Possibly moving to Boston...where to live? (Worcester, Lowell: housing, condo)

[The Michigander]

I have a job offer in downtown Boston and I'm trying to research where my wife and I can relocate to. I've done a little bit of research, but I'm having a dilemma in finding some affordable housing. Currently, I live in a suburb of Chicago and have a new 1100 sqft house that's worth around $150. If we move to the Boston area, we are looking to stay in the $200k range, but want something newer (within 20 years old) and it has to have a garage. I'm having a hard time even finding houses in our price range but an even hard time finding what city would be best for us to move to. I appreciate any advice!

-M

[surfingatwork]

unfortunately you are going to have a very, very difficult time finding a newer home with a garage in that price range and staying within 50 miles of boston. what cities/towns have you looked at?

[The Michigander]

Originally Posted by surfingatwork

unfortunately you are going to have a very, very difficult time finding a newer home with a garage in that price range and staying within 50 miles of boston. what cities/towns have you looked at?

That's what I figured. I can't believe how rediculous houses are there..and I thought Chicago was bad! I've already looked at Arlington, Amesbury, Lowell, Peabody, Braintree, Norwell, and Natick. I drive an hour to work in Chicago now, so I don't mind doing the same in Boston, but as you said, I'm having a hard time finding anything remotely to what I consider "nice" as far as houses are concerned. An apartment is not an option. I found what appears to be a nice condo in Amesbury, but I'm not sure if that is a good drive to Boston.

I guess we've had it better over here than we thought!

[surfingatwork]

amesbury to boston is going to be tough if you drive. probably an hour and a half drive one way during rush hour. i grew up in lowell, there are good parts and bad parts. if you visit you'll know immediately which are the bad parts and which are the good parts. i can't help you with the other cities because i've never lived there and personally speaking would not want to but that's because i live in a small country town and i prefer that. most newer homes in mass are going to be expensive because the cost of land is expensive. we don't have a lot of newer subdivisions with homes on 1/2 acre or smaller lots. don't forget to look in southeastern mass too (you'll find homes are a little cheaper and you get more land).

[Patapsco]

Hi -

Don't forget, but what takes an hour to drive in Boston traffic is likely a much shorter distance than what it is in Chicago.

I feel your pain on the sticker shock. Us too.

Good luck!

[holden125]

Originally Posted by Patapsco

Hi -

Don't forget, but what takes an hour to drive in Boston traffic is likely a much shorter distance than what it is in Chicago.

I feel your pain on the sticker shock. Us too.

Good luck!

I know there is some rough traffic in Chicago too but it's true that here the roads are so convoluted that you cover less in an hour than elsewhere. Any kind of a house within reasonable distance to Boston is likely to be more expensive than your range. Things are old here and houses under 20 years old are rare until you get some distance from the city. Many of them are very high-end.

[The Michigander]

Originally Posted by holden125

I know there is some rough traffic in Chicago too but it's true that here the roads are so convoluted that you cover less in an hour than elsewhere. Any kind of a house within reasonable distance to Boston is likely to be more expensive than your range. Things are old here and houses under 20 years old are rare until you get some distance from the city. Many of them are very high-end.

I've noticed this. It doesn't seem like any builder can build a modest house, they have to build 2 story "mansions'. It can take a while to get places in Chicago. The north side is a total pain for me to get to, even with 3 bypasses in the Chicagoland area, it still takes me anywhere from an hour to three hours to drive 50 miles.

So far this search is discouraging, and I'm tempted not to take the offer based on what I'm finding...The woman in HR that I've been talking to says she drives from Lancaster...

[Kerby W-R]

Fellow posters have suggested Leominster for me. The more I research that town the more I like it. Check it out.

[NY'er lost in MA]

check out some of the towns about 45+ miles west on the Pike. You can get new construction in the low 200's, but the commute is obviously long. Being off the Pike however is probably the lesser of evils...

[Martha Anne]

I have been to Michigan (the Lansing area) and it is so much cheaper for a house than in Massachusetts! $200 K range for a newer house? In greater metro Boston? Are you kidding? Try double that, at the very least, and even then you will only get a small starter with no real luxuries.

If you look in the city of Worcester you can find newer town houses for that price, and west of Worcester (well over an hour's drive in rush hour), you can find newer houses for the 200's but usually upper 200's to lower 300's for a house that you'd want, with a garage, and I am not talking luxury either. Just a basic house. I realize that you don't want a big or luxurious house, but for the $200 range, you need to consider at least $275K and live over an hour's drive away, ( which can mean an hour and a half on heavy traffic days, not really even an hour). And, IMO, gas prices are going to just go up and up and up.

I get the idea that you have no real appreciation of what it costs to buy in Massachusetts and have not absorbed fully what you would be facing her vs Michigan for cost of living. Are you prepared to drive in heavy traffic over an hour, and to buy, even with that, a lesser nice house, far less nice, for the 200's than you would ever get in the Midwest? Because it is a totally different picture here, totally, re: housing costs. Start to think at least double the cost of a house, or even 3 times, for a "newer house", built after 1988 (you said within 20 years ), that is a realistic drive or train ride into Boston. I have been looking myself and am telling you the hard reality. Eastern Massachusetts is a very expensive place in which to buy and live.