Best Boston towns for young family (Cambridge, Lynn: days on market, best towns, sales)

[ras5000]

Hi all - we're moving from Ohio in early summer and are looking for a town to settle in for a few years (or longer). We're planning to rent but still need an affordable area with good schools, solid housing stock (a yard for kids and dog!) and a decent commute to downtown where my husband works. We'd also like to be reasonably close to the things that make Boston so great (we do sail, ride horses and enjoy the outdoors). We've been looking at Newton, Belmont, Needham and Marblehead, and have heard that Manchester-by-the-Sea is also nice. I know it's a tall order, but can you recommend the best towns for a young, active family (on a budget)? If we're going to make this move, we want to experience the best of New England and have a place that's fun for friends and family to visit... thanks for your help!

[ukwoman]

Needham has just built new affordable housing that is very nice. Every town you mentioned (except for Belmont) is in the top 20 richest towns in Massachusetts. So getting something on a budget in these towns might be hard. BUT, you might find you best luck with Newton. You It's the biggest of the towns you mentioned and you would probably have many choices. Newton is a city though so it's not as suburban as Needham, Marblehead, and Manchester-by-the-Sea. If safety is important, than you might choose Newton. Newton is the the 8th safest city in the United States. I live in Needham and it's also very safe. Even safer than Newton. Needham and Newton are both very close to Boston. About 30 minutes or less from Boston. I prefer Needham since it is more suburban.

[holden125]

Originally Posted by ukwoman

Needham has just built new affordable housing that is very nice. Every town you mentioned (except for Belmont) is in the top 20 richest towns in Massachusetts. So getting something on a budget in these towns might be hard. BUT, you might find you best luck with Newton. You It's the biggest of the towns you mentioned and you would probably have many choices. Newton is a city though so it's not as suburban as Needham, Marblehead, and Manchester-by-the-Sea. If safety is important, than you might choose Newton. Newton is the the 8th safest city in the United States. I live in Needham and it's also very safe. Even safer than Newton. Needham and Newton are both very close to Boston. About 30 minutes or less from Boston. I prefer Needham since it is more suburban.

I would say Newton and Belmont are your best bets for an affordable rental that's nice.

Belmont is actually known as a wealthy town, and the average household income there is higher than in Marblehead. But the town can be split into the very wealthy part, the pretty wealthy part, and the areas along Belmont St where you have normal folks renting. There are some very nice apartments in two-family homes in Belmont that are quite reasonable to rent, but yards tend to be small if not paved over entirely for parking.

Newton may be a good fit. Newton is technically a city but it's not really a city like Boston and Cambridge are cities. Newton is really a collection of about 13 villages, in that each neighborhood within Newton has its own feel and its own "downtown" Parts of north Newton are more densely packed but most of the town (um, city) is very suburban. The southern half can get quite woodsy. Renting, you can find some good deals in Newton. You may want to look at Newtonville, Newton Center, West Newton, and Auburndale. These areas offer easy access to Boston and to Main St. USA type-shops.

Really, most Newton "villages" offer pretty easy access to Boston, but check the MBTA website and verify what there is and how long it will take if you don't plan to drive in. For example, Auburndale, West Newton and Newtonville have commuter rail trains to South Station (and Back Bay station). These are pretty fast to Boston but run less frequently than the Green Line D on the regular T, which makes a number of stops across Newton but can take 45 minutes to get from Riverside at Newton's western edge to downtown Boston. Newton Corner in the top right of the city has an express bus to Boston that's quite fast and other areas of town have the same. Also, check how close the apartments you're looking at are to the transit options since you can't easily park at most of these stations (though Riverside has a big lot).

Needham is also a great town with great schools, more suburban and a bit farther but still close. Marblehead and Manchester are both very nice towns on the water, as you know, but farther still. The thing wtih them is that Manchester has a commuter rail station, Marblehead doesn't. It can therefore take as long (or longer) to Boston from Marblehead as from Manchester. The roads from Marblehead to Boston are also on the slow side. It is a great town but somewhat isolated out there.

[ras5000]

Thanks to both of you - very helpful! I think Newton will likely win out... but we'll see. If anyone else has any input, I'd love to hear it. Am I overlooking a town/city/village that might be a good fit? We don't want to move again (and, more importantly, change schools). Thanks for all input!

[smarty]

Everyone loves Newton... A nice yard in Newton... will cost you an arm or leg. Reasonably nice Condos are still at $400-600K. Great to have money

The average list price for a single family home is $1,223,361. The lowest price is $319,900 and the highest price is $8,950,000, with the largest concentration of homes (36.6 and 42.5%) priced in the $500,000 to $799,999 and $900,000 to $2,499,999, respectively, price ranges. Of note, the average list price for a single family home in January 2008 was $1,147,799.

The median price is $869,000 and the average days on market are 121 days. This compares to a median list price of $774,900 and average days on market of 125 days as of January 31, 2008.

There were 18 properties that went under agreement during the month of January (January 2008- 35 properties). 17 single family homes sold during January, with the average sales price being $924,453 and the median was $910,000, with the average days on market being 75 days. Compare this to 25 properties sold during January 2008, with an average and median sales price of $959,616 and $846,000, respectively, and the average number of days on market being 89 days.

Newton, MA real estate overview - Trulia.com

There are many rentals in Newton... you can check out at craigslist.
Higher end rental like Avalon (Newton Highland) $1650-$4000.


With little information you give... I don't think any one can give you more suggestion. For most, Budget is the biggest problem... Same house 10 miles west is easily $100-200K cheaper. Also, Newton to Boston if take public transportation can be as long as 1 hour. Driving takes 30 minutes but parking in Boston will cost you $300-400/mo.

[jayrandom]

If your budget is stretched by Newton, you might be able to find a relatively short commute by rail from the South and Southwest of the city. If your husband is going to Back Bay or South Station, the commute can be as short as 30 minutes. Of course, the rail doesn't run nearly as often as the green line and is more expensive (~160/month as opposed to ~60), but if you're priced out of Newton and want a big yard it is worth considering.

In addition to Belmont, you could also consider Arlington. The schools quite as well regarded as Belmont, but it's a nice town that is just about as easy to get in to Boston as Belmont.

[ras5000]

Good ideas... thanks everyone!

[Beantown_mama]

Look at Melrose - it was voted best town for young families by Boston Magazine. It has a great downtown, tons of parks, tons of families and kids. Here is the link:
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articl...ive_2008/page2

[rachellee87]

Hi,
Welcome to the area. Try Lynnfield Commons, it's a brand new luxury apartment community but they have affordable housing. The school system is the fourth highest in the state. It's a great area, I rent a home here and love it.