Milton vs Quincy (for sale, low crime, house)

[BUer]

Home prices in Quincy have really jumped in past couple of years, especially around Wollaston Hill area near the Milton line, essentially same as East Milton in places outside the flood zones. What's the better place to raise a family with two elementary school kids? Which school district is better?

A little worried about Quincy and the drug detox center in Wollaston and also the status of the Quincy Center project. Seems largely dead in the water right now.

[BUer]

Milton also has its own issues with the Mattapan Blue Hills Ave border and the plane noise.

[pennyone]

Toss up for the two, especially if you compare specific areas against each other. You did not mention your home price range. Both Quincy and Milton have nice areas. I grew up in Milton and now live in Quincy. For the schools, Milton has stronger lower grade schools by just a little bit compared to Quincy overall because Quincy has four times the population and many more schools. But Beechwood Knoll (Greatschool.org rank 9) and Wollaston, Merrymount, Squantum and Charles Bernazanni (all rank 8 by Greatschool.org), along with the brand new Central Middle are well regarded. For Milton, Pierce is ranked 7, but Tucker is 9 and the rest are 10's. For High schools, Both the North Quincy High and Milton High are ranked similarly at 7 out of 10. But Quincy High (the other Quincy high school), the underachiever currently at 5, will soon catch up with its 124 million make-over.

Quincy is more urban and have more things to do (lots of new restaurants and gyms etc). Milton has more families with little kids. Quincy is relatively low crime for a city of close to 100,000. Milton has almost no crime (except that area you mentioned), but it's because it has a far more socio-economically homogenous population of 27,000. If you want a nice home in a nice neighborhood (400-500,000 range), I would look at Wollaston Hill, Squantum by the sea, Merrymount, and Monclair in Quincy, and East Milton Square, Central square and maybe around Milton academy in Milton.

You really cannot compare Milton with Quincy directly like in a poll. Milton is a small and relative affluent town, while Quincy is a much bigger and more diverse, though still a very nice city. Quincy has some relatively affluent neighborhoods, like Squantum, Marina Bay, Merrymount and parts of Wollaston Hill/ Presidents Hill etc. But it also has its very blue collar working class parts that are perfectly nice, and parts that can still be a bit rough (though Houghs Neck is gentrifying fast! I couldn't believe how different it is looking these days). Milton also has certain areas that are more dangerous in some respect, but it is a far smaller and more homogeneous little place. HIH.

[BUer]

I agree. It's just would you pick Wollaston Hill over East Milton? Pretty much the same commute and general look of the neighborhoods. Price is now pretty close too.

What about the Wollaston Beach area? Does it really flood?

[pennyone]

I think Wolly Hill has bigger homes with nice, more elaborate architecture. E Milton is more like the shire in the Lord of the Ring, with very neat little colonial and some cape/bungalows. E Milton Square has some fun places to eat, but so does Wollaston Center. The beach area would be the flood zone and you need to check for the new zoning map.

My house is a Victorian on Wolly Hill so I am biased, but I don't think you can go wrong with either any of the Quincy neighborhoods or E Milton. You have closer T access in Quincy than in Milton, but if you don't take the T to work, it doesn't matter. The market is currently really tight, and I know that Quincy is around 7 offers per house for sale. I am sure Milton is similar if not even more competitive.

[xo_kizzy_xo]

East Milton is considered the "gateway" neighborhood to get into the rest of Milton, especially if you have kids. Housing prices might be a bit lower in the area bordering Mattapan, but not by much -- it's considered an affluent town after all.

I don't know much about housing prices, but offhand I'd say that they all run neck and neck with Milton being slightly higher. I don't know much about Quincy schools, but Milton's schools are highly regarded.

[massnative71]

As a rule Milton schools are better than Quincy. If you do move to Quincy, make sure you are zoned to N Quincy High School.

[pennyone]

Originally Posted by massnative71

As a rule Milton schools are better than Quincy. If you do move to Quincy, make sure you are zoned to N Quincy High School.

The balance of power between NQHS and QHS is changing, given the huge 124 million boost that the latter received. Now the NQHS looks positivly like an old Stalinist building against the state of the art features of QHS (and the smart kids are choosing it, and all the AP classes will follow their enrollment). By the time the OP's little kids grow to HS age, I bet there will be no difference between the two, or the balance will tip toward QHS....

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by pennyone

The balance of power between NQHS and QHS is changing, given the huge 124 million boost that the latter received. Now the NQHS looks positivly like an old Stalinist building against the state of the art features of QHS (and the smart kids are choosing it, and all the AP classes will follow their enrollment). By the time the OP's little kids grow to HS age, I bet there will be no difference between the two, or the balance will tip toward QHS....

Aren't they replacing NQHS as well?

[pennyone]

Originally Posted by massnative71

Aren't they replacing NQHS as well?

No, the plan is to replace all of the huge Stalinist windows with big glass ones that are more energy efficient. They will make the whole school much more open and beautiful and modern. The plan is also to bulldoze 9 homes on the street that runs directly behind the school and to build a brand new athletic field with a modern stadium and a big parking lot for kids and faculty. The whole area where the NQHS is located is also slated for massive state funded remodeling with new intersection, new street lights and better signalling systems. So, yes NQHS will have lots of renovation, just not a completebrebuild of the school. Lots of things are happening in Quincy, but it's too bad that the city center project is currently on hold.