Where to move close to RI (Worcester, Attleboro: schools, to live, price)

[calidak]

Hello - my husband and I are considering relocating back to Mass after 6 years and 3 moves thru Orange County CA, Scottsdale AZ and San Diego CA - we have 3 kids, 11,8,6. Even though this place is perfect here - we are afraid raising the kids here will lead them to believe that life is easy and always sunny, with the going to the beach being an alternative to anything else daily! We are originally from the north shore and would need to find a spot close enough to commute to Rhode Island where my husband would be working and are trying to figure out if a move from sunny, happy, friendly socal back to a community on the south shore where we are unknown will be a devastating blow to the kids. Having been from MA for the first 37 years of life I know its hard to break thru and make friends. That being said - what cities/towns close enough to commute to RI would be a good choice - looking at it from a kids come first perspective great schools and activities would be at the forefront.
thanks!

[CaseyB]

Where in Rhode Island is your husband going to be working? It makes a difference as to what towns you should consider.

[pjscdn]

There's a few right along the I-95 corridor that have a good reputation with kids. For starters, I'd look at Foxboro, North Attleboro, maybe Mansfield. They're all your traditional bedroom suburban communities, geared towards families. What other factors are important? Any rough budget in mind yet?

[calidak]

The company is in Woonsocket RI and we are looking to max out at 900K - I'm just really concerned that this would be an extremely hard move for the kids - people for the last few moves have been instantly friendly with immediate carpool, playdates etc....

[scarletfire]

A few years ago I commuted from Hopkinton to Providence and surprisingly the drive wasn't bad because there wasn't a ton of traffic. I think from Woonsocket it would take maybe 40 minutes. It's a nice town with strong schools & there's a pretty active mom's group and a lot of newcomers to the town.

Medway is also a really nice town that offers easy highway access.

[calidak]

funny, we were checking out both of those towns on realtor.com....

[LeavingMA]

Rehoboth is another nice town to check out. Right on the MA/RI border.

[CaseyB]

Woonsocket is an easy commute from a number of good places. It's adjacent to Wrentham and Franklin and if you want to go a little further north look at Hopkinton or Holliston.

[smarty]

The price range give you lots of option...

The key to commuting to Woonsocket RI is to live South of Rt90. Traffic during rush hour near Rt90/Rt495 is not easy. You can even live closer to Worcester taking Rt146 there.

Some towns that do not have the status.... but still good are Mendon, Milford, Grafton, Bellingham, Franklin, Blackstone.

Other upper scale towns are Holliston, Hopkinton, Sherborn, Medfield.

[scarletfire]

I live in Sherborn. It is a wonderful town - one of the top rated school systems in the state, tons of open space, lots of community activities, a pretty historic town center, no real industry to speak of, and a pretty pond for swimming/sailing. BUT....getting to Rt 495 is a PAIN. I commute to Andover and to get to Rt 495 I either have to go to Milford or cut through Ashland and go down Rt 9 to 495. There might be a better way that would be faster but I'm not really aware of it. It's a wonderful place, I just wonder if the commute would be too much of a hassle.