Considering Amherst (Boston, Springfield, Northampton: sales, real estate, apartments)

[UNChoops93]

Hi All, Our family recently relocated from Denver and are currently renting a home in Madison, CT for the year. My husband works in sales and has a territory that covers CT and Western Mass. We were hoping to spend the year getting familiar with the New England area and finding a town that is a good fit for us. While we love Madison and being by the the beach, we are not feeling like we could call it "home". The people are very welcoming and it is a very family friendly town, but our budget has us looking for houses in the $450-500,000 range and the choices are pretty limited. We are also somewhat tree hugging liberals from Colorado and just aren't finding a great niche along the shoreline. I hope that doesn't sound too judgmental. We have heard great things about Amherst, but we know very little about the area. We are attracted to it because of the diversity and the many benefits that come with being a multi-college town. We are not familiar with the schools. Can anyone out there offer some insight? Is there full day kindergarten? Are there sections of town that are more suitable for young families - we have a four and a two year old. We ideally would like to be close to town. Thank you so much for your help!

[michael49]

Originally Posted by UNChoops93

... We are also somewhat tree hugging liberals from Colorado and just aren't finding a great niche along the shoreline....

Great, just what we need, another tree-hugging liberal in Amherst.

Seriously though, you'd probably like it in Amherst. The Amherst schools are considered the best in the area. One of the drawbacks to the area is the lack of a real city - poor Springfield is pretty pathetic. Its about 90 minutes to Boston though. Northampton has a fair amount to offer in terms of restaurants and shopping however.

Have you visted the area?

[Xenos]

Answering specific questions -
Kindergarteners do the full day with the rest of the elementary school students - 8:40 to 3:05.
There are distinct neighborhoods (North Amherst, Cushman, South Amherst, etc), but much of the town is either suburban in character or outright rural. There is a decent-sized area near the town center, and although a lot of students live there it is not very rowdy.

The area where the High School, Middle School and Wildwood School meet has a lot of smaller houses that would fit what you are looking for, but the turnover of these houses is pretty low. If you want a four-bedroom house you will most likely end up with something a mile or two from the center of town, which makes a minimal-car lifestyle more difficult to manage. There is a thriving rental market here, including houses at decent rates, but it takes some work to access it.

[VlyRoadKid]

Originally Posted by UNChoops93

Hi All, Our family recently relocated from Denver and are currently renting a home in Madison, CT for the year... budget has us looking for houses in the $450-500,000 range and the choices are pretty limited. We are also somewhat tree hugging liberals from Colorado and just aren't finding a great niche along the shoreline. We ideally would like to be close to town. Thank you so much for your help!

Heh-heh! Someone above made a joke about "tree-hugging liberals"...yes it's true! You'll fit right in here! I lived in Amherst from the time I entered UMass...many yrs. ago...and loved it so much I stayed after graduating, as did many others, then and now.

That's one reason prices are so high (Northampton, too). WIth your budget, you should be able to get a fairly nice house near Amherst center, but with kids, you'd probably prefer the surrounding towns, like Leverett, Pelham, South Amherst, or further north, Sunderland. The further north you go, the more bucolic it is.

Actually, Sunderland (about 7 miles from Amherst) is an almost IDEAL place to raise kids! It's rural, beautiful, has a low crime rate, taxes more or less in keeping with the area and an excellent school system (your older kids, if you stay, would go to the regional high school, Frontier, which is newly renovated and top-notch).

This is as good a place for families as it is for young people (we raised our son here, after a horrible stint in Central MA, sounds like where you are now!).

Activities and athletics abound (some of the best cycling anywhere, hiking, canoeing/kayaking and people here are almost as fitness-minded as in Colorado! There are lots of programs for kids of all ages, with much emphasis on the environment.

Unlike much of the rest of New England, The Valley's people are, as you said, very diverse, open-minded and will befriend you much more quickly than in, say, Vermont. Whatever interest/hobby, etc. you may have, you'll probably find a group here. People will also NOT bug you about your private life (religion, marital status, money, and so on) as they often do in other parts of Mass.

If you CAN afford to live in the center of Amherst, that's great, especially for older kids without licenses! There are two town recreation areas with pools and if you take courses at UMass, you get access to their pools and gyms! (That's one thing this area is lacking: good, clean lakes and ponds to swim in).

I'm sure you'll love it here...and NOW is the time to buy! Good luck!

P.S. For some pictures of the area, go to my profile...
P.P.S. We now live in Greenfield, and though it's not bad, the housing prices are lower, but if you have kids, you wouldn't want to sent them here. Luckily, our kid just graduated high school. Message me for more on that, if you want...or anything else!

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by VlyRoadKid

Heh-heh! Someone above made a joke about "tree-hugging liberals"...yes it's true! You'll fit right in here! I lived in Amherst from the time I entered UMass...many yrs. ago...and loved it so much I stayed after graduating, as did many others, then and now.

That's one reason prices are so high (Northampton, too). WIth your budget, you should be able to get a fairly nice house near Amherst center, but with kids, you'd probably prefer the surrounding towns, like Leverett, Pelham, South Amherst, or further north, Sunderland. The further north you go, the more bucolic it is.

Actually, Sunderland (about 7 miles from Amherst) is an almost IDEAL place to raise kids! It's rural, beautiful, has a low crime rate, taxes more or less in keeping with the area and an excellent school system (your older kids, if you stay, would go to the regional high school, Frontier, which is newly renovated and top-notch).

This is as good a place for families as it is for young people (we raised our son here, after a horrible stint in Central MA, sounds like where you are now!).

Activities and athletics abound (some of the best cycling anywhere, hiking, canoeing/kayaking and people here are almost as fitness-minded as in Colorado! There are lots of programs for kids of all ages, with much emphasis on the environment.

Unlike much of the rest of New England, The Valley's people are, as you said, very diverse, open-minded and will befriend you much more quickly than in, say, Vermont. Whatever interest/hobby, etc. you may have, you'll probably find a group here. People will also NOT bug you about your private life (religion, marital status, money, and so on) as they often do in other parts of Mass.

If you CAN afford to live in the center of Amherst, that's great, especially for older kids without licenses! There are two town recreation areas with pools and if you take courses at UMass, you get access to their pools and gyms! (That's one thing this area is lacking: good, clean lakes and ponds to swim in).

I'm sure you'll love it here...and NOW is the time to buy! Good luck!

P.S. For some pictures of the area, go to my profile...
P.P.S. We now live in Greenfield, and though it's not bad, the housing prices are lower, but if you have kids, you wouldn't want to sent them here. Luckily, our kid just graduated high school. Message me for more on that, if you want...or anything else!

what is the price difference between Amherst Greenfield and Springfield?
We don't have kids and don't want to be in a good school district. Pre-retiree child free couple. I am a writer. Want an old asbestos -free renovated colonial with a private yard or acreage - land size matters little - privacy does. Thanks - where do I get the best bang for the buck house price and tax wise?

[mommytotwo]

Originally Posted by Xenos

There is a thriving rental market here, including houses at decent rates, but it takes some work to access it.

How do you recommend accessing it? I live nearby but have a friend moving to Amherst area to work on PhD @ Umass, needs apartment for wife and 3 school age girls. Do you have any idea of prices for apartments? I was going to pick up an apartment guide. Did you have another source? Thanks.

Originally Posted by 12buttons

what is the price difference between Amherst Greenfield and Springfield?
We don't have kids and don't want to be in a good school district. Pre-retiree child free couple. I am a writer. Want an old asbestos -free renovated colonial with a private yard or acreage - land size matters little - privacy does. Thanks - where do I get the best bang for the buck house price and tax wise?

Even if I didn't have kids I really wouldn't want to live in Springfield. Although conveniently located, there are too many bad areas. I am from there, and my parents still live there. Their taxes are EXTREMELY high considering the value of their house.

(However there are still some nice areas of Springfield, which I have recently discovered, while driving around w/my navigation system, for me I just wouldn't bother looking there because I have two kids)

I just wouldn't bther w/springfield if I were you.

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by mommytotwo

How do you recommend accessing it? I live nearby but have a friend moving to Amherst area to work on PhD @ Umass, needs apartment for wife and 3 school age girls. Do you have any idea of prices for apartments? I was going to pick up an apartment guide. Did you have another source? Thanks.




Even if I didn't have kids I really wouldn't want to live in Springfield. Although conveniently located, there are too many bad areas. I am from there, and my parents still live there. Their taxes are EXTREMELY high considering the value of their house.

(However there are still some nice areas of Springfield, which I have recently discovered, while driving around w/my navigation system, for me I just wouldn't bother looking there because I have two kids)

I just wouldn't bther w/springfield if I were you.

thanks - i saw a utube trip thru it - depressing doesn't begin to describe it ...lol

[VlyRoadKid]

Sorry I didn't reply sooner--haven't been here for awhile, exc. to deal w/son's trip to Hawaii! If you really don't need good schools, Greenfield is an EXCELLENT choice for you, unless you can afford Amherst. Both towns have fairly closely-packed residential sections, but also outlying areas with more room. The big difference is price: many people who work in Amherst (say, at UMass) live in Greenfield since it's so much cheaper to buy a house.

Now, with the housing market like it is, you can get an excellent house, as you described, for $200K (the median here is $180), whereas in Amherst, it'd probably cost you 1 1/2 times or twice that. If you want privacy, try some of the more rural sections, such as northwestern Greenfield, heading toward Colrain, Leyden, Bernerdston or Shelburne (actually, THOSE towns are quite nice, too!)

If you want land around you, of course you'll have to pay more, but IMO, it's worth it! We just can't afford it now. Still, I like being near Greenfield center, where the shops are, and at my age, the hospital! Our kid (just graduated from high school) was able to walk to work, which saved gas. Greenfield doesn't have the trendiest downtown, for restaurants, clubs and nightclubs, like N'ton and Amherst, but there ARE some nice places here, and many activities and parks. It's a LOT safer, too, than many nay-sayers would have you believe. The crime in Gfld. is NO worse than Northampton and both it and Amherst are KNOWN for a heavy drug-dealing, even amongst high-schoolers!

I know a Realtor who said I could refer people to him. He's a Gfld. native and new to the business. I don't think I can give his name here due to SPAM rules, but IM me and we can exchange e-mails, if you want.

Avoid Springfield!!! And good luck!

[Xenos]

Originally Posted by mommytotwo

How do you recommend accessing it? I live nearby but have a friend moving to Amherst area to work on PhD @ Umass, needs apartment for wife and 3 school age girls. Do you have any idea of prices for apartments? I was going to pick up an apartment guide. Did you have another source? Thanks.

.

I could not find a decent house rental without going through an agency. The most prominent one in town is Eagle Crest ((413) 256-3442).

[ds495]

Try apartments.com for those, and for houses, we like zillow.com or yahoo real estate (start at yahoo.com.) There was another real estate site called red something, that showed you trends of house prices by area. Redfin? Goodluck.