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I'm very excited about the prospect of moving back to NE (I went to college in Boston). I am considering a job in Waltham, but I want to live in a quaint town in NH. Can you recommend a city/town in NH that is no more than a 45 minute commute to Waltham?
If not... are there any areas in MA with similar characteristics?
I think you are going to be out of luck with 45 min, unless you work very off hours. The traffic around Waltham is quite thick. Maybe I'll be stood corrected by someone with greater knowledge though . . .
We looked quite a bit in Mass. I'm not sure exactly what your priorities are but Mass towns in a close commute might include: Arlington (definitely a city, but small town feeling), Acton (more suburb feeling, very community oriented), and maybe even Waltham (great food downtown!). There are a number of great towns around there, but each with a different character and price range.
Agreeing with Rexicana here--Even in the very off-hours, you'd be looking at at least 45 minutes. The most direct route to Waltham would be Rte 3, which goes right to Nashua. There are a number of small quaint towns nearby (Hollis, being the closest and most convenient to Rte 3) but they all will take time to get to Rte 3...
For Mass. towns, in addition to Acton, you might consider Littleton. It's a little further out, but a nice town to live in. The Rte 2 commute could be a hassle, but maybe you could adjust your hours...
Hollis, Merrimack, Nashua...just make sure you have easy access to route 3.
We moved here in August and work in Bedford...its about 30 minutes without traffic from southern Merrimack (not far off the highway), it is about 35 without traffic from where we just bought in Hollis. With morning traffic tack on about 15 minutes usually...
Thanks all for the information. I'm used to obnoxious commutes. I leave 15 miles from work, but it often can take me an hour to get home. My priority it living in a quaint place where I can't wait to get back home and enjoy the area. Keep the ideas coming, if you don't mind.
I would suggest you look in Massachusetts between I-95 (State Rt 128 - inner ring road) and either side of I-495. The overall tax burden, unless you are a high 6-figure income, is about the same, but the Mass schools are better funded and there is a lot of community activity in that area.
I agree with everyone that getting to NH from Waltham is not so possible in under 45 minutes. I second GregW's area recommendation because during commuting hours, you're going to want to be as close as you can. Then again, MA is a state where people are used to long commutes.
What to you is a quaint town and what things do you want to do in the area?
Where are you living now?
Waltham itself is seeing a lot of change for the better recently.
Sorry I haven't been on the forum to answer earlier. That's a good question. Quaint to me is a smallish town where the pace is slower than average. Believe it or not, I'm a NY'er who loves the slower, quieter life. I live in a lovely area now (Yardley, PA), and my neighbors are great. Not intrusive, but we all care about each other. But the area I live in is so fast paced, people are crazy on the road, and rude. I moved from NYC to get away from the stress and hostile environment. Not to say NY'ers are any more hostile - actually, I think NY'ers are great. But living in a big city is no longer interesting to me. Maybe an example of a type of place I'd like to live would be Burlington, VT. Something like that in MA or NH.
Burlington, VT has a reputation for being very open-minded, if you catch my drift.....
Not sure if we have anything like that....
Hahaha, not on these boards anyway
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