Anything affordable near Andover? (Lowell, Lawrence: real estate, condo, low crime)

[Grailmaiden]

My husband may be offered a job in Andover, yet looking at the real estate prices it would really not be feasible to move there. Can anyone suggest an area near Andover (no more than a 30 minute commute) that is nice, has very low crime, great schools, and homes in the 250,000 range? Does such a place exist??

Thanks!!

[holden125]

Andover is pricy, but so is the whole area. $250,000 might be too low for anywhere near there with great schools. Lowell, Lawrence (and to a lesser extent Haverhill) are more urban towns with lower prices but also with urban problems. None of them really qualify for great schools or very low crime.

Best bets for lower price would be Billerica, Wilmington, maybe Chelmsford. Also Dracut, which is a bit farther. Still, anything in the price range will likely be small.

The towns in New Hampshire can be cheaper, but you'd still pay MA income tax and would also pay very high property taxes, since NH towns raise money for the schools that way due to NH's lack of a state income tax.

[brightdoglover]

I must say that, unfortunately, such a place doesn't exist.

[dmyankee]

Ooooo, Utopia...

Got no time to pack my bags, my foot's outside the door!

[SPC123]

You will find it difficult to find anything for $250K anywhere near Andover unless you look in Lawrence which is a very "low rent" and seedy area. If you have kids, you definately want to avoid that area.

I had worked in Andover and lived in North Andover (condo) and looked for houses about 7 years ago in those towns for the same range which I quickly found was an unrealistic expectation.

If you're looking to buy, I would recommend Haverhill which is just north of N. Andover. We bought a very nice Dutch Colonial with over 2.5 acres in Haverhill 7 years ago and are very happy. When my wife first mentioned Haverhill I turned my nose up becasue all I knew of the place was the more urban downtown which I was not real impressed with. What I didn't know (and most people) is that Haverhill is huge and is mostly rural with farmland, ponds, beautiful river and valley views and is rich in history. We live along the Merrimack with a farm right up the road, a golf course accross the street, and homes up the road dating back to the 1600s. Downtown is also going through a revitalization and there are great restaraunts, microbreweries, an art district - nice.

You may not be able to get a decent place for $250K it will probably closer to $300K. You'll definately get more for your money.

The schools (while they have funding issues like most towns nowadays) are okay too. Not excellent, but not below par either.