Are there bad Areas of Newburyport? (Amesbury, Ipswich: for sale, crime, townhouse)

[irishmatt77]

Hi all,

I am a life long Mass resident and I am considering moving to Newburyport. I have visted there several times, though only explored the typical center and tourist areas. I know its a small city but was wondering if there are parts that I should avoid if I am looking to buy a house or Townhouse.
Any other tips or little known facts I should consider?
many thanks all!

[Champ le monstre du lac]

Hardly. Newburyport is almost like Stepford wives. There are some mixed income areas but in the big scheme of things Newburyport is a safe prosperous town as are neighboring towns like Amesbury, West Newbury etc.
Salisbury can be a little sketchy down by the beach but nothing to write home about.

[irishmatt77]

thank you caphillsea. I have always had good impressions every time I was there and was hoping that was the case throughout the city. I love the fact that its a walkable city. thanks for your input, hopefully I will be able to find a reasonably priced place (house/townhouse) there for around 400k.

[bitsnpieces]

Bad areas in Newburyport? Yeah, there's a fire hydrant on State Street that has lost its cute little snowflag. Disgraceful.

[macdebbie]

You won't find a house for 400K, possibly a townhouse, albeit a very small one. The one across from me just sold for 375K and it is 1200 sq ft.

A house will set you back @600K.

[pondhopper]

Anyone know what a nice house on the water costs? I'm looking for a 4 bed 3 bath in Newburyport, a nice Newburyport like location. I know how this could look to some and I'm not trying to get flamed. Thanks.

[CityGirl52]

A 4B 3B home along the banks of the Merrimack River in Newburyport is roughly $699,000 - 2.6 million.

[Valerie C]

The unfortunate thing is that although Newburyport is a port town on the water, that water is the Merrimack River and not the Atlantic Ocean. The layout of the area is such that there isn't much for residential waterfront property. Much of the riverside property is marinas and commercial property. Maybe something along Water Street, approaching Plum Island (although the home that's located on the Chain Bridge Island was for sale a year or so ago, hmmmm...) Newburyport doesn't sit directly ON the Atlantic, but is sheltered from the ocean by Plum Island, which extends all the way down to Ipswich. CityGirl's estimate is about right (I can look up specifics when I'm on a different computer and can post here later...)

Originally Posted by pondhopper

Anyone know what a nice house on the water costs? I'm looking for a 4 bed 3 bath in Newburyport, a nice Newburyport like location. I know how this could look to some and I'm not trying to get flamed. Thanks.

[MassYankee]

To the original poster, no, there really aren't any areas left in Newburyport that one might call bad. We still had the odd biker bar or two a few years ago, but those are gone, and the majority of housing stock that was run down has either been restored, or in some cases knocked down and replaced.

There is some crime in Newburyport, but so there is in ANY town, and relatively speaking, Newburyport is really quite safe.

[catwings80]

There aren't any dangerous areas. There might be some noisy streets due to traffic. Water St. and Merrimac St. are close to the water and you could get a house with waterviews or even on the river, but your house would sit on a busy street. If you want water and not on a busy street then there are few and the $700K-2million is about right. You can also look on Plum Island for beachy houses. Some are not so expensive (but may be small and / or run down).

You can be within a 3-5 block walk to the river and have a wide selection of houses.