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Old 07-29-2015, 09:43 AM
 
Location: In the north country fair
4,928 posts, read 10,596,367 times
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I think that a town near New Haven--if you are lucky enough to get placed at YNHH--would probably work. While New Haven itself has lots of cute shops, restaurants and museums (it is not so much a college town as a college city; not as big as Boston, which is a true city offering much more, but still offering what you seem to want), the surrounding areas (where I grew up) are suburban and affordable. You probably won't be able to afford a beach home in a place like Guilford (you would LOVE Guilford! but it is very expensive) but it is only 30 minutes from New Haven and the surrounding suburbs.

Having lived in CT, MA and TX, I prefer MA of the 3. MA is definitely more affluent than CT (well, except Fairfield County) but more expensive. I prefer MA b/c I just feel like there is more going on here, probably b/c of Boston. CT has Hartford and New Haven but neither can compare to Boston.

Keep in mind that things in CT and MA are much more expensive than in TX. Property taxes are higher, there is a state income tax and the general price of things like groceries is greater. NH might be a good fit for you in that respect b/c it is more similar to TX in a lot of ways: no state income tax and a very "independent" spirit.
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Old 07-29-2015, 09:44 AM
 
3,808 posts, read 3,100,077 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Boston_Burbs View Post
There are plenty of Hospitals in Worcester as well as rural towns to the west. Prices are reasonable.
Great suggestion. Plenty of high income healthcare jobs, low COL (by MA standards), and excellent access to greater New England.
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Old 07-30-2015, 06:52 AM
 
Location: San Antonio
4,422 posts, read 6,212,755 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by StarlaJane View Post
I think that a town near New Haven--if you are lucky enough to get placed at YNHH--would probably work. While New Haven itself has lots of cute shops, restaurants and museums (it is not so much a college town as a college city; not as big as Boston, which is a true city offering much more, but still offering what you seem to want), the surrounding areas (where I grew up) are suburban and affordable. You probably won't be able to afford a beach home in a place like Guilford (you would LOVE Guilford! but it is very expensive) but it is only 30 minutes from New Haven and the surrounding suburbs.

Having lived in CT, MA and TX, I prefer MA of the 3. MA is definitely more affluent than CT (well, except Fairfield County) but more expensive. I prefer MA b/c I just feel like there is more going on here, probably b/c of Boston. CT has Hartford and New Haven but neither can compare to Boston.

Keep in mind that things in CT and MA are much more expensive than in TX. Property taxes are higher, there is a state income tax and the general price of things like groceries is greater. NH might be a good fit for you in that respect b/c it is more similar to TX in a lot of ways: no state income tax and a very "independent" spirit.
Actually property tax rates are much higher in Texas.
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Old 07-30-2015, 08:37 AM
 
Location: 42°22'55.2"N 71°24'46.8"W
4,848 posts, read 11,746,463 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thenewtexan View Post
Actually property tax rates are much higher in Texas.
That's true, but property taxes are lower as StarlaJane said because assessments are very low in TX. The exception would be the nice suburbs of Dallas, Houston and Austin where you'll face a $10,000 tax bill on a $500-600k house, but even that $10,000 tax bill would be half of what you'll pay for a comparable house in an upscale suburb here.
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Old 07-30-2015, 01:56 PM
 
Location: San Antonio
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Parsec View Post
That's true, but property taxes are lower as StarlaJane said because assessments are very low in TX. The exception would be the nice suburbs of Dallas, Houston and Austin where you'll face a $10,000 tax bill on a $500-600k house, but even that $10,000 tax bill would be half of what you'll pay for a comparable house in an upscale suburb here.
Actually that will run you closer to $15K in Texas. That value in most towns in MA would go for about $8K.
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Old 07-30-2015, 02:07 PM
 
Location: 42°22'55.2"N 71°24'46.8"W
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Originally Posted by thenewtexan View Post
Actually that will run you closer to $15K in Texas. That value in most towns in MA would go for about $8K.
You're still not getting the point. We were talking about the actual tax bill on comparable houses. Tax rate means nothing without attaching an assessed value to it. A $600k house in TX with $15k in property taxes will cost you $2 million in MA with $20k in taxes. I always complain to my Southern friends about my property taxes. They keep insisting their property taxes are higher, but I laugh when they tell me the rate is based on a $200k assessment. Their total property tax is still peanuts compared to mine. Don't you think the actual money flowing out of your bank account is more important than an arbitrary rate? The property tax rate in most Southern states is higher because house values are lower (and in TX due to no income tax). Governments down there still need a certain amount of money to provide services to citizens.
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Old 07-30-2015, 02:44 PM
 
Location: North Andover
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Well if you come to Massachusetts I would recommend Boxford. Most homes have at least 2 acres of land.
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Old 07-30-2015, 04:50 PM
 
Location: San Antonio
4,422 posts, read 6,212,755 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Parsec View Post
You're still not getting the point. We were talking about the actual tax bill on comparable houses. Tax rate means nothing without attaching an assessed value to it. A $600k house in TX with $15k in property taxes will cost you $2 million in MA with $20k in taxes. I always complain to my Southern friends about my property taxes. They keep insisting their property taxes are higher, but I laugh when they tell me the rate is based on a $200k assessment. Their total property tax is still peanuts compared to mine. Don't you think the actual money flowing out of your bank account is more important than an arbitrary rate? The property tax rate in most Southern states is higher because house values are lower (and in TX due to no income tax). Governments down there still need a certain amount of money to provide services to citizens.

You're way off. You are blindly assuming that apples to apples, the average house in MA is worth 3.5 times than the average house in Texas. That's what people up north just assume, but it's not true, especially inside the small triangular areas beween Austin, Houston and DFW, where 80% of Texans live. Your comparing the most expensive part of MA (i.e. Greater Boston, Brookline, etc) to rural West Texas. Property taxes in MA vary greatly from town to town. Let's not give the OP blind misinformation.
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Old 07-30-2015, 05:22 PM
 
Location: 42°22'55.2"N 71°24'46.8"W
4,848 posts, read 11,746,463 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thenewtexan View Post
You're way off. You are blindly assuming that apples to apples, the average house in MA is worth 3.5 times than the average house in Texas. That's what people up north just assume, but it's not true, especially inside the small triangular areas beween Austin, Houston and DFW, where 80% of Texans live. Your comparing the most expensive part of MA (i.e. Greater Boston, Brookline, etc) to rural West Texas. Property taxes in MA vary greatly from town to town. Let's not give the OP blind misinformation.
DFW is the only part of TX that I'm familiar with. Median home price in Boston area is around $450k, whereas DFW is around $162k. The median size of a home in the DFW area is also much larger than in the Boston area. I'm just going to leave it at that and agree to disagree. I will not post about this anymore on here because it's off topic anyways. Actually it doesn't even matter because the OP is naive to think she can become a resident at any hospital she wants after med school.
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Old 07-30-2015, 05:38 PM
 
Location: Brookline, MA
100 posts, read 218,024 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Parsec View Post
If you're just finishing up med school then I don't think you have an option to choose where you live. You basically apply to a bunch of hospitals and get placed into one of them for your residency. The majority of my friends were placed in 3rd tier cities far from friends and family. Also as a new resident you'll be working long hours 6-7 days per week. You don't really have an option to live anywhere other than within a 15 min radius from the hospital because you'll have no time for a long commute.
I was going to point out something similar. So, based on:

Quote:
In a few years I will be graduating school and securing a job as a new doctor.
You're somewhere around a second going on third year med student, may or may not know what specialty you're going to go into (do you know?), and have limited control over where you go for residency because of the match (less control for competitive specialties or if you're not a top trainee). Salaries vary a bit based on where you end up, but you'll probably start earning somewhere in the $45-55k/year range out of medical school as an intern. Because of how people in medicine need to move about for training, don't know where they'll be able to get their first attending job, and the initial modest salary, most people do not purchase property during residency.

I would suggest first focusing on med school, figuring out what specialty fits you best, and deciding which residencies would best prepare you for your career goals (and you can get into). Location certainly can play a role into how you rank your match list, but most people think about what town they'll live in after they match or have a decent idea of what programs they're likely to go to for residency.
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