Boston?

[bahookie]

Hi

Anyone know what Boston is like?
I've got the chance to move there next spring, but I don't know much about the place!

Jane

[igfan]

Originally Posted by bahookie

Hi

Anyone know what Boston is like?
I've got the chance to move there next spring, but I don't know much about the place!

Jane

I love Boston! I guess it would depend on what part of Boston you were moving to and whether you like the hustle & bustle of a busy city. There are great towns outside of Boston too, New England is a great place to live...we have the best of all 4 seasons here.

[bahookie]

Actually, it probably won't be right in Boston (country mice you see) - also work will be outside it.

I'm looking for a flavour of the place - and can I really get a house with a wrap-around porch and swing?
I did hear that the income tax is pretty steep (still not entirely sure how that works - is it federal then state on top?) and that some people are living in New Hampshire and commuting.

J

[igfan]

Originally Posted by bahookie

Actually, it probably won't be right in Boston (country mice you see) - also work will be outside it.

I'm looking for a flavour of the place - and can I really get a house with a wrap-around porch and swing?
I did hear that the income tax is pretty steep (still not entirely sure how that works - is it federal then state on top?) and that some people are living in New Hampshire and commuting.

J

Well, yes....you really can get a house with a "farmers porch" and a swing. I don't know about Massachusetts taxes because i live in NH, but i have also heard that their taxes are ridiculous, and yes alot of people do commute between Boston & New Hampshire (everythings cheaper in NH and no state income tax). There are a lot of great small towns where crime is not much of a factor, the people are friendly and the scenery is beautiful.

[bahookie]

We looked up the cost of living and Boston is actually cheaper than Glasgow, but even cheaper would be great!

Hate to keep pushing you for info, but can you suggest a town or two so I can look it up on the web?



Thanks thanks thanks!

J

[igfan]

Originally Posted by bahookie

We looked up the cost of living and Boston is actually cheaper than Glasgow, but even cheaper would be great!

Hate to keep pushing you for info, but can you suggest a town or two so I can look it up on the web?



Thanks thanks thanks!

J

i don't know how far you're willing to commute or what your price range is but........

Cambridge, MA
Cape Cod, MA
Fitzwilliam, NH
Keene, NH
Concord, MA

[notsleepingwell]

Went to a play in Boston.....loved the city.....it's like anywhere else. Great stuff to do, lots of shopping, wonderful people.....(they talk funny tho) lol. No offense you MA people!!!
Lots of historical stuff to do. Close to some wonderful beaches..Cape Cod...
Cold in the winter tho...
You'll love it!!!
NSW

[Gobi]

I live about five miles north of Boston (Medford, MA) and on the edge (literally borders my property) of five square miles of protected forest and wetlands called the Middlesex Fells. Living in Boston, proper, is awfully expensive, and you won't find any wraparound porches there (brownstones, triple deckers, victorian with wonderful gingerbreading, sure) inside the city. Check out some of the outlying suburbs for more value psf, or towns like Lexington and Concord (of "whites of their eyes" fame) for high-end homes.

Boston has a pretty good transit system, which has a reputation it does not deserve, in my opinion. It's not as clean or well maintained as Washington's system, but you can get just about anywhere by train and/or bus. Although better than it was 10 years ago, driving is a mess, even though the "Big Dig" is supposed to be done soon (a $15b road improvement project). Tell that to the family of the woman who was killed when a ceiling panel crushed her car recently. I'm sure more disruptions will continue to plague the system for years to mcom.

Check out zillow.com for assessed house prices (although my assessment is off by 25%) in the town you plan to live in. Check out mls.com for real estate prices, even if you're not planning to buy. GoogleEarth is my new favorite toy for checking out new locations: you can see open space, buildings, major highways, etc.

Do you have kids? Sudbury, MA has (or used to have) the highest rated school system in the state, although I can't tell you what criteria were measured.

Fall is beautiful here. Spring stinks (it's usually cold and wet until one day, when summer arrives). Winter is cold and white and often interminable.

Good luck learning about Boston! - Gobi

[best]

There are enough of us here from the Boston area that we will be able to answer most questions for you.
I had a boss that came from Scottland and the first thing he did when he came here... Took college courses in sociology. The culture shock hit him hard. He said he took the courses so he could figure out what makes us yankees tick *LOL*

[bahookie]

lol Best.

Thanks for all your suggestions. I've been looking at some info (http://www.city-data.com) and althought some is quite old, it's giving an idea of how much things cost where. I'm going to print out this thread and work through the places you've all mentioned. (Better than real work).

The younger kid doesn't want to come, his education and social life are blossoming just now so he will have the best holidays ever. The eldest surprised me by saying he wanted a year out and would work in America, doing the Oregon Trail. I don't even know what that is lol, but he's all up for it!
Oh oh oh excited!

Hope you don't mind if I come back and ask more questions, but for now, we're off to Iona and Mull for the weekend, recharge country.

thank you

Jane
xxx

[bahookie]

Ps anybody know Bedford?

House prices generally there seem lower than here (houses recently built in our village START at £500000 that's about a million dollars? The average is about £120000). Just hoping it doesn't cost a fortune to rent that porch lol.

J
xxx

[best]

Bedford is one of the higher priced areas outside of Boston.
$350,000-1.2 Mill would be about the price range found there.

What would be best...if your willing to share... The Company or town that teh company is located in would help greatly in directing you to a good area.
10 mile ride at 8 AM from one area to another can be a 2 hour commute.
A 30 mile ride at 8AM going in a different direction would be 30 minutes.

A good neighborhood is on the west side of town in one area.
The bad neighborhood is on the west side of town in an area 2 miles away.

I have lived in this area all but one year. For that year I lived in Maine.
50 years of New England.
Send a PM if you like.

What a deal...

1.00 GBP United Kingdom Pounds = 1.89606 USD United States Dollars
1 GBP = 1.89606 USD 1 USD = 0.527408 GBP

If you have enough money to buy a house in England, you could have a house custom built here and tell them to make the porch go full around the whole thing *LOL* With swings on each corner.