Holliston/Wayland (Boston, Andover, Needham: for sale, travel, work)

[Polly Esther]

Hi All,

We are looking to relocate from CT in the near future and I was wondering if there is a town center in either Holliston or Wayland? We currently live somewhere where there aren't any sidewalks or any "downtown". I miss that! So, a "downtown" is a must on our list of requirements.

As a guideline, my Cousin lives in Andover and if you are familiar, that is the size and flavor or what we are looking for.

Thanks!

[scarletfire]

Hi Polly,

Neither town has much of a downtown per se. Wayland doesn't really have a center, and Holliston has a cute little craft/toy/candy store that's been there for years, a coffee shop, a children's park (and I believe tennis courts), a small family-run grocery & sandwich shop, and a few antique stores downtown but it's not really a nice strolling downtown like you'd find in Concord or Wellesley. Unfortunately a lot of the metrowest downs lack a great walking downtown.

If Wayland is in your price range though I'd recommend Concord too because it has a lot of what Wayland has to offer - excellent schools, open space, easy highway access, plus 2 commuter rail stations, great bike trails & a lovely walking downtown with shops & boutiques. Plus all the historical sites. I saw a lovely updated 1920s home there walking distance to downtown for sale last week actually.

[Polly Esther]

That's very helpful. Thanks!

Could you make any other suggestions that might be a little more "price friendly"? I love Concord, but worry it's too much on the high end and I'm not sure about the snob factor. We currently live in Snob Central and I really want to try to eliminate that possiblilty. We're just simple folk!

Also, we now live on over an acre and I think that while we are resigned to the possiblity of a smaller lot, anything below 1/3 of an acre might not suit us. That said, I think Wellesley might not work either.

The things that are most important to us are schools - of course! (I most likely wouldn't consider anything that wasn't in the top 20% of MCAS scores). Also we really want a downtown area.

We are self-employed, so daily commuting to Boston isn't an issue. That said, our business is housing related (not so good right now-maybe we will need to commute to Boston, LOL), and we would rely on being in an area where housing values are on the upper end. I would say no more than 30 miles from Boston.

Our range for a nice 4 bed colonial would be @ 600-800 depending upon how much work it needs. North, South or West of Boston doesn't matter. We love Andover and Hingham - any other suggestions?

[missionhill]

Newburyport should be on your list--major town center there. Also a town center in Ipswich. Guess you want to be within 30 miles of Boston but if flexible, you might consider Exeter or Portsmouth, NH. Not too many towns with centers as lively as Andover, Concord, and Hingham within 15-30 miles of Boston--most of the towns with walkable centers (like Winchester, Needham, Wellesley) are closer in and have older houses on smaller lots (built mostly before traveling around by private auto was so common.) There's also the thing of being close enough to a walkable area to come and go when you please without it being your town-- Acton, for example, is close to Concord and probably more affordable and socially down-to-earth.