Place in the city, with a private yard. (Boston, Lowell: rent, condos)

[flowbe202]

Originally Posted by tolovefromANFIELD

Thank you all for your suggestions. Just to update, I "think" I found the place, nowhere near the city of Boston, but city of Providence! I love that city! Since I am working south of Boston, commute won't be bad, 45 min or so, maybe an hour in the peak of rush-hour. I just couldn't get myself to pay so much money for so little. It's a mindset thing.

A quick anecdote if I may. I had a rep from one of the vendors come in last week, and we are talking about real estate, and with a straight face she says "well, in this town, you can get something decent for eight-to-nine". I said, excuse me? Eight-to-nine hundred thousands? She says, yup, that's a lot to you??? She didn't know I wasn't buying, she just assumed. I almost fell of my chair. Decent for $900k. Funny thing is, I know how much she makes and her husband, and between the two of them, they don't even make half of what I make in a year.

Old money, I assume.

Be super careful in Providence... it is not as stable as Boston. Lots of gang violence and the downtown area is NOT the same (or as safe) as downtown Boston. Just don't make the mistake of thinking you're getting the same value as Boston. Our city government is stable - people may not like it, but we're not in danger of not paying our bills like Providence has been over the past few years (police, fire, emergency, etc.).

Traffic starts on 95 at 6:30 in the morning. You and all your neighbors head north to Massachusetts and its higher salaries.

I don't know what your state taxes will look like, working in Mass and living in RI. RI has some weird taxes that you'll find out about when you go to register your cars.

Rhode Island has gorgeous beaches, though.

[timberline742]

Providence's finances are in decent shape, pretty good actually. The mayor really turned it around. It isn't like was a few years ago. It's really his main platform for running for governor.

The taxes are simple and marginally more. I work with several people that commute and they love it and say the costs are minimal tax wise.

Gang violence downtown? Downtown Providence is a place I feel a lot safer than DT Boston ala Downtown Crossing or the Financial District or Chinatown at night as it is a lot more happening and less dark. Great place to go out at night, especially nice that it is more compact and lively.

It is a great value if you pick the right area. Awesome arts and music scene, great cultural opportunities, the prices for what you get are fantastic. I can get a nice place for 1/3rd what I'd pay in the Boston area in a similar neighborhood, with all the amenities and really, a better art/music scene.

[flowbe202]

It is a great value if you pick the right area.

The OP is looking for a family-friendly city -- last time I looked, little kids aren't hitting the clubs for the latest ska band.

Yes, Waterfire is adding more full nights, yes, the economy is not as grim as in years past, yes, you can get a $35 full mani/pedi with a massage and you can't in Boston.

But, in comparison, Boston's "dregs" like Chinatown, Downtown Crossing and Financial District have a robust real estate climate with multi-million dollar condos, college students out at all hours from Tufts, Emerson and Suffolk, high-end restaurants and hotels (Ritz-Carlton, The Langham), theatre and people 24/7. We also have electricity and city lights that work because the lights and bulbs are new and Boston can afford to pay its electric bill.

Boston has subway, train and bus for public transportation. Providence has scary bus system.

Weird Processes
Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles - Cranston, RI | Yelp

$60 per $1k
http://www.providenceri.com/collecto...r-excise-taxes
$25 per $1k
Motor Vehicle Excise | City of Boston


Economy
"This not to sugar-coat reality: Rhode Island is still the sick economic orphan of New England, with an unemployment rate substantially higher than the national average." Chafee and the RI Economy: Not as bad as media myth | Rhode Island Public Radio

Middle Class Squeeze: R.I. wages flatlining as workers struggle / poll and graphics | Middle Class Squeeze | Special Report | The Providence Journal

R.I. moves to add municipalities, others as defendants in pension lawsuit | Breaking News | providencejournal.com | The Providence Journal

Gangs are using arson instead of shootings:
Providence arson fires prompt plea for information | Breaking News | providencejournal.com | The Providence Journal

Vigil seeks justice for Providence homicide victim | Breaking News | providencejournal.com | The Providence Journal

Jury hears closing arguments in Providence gang member

[pennyone]

I agree. Providence is awesome if you are young or a couple with no kids. If you need to bring in little spawns, then a lot of the city's strengths turn into its weaknesses.

I went to school on that hill for four years, and as a couple with no kids, we would not hesitate to move back and buy something on Blackstone or the East Side. But our jobs are all in Boston and that's the real problem with PVD.

[tolovefromANFIELD]

Originally Posted by Parsec

Remind us again where you will be commuting to? Remember everyone is driving from south of Boston in the morning, so if your work is just a little south of Boston then you will be stuck in traffic with everyone else.

Brockton.

To all that responded about Providence proper, I will actually be living in Warwick, on water, some subdivision called Buttonwoods something.....

[timberline742]

If the person has a job, the unemployment rate in RI as a whole, isn't a big deal.

Personally, I'm making the switch. The choice is, for most of us, to be able to buy in a cool area and get a nice place, or continue to rent here forever with 10% increases each year.

It isn't Boston vs Providence, it is being able to buy in Providence or being pushed from Boston, to Somerville, to Malden, to Melrose, etc to Haverill/Salem/Lowell over a decade, when you could have bought in a cool city 10 years earlier.

Originally Posted by flowbe202

But, in comparison, Boston's "dregs" like Chinatown, Downtown Crossing and Financial District have a robust real estate climate with multi-million dollar condos, college students out at all hours from Tufts, Emerson and Suffolk, high-end restaurants and hotels (Ritz-Carlton, The Langham), theatre and people 24/7. We also have electricity and city lights that work because the lights and bulbs are new and Boston can afford to pay its electric bill.

What do places like million dollar condos, high end restaurants and the Ritz Carlton do for anyone that isn't rich?

Not sure what people you're talking about, I worked on Summer St in Downtown Crossing for years, and was often there nights. Except for homeless the place was empty. I go to the Royale a couple of times a month for bands, there is absolutely no one out in the area. Its' DEAD.

That's fine, the reality is the nightlife of Boston isn't in downtown Boston itself, it's just the way things are in Boston. But downtown Providence has a happening scene.

And I guess I should start telling my friends that since they have school age children that they shouldn't be going to see bands anymore. The nightlife for them should be over.

[bigfatdude]

Originally Posted by timberline742

If the person has a job, the unemployment rate in RI as a whole, isn't a big deal.

Personally, I'm making the switch. The choice is, for most of us, to be able to buy in a cool area and get a nice place, or continue to rent here forever with 10% increases each year.

It isn't Boston vs Providence, it is being able to buy in Providence or being pushed from Boston, to Somerville, to Malden, to Melrose, etc to Haverill/Salem/Lowell over a decade, when you could have bought in a cool city 10 years earlier.



What do places like million dollar condos, high end restaurants and the Ritz Carlton do for anyone that isn't rich?

Not sure what people you're talking about, I worked on Summer St in Downtown Crossing for years, and was often there nights. Except for homeless the place was empty. I go to the Royale a couple of times a month for bands, there is absolutely no one out in the area. Its' DEAD.

That's fine, the reality is the nightlife of Boston isn't in downtown Boston itself, it's just the way things are in Boston. But downtown Providence has a happening scene.

And I guess I should start telling my friends that since they have school age children that they shouldn't be going to see bands anymore. The nightlife for them should be over.

Apparently lots of people don't seem to realize that many parts of Boston where mere mortals can still afford to buy or rent are in no way better than Providence. What good are million dollar condos and $40+ entree restaurants when they can only be admired from afar? Cheaper parts like Dorchester, Roxbury, Hyde Park and Roslindale have plenty of poverty and crime, in many cases more than Providence.

[timberline742]

I can get a nice condo, from what I see, in the nice part of Providence (East side near RISD/Brown) for less than the more downtrodden parts of Boston / Cambridge / Somerville... in fact I have to move to Lowell or Haverill for those same prices, and they're not the neighborhoods of the East Side of Providence. Salem on that list as well, that's cool, but the commute to anywhere but Boston stinks (if you need to drive for work), or Worcester... I'd rather be in Providence than Worcester.

Sure, if a couple of hundred thousand was a rounding error in my bank account, I'd do Boston, but it is not.

[Parsec]

Originally Posted by tolovefromANFIELD

Brockton.

To all that responded about Providence proper, I will actually be living in Warwick, on water, some subdivision called Buttonwoods something.....

Warwick to Brockton is not a straight shot, and you'll also have to deal with some of the PVD traffic as well as general congestion in MA. I can see this being 1.5 hours one way if you can't get out of RI before I-95 becomes a parking lot between Cranston and Pawtucket. I would check on the RI forums if I were you. Buttonwoods is pretty nice though!

[pennyone]

I think the East Side by Brown and RISD is still very pricey. It's certainly more expensive than anything in Lowell or the downtrodden part of Somerville. Dont exaggerate the affordability of PVD. Only the crappy parts are very cheap. The nice parts are still decently expensive, and everyone with the cash and any desire to live there, want those parts.