Where are the best locations to live in the Greater Boston area from a commuting perspective? (Woburn: price, housing)

[UNC4Me]

Originally Posted by newenglandgal123

While job loss can happen to nearly anyone, the recession really only hurts those who are already living above their means and stretching it. If you follow the 25-30% rule for % of income going toward housing, have at least 6mo to a year worth of cash reserves and little to no credit card/consumer debt you should be able to weather the storm even if you lose your job.

Agreed, but you have to have a job where saving is possible. Last estimate I saw pegged the percent of Americans with no emergency funds at 23%. Only 48% have enough savings to cover 3 months of expenses. Those with household incomes under 50k are 7 times more likely than those with incomes of 100k to have no emergency savings.

In general, Americans suck at saving. Those that don’t are the ones that can easily weather a job loss or recession. But, they’re in the minority.

[newenglandgal123]

Originally Posted by UNC4Me

Agreed, but you have to have a job where saving is possible. Last estimate I saw pegged the percent of Americans with no emergency funds at 23%. Only 48% have enough savings to cover 3 months of expenses. Those with household incomes under 50k are 7 times more likely than those with incomes of 100k to have no emergency savings.

In general, Americans suck at saving. Those that don’t are the ones that can easily weather a job loss or recession. But, they’re in the minority.

Well, I'm glad I'm in the minority. As much as I want to move, I'll wait until I get an even higher paying job or until the FOMO buyers who grossly overbid and are stretching it thin have to sell at a loss to try and keep their financial houses in order. Then maybe I can swoop in and get a more reasonable deal on a new place.

[mamovers]

Originally Posted by fieldsofathenry

Assume a two person adult household in the Boston area, John and Jane Doe. Without knowing their specific employers, industries, office locations, or hybrid/telecommuting status, where is the optimal place for them to live for both their current commutes and any and all future commutes? What are the places to live that will minimize their commute times to as many major employment centers in the Greater Boston area as possible?

For the purposes of this discussion, ignore home costs, school systems, housing types, lifestyles, etc.

My initial thoughts are locations where public transit lines and highways intersect. So places in the city like the area around North Station, South Station, and Back Bay. Outside of the city, places like Woburn (intersection of 93/95, large commuter rail station) and Newton/Weston/Wellesley (95/Pike/Route 9 intersection, Green line and commuter rail stops).

What are some other locations that offer relatively easy commutes to many different employment centers in the metro area?

Well to answer the original question itself, where is the optimal place to live if you are going to be working in or around Boston now and in future? Such a place should have easy access to major arteries of commute such as I-93, I-95, 128 and / or have commuter rail that gets you into Boston city limits. Not surprisingly, all towns that fit into this requirement have already become quite expensive although cost seems to not be a criteria for this original post.

The answer is... towns like Reading, MA. They have very good accessibility to these highways and commuter rail and fit exactly to such requirements. If your employer is in Boston or on the 128 belt or one of the major companies coming up on I-93 o I-95 near Boston, they will still be within reach and easy commute from your house. Somehow these towns still happen to offer good value for money than other towns which offer similar accessibility like Woburn and Newton that have become much more expensive now. They are not as close to Boston as Newton but you can still get into Boston within 30mins from Reading MA.

[newenglandgal123]

If you have to commute to Logan at all...make sure to account for an extra two hours to your drive in this summer! https://www.wcvb.com/article/boston-...rning/44314083


Better yet, check out if TF Green has flights to your destination and you could probably make it to RI quicker than Logan!

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by newenglandgal123

If you have to commute to Logan at all...make sure to account for an extra two hours to your drive in this summer! https://www.wcvb.com/article/boston-...rning/44314083

Out, you mean. Sumner is the tunnel from Logan to Downtown.

[newenglandgal123]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

Out, you mean. Sumner is the tunnel from Logan to Downtown.

Everyone in the vicinity will be negatively impacted and inconvenienced, regardless or direction of travel (inbound or outbound).


"It is very clear that there will be traffic impacts regardless of what direction you're coming from," Gulliver said. "Folks traveling from the North Shore and East Boston will be the hardest impacted, without a doubt. However, if you're coming from the west or you're coming from the south, you will also see additional congestion as a result of taking the Sumner Tunnel out of service for this entire period."

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by newenglandgal123

Everyone in the vicinity will be negatively impacted and inconvenienced, regardless or direction of travel (inbound or outbound).

"It is very clear that there will be traffic impacts regardless of what direction you're coming from," Gulliver said. "Folks traveling from the North Shore and East Boston will be the hardest impacted, without a doubt. However, if you're coming from the west or you're coming from the south, you will also see additional congestion as a result of taking the Sumner Tunnel out of service for this entire period."

You might have some additional congestion on NB 93 north of the Pike as people use the Ted instead of using the Sumner.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

Out, you mean. Sumner is the tunnel from Logan to Downtown.

I have never gone to Logan and not seen congestion in the inward direction. Especially from Rt 1. If there's a bottleneck exiting, it will only make this inbound congestion worse.

I'm dreading using Logan over the next 2 months.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

You might have some additional congestion on NB 93 north of the Pike as people use the Ted instead of using the Sumner.

I have landed at Logan on a weekend, after midnight...and run into bumper/bumper traffic in the Ted Williams tunnel. The random lane closure(s) is all it takes to create a cluster, anytime, any day.

[msRB311]

Ugh I have to go to Logan in July. Our flight out is sill very early so maybe it won't be that bad.