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Best areas to move outside Boston?
H and I lived in Boston together for two years while he was finishing medical school and I was doing grad school. We moved to Philly, where we now live, for him to do his medical residency. We are looking into moving back to the Boston area when he finishes residency. (Chances are he'll end up at either the Brigham or MGH.)
As we were students, living in the city when we were in Boston we are not too familiar with many of the suburbs... aside from Brookline and Newton. We will be looking for a 4-5 bedroom house, with 2-3 bathrooms and will be looking in the 500k - 700k range price-wise. We definitely want a suburb with good schools, preferably a small shopping district, and a reasonable commute to the city proper. What areas might be good places to start our search?
Re: Best areas to move outside Boston?
How suburb-y are you looking to get? Brookline or Newton would be my first two suggestions for working at the Brigham. Both have great reputations and are relatively easy to get to from the medical area. Any further out and your commute just keeps going up.
For MGH, I would look into Winchester, and maybe Belmont and Arlington.
Brookline, Newton, and Cambridge are going to be your best bets as far as commute, schools, and shopping (though I'm not sure about elementary schools in Cambridge), but I think you might be hard-pressed to find a house of that size in your stated price range in those cities, unless you're willing to buy a fixer-upper.
Waltham and Watertown might be other cities to look at, though the schools aren't quite as good (but not bad either). They're a short drive to Boston but if you want to do public transpo it would have to be the commuter rail or bus.
As PP said though, what would you consider a reasonable commute?
Thank you for your help! I would be hoping for a commute in the neighborhood of 30 minutes. It is our price range for houses that concerns me most about Brookline and Newton... while my husband will be making a nice salary, doctors don't make nearly as much as they used to and I certainly do not want to try to by a house that is beyond our means. Any idea what prices we would expect in those neighborhoods?
that price range will work for newton. Wellesley is a little bit nicer and right next door, a little more money. You pay more for the houses but the taxes are lower than newton.
Belmont and Winchester. I'm not sure if the commute with traffic from Winchester would be under 30.
I wouldn't do Cambridge or Boston (someone mentioned West Roxbury) because you have to enter into a lottery that encompasses all the schools in that city so you aren't guaranteed the school you want. Plus, I don't know if you'd find what you want in Cambridge for the price.
Hi there,
I was reading everyones suggestions to you about the suburbs. Sounds like you are getting some of the same towns that I would suggest. (Waltham/Belmont area)
We live in the suburbs "south" of the city, and I love this area as well! I feel like you can get more house for the $$ if you go a bit south of the city!
Someone mentioned Braintree, and I agree that it's a great town. Good friends just bought a house there and love it! The schools are good, there is a lot of shopping/restaurants around, and it's right off the highway! Not a long commute to Boston, and I know you'd be able to find exactly what your looking for in a house in your price range too!
Othere options a little south of Boston would be Dedham & Canton. They are about 20 minute commute out of Boston. Lots of nice neighborhoods, good schools, and shopping & stuff close by! (this is the area I grew up in & I love it!) Worth looking into too, if you want to be away from the city but still close too!
Good Luck to you both!!
I agree with all of the PPs, although the schools in Braintree have gone downhill in past years and it's not completely safe (DH is a cop in the area). If you are OK w/ the South Shore, you might want to look into Hingham, Canton, or Milton. Nice towns with nice schools and your price range will work.... GL!
I would not consider Braintree. That is going to be a longer than 30 minute commute. I used to commute from Charlestown to Cambridge and it would take me up to an hour most days (one way). Some days on the T were 90 minutes each way. It was a 4 mile commute.
FIL commutes from Hingham to downtown and spends about 2.5-3 hours a day commuting. You can take a boat from the harbor if you work right in the financial district that will take you about 30 minutes but if you need to hop on a train from there, you need to factor in that commute time.
Basically, from the South Shore, what I would do is just drive to Quincy and hop the red line in. Easy peasy and super cheap (no commuter rail.) This is probably closer to 45 minutes but you're simply sitting on the subway - my favorite kind of commute!
(I take the red line to park, green to MFA and walk to school and it's great.)
I absolutely love the SS and feel it;s he best of both words, close to Boston but you definitely feel as if you're in the suburbs (I could never live in the city).
Wow! I commute from Weymouth to Newton every day and that only takes me 45 minutes each way.