Possible new job in Quincy - Information and opinions needed! (Boston: house, calculation)

[Silopolis]

Hi all,

I currently live in Austin, TX, but I am looking at maybe getting a new job in Quincy. My wife and I have never lived in or near Boston before, so we naturally have questions.

Relevant info:
I'm married, but we have no kids (unless you count 3 cats!). We're thinking of maybe kids in the future, but who knows? We don't do a lot of nightlife-type stuff, though we are foodies and enjoy a meal out and a movie here and there. My wife isn't working right now, though she's taking courses online. We have a car, and I'm not afraid to use it. In fact, I often prefer a little commute to public transit. I make about $75k here in Austin, and I've done the online cost-of-living calculations to see what I would need in Boston.

I had some questions, if you don't mind:

1) Where should I look for housing?
A friend who lives in the area suggested Norwood and Dedham, but I've heard there's places to the North that are nice, and I could still get to work on the T. I'm also curious about places further south, where we might get a house or live near the water for a fairly reasonable price, but I want to make sure I'm balancing my commute, as well.

2) What is a DECENT salary for the area?
I've done the salary calculations, and I'm a little concerned that the number they gave me would turn my potential employer off. It seems high for my role and my industry. I haven't spoken to them about this, but I wanted to be armed with a "Here's what I will accept" number when they come back denying my "Here's what I'd like" number. I realize I haven't given you much to work with, but any information and opinions are better than what I have now, which is a seemingly really high number that I don't think people in my industry would pay me. I'd like to give a number that will let us live fairly comfortably so my wife can take her time and find work she'd love... or alternately, so she can stay at home when we finally have kids, if that's what she wants to do.

Any information you can give would be super helpful. Thanks!

[495neighbor]

Foodies might really like Norwood or Dedham. Dedham has a new huge Whole Foods at Legacy Place. Norwood has many fun and interesting ethnic and american eating places.

Believe the salary range you researched, although it may seem astronomical from an outside Massachusetts perspective, salaries for the same job are higher here due to the higher cost of living compared with every state but New York and California.