Desirable Neighborhoods in Southborough and Westborough (Boston, Natick: sale, 2015, homes)

[zafarnamah]

Can someone suggest desirable neighborhoods in Southborough and Westborough for someone commuting to Boston? Our price range is $800k to $1m. Our main priorities are access to Boston by car and excellent schools. Also, why do homes sit on the market for so long in Southborough despite the low inventory?

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by zafarnamah

Can someone suggest desirable neighborhoods in Southborough and Westborough for someone commuting to Boston? Our price range is $800k to $1m. Our main priorities are access to Boston by car and excellent schools. Also, why do homes sit on the market for so long in Southborough despite the low inventory?

I've noticed the high end homes are sitting in the desirable, but distant 495 towns. I think its largely an issue of Boston access and a market where buyers are willing to forfeit home/yard size for closer proximity.

[Parsec]

Originally Posted by Shrewsburried

I've noticed the high end homes are sitting in the desirable, but distant 495 towns. I think its largely an issue of Boston access and a market where buyers are willing to forfeit home/yard size for closer proximity.

^^ This. Over the past 90 days the median list price in Southborough is $692k, but the median sale price is only $444k. Some of this may be due to homes selling for below list, but most of the variance indicates that high end properties are just sitting on the market while the starter homes are selling. People buy in Southborough because their $500k doesn't get them much closer to Boston. People who buy $1M homes in that area don't commute to Boston - they work in the tech industry off I-495.

Why are you looking in Southborough and Westborough for $1M homes if you are commuting to Boston by car? There are many towns with comparable schools closer to Boston in your price range that will give you a shorter commute by car. I'd choose Wayland over Southborough and Natick over Westborough if I had $1M to spend.

[zafarnamah]

Thanks for your responses. Natick does not have very good schools, as compared to Westborough and Southborough. We have considered Wayland but haven't found a 4-5 bedroom home in our price range that doesn't require a lot of improvements. Other towns we have considered are Dover and Wellesley but from a commute perspective they are not a whole lot better than Southborough, which is just 30 minutes to Boston without traffic and about an hour during rush hour.

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by zafarnamah

Thanks for your responses. Natick does not have very good schools, as compared to Westborough and Southborough. We have considered Wayland but haven't found a 4-5 bedroom home in our price range that doesn't require a lot of improvements. Other towns we have considered are Dover and Wellesley but from a commute perspective they are not a whole lot better than Southborough, which is just 30 minutes to Boston without traffic and about an hour during rush hour.

Natick schools are considered good by MA standards and the standard measures of school performance confirm this. Certainly no better/worse than Wesborough.

Also, Westborough's tax rate is quite high.

[zafarnamah]

Westborough is ranked 9th and Natick is ranked 50th on the Boston Magazine list: Best Public Schools in Boston 2015

Westborough's high school graduation rate is 97.1%, while Natick's is 93.2%. Similar gaps in SATs, AP test scores, etc across the board.

I agree the tax rate is very high in Westborough. Since our priority is excellent schools, we don't mind paying more in taxes.

[zafarnamah]

@Shrewsburried Any area in Southborough you'd recommend?

[Partial Observer]

Originally Posted by zafarnamah

Westborough is ranked 9th and Natick is ranked 50th on the Boston Magazine list: Best Public Schools in Boston 2015

Westborough's high school graduation rate is 97.1%, while Natick's is 93.2%. Similar gaps in SATs, AP test scores, etc across the board.

I agree the tax rate is very high in Westborough. Since our priority is excellent schools, we don't mind paying more in taxes.

This mentality is exactly why I want to get my kids out of Westborough. I think I did them a great disservice by putting them in schools in a town where parents are increasingly becoming obsessed with arbitrary rankings and modest test score gaps that will ultimately have no bearing whatsoever on whether they get into X college or get Y job.

[zafarnamah]

Originally Posted by Partial Observer

This mentality is exactly why I want to get my kids out of Westborough. I think I did them a great disservice by putting them in schools in a town where parents are increasingly becoming obsessed with arbitrary rankings and modest test score gaps that will ultimately have no bearing whatsoever on whether they get into X college or get Y job.

I think America is already mediocre when it comes to math and science. If you think we need to be less competitive, then you are doing a disservice to your kids who will need to compete in a global economy. Good schools matter and if a couple of hundred kids don't even graduate from high school every year, it should alarm us.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by zafarnamah

Westborough is ranked 9th and Natick is ranked 50th on the Boston Magazine list: Best Public Schools in Boston 2015

Westborough's high school graduation rate is 97.1%, while Natick's is 93.2%. Similar gaps in SATs, AP test scores, etc across the board.

I agree the tax rate is very high in Westborough. Since our priority is excellent schools, we don't mind paying more in taxes.

Where's Semiurbanite with his test scores adjusted for income spreadsheet when we need him?

I'm guessing Natick being larger and likely more diverse (from an income perspective at least) has test scores that are affected by that fact.

Really, if your kid is in a school system anywhere in the top 50 of that list most people will tell you that you're in a great school system. I can't imagine that the commute from Natick is not significantly better than commuting from Westborough or Southborough as you earlier stated.

Also, I always tell people to follow the money. What's the market like at that price point in Southborough & Westborough vs. Natick for example? Are you going to be able to resell easily? What are the odds that you'll lose your shirt and how badly if the market turns for the worse and you have to move?