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After doing months (years) of research on New England, I've come to a few conclusions. As a 30-something single male, I need to be careful picking my area -- I don't want to be the only non-family type in the area.
I'm leaning towards Providence for several reasons. It seems cosmopolitan, interesting, energetic, and continuing on the way up. As far as looking for a place, ideally I'd be in a townhome of 1200-2000 square feet, new construction (not previously lived in, for allergy reasons), and in the $300K range.
Safety certainly is an issue. I am the type to spend a lot of time walking around town, often at night, rarely in large groups.
I am a sports nut, particularly hockey. I know New England has incredible hockey tradition, but is the game still popular? I know baseball is wildly popular (I like baseball and all other sports too), football has been popular with the Patriots' dynasty, and the Celtics appear set to become champs once again -- has that hurt hockey significantly?
New construction (in other words, not previously lived in) is almost a necessity, short of some sort of proof there was no cigarette smoking, potpourri, or cats in the unit (either can linger for months, and at best, would result in sinus infections that would make my early days in town miserable!)
Being close to a walkable downtown with at least some bars, restaurants, shopping, would be a huge plus. I know downtown Providence is great, almost my "ideal" downtown in many ways, but I understand there is not much good housing in the area once you get right out of downtown?
So, at the risk of making this a selfish thread.... which would be the best suburb/city for myself, or someone like me? Whether in Rhode Island or elsewhere in New England, I am open to all ideas.
Thanks in advance -- you have all been incredibly helpful in the past!
There's some new construction within walking distance of Downtown. It's mostly condos and labelled with the luxury tag so I'm not sure it'll be in the pricerange you're looking for. Otherwise, finding a brand new place in Providence could be a bit of a challenge. There's a lot of old real estate which might be freshly renovated but I doubt you'll have a wide range of properties available which suit what you'll have in mind.
Now, two more things here...walking around late at night in Providence by yourself could be a bit of a foolish adventure, especially if you wander into the wrong neighborhoods. If I were you I'd make sure to become very familiar with the area before you'll start doing that.
Finally there's a bit of a conflict about Providence and Downtown in general. Lots of people say Providence is an up and coming city where things are happening with lots of new construction and jobs. Then there are others who point at empty buildings and still miserable areas right near City Hall. If you've decided Downtown Providence is exactly what you're looking for then more power to you. I'd be sure though to make very sure to understand what you're getting yourself into. Downtown is good for finding great dinner, have a drink, go see a play or find all kinds of other entertainment. Living here can be quite a chore.
On the topic of which area to pick for living...that's really tough because of the new construction thing. Maybe East Providence would be a good choice, even though you certainly can't walk Downtown since it's an entirely different city. The East Side might be an area you would enjoy but you'd be very hardpressed to find brand new living quarters there.
Yeah, it seems there's almost new housing in Providence -- not just the city, but the metro area. I should qualify -- living downtown would be nice, but it is far from requisite. I don't mind living further out and driving to downtown on a regular basis, it's not much different from what I'm used to.
Are there any suburbs with more new development? Refurbished places would likely only work if I was the first tenant after refurbishment -- and the cost would likely be prohibitive in that case.
German is right, most of the new construction downtown is high rise and luxury not much in the way of townhomes. Personally, I wouldn't feel real comfortable walking around downtown at night alone. Providence is the home to the Boston Bruins AAA hockey team, they play right downtown and Providence College also has a great a hockey program. As for housing there's not too much in the immediate area that meets your criteria. I read an article in the paper last week about a new development on Federal Hill 333 Atwells Avenue , I believe the prices start in the low 300's for a 1 bed unit.
There is also a new development in the Pawtuxet section of Warwick just south of the city. Village at Pawtuxet - Warwick's newest condominium development The problem you will find is that many cities in RI don't have a traditional "downtown" area, many cities are instead comprised of several villages. The cities that do have a downtown aren't very appealing or don't have reasonably priced new construction condos.
Are there any suburbs with more new development? Refurbished places would likely only work if I was the first tenant after refurbishment -- and the cost would likely be prohibitive in that case.
I've been trying to come up with a couple suggestions but so far no luck. I'm sure though that somewhere somebody will be building new condos as we speak. I'll keep an eye out when driving around next days, maybe something will pop up.
This is a new development in South County. While certainly not the shortest drive to Providence it does fit the bill when it comes to new construction. It's just that though, condos chunked together on a big piece of land with your typical strip mall 'village' and a cinema. It doesn't have much of a New England kind of charm. And I honestly don't know what kind of money they're looking for to get into one of their places. But it might give you some ideas about what's out there.
You've got some sticking points here! New construction, inexpensive, lively downtown. Most RI condos and townhouses that are remotely cheap are rehabs of old buildings.
However, I did find something in Newport that fits the bill. As a 30 something, you would love Newport.
Rhode Island Living - Finding your dream home has never been easier! (http://www.riliving.com/PropSearch/cndformdetails.asp?MLSid=733697&indiv=1 - broken link)
You've got some sticking points here! New construction, inexpensive, lively downtown. Most RI condos and townhouses that are remotely cheap are rehabs of old buildings.
However, I did find something in Newport that fits the bill. As a 30 something, you would love Newport.
Rhode Island Living - Finding your dream home has never been easier! (http://www.riliving.com/PropSearch/cndformdetails.asp?MLSid=733697&indiv=1 - broken link)
Check out The Cove in downtown Providence or The 903. I think the condo's will go from 200,000 plus. The Cove is downtown bordering college hill. lots of bars(sports), restaurants and the Dunk within walking distance. If you are working downtown consider the $6-$8 roundtrip daily gasoline use for living 15 miles or more from your work place.
Hockey is defintely popular in Providence. The "P" Bruins play at the Dunk and The "B" Bruins have all their games televised. High School hockey is also popular.
Yeah, it seems there's almost new housing in Providence -- not just the city, but the metro area. I should qualify -- living downtown would be nice, but it is far from requisite. I don't mind living further out and driving to downtown on a regular basis, it's not much different from what I'm used to.
Are there any suburbs with more new development? Refurbished places would likely only work if I was the first tenant after refurbishment -- and the cost would likely be prohibitive in that case.
Check riliving.com and search Providence and check off the option for new construction. Then sort by neighborhoods. There are a couple new construction homes in the north end of Providence as low as 199K that are in fine neighborhoods and close to downtown.
After doing months (years) of research on New England, I've come to a few conclusions. As a 30-something single male, I need to be careful picking my area -- I don't want to be the only non-family type in the area.
I'm leaning towards Providence for several reasons. It seems cosmopolitan, interesting, energetic, and continuing on the way up. As far as looking for a place, ideally I'd be in a townhome of 1200-2000 square feet, new construction (not previously lived in, for allergy reasons), and in the $300K range.
Safety certainly is an issue. I am the type to spend a lot of time walking around town, often at night, rarely in large groups.
I am a sports nut, particularly hockey. I know New England has incredible hockey tradition, but is the game still popular? I know baseball is wildly popular (I like baseball and all other sports too), football has been popular with the Patriots' dynasty, and the Celtics appear set to become champs once again -- has that hurt hockey significantly?
New construction (in other words, not previously lived in) is almost a necessity, short of some sort of proof there was no cigarette smoking, potpourri, or cats in the unit (either can linger for months, and at best, would result in sinus infections that would make my early days in town miserable!)
Being close to a walkable downtown with at least some bars, restaurants, shopping, would be a huge plus. I know downtown Providence is great, almost my "ideal" downtown in many ways, but I understand there is not much good housing in the area once you get right out of downtown?
So, at the risk of making this a selfish thread.... which would be the best suburb/city for myself, or someone like me? Whether in Rhode Island or elsewhere in New England, I am open to all ideas.
Thanks in advance -- you have all been incredibly helpful in the past!
Personally I would pick Boston over Providence. It`s way more cosmopolitan much more to do great transportation and the list could go on.
Sure, Boston is a much bigger, livelier town, but show him the housing for 300K or less!!! There are plenty of good options in RI.
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