Nice Town North of Boston with Commuter Rail Access (Newton: condo, buying a house)

[mhaghaed]

My wife and I have moved to Boston recently and are living in Brookline. I work in Woburn, north of Boston and my wife goes to Boston University. For next year, we are considering buying a house in one of the towns north of Boston. The reason for picking a town in north of Boston that is because this way my commute will be short and by living outside Boston, we can buy a house that is priced more reasonably than a Boston house. We are paying ~$2200 for a 1Br in Brookline and were thinking of purchasing a house instead.

I have drove in Medford and Somerville, and to be honest, they did not seem like the kind of place you would like to live in. I am looking for a nice town with commuter rail access. It can be in north, north-east, north-west, or even west of Boston. I have seen Newton houses, but, those seem to be too pricey.

In summary, the town has to be:
-In north, northwest, northeast, or west of Boston to be close to my work in Woburn
-Has to have commuter rail access for my wife to commute to Boston University
-Can get a 2BR condo/single family for under $400000

Thank you all

[495neighbor]

I would look in Melrose, Malden, Reading, Wilmington (away from the area near the tracks, aka Main Street) and Wakefield. The green line ride from North Station to BU may take 30 to 45 min alone, so I would not look any farther north or west than these towns.

[luvmyhoss]

Swampscott, salem,

[495neighbor]

Also, I would like to add Arlington. That would be the most central location between those two commutes.

Medford has some nice areas you may have missed. West Medford has the commuter rail stop. The area near Malden and Melrose is close to orange line stops. The downtown of Medford could use some polish.

[gf2020]

Wakefield

[Parsec]

That's funny, I know a family in Sudbury with the husband working in Woburn and the wife working at BU. They work staggered hours though (husband gets in at 7AM and picks up the kids; wife drops off the kids and gets in at 10AM), so it's a 45 minute commute for each of them.

To be honest, that's going to be quite a hellish commute for your wife. Driving to the commuter rail and taking it into North Station is already quite long, but tacking on the trip from North Station to BU will make her want to quit and find a job closer to home especially if you have kids. Would you consider a town in between Woburn and BU where you both can drive? If you are okay with a 2BR condo instead of a SFH, Watertown/Newton area might be a good fit. It's a little more "leafy" than Medford/Somerville too if that's what you're looking for.

[DreamworksSKG]

Try Reading or Wakefield

[DreamworksSKG]

could also try Salem Mass. a bit touristy though or Beverly on the North Shore. Maybe Ipswich too.

[mhaghaed]

Thank you very much for your very helpful remarks. The impression I got from you guys is that commute from BU to north of Boston will be bad, so, I am adding Watertown, Newton, and Brighton to my list of options. Does anyone have any idea where in those towns I can find a ~400000 2BR condo/SFH ?

[Parsec]

Originally Posted by mhaghaed

Thank you very much for your very helpful remarks. The impression I got from you guys is that commute from BU to north of Boston will be bad, so, I am adding Watertown, Newton, and Brighton to my list of options. Does anyone have any idea where in those towns I can find a ~400000 2BR condo/SFH ?

In Newton/Watertown your options will be limited to a 2BR condo around 1200 sf inside a multifamily house. In Brighton it's the same deal, except you'll get 50% less space. These types of properties are scattered throughout town and not in any one particular neighborhood.