Groton vs. Harvard (Boston, Cambridge, Waltham: sale, how much, houses)

[Jmd3]

We are planning on moving to MA from New Jersey this summer with 2 elementary school kids. I think we've narrowed our search down to Harvard or Groton. Anyone have opinions on these towns? As per an earlier post we were originally looking in Acton but are looking for bigger houses and yards than our budget could afford there. Thanks for your help!

[kingeorge]

Harvard is more upscale but very spread out, with somewhat never/more modern homes on an average, and without any commerce, very quiet place. You would definitely need generator for winter weather and loss of electricity during storms there.

Groton is beautiful, historic, and more lively in comparison with Harvard. Harvard's schools are highly regarded, Groton's are very good but not as high ranked. It does offer more remote pockets with big lots so you might be spending money on big snow blowers, generators etc. Winters are often harsh.

It comes down to how much you can or can not stomach car driving for every little thing. I do not like not having option of town center, stores, sidewalks, and restaurants, and hate to be driving everywhere, so I would stick to Groton.Your preferences might be different of course.

One word of warning if jobs are still close to Boston or Cambridge is about commute. Neither town offers easy commute, and bigger space might not offer better quality of living, especially when winter commute becomes miserable, and gets old quickly. Plus tons of money spent on the heat which is often still oil in more rural NE areas.

RE in both towns is not as fast or high for location and commute reasons, so be careful not to get stuck with something that you might not unload as easily if you find yourself in situation to be needing to move again. Acton is much safer buy right now, for future appreciation, including easier sale or rental, if job situation and location changes.

Other than that, both Groton and Harvard are very reputable, but with different flavor. If commute is not an issue, you can not go wrong with either of them.

Good luck.

[Jmd3]

Thanks for the great info. Commuting question for you. I'm finding that people in MA have a slightly different definition of a long commute. Where we currently live I don't know many people who have less than an hour commute, 1 1/2 door to door if they commute into the city. My husband would be commuting to Lexington. What would he be looking at in these towns?

[KKay9]

Probably not much over an hour to Lexington town line, even with some moderate traffic. Where in Lexington is the job? I'm more familiar with the commute from the Groton area. I've worked at a number of locations in Lexington over the years and drive there from Westford (next door to Groton). I've found it makes a big difference if my office is north and west of Rt 95 (Hanscom AFB area, on Bedford side of town), much less time on the road, as I can use back roads all the way in and stay away from all that 95 traffic. The Arlington side of Lexington would add considerable time to the commute.

[Jmd3]

That's not bad compared to his current commute. His office is right near the junction of 95 and route 2.

[kingeorge]

You are indeed in better job location to be able to venture as far west.

I would estimate that both commutes should be at best 45 minutes to an hour (Harvard is better of the two), and at worst hour an a half to two, depending on the time of day, where you need to go home, bad weather, construction, or simply accidents.

Boston area is tough since there are limited fast moving highways options. Many roads are one lane stop-and-go country roads that often become cut-through options effectively clogging every road in the vicinity. There is always school traffic, or snow and ice to deal with as well.

Groton is probably tougher since there is no easy and straight shot, and you might get caught in stop-and-go school and rush hour traffic. Some areas are hilly, and no fun to drive in winter. Groton commute might be longer depending where in Groton you buy as well. I would be careful in both areas so you are not adding 15-20 minutes to your commute just to go through the town.

Harvard is probably easier commute especially for for Rt. 2 availability, but there is heavy traffic there too, especially during the rush hour, including rotary in Concord that has awful traffic on most days. There is also some construction on Rt. 2 around Lincoln area that might additionally impede traffic, but hopefully it will get better once it is done. I am not sure how long it is scheduled to go on, before all is done.

Rt.3 has terrible traffic, and avoid at all costs if possible.

Whatever you end up doing, some flexibility in working hours might be wise, especially during winter time.

[KKay9]

Originally Posted by kingeorge

Whatever you end up doing, some flexibility in working hours might be wise, especially during winter time.

Absolutely! If your husband has any flexiblity in his work hours and/or the ability to work remotely when necessary, that will help a lot on the occasions where an hour commute could turn into a frustrating two or more hours...snow, heavy rain, big accident on a key highway and everyone clogging the side roads, etc...

I was so thankful this past February that I can work remotely. With big storm after big storm, I know a number of people out here in Merrimac Valley area who missed many days of work, we got hammered. That first storm was 36" out here, there was no going anywhere for a couple of days. Both Groton and Harvard are in this, just outside 495, belt that seems to get a lot of snow. In Harvard, in particular, you are likely to have a big lot and a long driveway so just getting out to the road takes a while after a storm.

[Peabody99]

We looked at Groton last year when we were searching for a house, Harvard was out of budget, and my husband works in Lexington...too far for him. It took him about an hour to get to the house from work. We moved to Stow and the commute is 40-45 minutes. It adds up and makes a difference. Harvard is a better commute but if he doesn't mind the commute you can get more for your money in Groton.

[Shrewsburried]

As others have suggested, when buying in Groton one must be selective about where they are buying within town. Groton is massive in terms of total land area, so as Kingeorge stated, buyers can easily add 15 minutes or more to their commute by buying the bigger/prettier house in the western or northern parts of town.

Most buyers try to stay near 119/Littleton for quicker access to 495. 119 is not an enjoyable road during peak hours as much of Groton, Townsend, and Pepperell is trying to migrate toward 495. The situation has only gotten worse with addition of the Market Basket intersection. For the OPs situation, focusing on the Groton School/Ayer line area of Groton might be preferable - there is a great congestion free route to rt. 2 via the old Devens base roads. Depending on how close one is to the Ayer line, the time to rt. 2 is roughly 5-10 minutes.

You can't go wrong with either town, so it's really a matter of commute.

[495neighbor]

Stow would be best for commuting to that end of Lexington. The commuter can shoot down 117 and shortcut through Lincoln or work their way through Waltham. Stow is a little bit Groton, a little bit Harvard. I think you'd like it.

Groton would be better than Harvard. You'd take 225 down and then work your way to Lex through Concord, Bedford or Lexington.