Moving to New England from MS (Boston, Worcester: real estate, rent, crime)

[mwheat07]

Hello,

I am looking to relocate from MS to New England within the next year or two. I'm curious to find out tidbits about MA and activities within the area. I love to be outdoors and doing things in nature, whether it be bird watching, hiking, biking, kayaking, golfing, camping, ATV riding, whatever - I just love to be outside. Unfortunately, in the south you only have about four months out of the year that you can do things without worrying about heat strokes. I also want a place that has seasons and I desperately want snow. I would prefer to stay coastal, within an hour or so.

I also need a place that will have a job for me. I currently work as a civilian for the Navy and would prefer to stay that way. I work in IT.

So given my outdoors lifestyle, do you have any suggestions for areas? They should definitely be low in crime and have good schools - I have a five-year old that will be coming with me.

Thanks in advance!

[1979]

Are you planning on transfering to another Navy base? Going from Mississippi to Massachusetts is a culture shock. You are going from one extreme to the other. You don't have a job lined up, but have distinguished this area as a specific interest.

Yes, we do have nature here; eastern New England has not yet been paved entirely of concrete. The Boston metro area is pretty densely populated, so I assume you would not want to be too close to the city. NH, VT and ME are sparsely populated, along with western MA and southern and western RI. New England is significantly more expensive to live in, and you have to consider the cost of heating here. There is a navy base in Newport, RI.

People often assume our summers are much milder, which they are for the most part. But if you look closely at the temperatures and humidity levels, they are actually quite similar in July and August to the south. The difference is we do get occasional breaks.

[CaseyB]

I was going to mention the Naval Base at Newport. Could you possibly transfer your job?
There are some nice little towns outside of Newport where the schools would be better. Less snow to deal with in that area, too.

[skytrekker]

Summers here tend to warm and humid, with hot spells, with periods of relief from the Northwest and the Gulf of Maine with pleasant weather. We do not have the kind of endless heat and humidity of the deep south from late May to September. Nonetheless air conditioning here in new homes is almost 90% now.

Snow amounts are variable here, with northern and western New England seeing the most usually, while south eastern and southern New England seeing the least.

Boston greater will see the highest cost of living followed closely by southwestern CT and then Providence RI- the rest of the region will be less, but still considerably higher then MS.

Boston is the economic and political hub of New England- though Providence, Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Stamford, Springfield and Worcester are medium sized areas.

[lrfox]

I posted a bit on this in your post on a thread in the Maine forum.

Given what you're asking for, I would look at Rhode Island. When it comes to culture in New England, Providence is second only to Boston and it's growing. It's a city of 180,000 and it's relatively safe (avoid most of the South Side of the city). Providence is certainly a city of different neighborhoods. Federal Hill is the "Little Italy" of Prov. boasting some of the best Italian restaurants, shops and bakeries in New England. The East Side (which can be subdivided into different neighborhoods) is home to Rhode Island School of Design and Brown University; both prestigious institutions (Brown is Ivy League). The architecture over here is gorgeous, especially on College Hill which centers around the vibrant Thayer Street.

It wouldn't be hard to find a job in Providence, but even if you couldn't, commuting to Boston is not unreasonable. It's a little over half hour by car (note: drive times vary as Boston's rush hour gets VERY congested), but Boston's local Commuter Rail-- The "T" reaches to Providence, as do the Amtrak Acela and Amtrak Regional trains (also with service to NYC in fewer than 3 hours).

Newport, RI has a large naval presence. It's also a great community on its own. It's a summer tourist hot spot, but with a population of around 25,000 and a college in town (Salve Regina) it doesn't go dead during the winter. The Mansions and rugged coastline here provide some of the most dramtic scenery you will find in New England. Another nearby Military installation is Quansett Airforce Base which may have a positon for you. Raytheon also has offices in neighboring Middletown.

Other RI towns you may be interested in include but are not limited to; Bristol, Warren, Barrington (pricier), Portsmouth, Tiverton, Middletown, Wickford, Narragansett, Riverside, etc.

It's worth noting that the "New England Charm" is not lost in RI. In fact, it's very much alive, but in a way unique to this state. For a small state (one that is physically smaller than the City of Jacksonville, FL), Rhode Island has a lot going on.

[MassYankee]

Originally Posted by mwheat07

Hello,

I am looking to relocate from MS to New England within the next year or two. I'm curious to find out tidbits about MA and activities within the area. I love to be outdoors and doing things in nature, whether it be bird watching, hiking, biking, kayaking, golfing, camping, ATV riding, whatever - I just love to be outside. Unfortunately, in the south you only have about four months out of the year that you can do things without worrying about heat strokes. I also want a place that has seasons and I desperately want snow. I would prefer to stay coastal, within an hour or so.

I also need a place that will have a job for me. I currently work as a civilian for the Navy and would prefer to stay that way. I work in IT.

So given my outdoors lifestyle, do you have any suggestions for areas? They should definitely be low in crime and have good schools - I have a five-year old that will be coming with me.

Thanks in advance!

If you work in IT and love the outdoors, I'd suggest living high on the North Shore of MA - that's where I live. There is good access to the states of northern New England there (VT, NH, ME), which are more rural and offer more natural and less crowded natural environments than the 3 southern New England states. There are some IT jobs in southern NH, which is accessible, and a lot more in the Boston area too, which is also accessible. Universities (like BU and the Harvard Extension School) and professional training centers (like Sun and Oracle) in the Boston area will allow you to stay trained up on your job skills. I have to tell you that the commute to most anywhere will be fairly long (~45-75 minutes), but to me it's worth it.

Schools in say, Merrimac, Amesbury, Newburyport are also good. The only caveat is that the real estate pricing in eastern MA (most anywhere in eastern MA outside of a few "ghetto" areas), is a far cry from MS real estate pricing - you won't recognize it in fact, I expect. But it's like that over most all of eastern MA and CT and if you see something that looks cheap, that is telling you something. If you feel swamped by the pricing, check out renting, at least to start - it's a bargain in relative terms.

[MassYankee]

[lrfox]

^The North Shore is another good suggestion and I'd agree with the pricing observation to a degree (I DO think there are some bargains to be had in areas that are starting to rebound from a tougher past-- namely in the small and mid-sized cities on the fringe of Boston's Metro-Area).

The thing about the outdoors and nature depending on what you're looking for, is that in New England, they are rarely far away. You can live in Boston and go hiking in Blue Hills (right outside the city) or go to one of the nearby beaches pretty easily. You can also drive for 2 hours in be in the New Hampshire or Western MA woods. The outdoors are within reach of pretty much anywhere in New England, and that's what many people love about this place.

Typically though, Northern New England (Maine, NH, VT) is known for its nature, mountains, and outdoors and Southern New England (Mass, RI, and CT) are known for being the area with jobs and the more urban population. While this is true to a degree, Southern New England's coast affords a longer swimming season, and equally as many activities as their northern counterparts. In terms of hiking, the mountains and hills of central and western Mass offer plenty as well. Even some of the forests and parks (Like Blue Hills, Freetown/Fall River State Forest, Myles Standish State Forest, etc) in Eastern Mass offer a good amount of hiking, biking and camping. You're not going to be stuck away from the wild lands in Massachusetts, RI, or CT.

[mwheat07]

Wow - I'm so overwhelmed by the choices, but from what it sounds like I don't think I can make a bad choice as long as I stay away from the "ghetto" places. I will definitely rent a place for a few years while I'm looking around for a house to buy. I have looked at the housing prices and while they are higher than what I'm used to in MS, it will be worth it. I'm not too concerned about that right now, renting is the way to go.

I'm definitely going to visit in Jan/Feb/Mar 2009 to visit all of the places that I've heard about and researched. Rather than a touristy visit, it will be a research visit. Can't wait for that two week vacation!! Although I am kind of nervous about driving around in the snow - never had to do that before, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it.

Thanks for all the great advice.

[MassYankee]

Originally Posted by mwheat07

I'm definitely going to visit in Jan/Feb/Mar 2009 to visit all of the places that I've heard about and researched. Rather than a touristy visit, it will be a research visit. Can't wait for that two week vacation!! Although I am kind of nervous about driving around in the snow - never had to do that before, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it.

If it's snowing, easiest thing to do is to slow down and to leave some extra space between you and other vehicles. Good luck in your adventures!