Need The Right "Kind" of Boston Suburb - Can you help? (Newton: buying a home, neighborhoods)

[jackshaw]

Next to Debra's (the health food store) and Reasons to be Cheerful (the ice cream store) in West Concord is the Five and Dime, which is a throwback to the 60s or 50s. At one point, it had over 140K items in inventory. The owner unfortunately died suddenly and I wonder how long it will survive.

Another thing you can do in Concord is rent a canoe at the boat house on Main Street (Route 62) between W. Concord and Concord centers.

Another nice break is the Old North Bridge (where the colonials first fired on the Redcoats, who were coming to Concord to destroy the amunition and gunpowder collected there). You can drive down Monument St., park in the parking lot and walk past the Minuteman statue and over the bridge. You can also canoe underneath it. It was a fun hike when the kids were little. Not so demanding as they got older, although there was a fabulous climbing tree en route as well.

Plus, less for them than for you, the De Cordova Museum in Lincoln with a huge outdoor sculpture park.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by SunnyHoney

We haven't completely ruled out Milton, per se, because (full disclosure) we haven't seen it yet, and I think it would be imprudent to not give it at least an in-person glance. But, it has moved down the list just because we're in crunch time now with the school-enrollment timing, and there are just so many areas to consider. We're feeling compelled to quickly narrow it down by ruling out some towns completely.

The reason Milton isn't making the cut is because, aesthetically, the housing is not our style. To find something to our liking in Milton, it appears our budget would have to be much bigger. Milton homes seem nice, but they are just too old and/or too closely built for our tastes. This tightness, in my opinion, gives it too urban a feel, although I know in NE, that doesn't necessarily translate to urban for most people. We've lived in the Midwest, Southeast, Northeast, and Southwest before coming to the Northeast, and although every region is so very different, and we've appreciated those differences, what we've come to refer to as "suburban" consists of larger homes, with little more space between the them, kids learning to ride their bikes in cul-de-sacs, and sidewalks leading to neighborhood parks or schools. Perhaps that IS what Milton is like, but so far I haven't seen that from my distance searching. Now like I said, it might be our price range, or it may just be the luck of the draw that right now no homes on the market meeting our criteria have led us to those images of Milton.

I'm not highly familiar with Milton, but the neighborhoods I've seen do match your impression. The town has a suburban feel, with the houses having real yards, but in the areas I've seen, there was not the kind of space you say you're looking for.

Originally Posted by SunnyHoney

Dover looks a tad bit more "rural" than our suburban ideal, but so is our neighborhood here in CT and despite the look, it actually isn't rural at all; I've come to accept this as the mark of NE suburbia (no sidewalks, what's up with the lack of sidewalks!?!)

Just a theory, but I think the lack of sidewalks may have something to do with the fact that this is an old part of the country. Unlike many Sun Belt suburbs, which were built on previously unincorporated land, and had the characteristics of post-war suburbia from the beginning, Boston's suburbs were actual towns long before the suburban boom after WWII. As these towns turned into suburbs, many residents still wanted to maintain something of the traditional local character. In the more rural towns, which now are leafy suburbs, maintaining the local character meant zoning for large lots, and building winding streets with a somewhat unplanned appearance and without sidewalks.

Originally Posted by SunnyHoney

The neighborhood we saw in Natick looked VERY nice, it was all those things that fulfill our suburban dreams that I named above. The actual home we saw needed work, but that's no problem. My only issue with Natick is that I can't get a good read on it yet. I've been getting really mixed and conflicting info about it. I've heard everything from "very affluent" to "white-trashy"/ ghetto??? We heard it's up and coming, and we've heard it's on the decline. We didn't see any run-down parts of Natick, but we also didn't see much of the town at all. Are there bad neighborhoods within it? Many people on this forum had great things to say about it. So what is the real deal on Natick? I'm starting to wonder if because it is not in the "ring of super wealth" (as my hubby and I have come to call the Dover, Wellesley, Sherborn, Weston arch) that people just refer to what would otherwise be considered the upper-middle, and middle-class in Natick as "trashy" or "ghetto" because it is relative less wealthy that the super-rich areas. Is this the case? Or is it that a lower-class element really does exist there near or among the middle, upper-middle class?

We don't feel the need to be in the most wealthy neighborhood we can afford. We just want (like anyone else, I guess) to know the neighborhood isn't on the decline or at great risk of being on the decline. We want a little reassurance that the folks in their nice big houses next to ours on the cute cul-de-sac aren't in over their heads in homes they can't afford and that going into mortgage default won't cause them to be short-selling and lowering the values of the area anytime soon. Of course we know there's no guarantee of this anywhere, and sure, this is a risk that can exist anywhere, especially these days with market turmoil and uncertainty, but we all know that those super-wealthy areas just have more protection against that kind of decline. Is Natick at a high, mid, or low risk of this?

MikePru gave you a great rundown of the reasons you may be getting different reports on Natick. Other than Newton, Natick, with a population over 30k, is one of the larger towns you're looking at. It's not exactly the big city, but Natick is a large enough town to have some variety in the character of its neighborhoods.

I don't know that the relative proximity of downtown Framingham to W. Natick is really such a drawback to that area (and I don't really think downtown F'ham is all that bad, though it does have a faded appearance for sure), but I agree with MikePru that many people do seem to perceive this as a negative point to W. Natick. Despite W. Natick's relative proximity to downtown F'ham, W. Natick itself is clean, but also modest in terms of the housing. There really are no bad areas in Natick, and certainly nothing that comes remotely close to being "ghetto," but W. Natick and the area north of rt. 9 have modest postwar housing (and some condos and apartment buildings in W. Natick), with some blue-collar folks in the neighborhood population mix.

Most of the kinds of properties you describe as what you prefer would be found in S. Natick.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by ogre

MikePru gave you a great rundown of the reasons you may be getting different reports on Natick. Other than Newton, Natick, with a population over 30k, is one of the larger towns you're looking at. It's not exactly the big city, but Natick is a large enough town to have some variety in the character of its neighborhoods.

I don't know that the relative proximity of downtown Framingham to W. Natick is really such a drawback to that area (and I don't really think downtown F'ham is all that bad, though it does have a faded appearance for sure), but I agree with MikePru that many people do seem to perceive this as a negative point to W. Natick. Despite W. Natick's relative proximity to downtown F'ham, W. Natick itself is clean, but also modest in terms of the housing. There really are no bad areas in Natick, and certainly nothing that comes remotely close to being "ghetto," but W. Natick and the area north of rt. 9 have modest postwar housing (and some condos and apartment buildings in W. Natick), with some blue-collar folks in the neighborhood population mix.

Thanks for adding the extra detail to my explanation. I think you've really done a great job conveying what I was trying to say. I thought I would say "thanks" since I can't rep you right now.

[SunnyHoney]

Originally Posted by ogre

but W. Natick and the area north of rt. 9 have modest postwar housing (and some condos and apartment buildings in W. Natick), with some blue-collar folks in the neighborhood population mix.

It's unfortunate that there are people out there who have come to think that the terms blue-collar and ghetto/trashy are synonymous. It's not fair to hard-working people who have good values and deserve respect for providing for their families as best they can. Thanks for clearing up that misconception some, ogre.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by SunnyHoney

It's unfortunate that there are people out there who have come to think that the terms blue-collar and ghetto/trashy are synonymous. It's not fair to hard-working people who have good values and deserve respect for providing for their families as best they can. Thanks for clearing up that misconception some, ogre.

I'm surprised that anyone would describe these neighborhoods in such a way. Even in the most modest neighborhoods in Natick, the majority of homes are well cared for. Personally, I would feel 100% safe walking through almost any part of Natick at any hour.

[CaseyB]

Originally Posted by 495neighbor

The train station in Walpole does not have many parking spaces.

The train station in Walpole has at least 5 different lots you can park in...

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by CaseyB

The train station in Walpole has at least 5 different lots you can park in...

Good to know, thanks for the correction Casey.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by MikePRU

I'm surprised that anyone would describe these neighborhoods in such a way. Even in the most modest neighborhoods in Natick, the majority of homes are well cared for. Personally, I would feel 100% safe walking through almost any part of Natick at any hour.

Same deal on the rep; wanted to rep you for the post I picked up on, but hadn't spread enough rep.

Really good point in your post here. Even the modest properties in Natick are kept up well.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by ogre

Same deal on the rep; wanted to rep you for the post I picked up on, but hadn't spread enough rep.

Really good point in your post here. Even the modest properties in Natick are kept up well.

Most of them are although there are certainly exceptions to every rule. Natick is a regular "stomping ground" for me so every once in a while I'll see a house that's falling apart. Some of the modest neighborhoods in Natick also feel very tight. The roads are narrow and the house lots (and houses) are small.

[495neighbor]

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