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Old 02-20-2021, 01:21 PM
 
10 posts, read 8,525 times
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We're thinking of moving to Brookline because we feel we've outgrown our small Boston suburb. We'd like to live in a small city close to Boston and could see ourselves staying in Brookline once the kids are gone. (Not true of our current town. People move here for the schools and we're no exception.) We like that Brookline is more international and diverse and has highly rated public schools. We also feel that we have one real opportunity to make a change because both our daughters are both starting new schools next year. One is starting 6th grade (middle school) and one is starting high school. My soon-to-be 6th grader is a reasonably good student but not terribly interested in academics. My soon-to-be 9th grader is a very strong student who is looking to be more challenged b/c the only leveled class in her middle school is math. She actually has asked to move because she wants to meet new people and have new experiences. Her younger sister, as is more typical, is less excited about the idea of a change. I'd love to hear more about Brookline middle and high school schools and any info about neighborhoods. We know Brookline is expensive and would consider a condo, although a single-family home would be ideal. Our upper limit is $3M but we'd prefer not to go quite that high.
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Old 02-20-2021, 08:10 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,543 posts, read 14,016,971 times
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Brookline is a fantastic place to live. As you already mentioned, if you're moving from a sleepier 'burb chances are that you're going to be downgrading somewhat from your current home.

I don't see any reason why you couldn't live in a single family and keep it under $3M. The more walkable parts of Brookline do tend to have fewer single families and more condos but I guess the big question is how do you see your new home? How big is it? How many bedrooms/bathrooms? How much parking would you need (keep in mind you can't park on the street overnight in Brookline)?

There are a lot of different neighborhoods in Brookline although it sounds like you'd like to be in one of the more dense/urban areas. Chestnut Hill mostly tends to be more suburban and estates. So, I'd steer clear of that area. Brookline Village is great. Coolidge Corner is great. One of my personal favorite neighborhoods is Aspinwall Hill. There are some single families in that neighborhood and it's very walkable. Plus, it has a park at the top of the hill and it's right in between two branches of the Green line. Do I have that right about what it is you're looking for?
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Old 02-21-2021, 09:02 AM
 
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These are good questions. We currently have 2100 sq ft and 3 bedrooms, but only 1 full bath. We'd be happy with something similar but with 2 full baths bc we will have 2 teenage girls in the house in a couple of years. $3m is a huge amount of $$$ to us which we technically can afford but we'd rather not spend that much. (We're very conservative about spending which is why we've been able to save so much.) As for location, we'd like to be walkable. We currently live near our downtown and use our car as little as possible. We both work from home permanently so access to work is not an issue. (We were remote prepandemic.)
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Old 02-21-2021, 09:11 AM
 
880 posts, read 818,932 times
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How "woke" are brookline schools compared to suburbs? Its one thing to be liberal and another to be ? (See example of news article below)

https://nypost.com/2021/02/16/nyc-pu...whiteness/amp/
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Old 02-21-2021, 09:39 AM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,543 posts, read 14,016,971 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by momof201842 View Post
These are good questions. We currently have 2100 sq ft and 3 bedrooms, but only 1 full bath. We'd be happy with something similar but with 2 full baths bc we will have 2 teenage girls in the house in a couple of years. $3m is a huge amount of $$$ to us which we technically can afford but we'd rather not spend that much. (We're very conservative about spending which is why we've been able to save so much.) As for location, we'd like to be walkable. We currently live near our downtown and use our car as little as possible. We both work from home permanently so access to work is not an issue. (We were remote prepandemic.)
Sounds like you're not living in a mega mansion already. I don't see any reason why you couldn't find a single family house or a townhome very similar in size to your current home well within your budget. Homes in the $3M range would be more like 3,000 sq ft at least and it sounds like you don't currently live in a house that large nor do you want one.

Brookline has a lot of walkable/urban neighborhoods. Generally, I would want to stay north of RT9 to be close to public transportation and also so that I don't have to cross RT9 on foot and the closer you get to Boston the more urban/walkable it will feel.

As I said in my last post, IMO Aspinwall Hill is a really nice sweet spot. Very quiet neighborhood with great access to public transportation and you can just walk down the hill and be in Washington Square.
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Old 02-21-2021, 09:57 AM
 
5,096 posts, read 2,658,571 times
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As is the area of Aspinwall Ave, Perry St., St Paul, Griggs Field etc.
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Old 02-21-2021, 10:40 AM
 
16,325 posts, read 8,150,917 times
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Gosh I would hope 3 million would be enough to buy a house anywhere around here.
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Old 02-21-2021, 12:48 PM
 
10 posts, read 8,525 times
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Really appreciate the advice on neighborhoods.

As for the 3M budget, there are 9 houses for sale in Brookline over 3M. The most expensive is 9M which is about 3x what a similar house would cost in our suburban town. But we are looking for something quite a bit smaller.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1...56571873_zpid/

As for the schools being "too woke" that is not something we are worried about.
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Old 02-21-2021, 03:56 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,543 posts, read 14,016,971 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by momof201842 View Post
Really appreciate the advice on neighborhoods.

As for the 3M budget, there are 9 houses for sale in Brookline over 3M. The most expensive is 9M which is about 3x what a similar house would cost in our suburban town. But we are looking for something quite a bit smaller.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1...56571873_zpid/

As for the schools being "too woke" that is not something we are worried about.
There are plenty of far more expensive houses in Brookline than $3M. Look what Paul Fireman (former Reebbok CEO) sold his house for or Tom Brady. One of my kids' classmates lives in a Brookline house they paid $15M for several years ago so it would probably sell for more now.
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Old 02-21-2021, 04:38 PM
 
Location: Massachusetts
1,362 posts, read 873,319 times
Reputation: 2123
Quote:
Originally Posted by bugelrex View Post
How "woke" are brookline schools compared to suburbs? Its one thing to be liberal and another to be ? (See example of news article below)

https://nypost.com/2021/02/16/nyc-pu...whiteness/amp/
I pity the fool who clicks on a NY Post link. No thanks. Brookline is a fantastic place to live. Full stop.
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