Rhode Island to Massachusetts - throw me your opinions! (Boston: house, rent)

[curlystraight]

My husband just accepted a job in Boston. by the Children's Museum. He is going to commute for now on the T from Providence, but eventually we will move to Massachusetts.

We would like to be somewhere near a commuter rail.

We have a young family and 2 dogs, so a place with other young families and nice places to walk would be great. We like to go out to eat, museums, being near a library and a gym. Good school system would be nice. We belong to a Unitarian church in Providence and would like to continue that once we move.

We probably are looking in the 3 - 400,000 range.

I have a feeling we are in trouble trying to find a nice home, because right now we have an older bungalow that we renovated into a 4-bedroom, 2 full bath home with a fenced in yard, close to the highway. I don't know if we will be able to get a similar home in Mass that's in our price range.

Oh, we are from Dudley and Gardner, originally and our parents still live there, so it will be nice to be closer to them, but we don't want to live in either of those towns.

Any thoughts?

[brightdoglover]

I'd consider staying in Providence, actually. Is the commuter ride that long? You could have some trouble selling your current house, and prices are still higher in Massachusetts in general.
Regarding commuter rail to Boston, maybe you could consider Littleton. Yes, I'm a booster resident, but it does seem to be a fine place for kids and dogs- lots of sports, good schools, good community, great library, near two highways. A nice Unitarian right here in town.
Maybe you should work your way west on that commuter rail (convenient to Dudley/Gardner, more so than the shores) and consider those towns. I think the schools might be the major consideration as you go west on the commuter rail.

[curlystraight]

We are planning to stay here for another year, but would rather avoid the two hour commute as we have a newborn and a two-year-old. Plus I am not crazy about the neighborhood in which we currently own.

I had actually mentioned Littleton to him this morning! We will plan on a roadtrip soon to check out the town and get a feel for it.

Thanks!

[MovingForward]

I second Littleton. You may have to spend more than $400,000 and you won't get the same space, but I visited the town recently and think it's a great family town.

[wickedripeplum]

Whever you end up looking the UUA website has a list of parishes in Massachusetts (and conveniently they're alphabetized by town no matter what they're actually called). But honestly it is Massachusetts so they're not exactly a rare commodity.

[Valerie C]

I make this suggestion because both Andover and Haverhill have at least 1 T stop. They also both have UU churches, North Parish in North Andover is a particularly active and beautiful church: North Parish: Home

Home prices in Andover and North Andover's may be a bit more than noted in your budget, but with the price drops, maybe not. That price would fetch you a better neighborhood in Haverhill. Many people here have referred to Haverhill as "ghetto" but there are some very nice neighborhoods as you get away from the inner-city areas. I spent part of today at Haverhill's City Hall, and am just amazed at the plans for this city--check out UrbanRiver Visions 2 | Home. Finally it appears that Haverhill is going to get smart and utilize the beautiful riverfront that has been left to ruin for far too long

Originally Posted by curlystraight

My husband just accepted a job in Boston. by the Children's Museum. He is going to commute for now on the T from Providence, but eventually we will move to Massachusetts.

We would like to be somewhere near a commuter rail.

We have a young family and 2 dogs, so a place with other young families and nice places to walk would be great. We like to go out to eat, museums, being near a library and a gym. Good school system would be nice. We belong to a Unitarian church in Providence and would like to continue that once we move.

We probably are looking in the 3 - 400,000 range.

I have a feeling we are in trouble trying to find a nice home, because right now we have an older bungalow that we renovated into a 4-bedroom, 2 full bath home with a fenced in yard, close to the highway. I don't know if we will be able to get a similar home in Mass that's in our price range.

Any thoughts?

[holden125]

Most of the towns mentioned get you in to North Station but the person's job is right next to South Station. Franklin, Southborough/Hopkinton have trains to South Station and Southboro or Hopkinton are not so far from both Gardner and Dudley. Perhaps also Walpole, Mansfield, Bridgewater. Working near the Children's Museum you want to go into South Station. North Station requires taking 2 different T lines just to get to South Station, the closest stop to the Museum.

[MAtoNC!]

Originally Posted by holden125

Most of the towns mentioned get you in to North Station but the person's job is right next to South Station. Franklin, Southborough/Hopkinton have trains to South Station and Southboro or Hopkinton are not so far from both Gardner and Dudley. Perhaps also Walpole, Mansfield, Bridgewater. Working near the Children's Museum you want to go into South Station. North Station requires taking 2 different T lines just to get to South Station, the closest stop to the Museum.

Bingo! I totally agree with this! My husband used to work next to the Children's Museum when we lived in Swampscott. Thank goodness for the express bus through the Ted Williams tunnel. The train to North Station really would have been a pain in the neck. I have three young kids and my husband having a short commute was important for my sanity.
Maybe Ashland would work? It's an hour ride on the train though. But it goes into South Station.

[holden125]

Originally Posted by MAtoNC!

Bingo! I totally agree with this! My husband used to work next to the Children's Museum when we lived in Swampscott. Thank goodness for the express bus through the Ted Williams tunnel. The train to North Station really would have been a pain in the neck. I have three young kids and my husband having a short commute was important for my sanity.
Maybe Ashland would work? It's an hour ride on the train though. But it goes into South Station.

An hour into South Station is 20 minutes shorter than an hour into North Station.

[MAtoNC!]

Originally Posted by holden125

An hour into South Station is 20 minutes shorter than an hour into North Station.

Yes, I know That is why I mentioned my husband taking the MBTA express bus through the Ted Williams tunnel. If he took the train into North Station it would have another 20 minutes.

The OP wants a short commute for her husband. An hour is not that short of a commute. But I think any towns into South Station within her price range will be about that time frame.