to institute property taxes and the MBTA to charge a fee for naming rights. She encourages strict city oversight of development both within the immediate campus boundaries and around them (at a level you would never see with local developers). You can't let universities do anything they want, but the opposite approach is not a winning strategy either. Universities have less to lose. They can just turn inwards and create an island unto themselves. One of the upsides of Waltham over a place like Melrose is its universities (and nearby ones like Regis and Lasell). Town-gown relations are always tricky, but I can't think of too many cities getting less out of this relationship than Waltham.
Universities are a huge asset, and they will be there long after the present mayor is gone. And hopefully they can utilize their resources and collaborate with the town (like they do in Beverly.) Actually, Endicott college pays voluntary property tax to Beverly (to keep everyone happy), and Montserrat college bought a bunch of buildings downtown as part of it's campus and renovated them. Endicott college design students came up with proposals for downtown improvements, and Montserrat College received a grant to develop an Art district. It also maintains the town Common park. Plus, they host lots of exhibits, and free community events for families, provide free scholarships to Beverly kids, teacher workshops, and free use of facilities for public schools.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
