Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I saw this listing and immediately thought of this thread. It's a beautiful neighborhood, and very close (easy walking distance) to both the elementary and middle schools.
Arlington is very good for young professionals or small families, but a well-established family may want a less congested town.
Actually I kinda like Burlington. There is no real downtown but there is a shopping mall, a movie theater, a Barnes & Noble.. and they are all in the same place! It's more than enough for you to spend a weekend afternoon there. If you don't like humans around there are plenty of parks in the woods too.
I saw this listing and immediately thought of this thread. It's a beautiful neighborhood, and very close (easy walking distance) to both the elementary and middle schools.
I do see that you've decided to focus your search elsewhere, but felt compelled to post anyway, I guess since this is a rare opporunity for Reading.
Thanks Nauset, I appreciate the thought -- I also saw that listing and thought shoot, if only we were still considering Reading that could be the one!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bettafish
Arlington is very good for young professionals or small families, but a well-established family may want a less congested town.
Actually I kinda like Burlington. There is no real downtown but there is a shopping mall, a movie theater, a Barnes & Noble.. and they are all in the same place! It's more than enough for you to spend a weekend afternoon there. If you don't like humans around there are plenty of parks in the woods too.
Thanks Bettafish – my family and I have actually switched gears a bit and are now focusing more on the metrowest (for personal reasons we've decided that we need to prioritize proximity to Hudson, in addition to Burlington and Boston). But I know many other people read this thread and will appreciate your perspective!
Two of my good friends from college were both from Lexington and I visited them often through the years (one actually ended up buying a home of her own there a few years ago). I love Lexington! Lovely downtown with great restaurants and shopping, close to Boston, close to 128, and many beautiful homes to boot. Both of them raved about LHS and said they had fantastic high school experiences there. Personally, that would be my top choice.
OP,
Apologies, I didn't read your post as thoroughly as I should have (and I also haven't gone through each of the 11 pages with a fine tooth comb), but would you consider Newburyport? It definitely has the best downtown on the north shore and the schools are very good. Also, plenty of people go to either Boston or the 128 belt for work. I'm not going to lie, that's not an ideal commute from Newburyport, but if it's only 2x/week, I think it's definitely manageable.
Also, your budget should get you a very nice home within walking distance of downtown. The only problem is that the closer you are to downtown, the smaller the yards get. You can get the house, the yard, the driveway, and the garage in neighborhoods on the outskirts of town (and not be within walking distance), but most homes within walking distance may or may not have those things.
OP here checking in for those of you who are still willing to read about my sadly-still-ongoing house search. Or maybe I'm just checking in for myself; who knows at this point. Anyways, although our priorities have changed countless times since beginning our house search almost a year and a half ago, we've actually come full circle and largely re-aligned with the initial list of priorities I mentioned in the start of this thread.
Both my wife's company and my company have reaffirmed their commitment to allowing long term remote work, which has made us even more comfortable sacrificing on distance to our offices. Although we still want to be within 495.
We still want a 4+ bd (or 3 bd plus bonus room), 2.5+ ba, 2000+ sq ft home, preferably SFH but willing to settle for a townhouse if it doesn't share too many walls. Doesn't need to be brand spankin' new, but should be move-in ready.
Budget-wise, although interest rates have gone up a bit we can still go up to 1.35M. If we stay below 1.2M I'll be elated.
Good schools. I know, I'm the same person who was just touting Waltham High School in another thread. And I do think the Waltham schools can be good. But ultimately, if we don't really need the proximity Waltham offers (or any other inner-ring town with low-ranked schools), we feel it is a safer bet to go with a higher-performing school district.
Moderately charming/walkable town center. We did check out towns without any true town center to speak of, e.g. Acton, Westford, etc., but they just felt strange to us. Not our scene. Also, there was some discussion earlier in this thread about just how "vibrant" of a town center we required – after searching for as long as we have been, the bar is not super high here. And restaurant variety is more important than pure volume. Give me a town center with 1 Thai, 1 Japanese, 1 Indian, and 1 American restaurant over one with 10 pizza/sub shops.
Medium-density housing within neighborhoods. The main reason is I don't want our kid to be completely car-dependent (and parent-dependent) as he grows up. I hope he will at least make some friends whose houses he can walk to.
I am still being picky about location within the town. No busy roads; no being opposite a T-intersection. And hoping to be within a 15-minute walk of at least 2 of the following: elementary school, middle school, high school, town center. Although I think for the right house I could settle for being within walking distance of just 1 of those.
Bonus points for having at least a small Indian community and at least a small Jewish community.
With those criteria in mind, I believe we have a promising list of towns:
Natick – In my original post I expressed hesitancy about the commute from Natick to my office in Burlington. But as mentioned above that is no longer a concern. Also, somewhere in this thread someone skeptically wondered whether the Natick town center is vibrant enough for us. The answer is yes, it is.
Medfield – No longer concerned about the commute. For Medfield too someone questioned whether I would find the town center vibrant enough. Although I've only toured it via Google Maps, based on that I liked it.
Andover – Although I have yet to visit in person, from my research it seems to check all the boxes. The challenge I think will be finding a house that meets my walking distance criteria while staying in budget, because the houses close to the town center and/or the high school seem to be significantly more expensive.
Westborough – definitely the farthest out from 128/Boston of the towns on my list, but with easy access to the Pike, which I'm hoping negates the distance factor, especially if I don't need to travel during rush hours. Yet to visit in person, but the town center looks solid from Google Maps.
Reading – Not quite as nice a town center as the others on this list, but not bad.
Chelmsford – Also not quite as expansive a town center, but I think it is acceptable.
One town that you might say is conspicuously absent from this list is Bedford. The main reason is the proximity of the Hanscom airfield. I don't want to deal with frequent airplane noise, and anything close to the town center (which also includes the high school and middle school) would be too close to the airfield.
Then there are a couple other towns that fit the bill that we are likely priced out of, but I think still have a shot at:
Melrose
Needham – Okay this may really be a pipe dream..
I won't bother listing all the tier 1 towns that we are *definitely* priced out of.
A couple towns that don't exactly meet all the criteria, but we are keeping in consideration for other reasons:
Burlington – Doesn't really have a charming town center, but has tons of restaurants, and they are doing some serious work on the Burlington Mall to add more restaurants, many with outdoor patios and accessible from the outside, which I think could give it a nice vibe.
Wayland – Wayland has two commercial clusters, not exactly the classic charming town center, but walkable with some restaurants. And even though much of Wayland's housing stock is on spaced out lots, I belive there are some medium-density neighborhoods.
Lastly, two towns I need to investigate more before evaluating:
Canton
Sharon
For reasons I can't fully articulate, we've been reluctant to get too close to the shore line, north or south. I feel like we should be open to towns like Newburyport, Marblehead, etc., but for some reason – not sure how much of it is just lack of familiarity? – we just haven't been too excited about the shoreline.
Anways, thanks to those of you who have read this far and everyone who has given input; I continue to find it valuable, and indeed input from this forum has helped shape our current list of towns.
I would hardly call Chelmsford and Reading “vibrant”, but that’s just me. Feel free to eliminate costal towns, but you’re eliminating many of the desirable towns north of Boston. As johngolf mentioned back in November, I’d definitely check out Andover. It sounds like your best bet as far as northern towns go.
My parents live in Melrose. I like it as there’s a great downtown and it’s close to Boston, but it feels congested at times and route 1 can be a beast depending on what time of day you’re traveling on it. Even the weekend traffic can be brutal. I was visiting them this past Sunday and due to an accident by the Square One Mall in Saugus, route 1 was a parking lot for a good portion of the afternoon.
I also agree that Burlington definitely isn’t considered charming, but to your point, there are quite a few restaurants, the Burlington Mall, and Wayside Commons, so you’d have plenty of options when it comes to shopping and dining out.
OP here checking in for those of you who are still willing to read about my sadly-still-ongoing house search. Or maybe I'm just checking in for myself; who knows at this point. Anyways, although our priorities have changed countless times since beginning our house search almost a year and a half ago, we've actually come full circle and largely re-aligned with the initial list of priorities I mentioned in the start of this thread.
Both my wife's company and my company have reaffirmed their commitment to allowing long term remote work, which has made us even more comfortable sacrificing on distance to our offices. Although we still want to be within 495.
We still want a 4+ bd (or 3 bd plus bonus room), 2.5+ ba, 2000+ sq ft home, preferably SFH but willing to settle for a townhouse if it doesn't share too many walls. Doesn't need to be brand spankin' new, but should be move-in ready.
Budget-wise, although interest rates have gone up a bit we can still go up to 1.35M. If we stay below 1.2M I'll be elated.
Good schools. I know, I'm the same person who was just touting Waltham High School in another thread. And I do think the Waltham schools can be good. But ultimately, if we don't really need the proximity Waltham offers (or any other inner-ring town with low-ranked schools), we feel it is a safer bet to go with a higher-performing school district.
Moderately charming/walkable town center. We did check out towns without any true town center to speak of, e.g. Acton, Westford, etc., but they just felt strange to us. Not our scene. Also, there was some discussion earlier in this thread about just how "vibrant" of a town center we required – after searching for as long as we have been, the bar is not super high here. And restaurant variety is more important than pure volume. Give me a town center with 1 Thai, 1 Japanese, 1 Indian, and 1 American restaurant over one with 10 pizza/sub shops.
Medium-density housing within neighborhoods. The main reason is I don't want our kid to be completely car-dependent (and parent-dependent) as he grows up. I hope he will at least make some friends whose houses he can walk to.
I am still being picky about location within the town. No busy roads; no being opposite a T-intersection. And hoping to be within a 15-minute walk of at least 2 of the following: elementary school, middle school, high school, town center. Although I think for the right house I could settle for being within walking distance of just 1 of those.
Bonus points for having at least a small Indian community and at least a small Jewish community.
With those criteria in mind, I believe we have a promising list of towns:
Natick – In my original post I expressed hesitancy about the commute from Natick to my office in Burlington. But as mentioned above that is no longer a concern. Also, somewhere in this thread someone skeptically wondered whether the Natick town center is vibrant enough for us. The answer is yes, it is.
Medfield – No longer concerned about the commute. For Medfield too someone questioned whether I would find the town center vibrant enough. Although I've only toured it via Google Maps, based on that I liked it.
Andover – Although I have yet to visit in person, from my research it seems to check all the boxes. The challenge I think will be finding a house that meets my walking distance criteria while staying in budget, because the houses close to the town center and/or the high school seem to be significantly more expensive.
Westborough – definitely the farthest out from 128/Boston of the towns on my list, but with easy access to the Pike, which I'm hoping negates the distance factor, especially if I don't need to travel during rush hours. Yet to visit in person, but the town center looks solid from Google Maps.
Reading – Not quite as nice a town center as the others on this list, but not bad.
Chelmsford – Also not quite as expansive a town center, but I think it is acceptable.
One town that you might say is conspicuously absent from this list is Bedford. The main reason is the proximity of the Hanscom airfield. I don't want to deal with frequent airplane noise, and anything close to the town center (which also includes the high school and middle school) would be too close to the airfield.
Then there are a couple other towns that fit the bill that we are likely priced out of, but I think still have a shot at:
Melrose
Needham – Okay this may really be a pipe dream..
I won't bother listing all the tier 1 towns that we are *definitely* priced out of.
A couple towns that don't exactly meet all the criteria, but we are keeping in consideration for other reasons:
Burlington – Doesn't really have a charming town center, but has tons of restaurants, and they are doing some serious work on the Burlington Mall to add more restaurants, many with outdoor patios and accessible from the outside, which I think could give it a nice vibe.
Wayland – Wayland has two commercial clusters, not exactly the classic charming town center, but walkable with some restaurants. And even though much of Wayland's housing stock is on spaced out lots, I belive there are some medium-density neighborhoods.
Lastly, two towns I need to investigate more before evaluating:
Canton
Sharon
For reasons I can't fully articulate, we've been reluctant to get too close to the shore line, north or south. I feel like we should be open to towns like Newburyport, Marblehead, etc., but for some reason – not sure how much of it is just lack of familiarity? – we just haven't been too excited about the shoreline.
Anways, thanks to those of you who have read this far and everyone who has given input; I continue to find it valuable, and indeed input from this forum has helped shape our current list of towns.
When people ask for "Moderately charming/walkable town center" I have to ask exactly what they mean.
Do you want to live in the moderately charming/walkable town center? If so, that can be a pretty big restriction, especially if you are looking for a larger SFH (2000+ isn't crazy big). It might help to stick to that requirement and be a bit more flexible about the specific town. I know when we were looking (in 2007), we wanted to be within walking distance of a commuter rail stop. That was a big enough restriction that we really couldn't limit ourselves to one specific town and ended up in a town that weren't specifically looking for. The downside is that you may not be able to move as fast as you would if you were focused on a specific town.
Alternately, if you just want to be 'close' to a walkable town center, you shouldn't feel obligated to live in that specific town. Schools are decided by where you live, but who can eat out in a particular town is not. Living in Westwood, for example, the schools are good but there really isn't much of a town center. Norwood, on the other hand, has a lovely center but has so-so schools. This seems to be a controversial opinion in Massachusetts, but I promise no one has once checked my residency papers when hanging out in Norwood.
As to Canton and Sharon, Sharon has a blink-and-you'll-miss-it town center but great schools. Canton has a nicer town center but the schools are a tier below. I would recommend both as good places to live, but you may have better options.
My parents live in Melrose. I like it as there’s a great downtown and it’s close to Boston, but it feels congested at times and route 1 can be a beast depending on what time of day you’re traveling on it. Even the weekend traffic can be brutal. I was visiting them this past Sunday and due to an accident by the Square One Mall in Saugus, route 1 was a parking lot for a good portion of the afternoon.
Just to be clear, Route 1 is hardly the only major route Melrosians use: for going into Boston, there is also i-93, the Fellsways, and numerous local routes through Malden/Everett/Chelsea. It can take a while to learn all the available permutations, but there are many. Likewise heading north and out, as it were.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
