New England Towns - Charm vs. "Countryside"

[in_newengland]

Originally Posted by timberline742

Nothing wrong with that! One of my good friends loves living/working in Saskatoon.

If Canada would let me in, I probably wouldn't mind going there too right about now, LOL. My dh worked in Winnipeg--said it was just a TAD cold in winter!

[Boston_Burbs]

Originally Posted by tovarisch

Well, one doesn't have to BE an academic (i.e., a professor) to work at a college or university or prep school; there are many other jobs. As with hospitals, etc. I think similarly with marketers, no?

As someone who has tried to get back to my beloved western, MA. I actually think Hampshire county is MORE overpriced than eastern, MA.

Why?

In a A school district (Northampton, Amherst, Pelham, etc.) you are paying At Least $300k for a 3 bed house if you are not picky. Property taxes will be steep, around $5-$6k in the Amherst district.

Now you go to salary. In my industry I would maybe make $75k with a top level of $100k unless i became a director at a local college. Similar for healthcare. I would NEVER work for a private company in Western, MA as they treat their employees like **** as they know its them or off to Worcester/Hartford for a competitor.



In Eastern, MA you can get a 3 bed for $500k-$550k in Burlington and have multiple private and non-profit employers to keep you from having job lock. It harder to start out but long term it's a far more stable place to live. Add in employer compensated commuting and it gets better. I already make over $100k and my income potential will only increase.

I have run the numbers many times and I just don't see it working for me. Maybe if I was a Doctor or Professor. But a an engineer, nope. Same goes for Burlington, VT but at least you can get a break on property taxes based on income.

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by in_newengland

I know. But they said:

We do need jobs. I'm a data/customer marketer with an MBA. He's a mechanical engineer (lead).

I'm not quite sure what those jobs entail but neither one is a medical professional or an academic.

I was trying to help them find a place where they could fulfill their dreams of a mini farm, no big city to work in, and yet hiking and ocean are not far away. (and whatever else...not going back to read the post again, but they had requirements to be filled, as most people do.)

I reread the post and they did say something about wanting to be close to the ocean and farms. Given that perhaps some of the towns up north closer to the water like Middleton or Danvers could be better for them.

[tovarisch]

Here in Northampton there is a three-bedroom house next door to me, for sale NOW for $275,000. Anecdotal, but still.

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by Boston_Burbs

As someone who has tried to get back to my beloved western, MA. I actually think Hampshire county is MORE overpriced than eastern, MA.

Why?

In a A school district (Northampton, Amherst, Pelham, etc.) you are paying At Least $300k for a 3 bed house if you are not picky. Property taxes will be steep, around $5-$6k in the Amherst district.

Now you go to salary. In my industry I would maybe make $75k with a top level of $100k unless i became a director at a local college. Similar for healthcare. I would NEVER work for a private company in Western, MA as they treat their employees like **** as they know its them or off to Worcester/Hartford for a competitor.



In Eastern, MA you can get a 3 bed for $500k-$550k in Burlington and have multiple private and non-profit employers to keep you from having job lock. It harder to start out but long term it's a far more stable place to live. Add in employer compensated commuting and it gets better. I already make over $100k and my income potential will only increase.

I have run the numbers many times and I just don't see it working for me. Maybe if I was a Doctor or Professor. But a an engineer, nope. Same goes for Burlington, VT but at least you can get a break on property taxes based on income.

I've been stating this for a while. The best value in MA, assuming job access is a need, continues to be eastern Worcester county. 300-400K still buys you a solid school district and relatively painless access to the Worcester and greater-Boston job market.

[Boston_Burbs]

Originally Posted by Shrewsburried

I've been stating this for a while. The best value in MA, assuming job access is a need, continues to be eastern Worcester county. 300-400K still buys you a solid school district and relatively painless access to the Worcester and greater-Boston job market.

Agreed, nothing beats Oakmont/Wachusett/Nashoba in therms of access to jobs, recreating and somewhat affordable housing.

Though I have started to really like the Silver Lake District (Plympton, Kingston, Halifax) You loose access to Burlington/Hanscom/Worcester but get a commuter rail to Boston and the beach yet still retain a agricultural feel (if thats your thing)

[Fooey]

Hello there,

I’ll throw in my 2-cents. Nope, you’re not crazy! I worked in Boston for 8 years and am so glad I don’t have that commute anymore. The big city is nice for a visit now and then, but not our cup of tea either. Like you we are both engineering backgrounds and no kids. We also contemplated a move out to the Denver area several years ago (we also ski). We decided against it in the end. We love New England. If you love the outdoors and aren’t afraid of winter you’ll like it here. Closer to Boston and the Rt 128 belt the property prices sky rocket. The population density also goes way up as you approach the Boston Suburbs. So I’ll talk about south coast of MA and Rhode Island, and north toward NH and Maine.

Property taxes can vary wildly in New England. For example in Tiverton RI taxes on a $350k property can easily be around $10k a year. Same property a mile away in Little Compton RI will be closer to $2k/year. IMO it’s worth spending a little more for a nice home in a low tax town, especially if you have no plans for kids and schools aren’t a factor.

Rhode Island and Southeast MA. Saltwater, great seafood, cute towns, convenient to stores and restaurants, some nice open spaces. If you’re into kayaking and cycling this is a great place to live. You can find nice homes with several acres close to saltwater for < $500k. You’ll probably be commuting to either Providence area or possibly Newport/Middletown RI for jobs. Traffic can get pretty bad around Providence at rush hour. Mountains are about 2-3 hours away in NH.

Here’s an example in Little Compton. Nearby areas that are also very nice are Westport MA, possibly Bristol/Warren/Barrington RI. You also have two small cities nearby, Fall River and New Bedford. Both are somewhat depressed and can be hard to find good jobs in either of them, though both have good shopping and great restaurants.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3...65930923_zpid/

Southern New Hampshire is also very busy and expensive, but lots of job opportunities, especially in the Nashua and Merrimack NH areas. You can be close to lakes and mountains yet still a reasonable commute from areas around Concord NH. Property taxes tend to be very high in NH, but NH has no state income or sales tax, so if you’re high earners that can make a big difference. I you live in NH you want to work in NH to avoid paying income tax to MA (many people commute over the state line). Lots of good places to ski/hike about an hour north, but don’t expect Colorado skiing in New England ;-)

Example from Concord NH
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4...92891306_zpid/

Going further north up the coast is Portland Maine. Portland is a small city, very friendly as cities go. Lots of great food, beer, music scene, and things to do. Also lots of jobs and pay scales are relatively high for the area. It’s on the ocean, yet only about an hour or two to some great New England skiing (Sunday River and Sugarloaf) and hiking (check out Baxter State Park 4 hours north). Many small towns just outside Portland have nice homes with acreage. Being on the coast helps to moderate the winters a bit, but definitely tougher winters here then in Rhode Island and MA. In addition to the mountains, you can day trip north to the midcoast areas of Camden/Rockport/Rockland and north of that Mount Desert Island. Lots of great hiking and beautiful vistas. If I were in my early 30’s and looking for a great place to live/work/play in New England this would top my list (my opinion, i’m sure others would have different opinions). You’ll find property prices drop rapidly as you go inland, but winter weather also gets worse.

Bath Maine, home of Bath Iron Works. It’s about 40 minutes commute to Portland. Bowdoin College in Brunswick is nearby. Taxes tend to be high here..
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2...85015716_zpid/

Harpswell. Also about 45 minutes to Portland. Very low taxes. Close to Brunswick and Bath for shopping and great restaurants.
https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/.../pid_25389524/

One more thought here.. Colorado to New England is such a long distance move. Have you considered buying something cheap to start with, in the area you like, then once you are here you can either sell it and trade up or use it for rental income? If you search zillow you'll find quite a few homes in the same towns I mentioned above that are between $150k-$250k.

Good luck in your move!

[OutdoorLover]

New England, including Mass has all that - beautiful farms like out of a children's book, charming older homes, small towns with cute downtowns, jobs for engineers, inexpensive housing... but if you want a single place that offers all of the above at once, that's not so easy. I think the northern New England states (VT/NH/ME) near a decent sized city - small by most standards, would be your best bet. Maybe the Burlington suburbs (like Shelburne) in VT, Nashua (like Amherst) or Portsmouth (like Madbury) suburbs in NH, or the Portland, Brunswick or Bath suburbs in Maine?