Gloucester and within 40 miles (Boston, Haverhill: affordable house, employment, landscaping)

[Andyk]

Hello - And I hope someone can help - I have a potential employment opportunity with a great company located in Gloucester MA. Two questions

- Is there any affordable houseing within 40 miles of the place? - Where?

I am targeting homes up to $550. My home in West Michigan is valued at ~ $400 - Most of the equivalant properties are in the 700 range! I am also open to a larger home that needs renovating - I have four children and need at least 2,600 sq ft.

- Shcools - Like I stated above, I have four kids 1 in elementary, 2 in middle school and one is a jr in HS. Schools are extreamely important to us and again we are seeking some advice on where to go.

I have also heard that folks live in NH and commute - Comments would be welcome.

Thanks in Advance

[MAtoNC!]

Newbury and Rowley would have houses in that price range and be a decent commute to Gloucester.

[Andyk]

Thanks - I will take a look there!

Andy K

[CityGirl52]

Definitely Rowley or Newbury area. Check it out and you'll be glad you did. A lot of really nice homes all in through there. From Gloucester to Rowley it would be approximately a 33 minute drive. From Gloucester to Newbury it would be just a little longer.

If you wanted to check out southern NH it's not too far from either of these towns at all, it's possibly an hour commute though. You would really like the town of Hampton Falls or the town of Hampton or further north in to No. Hampton in Rockingham County in New Hampshire. These towns are all in the "seacoast" area. I think if you want a 40 mile commute or so to Gloucester then your best bet would be to stick with the towns of Rowley or Newbury. These towns would really be ideal as the previous poster mentioned. I heard the schools are very well run and quite reputable in both towns, in fact? I would say you won't have anything to worry about in either area.

I'm driving through Rowley, Newbury & further to Ipswich & Essex on Saturday. It's really SUCH a beautiful part of the state. If you get the chance after you move here; you'll have to go to the "Village" restaurant in Essex, it's located at the intersection of Rte 133 and Rte 22. It's possibly one of the best restaurants in the whole state, I kid you NOT. I hope it never ever changes because we love it there! If you end up moving to the area you'll have to remember this gem for dinner some day!

Good luck, you've got quite a move ahead of you!

Here's the Village Restaurant site. One thing about this restaurant is you can sit here and relax. It's a comfortable dining establishment. The cuisine is wonderful here. Woodman's in Ipswich is an all time favorite as well, but there's JUST something about the Village that stands out. You'll see what I mean when you get here!

http://www.village-essex.com

[Andyk]

CityGirl52

Thanks a Bunch - Great info - I will check out the restaurant as well. We are always looking good places to eat!

Do you know of any good sites to find picutres or video of the area?

Thanks

Andy K

[CityGirl52]

There's all kinds of neat historical older homes in through Newbury & Rowley and all along the north shore & southern NH, dotted along the coast and beyond. Newbury is home to the Coffin House located at 14 High Rd., the Swett-Iisley House at 4 High Rd., the Dole-Little House at 289 High Rd. and the neat Spencer-Pierce Little Farm located at 5 Little Lane in Newbury. If you go in to this site you'll see a few of them and their descriptions will give you a pretty good idea of how nice the area is:

www.spnea.org/visit/homes

Here's info about "the Farm"....it'll give you an idea of the type of landscaping that's through here. The pictures on the above site will help you to get an idea of it as well.

Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm, c. 1690
5 Little's Lane
Newbury, Mass. 01951
(978) 462-2634
Acres: 240

The property surrounding the Spencer-Peirce-Little House retains an historic landscape that has changed little since the earliest known photographs. This 240-acre farm is a rare survival in New England from an original 400-acre land grant of 1635. Since its beginning, this has been one of the region's most productive agricultural properties. The Little Farm has, since the last century, been referred to as The Farm, an impressive title considering that coastal Newbury is an agricultural community made up of many farms. Continuous agricultural activity since the 17th century has included harvesting salt marsh and English hay, raising livestock, supplying produce for the 18th- and 19th-century coastal trade routes, importing draft horses before the advent of motorized plows, and growing spinach to support the efforts of WWII Visitors can enjoy the Eliza Little Trail, a 1/4 mile foot path on the farm, which is part of the Bay Circuit Trail. The fields are actively farmed. Please stay on the marked path.. The farm grounds may be enjoyed during museum hours.

Here's a little info on Rowley, MA. I didn't see too many pictures online. If you go to this site:

http://www.remax-beverlyma.com/pages...ma-real-estate

Rowley is a quintessential New England hometown with 5500 residents, located 10 miles southeast of Haverhill and 28 miles north of Boston. Boxford, Georgetown, Newbury, Ipswich, and the Plum Island River border it. Rowley was founded in 1639 and is situated between two rivers, the Muddy Creek and the Rowley River.

The main land mass fronts Plum Island Sound with an extensive salt marsh area that eventually gives way to rolling uplands. Heavily forested, there are several working farms with numerous single-family houses. Today, Rowley is transitioning from its historical farming roots to a residential community yet the town maintains its historical charm, including the town common green, numerous stately, colonial era homes lining Main Street, and several tall white steeple churches.

You can get a really good idea of the town of Rowley by reading the above on it. You'll really like this whole area I guarantee it....

I just found a really neat site just now with some pictures of Newbury, MA. on it. You'll see the First Settlers Burying Ground and all kinds of neat shots of Plum Island and different ones around Newbury that some one kindly took and shared online. Wait till you see them all, if you can't get in to them with this site, just go to webshots news dot com and then plug in newbury, massachusetts, that's how I ended up getting a lot of the ones I saw just now tonight, GOOD LUCK. You and your family are going to love living through this whole area, I guarantee it. Wait till you visit and you'll see what I mean, take a look at these neat shots and browse through them when you get a minute:

http://news.webshots.com/photo/24145...66270640vFMwpW

http://news.webshots.com/photo/14611...66270640BeOqKW

[Andyk]

Again - Many thanks - I will let you know if things progress -Your reply has been very helpful!

Andy K

[menglin]

We have a house in Rockport which is the next town over from Gloucester, I have lived in the area on and off my whole life. I just want to give you a bit of advice on the 40 mile thing. You will come to resent that commute. My husband commuted to Salem and it took 40 minutes. The traffic on 128 is HORRIBLE especially, summertime coming over the bridge to the one rotary in Gloucester. If you get one accident which happens a lot, add major time onto your commute!!! They don't call it the island for nothing. LOL If you can swing it stay as close as you can get. Ipswich, Beverly, Salem, Rockport, Danvers, Essex, Manchester, Commuting the back road from Rowley and Newbury is not as bad as 128. I know you should be able to find housing in your price range. I love this area and its beautiful, but the roads are horrible, the pot holes that form by the Beverly exits 19,20, 21 will get you in the Spring. LOL Please feel free to ask me any questions about this area. The schools in these areas are all good. Good luck in your Move.

[CityGirl52]

The roads ARE brutal through that whole area, they're filled with pot holes and bumps in the road, what IS up with that??! We took a ride down to Essex for dinner this weekend and couldn't believe all the nasty bumps and pot holes. It's worse now than ever through there, so it's probably from the snow and cold again this year?? Hopefully the state or the towns have the funds to repair them this coming year; may be this year they'll do what needs to be done to them!

Menglin is correct in her post; the closer you live to Gloucester the better off you'll be. The commute was always brutal along Rte 128 and I mean always! It always had that reputation, it's one price you pay for living there I suppose. It can be horrible and it unfortunately always will be. Especially in our summer months around here! It comes with the territory when you live along the beautiful New England seacoast and near any type of a beach and the top place for a scenic coastline is right where you're going to be working.

Commuting IS really for the birds, I always say that here! Trust me, I did it from southern NH down to Boston for over 15 years and it's NO joke, I am paying for it now with osteoarthritis in my hip. I don't think you'd like to be any further than the towns mentioned near Gloucester, so remember that when you're here visiting. AND always remember that the back roads will be ideal for you once you get to know them all; that way you won't have to even go near 128 or any highways too much.

The commuter rail is wonderful and when they finally opened it several years ago in Newburyport I was one of the first ones to take it. We were all so happy when it opened! The next stop is Ipswich and from there it stops here and there through Rowley, Beverly, Swampscot and various stops till it gets to Boston's North Station. There's a way of getting to Gloucester by getting off at North Beverly I think it is and you have to switch here for one of the trains going to Gloucester. I would think it would be kind of a pain when it doesn't run that much or there's frozen tracks in the winter months, which I've encountered a few times myself taking it to get in to Boston.

Once you get settled in a town through this particular area you could get in to downtown Boston though without driving down by taking the commuter rail right in to Boston's North Station, so that's one thing that's really great. You won't have to worry about the parking in downtown Boston which is astronomical these days and you can spend the day down there and hop back on the train later on in the day to get home, it's no bother. Just go to this site to see about the schedule and fares when you get the chance:
www.mbta.com

[Andyk]

Again- Great info from both of you! This is extreamely helpful and will adi in our potential move - I feel like I have been there already! It is great to get a perspective from people who actually live there!

Andy K