Moving to MA (Boston, Newton, Brookline: neighborhoods, middle school, to live in)

[Moving2020-21]

Originally Posted by jayrandom

I think you’ll do fine in Newton or Needham. You might consider Natick or Westwood if you decide you want to exchange longer commute for a bigger house. I can’t speak to Natick, but the school-aged demographics in Westwood are more diverse than the overall demographics (although not as diverse as somewhere like Newton or especially somewhere like Cambridge).

It’s also worth pointing out that great schools tends to rate schools relative to the rest of the state and Massachusetts schools are some of the best in the country. Even a middle-tier district here is good.

Thank you for saying that. My husband and I actually were having that talk last night that we thought MA schools were so strong that even at the worst they are probably better than some places in the country. So it’s good to hear that voiced by someone in MA. I agree I don’t think we will go wrong in schools honestly started supplementing some things my kids are doing because they may be behind what schools there are doing! We also understand it isn’t going to be as diverse as some places in the country we have lived in places that aren’t extremely diverse moving to the Midwest after living down south. We just want to make sure our kids would feel welcomed and there would be some diversity. Thanks for mentioning Westwood I hadn’t really looked into that and will look as well.

[Lampert]

If you have biracial kids it honestly also depends a bit on what races you are talking about. I personally know quite a few white/asian kids of school age and they don't really stand out among white kids. I have never heard of having big problems from them. On the other hand it seems to me that if your kids are black mixed with any other race they are going to be considered black and not biracial by a lot of people (this is just an impression though) and this may affect how they are seen by some of their peers.

[mwj119]

At $1.2-$1.3M, I'll mirror what others are saying... Newton likely makes the most sense, at least on paper.

We are Midwest transplants/natives/back-and-forthers. Where are you moving from? I might be able to give you an apples to apples/comps between your area and Greater Boston.

Newton has 13 villages. Some are very upscale, while others are what you'd expect from a big, inner ring major suburb. Coming from the Midwest, Newton may be "a lot" visually in some of the more legacy middle class neighborhoods. A fair amount of commercial activity, mixed use housing, smaller lots, wires everywhere. It's one of the first things we noticed when moving from Chicago. Might sound a bit strange to locals, but... Check it out, and see if it's the aesthetic you'd like at your budget.

If not, there are plenty of other great suburbs that will have a different look and feel that may be more comfortable. Feel free to DM if you want to talk more specifics.

[BosYuppie]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

You know I looked, and even at the ~1M mark it was still those SFH remodeled to two townhomes.

I like Newton a lot, but I would try to avoid the Waltham border.

West Newton on the Waltham border means being walkable to Moody Street, which I see as a major advantage. The motivation for avoiding it would be low-key racism, which I doubt concerns OP.

[Moving2020-21]

Originally Posted by Lampert

If you have biracial kids it honestly also depends a bit on what races you are talking about. I personally know quite a few white/asian kids of school age and they don't really stand out among white kids. I have never heard of having big problems from them. On the other hand it seems to me that if your kids are black mixed with any other race they are going to be considered black and not biracial by a lot of people (this is just an impression though) and this may affect how they are seen by some of their peers.

Thank you for the honesty it’s appreciated. They are Black and white and I agree society sees them as Black that’s how we have always raised them. I did get the vibe it was more of a biracial white/Asian that people were referencing and my kids have had to deal with that moving from NC to MN it was not an easy move and we know that’s the world but we also want to do our part to make the move more conducive for them

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by Moving2020-21

Ok thank you we have a lot to learn! That’s definitely not what he is looking for commute wise so we will cross that off our list!

I will second a previous poster's recommendation about Belmont--absolutely worth a look, or three..

Both Newton and Belmont have a fair amount of diversity, too..

[Moving2020-21]

Originally Posted by mwj119

At $1.2-$1.3M, I'll mirror what others are saying... Newton likely makes the most sense, at least on paper.

We are Midwest transplants/natives/back-and-forthers. Where are you moving from? I might be able to give you an apples to apples/comps between your area and Greater Boston.

Newton has 13 villages. Some are very upscale, while others are what you'd expect from a big, inner ring major suburb. Coming from the Midwest, Newton may be "a lot" visually in some of the more legacy middle class neighborhoods. A fair amount of commercial activity, mixed use housing, smaller lots, wires everywhere. It's one of the first things we noticed when moving from Chicago. Might sound a bit strange to locals, but... Check it out, and see if it's the aesthetic you'd like at your budget.

If not, there are plenty of other great suburbs that will have a different look and feel that may be more comfortable. Feel free to DM if you want to talk more specifics.

Thank you we are moving from MN but not originally from here. It was a rough move for our kids and we are trying to avoid some of the same mistakes we made when moving here. We lived in NC previously to that and actually my husband and I are originally from IL. My husband went to law school in Cambridge but I can honestly say we were broke and didn’t venture into Boston really as we had a two year old so we are coming at this as people who lived in MA for 3 years but are completely clueless to the area and also what the surrounding suburbs mean for our kids. We are excited to get back to the East Coast and trying to narrow down what we are areas before we start house hunting. It sounds like Newton would be a good fit for us we are still thinking Needham but commute is very important. But now I really have to start looking into the middle schools and high schools

[Moving2020-21]

Originally Posted by MassVt

I will second a previous poster's recommendation about Belmont--absolutely worth a look, or three..

Both Newton and Belmont have a fair amount of diversity, too..

Ok thank you we haven’t looked into Belmont at all so I will add that to my list to look at I appreciate the help

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by Moving2020-21

actually my husband and I are originally from IL.

Belmont/Winchester would be like Wilmette. Newton would be more like Skokie x Oak Park x Evanston, but without any real pockets of socioeconomic diversity. Needham would be like Glenview or Western Springs. Wellesley would be most like Hinsdale or Winnetka. Natick would be like Downers Grove.

I could keep doing comps all day long, but there aren't really any suburbs with a material black population that are "highly regarded". It sucks.. There's no Flossmoor equivalent, for example.

[BosYuppie]

Originally Posted by mwj119

Belmont/Winchester would be like Wilmette. Newton would be more like Skokie x Oak Park x Evanston, but without any real pockets of socioeconomic diversity

I would recommend you drive thru the side blocks of Nonantum village of Newton sometime. Plenty of three deckers and other rental units, You’ll see occasional rusted out cars and unpaved ways. Maybe not skid row by any means but not the West Newton Hills mansions that most people on the forum and at large seem to think compose the entirety of Newton.

There’s one down by Needham Street, Upper Falls I think that has some very “lived in” neighborhoods as well.

What I’m saying is that Newton is a large city and the vibe can really vary village by village.