Job relocation to Boston. Looking for recommendations for safe, suburban towns, south or west of South Station (Worcester: condo, how much)

[Krmove]

Looking for a bus or train commute 1 hour to South Station
House up to $800k
Want a very, very safe area
Restaurants/pubs within 10 minutes a plus to grab a burger and beer
A downtown area would also be a plus for shopping
No kids, so schools not a consideration

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by Krmove

Looking for a bus or train commute 1 hour to South Station
House up to $800k
Want a very, very safe area
Restaurants/pubs within 10 minutes a plus to grab a burger and beer
A downtown area would also be a plus for shopping
No kids, so schools not a consideration

East Natick. Don't think you can get any closer without having to drop to a townhome or condo. Maybe also look at Norwood but Natick would be better if you later want to get a 128 job.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by Krmove

Looking for a bus or train commute 1 hour to South Station
House up to $800k
Want a very, very safe area
Restaurants/pubs within 10 minutes a plus to grab a burger and beer
A downtown area would also be a plus for shopping
No kids, so schools not a consideration

I'm going to be the unpopular poster on this thread and suggest Woburn. From where I live in west Woburn, I can be in South Station in <1 hr (350 bus to Alewife + MBTA Red Line). The only downside? The "downtown" (center), while it has some interesting dining, has a decidedly downmarket feel to it. But honestly, I live so close to Lexington and Winchester centers, that I usually end up there when I'm in the mood to stroll/browse shops!

[gf2020]

Honestly, pretty much any commuter rail location that comes in to South Station is within an hour. There are exceptions, like west of Framingham, the end of the Franklin line, or beyond Attleboro, but there are lots of communities that bear consideration that meet your commute criteria. It will really depend on how much house and/or land you want for your $800K budget.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by gf2020

Honestly, pretty much any commuter rail location that comes in to South Station is within an hour. There are exceptions, like west of Framingham, the end of the Franklin line, or beyond Attleboro, but there are lots of communities that bear consideration that meet your commute criteria. It will really depend on how much house and/or land you want for your $800K budget.

I think this is a little misleading. The terminus of almost every line (Needham and Fairmount as well as the Stoughton and Foxboro spurs being the exceptions) into South Station is scheduled at an hour or just over an hour; and the scheduled times are typically pretty optimistic (Middleborough Lakeville never takes under an hour even though it's scheduled at 59 minutes). And that's just the train ride (on a good day) - the commute to/from the station also adds time.

OP, I'd look at the schedules here and factor in your drive time to the origin station, wait time for the train, and your transfer or walk time from South Station. When factoring in the above, I'd be skeptical that any train scheduled at more than 40 minutes from South Station is going to enable your complete commute to be under an hour.

Options might be kind of limited with an $800k budget and the 1 hour commute requirement. I like the Woburn suggestion apart from the fact you won't have the one seat ride to South Station. It might be the best bet. Mansfield might work too. Downtown Mansfield won't knock your socks off (not even as nice as Woburn), but the train station is right there, there are a handful of shops and restaurants, and there's been some real development in the area in recent years. It's close to shopping and dining and it's a safe community.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I think this is a little misleading. The terminus of almost every line (Needham and Fairmount as well as the Stoughton and Foxboro spurs being the exceptions) into South Station is scheduled at an hour or just over an hour; and the scheduled times are typically pretty optimistic (Middleborough Lakeville never takes under an hour even though it's scheduled at 59 minutes). And that's just the train ride (on a good day) - the commute to/from the station also adds time.

OP, I'd look at the schedules here and factor in your drive time to the origin station, wait time for the train, and your transfer or walk time from South Station. When factoring in the above, I'd be skeptical that any train scheduled at more than 40 minutes from South Station is going to enable your complete commute to be under an hour.

Options might be kind of limited with an $800k budget and the 1 hour commute requirement. I like the Woburn suggestion apart from the fact you won't have the one seat ride to South Station. It might be the best bet. Mansfield might work too. Downtown Mansfield won't knock your socks off (not even as nice as Woburn), but the train station is right there, there are a handful of shops and restaurants, and there's been some real development in the area in recent years. It's close to shopping and dining and it's a safe community.

Well, the OP said "bus or train" so I took the liberty of assuming that a combo would be OK . Yeah, one seat ride? That's tougher.

[skeddy]

Scituate (Greenbush Station) is a one hour commute (train) from South Station. Safe, coastal, has a downtown shopping area.

[scorpio516]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I think this is a little misleading. The terminus of almost every line (Needham and Fairmount as well as the Stoughton and Foxboro spurs being the exceptions) into South Station is scheduled at an hour or just over an hour; and the scheduled times are typically pretty optimistic (Middleborough Lakeville never takes under an hour even though it's scheduled at 59 minutes). And that's just the train ride (on a good day) - the commute to/from the station also adds time.

Depends on the time of day though.

when I took the 5:50am train from Worcester, the only delays were when we ran over a deer and when the train in front of us hit a guy. 99% of the time, we'd roll in at 7:06am.
when I would take the 7:00 train out of Worcester, there would be a delay just about every week!

The 5:50 train doesn't exist anymore, it's a 6:00 train now. IF you work on top of Back Bay or South Station and IF you live a block away from Union Station AND you time it perfect every day, that would be a 1:15 commute. I'd always leave home 20 minutes early, bike to the station, lock up and get a good seat, then walk 3-5 block: leaving home at 5:30 would get me to my desk by 7:15-ish.

[WestieWhitie]

Quincy might be a good option - prices dropped quite a bit meaning $800K might actually get you a livable house.

[masssachoicetts]

Anywhere South and East of Weymouth.

Also, Sharon or Canton