Should my friend rule-out moving back to MA? (Boston, Cambridge: fit in, best towns)

[Lola116]

I have a dear college friend that I am trying to help out. She grew up in MA and went to school here in Boston but attended medical school in New York City. She has stayed in NYC since working as a psychiatrist and now wants to move her and "extended" family back to the MA area if possible.

The specifics. She is in her mid-forties with three children under the age of 7. Her husband works in the IT finance arena but is partially disabled so she is the primary bread winner of the family. Recently she acquired her elderly parents who now live with her.

So she is not certain with that many people (7 to be exact) and her budget she can afford anything desirable in our state. Her income is decent as a psychiatrist but is dependent on volume of hours which is limited with three kids. Typically in New York she been able to bring in about 250K per year before taxes. She is quite frugal and puts her budget at 700K or less for a house. She rents in NYC so doesn't have to unload any property.

She has become used to the urban lifestyle and would like to be in walking-distance of shops and restaurants. She also wants decent public schools. She needs a minimum of 4-5 bedrooms! She realizes this is a stretch so has also looked outside of MA at places like Saratoga Springs New York and Portsmouth, NH. However when she looked at Portsmouth she said with the taxes and such it really wasn't all that cheaper than MA. Also she said she doesn't care for most of the properties she has seen online which are run down and very unappealing.

All that said should she rule-out MA all together? Does anyone have suggestions as to what other areas/states might be a good fit for her and her brood? I have an ulterior motive as I would love to get my friend back to MA or a surrounding state but is she better off moving South or West? She can get a job just about anywhere as crazy people don't just reside in our state. I also told her to post on this website.

Thanks!!

[roadstrailstris]

I'd recommend Bucks County, PA- either Doylestown or New Hope. Both towns have good schools, a fairly hip, very walkable downtown, and her 700k budget would go a lot further than here in MA. Plus, she'd be a couple of hours from NYC, and less than an hour from Philly.

[kingeorge]

I would concentrate on where she needs to be, to be able to earn what she needs to keep family afloat. If it is urban-semi urban core around Boston, she is looking at expensive housing and significant costs of living. If she can perhaps pull out more toward Western MA, Northampton, Amherst area which have some semi-urbanity to them, she would be in much better shape. Unfortunately anything highly walkable in Boston costs arm and a leg and she does need much bigger house than your average family. If she is open to less traditional way to house her relatives, there are plenty of 2-familiy homes in the area, some are quite big, and maybe that could be something that can resolve her housing needs. She will not get much yard, but in 700K range she could possibly swing something that is very decent. I would in that case check Arlington, Watertown, Newton, Natick and maybe include Brookline, Belmont and Cambridge to the west of the city. Reading and Andover, north of Boston. Milton, Hingham, Quincy to the south.

[Lola116]

Thanks so much for your responses. She is originally from North Adams and I from Wilbraham so we are familiar with Western MA. I am not sure after living in NYC she can get used to being in Western, MA but there are certainly affordable areas with good schools. Personally I could not go back to the Western Part of the state but I am in a different situation financially and family-wise than my friend.

I like both the PA and the 2-family home ideas near Boston. Her brother lives in PA. She would totally fit in in some of the towns that Kingeorge mentioned but I didn't think she could afford them. I didn't think of a two-family where may be able to put her parents in one side. In the event they pass away she could rent out it out.

Anyone have any thoughts on NH?

[Space_League]

NH is affordable and a great quality of life. However it can be difficult to find a job in many parts of the state. The southern counties are full of Boston commuters (I can tell you from experience, this is NO fun, count on an hour and a half each way on public transport, a little less in your car but parking in downtown Boston is quite expensive) and the central and northern parts of the state are very rural and may be boring to someone accustomed to NYC. It's also even harder to find a job up there. If you can land a gig in Manchester or Nashua it could be a great choice, and it would certainly afford you more space than the Boston area.

700k is a lot of money for most suburbs and many neighborhoods in the city. if you're willing to look right outside of Boston proper I'd suggest Malden, Melrose, or Quincy where you could commute downtown in 15-30 minutes, enjoy some number of city ammeneties immediately nearby, and still afford a very modern and spacious home. These are all very suburban, pretty safe and a little boring (especially Malden and Melrose)

I can't speak for the schools in any of these locations, but if you're looking for something more urban, I'd suggest western Jamaica Plain or Charleston. Both are a lot pricier, safe, stable, and very urban neighborhoods with good public transport and walkable ameneties.

[Valerie C]

If she is considering New Hampshire, it might be worth thinking about the Concord area rather than joining the hoards of commuters that clog the highways. Downtown Concord has plenty of shopping, restaurants, museums and cultural activities, but can't in any way compare to what she is accustomed to in NYC. It may seem too boring for her, or she may actually find that she could enjoy and embrace a calmer, saner way of life... What I like about Concord is that some of the most wonderful neighborhoods are walkable to downtown, while in nearby Manchester and Nashua, the nicest (and safest) neighborhoods are well away from the downtown area. Is she open to making a trek up north to see if the area would suit her and the family? It certainly does sound as though she has a lot on her plate...

[Lola116]

Yes she does have a lot on her plate. I don't know how she does it! In order to spend time with her kids she does these crazy double shifts so she works less days overall. Her job is very stressful working in one of the busiest ED departments in the Bronx!

Although she likes the urban thing, she also really enjoys the outdoors so maybe another area of NH could work. I don't have any clue how difficult it is to get a job as a shrink in NH or MA. My husband is a doctor but in a completely different speciality. Based on her experience and patient caseload I think she could handle any patient population.

Thanks

[MikePRU]

I think the issue as most people have already pointed out is that if she wants to live someplace close in to Boston that is walkable and has good schools for her kids then $700K isn't going to get her much of a house for a family that size. She could do great in Natick with that budget and it has a great downtown and of course the mall area (headed there in a minute myself to do some shopping actually) but I wouldn't call it a walkable town. Really, I think she would be happiest in a place like Newton or Brookline but $700K is a low budget in those places.

[495neighbor]

If she is seeking a $250K director level salary as a psychiatrist and has a spouse with a disability and elderly live-in parents, she definitely needs to be close to Boston and the Boston hospitals. She also needs to be in a town with reliable public transportation, at least buses, so the spouse and parents can be independent. The best towns for her family would be in this order Arlington, Melrose, Winchester, Norwood, Canton and Dedham. There are houses 700K and below in all of these towns.

I think the multi-family option may not happen as many of the former multis are now condominiums.

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by Lola116

Yes she does have a lot on her plate. I don't know how she does it! In order to spend time with her kids she does these crazy double shifts so she works less days overall. Her job is very stressful working in one of the busiest ED departments in the Bronx!

Although she likes the urban thing, she also really enjoys the outdoors so maybe another area of NH could work. I don't have any clue how difficult it is to get a job as a shrink in NH or MA. My husband is a doctor but in a completely different speciality. Based on her experience and patient caseload I think she could handle any patient population.

Thanks

NH is not as generous in social services as MA, so most likely better off in MA.