Are there signs of people leaving Boston for cheaper parts of the state yet? (Worcester: chapel, how much)

[Bridge781]

I don’t think anyone knows for sure what will happen. I know that back in April I didn’t expect to still be fully remote in August and never in my dreams did I think I’d still be remote in December. But here I am.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by Bridge781

I don’t think anyone knows for sure what will happen. I know that back in April I didn’t expect to still be fully remote in August and never in my dreams did I think I’d still be remote in December. But here I am.

On April 1, there was little understanding of asymptomatic and presympomatic transmission. There was little understanding of aerosol transmission. If it had behaved like the flu, it would have mostly gone away during the summer. Until you have the data, the best you can do is assume it behaves like something else you already understand.



Now that we understand that better, the real problem is poor compliance and embarrassingly poor testing. If everyone washed their hands like they're supposed to, wore masks like they're supposed to, and adhered to distancing like they're supposed to, the transmission rate would be low enough that we could open most things back up. We could then use testing and contact tracing to keep the disease in check.

[Bridge781]

Well as I said in an earlier post it seems like many things have opened up. The stores, restaurants, beaches are the same as they have been. When will schools, libraries, and offices be ok with opening ? Some say their employers have opened at limited capacity. I find the school situation sad. Waaay too much fear and it will inhibit the kids. Work can be done from home. It’s very hard for 1st grade to be done remotely though.

[XIO_3]

One RE agent I spoke with is seeing a trend of city couples moving to the burbs for more space/ outdoor space. The need for zoom rooms and play rooms, etc...

[Bridge781]

I moved to a town in the south shore in may. The house next to us sold for over a million in July and the one on the other side suddenly listed for sale on Thursday at 1million. I was very surprised as it doesn’t look like a million dolllar house to me. But the next day it was listed as pending, open house cancelled.

I think people are thinking there might be bad things to come and it’s time to sell? Others are thinking time to buy that house with more space in a good town. I also noticed many homes on the cape for sale and they are going quickly too.

[BosYuppie]

Originally Posted by XIO_3

One RE agent I spoke with is seeing a trend of city couples moving to the burbs for more space/ outdoor space. The need for zoom rooms and play rooms, etc...

The open layout is finally dead! Pretty hard to zoom, cook, watch tv, have your kids running amok and do your laundry all in the same room. Bring back the Victorians!

[Bridge781]

I’m using a guest room as my office. My new house doesn’t have open floor plan but our old house did. Even if someone does have an open floor plan there are other options where they could have an office in the house.

[charolastra00]

Originally Posted by Bridge781

I’m using a guest room as my office. My new house doesn’t have open floor plan but our old house did. Even if someone does have an open floor plan there are other options where they could have an office in the house.

Like sharing a kitchen table with their partner, spouse or roommates or working out of their/their kid's bedroom.

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by charolastra00

Like sharing a kitchen table with their partner, spouse or roommates or working out of their/their kid's bedroom.

The average house in MA has 3-4 bedrooms and the average family size in MA <3 people per household. A portion of single-family households in MA have the space to accommodate two working parents.

Sure, a household of 4+ is going to run into issues, but in this state these families are outliers.

I live in a very open layout, but my wife and I have run into few Zoom related issues, even with a toddler at home, as the existing housing stock was designed for larger families than ours.

[charolastra00]

Originally Posted by Shrewsburried

The average house in MA has 3-4 bedrooms and the average family size in MA <3 people per household. A portion of single-family households in MA have the space to accommodate two working parents.

Sure, a household of 4+ is going to run into issues, but in this state these families are outliers.

I live in a very open layout, but my wife and I have run into few Zoom related issues, even with a toddler at home, as the existing housing stock was designed for larger families than ours.

This may be an age thing. I'm in my early 30s and work within 128. Most people I work with who are under 40 live with roommates or in 1-2 bedroom apartments with a partner and 1 or 2 children. Only 61% of Mass residents own, and that likely skews older and more rural. If you're a young couple living in Somerville, you're probably not among the 34% of Somerville residents who own and therefore are less likely to have a spare bedroom or office space. That's why so many people are looking to move to previously undesirable suburbs.


I don't know anyone who has a spare bedroom who is under 40. I'm sure they exist, but they're not working in higher ed/nonprofits. While I had hoped to buy a 2 bedroom condo next year, it's already looking like I'm priced out due to people in that situation moving further out into the burbs.