Needham v. Sharon and other suburbs near public transport (Boston: houses, purchase)

[neugs2011]

Greetings,

We would love some imput on the similarities/differences between the above towns. We are looking to purchase a single family home in the next year or so and to start a family soon. Would like to spend 650K or less, if possible, and are interested in areas with the best schools. I work in the Seaport area in Boston, and my husband works in Cambridge. I don't drive (I am from NYC originally/moved here a few years ago) but plan on learning soon. Even when I learn, though, I don't anticipate wanting to drive in the city, so living near public transportation/commuter rail is important to us. I am Jewish and my husband is Catholic.

We haven't been to Sharon, yet but plan on going to open houses there in the early Spring. Are there any other towns that we should look into/consider? We are also considering Arlington. Additionally, we have looked at Newton, Belmont, Winchester and Lexington, but it seems that any houses in our price range in these towns would need more work than we can afford.

Thanks in advance.

[Sheina Maydela]

Sharon is much more rural than Needham is. Needham has a sizeable downtown good for walking, with stores and restaurants, and I don't think Sharon does. Sharon is woodsier, more affluent, and it's a good deal further away from Boston. Does it even have a commuter rail?...? there is a large Jewish community in Sharon, and I'm not sure about Needham.

Arlington, on the other hand, is the next town beyond Somerville, and it is rather urban, and I don't think the schools are the best. But: it is on the actual T (alewife station), not commuter rail, which is great.

You should consider Watertown and Waltham, as well. Watertown has a large Armenian population, and I'm not sure what Waltham has. They're around the same geographical area as Lexington and Newton, and both have fun stuff to do, restaurants, etc, and aren't quite as pricey. Watertown has buses and express buses to Boston, and Waltham has buses and commuter rail that goes to North station. A little further out, Natick is pretty reasonable, and has 2 commuter rail stops for your convenience.

AND, if you're looking at Winchester, but it's too expensive. look at Wakefield or Melrose. Around the same area. Good towns.

[neugs2011]

I believe that Sharon has a stop on the Providence/Stoughton line. Yes, we would prefer living in a town with a nice town center with stores and restaurants. Needham does seem to meet most of our criteria (not too rural, but has decent lot sizes, with a town center). I also understand that Needham has a decent sized Jewish population and a couple of synagogues. The only issue would be finding a nice house in our price range that doesn't require lots of work right now.

We've always liked Arlington and it seems like we could get more for our money in this town than in Needham, However, I do agree that the schools aren't as good as Needham's.

We currently live in Watertown on the border of Belmont. We like it here, but the schools are not ideal. The prices in Natick seem pretty reasonable, but my husband seems to think that the Natick commute would be a nightmare. We will look into the other towns you recommended.

Thanks!

[CaseyB]

You might want to take a look at Canton, because it would also fit your criteria.

[Sheina Maydela]

I lived in Natick for a long time, then in Framingham, some 5 or 6 years later. I don't think the commute is all that bad, especially if you're taking the train. 40 minutes on the train from West Natick station, 35 from Natick station, straight to either Back Bay or South Station. It's exactly 30 min on the Pike to Copley, 20 late at night. Route 9 is horrible in the mornings and afternoons, but unless you work in the Longwood area, you wouldn't really have to take that anywhere. And Mass Pike isn't that bad, even in rush hour, generally.