Anyone know about living in or near Marblehead, Ma.? (Boston: real estate, house)

[puffle]

It's coming down to the wire and we are trying to narrow down our choices on where to move in Massachusetts. Marblehead and Swampscott on the North are two choices, and Hingham on the South is the other, as far as coastal Ma. towns. If you or someone you know has LIVED, not just visited, in these places, please share your experiences both good and bad. Thanks in advance!

[maggierosa]

Your choice should depend in large part on any commute that you may have.
All of the three towns are lovely but getting to any one of them can be a hassle.

[puffle]

Originally Posted by maggierosa

Your choice should depend in large part on any commute that you may have.
All of the three towns are lovely but getting to any one of them can be a hassle.

How are they a hassle? My husband would be commuting via train or T or boat from any of these areas to Boston. Is that still a hassle? My choice depends also on family friendly community that is welcoming to a variety of economic situations, not just well to do. I was told to look at Swampscott instead of Marblehead. What do you think and how long have you lived in Ma. or do you?

[Nanseev]

If you can afford it, I'd look into Manchester-by-the-Sea. Better school systems (although they are all good...don't get me wrong!), has a train stop for commuting, yet you have easy access to Rt 128. The three towns are very similar, but I always liked the accessibility to Manchester more than the others. The problem with Swampscott and Marblehead is that is is difficult to get to the highway from either town...just long, slower roads. They are all beautiful towns though.

I've never lived on the South Shore, but my husband lived on the South Shore. I grew up on the North Shore. After a short time, he definitely perferred the North Shore to where he lived.

Commuting via car into Boston from the North Shore is generally easier. I haven't lived in Boston since the completion of the Big Dig, so things may have changed slightly...but overall that was the typical theme.

[maggierosa]

I've lived in Massachusetts for 25 years and had a weekend house in Gloucester for a few years before we decided to move to Gloucester full-time.

I agree with the post about looking at Manchester. I haven't analysed the relative costs of the towns but guess that you can find equivalent homes for similar prices. Probably more shopping in Swampscott, Marblehead and Hingham than in Manchester. Manchester is definitely a much easier commute. You might also want to think about Ipswich which has a good community feel, mixture of ethnic groups, close to the ocean, fun downtown and easy commute to places.
Good luck in your search.

[sue629]

For the girl looking for information about which town to live in-
Generally if you get involved in any town's activities ie. school, community centers, ymca's, park programs, sport programs, then you will meet people with similar interests and make your friends. As for the Marblehead, Swampscott area- I was brought up in Marblehead, went to school there, left for a while and came back there and lived there for the past 20 years.
The town has alot to offer. It is a beautiful town located on and surrounded by water, scenic views- it has beaches, a very active harbor area, about 4 or 5 clubs on the harbor that range from very upscale to moderate- one of the clubs you can join as a social member even if you don't sail or have a boat or have an interest in that sort of thing. Marblehead is a huge sailing center and in the summer sponsers many sail races and activities around the water. They offer sailing lessons for children, and there are small cruise boats that you can take for tours around the harbor and to neighboring harbors. There are also party boats if you are into that(booze cruise) It is a great walking town with many interesting streets and historic homes in the "old town" area and more suburban in the up town area. Most homes are well kept from the outside at least. Alot of people are into gardening and there are some spectacular gardens that can only be seen by walking around the streets and town.
The town has a very active park and recreation program and kids sports are huge here-soccer, baseball, basketball and football. If you have kids who are athletic and will play sports you will have no problem meeting people as the adults are very involved with the sport programs-there are nice parks and playing fields scattered around town. Park and recreation also offers adult programs and classes. As does the YMCA and Community Center. There are many fitness facilities, fitness programs, spas, tennis courts and a badmitton club etc. in the town.There are also 3 colleges in the immediate area where you can take classes in just about anything. The library here is a very active one in terms of the number of people who use it.
The town has a shopping area of small boutique type of stores, restaurants(upscale-mid) etc. located in the midtown and oldtown areas. In the uptown area there are larger supermarkets,chain stores and restaurants(Panera, Bertucci's) . For shopping you do not need to leave the area as everything you need is here.
The town sponsers many nice family orientated activities. They have an art festival the week of July 4th with art shows, food, music concerts, harbor illuminations and fireworks. In the winter they have a Christmas walk and activities, carolers on the street, a parade etc. Those are the two main one but there are others. In the winter it is a little dead and quiet but you are close enough to ski areas if you want to do that, skating in the public gardens in Boston, museums in Salem and Boston, so enough to keep busy. In the spring, summer and fall there are lots of people out riding bikes, jogging, walking dogs.
The school system is supposedly good. They are strong in the fine arts program and drama and many of the kids here get into good colleges. The high school is brand new state of the art facility. There is a charter school in town, two middle schools. Many people do send their kids to private as there is money here to do that. My son did not attend public high school so I cannot speak about the high school.
Real estate here is considered higher end but it seems to hold its value.
You can get into a "starter home"- smaller, in need of work for about $425,00-$450,000. Average price for a good size home is about 5-600,000 and they go up from there with many on the water in the millions of dollars.Alot of people have bought older properties and totally redo them and they are beautiful. Alot of renovations and reconstructions going on as there is not much in land here to buy.
Prices have come down a bit.
to get to Boston on a good day with no traffic you can do it in about 35 minutes, with traffic it could take 1 hour +. You do not get on a highway to go. Any highway is at least 20-25 minutes drive. There are buses that run from town to Boston and also a commuter train station in neighboring Swampscott and Salem that go into Boston. There is a water ferry from salem to Boston. Many people take the T into town, drive to Revere leave the car and T into town. Takes about 45 minutes to do.
As for snob factor- it is here as with other upscale communities. But there are also lots of average, nice, friendly people. You pick and choose.
Drawbacks- price of real estate and time it takes to get from Marblehead to anywhere. Other then that its a good pick to investigate. Hope that helps and sorry for the length.

[puffle]

Sue629 Thank you so much for the detailed response. I'm going to have to keep this area in the back burner for a few more years as moving was too much of a hardship for my teenage son (6 moves in 7 years) so we are staying put in California for another, gasp, four years! It was painful to read how wonderful Marblehead sounds now that we can't move. Thanks again..gave you a quick rep.

[vter]

I second (or third?) Manchester By The Sea. I have family that live there and it is a great town. It's a 40 minute ride to North Station on the T. The schools are good - a new high school has been approved and should be built soon. Singing Beach is awesome. Shopping is in nearby Beverly, Danvers, & Peabody. Much better access points (Manchester is right on Route 128) than Swampscott & Marblehead.

[twinpod]

I agree with a lot of what has been said about Marblehead. I basically grew up there and have lived in California also, so I can offer some insight here.
Marblehead is a beautiful, historic town but also slightly isolated geographically (it's a peninsula) and economically (upscale). When I was growing up, there might have been 2 or 3 families of color. Now, I wouldn't call it LA or NY, but there is more diversity than before. Keeping in mind of course, those people probably have an MBA from an Ivy league school. There are regular folk....townspeople or "townies" who either never left or left and came back to be lobstermen or work in the boating/sails business etc. My family lived in the funkier side of town on the Salem Harbor side. And even there a starter home is around 400k. The schools are good, as are Swampscott's. Marblehead has slightly more going on in terms of arts/culture. I rented in Swampscott for a year and found it more "down to earth", but BORING... as there is no center of town to speak of, unless you call Vinnin Square Mall a downtown. Where I am now, Newburyport, is just as beautiful as Marblehead, I think with even more going on culturally. And even though it is further from Boston, in some ways the highway access is better. Plus, if you like New Hampshire and Maine, you can hop up there in less than and hour. Good luck on your eventual move!

[Monkeykingsdaughter]

This is a great find, the forum. So many people responded with this question. Thank you all. I am a long-time resident in northshore area but have little knowledge about the town of Marblehead. I am trying to promote Traditional Chinese Medicine and planned having a series of seminars at the local YMCA. Does any know of a way to promote it cheaply? I am thinking of contacting a local community access television station for help. Any suggestions? Thank you very much in advance for any information.

Monkeykingsdaughter