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Do remember that usually, condo fees cover things that you would have to pay for anyway- house insurance, most utilities, exterior maintenance. At least the condo I had did.
A lot of condos/townhouses come with basements. Dunno about under $100K but it can't hurt to look.
I have rarely seen a condo (and I've looked online at hundreds, and seen dozens with their info sheets) that has insurance and utilities included. Once in a great while you'll find one that includes heat (electric). Insurance and property taxes are normally up to the condo owner to pay, outside of the monthly condo fee that is for exterior maintenance.
Many condos here are 3-story townhouse types with finished basements. You'll pay closer to 200K for something like that.
I remember when a kid that we had mountains of snow, but not so much anymore. The olden days of snow up over cars and in 6-foot drifts is no longer common in souther New England (Mass.)...it's more long and cold rather than too much snow. Was it last year or the year before we hardly had any. When we do, roads are very well plowed and sanded in the cities and towns.
The best site that shows property taxes is newenglandmoves.com
so sorry, I'm still not clear on what is consider WMass...if it isn't the Springfield area, and towns like Pittsfield and North Adams are considered the Berkshires, can you name some towns that would be considered WMass?
so sorry, I'm still not clear on what is consider WMass...if it isn't the Springfield area, and towns like Pittsfield and North Adams are considered the Berkshires, can you name some towns that would be considered WMass?
"Western Mass." as we call it here is a North-South corridor that begins just under Brattleboro, VT in the small city of Greenfield, Mass. and surrounding lovely towns like Shelburne Falls, Bernardston, Buckland, Northfield, and Gill.
The North-South highway I-91 makes travel easy North to South and vice versa along this corridor (see state map).
Just South of Greenfield along I-91 is the very popular "Five College" area of Amherst, South Hadley, and Northampton. Amherst and Northampton have high academic/student populations and these are lively year round, kind of lifestyle places like Portland Ore. and Portland Maine.
South of the Five College area you get into Springfield, a once grand small city that has, well, it's problems, though some very nice suburban towns like Longmeadow and East Longmeadow are the preferred and pricier places. These are more out of the "college loop" so to speak, but where you might live if you worked in Springfield or wanted to be near its medical establishments. From Springfield to Boston on the Mass Pike is almost exactly 90 miles.
West of this North-South corridor anchored by I-91 are the immediate "hilltowns" - small farmers, folks who like rural towns, small enterprises like cheese making, etc. Then, West of those hilltowns, you start getting into the whole North-South corridor of the Berkshires, the most western part of the state, more serious and dramatic hills.
The Berkshires can be pretty upscale, with towns like Lenox, Lee and Stockbridge upper crust and lovely, with Tanglewood (summer home of the Boston Symphony) and a fairly famous art museum plus tons of galleries and restaurants. The Berkshires are a bit too "removed" for me in winter, though many love it year round.
The more affordable towns are at the almost northern point of hte Berkshires--Pittsfield, North Adams, Adams, Dalton, parts of which are very nice and close to Tanglewood and MassMoca, and other parts of these old mill towns a bit more rundown. Surrounding countryside is spectacular. Lots of mill buildings converted to condos and apts. Many writers, artists live throughout WMass and the Berkshires.
I'm interested in Pittsfield. Above it is Williamstown with Williams College, great art museums and summer theater. The Pittsfield downtown is clean and making a comeback. Museums, annual New Years Bach (Brandenburg) concert, etc. It's the least developed in terms of city potential in the state. Lots of nice homes on tree lined streets.
Southern Berkshires seem pricey. Great Barrington, etc. I rarely go there but it's yet another interesting area in the state.
Which towns in WMass have what you are describing? I'm originally from the Boston area (born in Winthrop), but we moved to the west coast when I was in grade school, so know very little about Boston and nothing about WMass.
There are more affordable places such as Tennessee, but being a northerner at heart I would like to at least research New England before ruling it out as too expensive to consider.
The cold snowy winters are a little scary since the coldest places I've lived as an adult are Oregon, Colorado, and North Carolina. All have some snow, but it wasn't all that cold.
Anyway, I'd love to hear which towns you would recommend in WMass. Thanks!
I just came across this house under $100K in the beautiful oceanside (old Naval) town of Portsmouth, NH.
I don't know about New England this past winter, but in Philly we had blizzard upon blizzard. After years of having only one significant snowstorm or maybe none, we were all taken aback. The first big storm, everyone hunkers down and it's kind of fun -- everyone posting photos on Facebook, etc. -- but by the third storm, we were completely sick of it. I was soooo sick of seeing those dumb "snow-to-graphs" on the news channel (people's kids, dogs, etc. out in the snow).
That said, I was living in an apartment so I didn't have anything to shovel but my car. I don't work so I was able to avoid driving, and my car is rear-wheel-drive so I wasn't about to venture out.
Hopefully, that winter was an anomaly. Otherwise, the Phila. area has "OK" winters -- some periods of extreme cold (teens or 20's), but mostly daytime temps in the 30's or 40's. The cold does bother me -- my skin is thin and gets severely dry and cracked -- but I think heat/humidity bother me more. Oh, and did I mention, we had an extremely hot/humid summer? LOL...but really, I think both seasons were anomalies, or they'd better be, because other than Southern CA which I've ruled out, I don't know any US spot that doesn't have SOME climate issue that would bother me. And I do love it here.
Thanks, NE Girl, for the details on WMass, it was very helpful. I've been thru the Berkshires, it is really beautiful (course I've only been there in fall) and I know it's pricey. also been thru North Adams but not the 5 college area you mentioned, I'll have to do some research!
Thanks, NE Girl, for the details on WMass, it was very helpful. I've been thru the Berkshires, it is really beautiful (course I've only been there in fall) and I know it's pricey. also been thru North Adams but not the 5 college area you mentioned, I'll have to do some research!
Just curious why you would consider New England. Where are you now, I forget?
Just something to think about is that there are very few walkable towns in Mass. and in much of New England, outside the cities. The cities of Spfld and Worcester it would be kind of rough to ride the buses. Boston and outlining areas you've got the T, much more enjoyable than bus.
In most places you need a car.
Also, most senior communities and assisted living around here are really pricey.
One of my criteria if I move is affordable housing in old age.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
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One of my criteria if I move is affordable housing in old age.
Ah, Oklahoma is the place for you!! Very low housing and one of the lowest assisted care costs (excluding AL and LA, where I would NOT want to be under care) YMMV
Ah, Oklahoma is the place for you!! Very low housing and one of the lowest assisted care costs (excluding AL and LA, where I would NOT want to be under care) YMMV
One of my very best friends is from Oklahoma, she couldn't wait to leave.
I've never been there, but I bet the landscape is beautiful (the wind on the plains, how do those lines go?). But it's very , very far away from my family....
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Are condos in the Boston area very very expensive?
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