Best Boston suburb for commuting to Boston University (Cambridge, Newton: real estate market, high school)

[runningman1976]

Originally Posted by panchilly

From strictly a commute standpoint, i'm not sure Needham is worth the price differential to Natick. Newton you have more of an argument since the commute will be much better.

Also important to note: not all areas of Newton are considered equal. It is a very large town and when considering a driving commute to boston university some areas will be significantly better than others. Take a look at Newtonville or Newton corner. PRices are VERY high there. You might have to spend 1.3m to get a decent quality SFH that is ~2200 sq feet.

Thanks we will look at Newtonville and Newton corner. We do know some other faculty from BU and Northeastern who live around there, so might be a good option although you can imagine the sticker shock we are experiencing moving from Atlanta LOL!

[panchilly]

Originally Posted by runningman1976

Thanks we will look at Newtonville and Newton corner. We do know some other faculty from BU and Northeastern who live around there, so might be a good option although you can imagine the sticker shock we are experiencing moving from Atlanta LOL!

If you had to go to the absolute max budget, how much would that be? Can you swing 1.3M?

Something like this looks like it could meet your needs: https://www.redfin.com/MA/Newtonvill.../home/11420824

For comparison this is in Natick for 700k walking distance to commuter rail, very similar house in terms of size & quality
https://www.redfin.com/MA/Natick/25-.../home/11668989

Almost half the price

[CaseyB]

Originally Posted by runningman1976

We heard about the highly rated school system in Dover-Sherborn. Do your daughter's kids enjoy Pine Hill? Are the Dover-Sherborn schools high pressure for kids in general? Also, where would Sherborn residents typically go to shop for groceries, household items etc? Thanks.

Oh, yes. They love Pine Hill. I don't know that the schools are any more high pressure than any other suburban towns with good schools around here.

For groceries, she usually shops in Medfield or Millis. Household items like furniture or clothes you'd drive to Natick, to Rte. 9 where all the malls are.

[chicagoliz]

Originally Posted by panchilly

From strictly a commute standpoint, i'm not sure Needham is worth the price differential to Natick. Newton you have more of an argument since the commute will be much better.

Also important to note: not all areas of Newton are considered equal. It is a very large town and when considering a driving commute to boston university some areas will be significantly better than others. Take a look at Newtonville or Newton corner. PRices are VERY high there. You might have to spend 1.3m to get a decent quality SFH that is ~2200 sq feet.

I agree that Newton is better than Needham, commute-wise, primarily because Newton has the T and you can take that to BU. Needham is still slightly better than Natick, though, for the commute.

I live in Newton. I would live in any of the villages of Newton, different as some of them are. You don't necessarily have to spend 1.3M.

Originally Posted by runningman1976

We are definitely still considering Needham and Newton. But the available houses in the 800k-1million range seem to sell so quickly and often above asking price, that we don't even think we can get anything at all LOL!

My wife also likes Winchester, Lexington and Concord further north. Anyone have experience commuting to BU area from these towns by car or train?

The houses under $1 million do tend to go fast, but I'd definitely keep it on your radar. There are quite a few people who work at BU in Newton.

I love Winchester, and we looked there, as well as at Lexington and Concord. Ultimately, Lexington wasn't really cheaper than Newton, for the range we were looking at, which was close to your's. I decided Lexington wasn't worth it because it was further out than I wanted, didn't have the train, and many parts of it weren't as walkable to commercial areas as I would like. It does, however, have a wonderful town center.

While I like Concord itself, and it does have the train (which is a plus), it's even further out. I don't know how easy it is to take the train to BU if you're coming from Concord (or for that matter, Winchester), although someone here probably does. (Probably involves taking the train into the city then switching to the green line trolley.) For whatever reason (even though it doesn't necessarily make total sense) most people who are or were connected to Harvard go the Winchester/Lexington/Route 2 corridor route, and people who are or were connected to BU tend to go the Newton/Metro West route. (But not all - one of our neighbors is a professor at Harvard, so it's not set in concrete.) A friend of mine who was connected to Harvard and works in the city, lives in Winchester, but he had never been to Newton and knew basically nothing about it, even though he'd lived in Winchester for about 20 years.

If you like Winchester, Lexington, and Concord, they are all certainly do-able for you. I would guess that the commute from Winchester would be the same or less as from Natick (probably less, but I haven't done it and haven't investigated it).

While it was apparently unusual, our list of towns when we were looking to move a few years ago was: Newton, Needham, Lexington, Arlington, Belmont, Winchester. In that range, it may be worth keeping all those towns on your list, because in all of them, listings can go very quickly. Natick seems to have much more stock, especially at that price.

[runningman1976]

Originally Posted by panchilly

If you had to go to the absolute max budget, how much would that be? Can you swing 1.3M?

Something like this looks like it could meet your needs: https://www.redfin.com/MA/Newtonvill.../home/11420824

For comparison this is in Natick for 700k walking distance to commuter rail, very similar house in terms of size & quality
https://www.redfin.com/MA/Natick/25-.../home/11668989

Almost half the price

We can maybe swing $1.2 million but that would be our absolute maximum budget, at least until my wife finds gainful employment. It is certainly amazing how a house in Newton can be almost twice the price of a similar one in Natick.

[BosYuppie]

I've been looking a little lately, and I think you'll have a really tough time finding what you're looking for in Newton for 1 mil. You can get into Newton for 1 mil, but there will be a compromise in space, acreage, age of house, or proximity to the busy/loud/toxic highways.

By all means check it out, but you would probably be really happy in Needham or Natick.

[brainbree]

Originally Posted by runningman1976

We can maybe swing $1.2 million but that would be our absolute maximum budget, at least until my wife finds gainful employment. It is certainly amazing how a house in Newton can be almost twice the price of a similar one in Natick.

Honestly if you really want to be in Newton you should wait it out. However, you need to check Redfin or your site of choice daily and be ready to take a day off to get an agent or whoever to right an offer with no inspection sight unseen.

I mean, look at these:
https://www.redfin.com/city/11619/MA...clude=sold-3mo

[bugelrex]

The need for 2 concert sized pianos + short commute to Boston limits your choices a lot.

Most homes in Boston have the traditional layout of living room + sunroom(unlikely to fit a grand piano). It would have to be piano in living room + piano in a furnished walkout basement... although you may find a workable layout in a large Victorian($$)

I have noticed the new listings in Newton are getting less crazy.. keep an eye out. You could always buy a tear down and create your own custom floorplan for the 2 pianos

Sounds like you need a mcMansion in the further suburbs..

BTW, there is very good demand for good pianos teachers BUT only if you live close to the $$, take that into account when choosing your location. Eg a piano teacher in Newton will make more money than one who lives 1hr from Boston

[bugelrex]

Originally Posted by brainbree

Honestly if you really want to be in Newton you should wait it out. However, you need to check Redfin or your site of choice daily and be ready to take a day off to get an agent or whoever to right an offer with no inspection sight unseen.

I mean, look at these:
https://www.redfin.com/city/11619/MA...clude=sold-3mo

I wonder what was wrong with "21 Fairview". it sold for 830k but has a $1M taxable assessment. Must have been some major structural issue

[wolfgang239]

Taxed value rarely equals sale price/appraised value.