South Shore vs. North Shore (Boston, Lynn: low income, foreclosures, rent)

[Irma10]

Hi everybody,
I've been enjoying this forum for a while and now looking for some advice. We are currently in search of small SFH or condo as rent investment somewhere around Boston, and found some nice properties around cities Attleboro and Lynn. What surprised me is that rents for 3 bdrm in downtown Lynn which suppose to be mostly low income people populated are generally higher comparably to much nicer looking neubourhoods of Attleboro.
What could be a reason for that? Is the commute to Boston so different in therms of traffic and such? Actually property in Attleboro sits very close to 95. How long would be regular working commute to Boston from the both cities?

Or, as local person said, people on the South Shore just not so dragged to Boston for job and prefer to be employed in Providence where wages are not so high.
Frankly I would like to buy in Attleboro but I have to think about cash flow first. Is there some possibility for growth of S. Shore popularity in the future?

[lrfox]

^The South Shore (actually, South Coast) is the fastest growing area in Massachusetts. Providence is also a fast growing city, and Attleboro is only minutes away. I'd say Both Lynn and Attleboro have the potential for growth in the future; but Lynn, given it's proximity to Boston and the proposed extension of light rail to the city (The Blue Line), has the better chance "booming" of the two locations you mentioned.

Lynn is also much closer to Boston and is actually part of the Urbanized Boston area. The commute would be nearly 1/2 (maybe more than that) of what it would be from Attleboro. The problem with commuting from Attleboro is that you're forced to deal with traffic on 95, 128, and 93 which is a real headache and makes for a LONG commute. There's traffic coming from Lynn, but for a much shorter distance. Rail Service from Lynn is also a lot easier and faster than Attleboro which is a ways out on its respective line.

I would guess that you could find a more suburban home in a quieter location in Attleboro, but given what you're looking for, Lynn is the safer bet. The proximity to Boston and the coast would lead me to believe that in terms of growth, Lynn will see positive increases in land value and population sooner than Attleboro and probably to a much larger degree. That said, neither of the two are "sure things." and you may want to consider some other areas.

[Irma10]

Thank you, you response helped me a lot!!
We have seen much listings in Lynn, just all these foreclosures in area frightened me a bit along with bad reputation of Lynn itself. But you are right, the proximity to Boston probably would work in favor in future.