jobs and cheap apartments in Leominster or Worcester to move in September 2019

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by magicshark

Clinton is very safe. It is always on those top five safest places to live in Massachusetts lists. It is very working class so it gets disparged a lot by those who tend to be classist.

It also always had a high number of bars per capita (to go along with it's large Irish ancestry), much of its reputation stems from that.

[CaseyB]

Doesn't Clinton have the highest number of bars per person in the whole state?

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by CaseyB

Doesn't Clinton have the highest number of bars per person in the whole state?

I have heard that as well. Could have been at one point, but doubt it is true today. Several of the bars in Clinton have closed over the years, like in many towns. I'd imagine places like PTown, Hyannis, Oak Bluffs, etc. would be much higher.

[LeavingMA]

If you are around $1,000 in Worcester be careful. Otherwise you won't get anything close to Boston. I noticed Natick, but just forget it. You can get a few places around Leominster for $1,000 although don't expect much. Are you looking for 1 or 2 bedroom. If your patient you might be able to grab a decent 2 bedroom around Leominster for $1,000 but expect closer to $1,200.

[FCMA]

Clinton is waiting to become the next Maynard and Hudson. Very similar small mill towns that give urban expats a dense little downtown to semi-gentrify in the far suburban orbit. Clinton isn’t there yet but will be in the next decade or two. Currently it is an entirely safe place though. Worcester is a mixed bag on safety - Main south (Main Street south of downtown) has the deepest reputation for this. Like every “bad” MA city there are also very safe and desirable neighborhoods somewhere within the city limits.

[alidmc]

Originally Posted by bizcuit

Definitely get jobs first! Personally, I think it's insane to quit stable jobs and move to an unfamiliar area for this reason. Where do you live now?

Anyway, can you afford to at least do a scouting trip in advance of your planned move? Maybe you can rent an Airbnb for a week while you search for jobs.

I agree. Perhaps there are other reasons for your move, but if it truly is to just be closer to your kid, consider the following:

-what if the school is not a good fit and your son/daughter wants to transfer? This is a pretty common scenario among first-year students.

-4 years is a very short period of time and who knows where your son/daughter will go from there

I think if you have a pretty good standard of living where you are, reconsider this move. Maybe even wait a bit to make sure that your son/daughter is adjusting to the new school before upheaving your life. For $1k a month, you are looking at living in a not-so great apartment in a not so great area in a region with an overall high cost of living.

[KellyCrash]

There are 2 bedroom parents in Charlton for less than 1K per month. It's a safe, small town and has fairly easy access to the Mass Pike in either Sturbridge or Auburn for a commute into Boston or Metrowest area where a lot of jobs are. There are jobs in Worcester too and the commute from Charlton isn't too bad for that either.

Worcester has bad areas like any city, but there are decent areas too. The west side of Worcester is nice, but pricey.

I think you can definitely find a place to live with that budget in a rental in Central MA, but how quickly you can find jobs and a rental I have no experience with.

Good luck! I have a daughter who will be going to college before you know it. I hope she chooses something that is within an hour of two of home so I can see her once in awhile. If she goes far away we wouldn't have the $$ to bring her home often.

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by massnative71

I have heard that as well. Could have been at one point, but doubt it is true today. Several of the bars in Clinton have closed over the years, like in many towns. I'd imagine places like PTown, Hyannis, Oak Bluffs, etc. would be much higher.

The whole bars-per-capita thing with Clinton was always a bit overblown. The town itself covers a relative small area and much of the building sqft was/is allocated to industry, not residential. As a result, at it's peak it had a fairly sizeable 3-shift labor population, of which only a percentage actually lived within town lines. The bars were largely catering to workers post-shift and, despite reputation, the small town population was not just a bunch of drunkards.

Clinton is perfectly fine with a fair amount of worthwhile amenities given it's small size/population. It'certainly has it's fair share of poor working class, and housing which reflects this, but it's leagues above other small mill towns west of 495 ... including Ayer.