MA to Frederick MD possible relocation (Baltimore, Columbia: apartments, rentals, HOA)

[lucyava]

My family is considering a relocation from the Boston suburbs to the Frederick area. We have visited a couple of times and really like it there so far. Our hope is that the move might provide better weather (we are so over LONG Boston winters), a somewhat slower pace of life, friendlier people, and a slightly better overall cost of living/quality of life. My husbands job would be relocating and I would likely be searching for a job after we move. We would like to be in a family friendly area as we also have a toddler. I would love any input locals have on the following questions/concerns.

- I've been working in higher education most recently but I am open to new fields where I can use transferable skills (HR, learning and development, consulting, etc.) Do these kinds of professional jobs exist in the area without having to commute into DC or Baltimore? Who are the major employers? I have done some preliminary research but am open to others thoughts on job search. I am also open to remote work.

- We will rent for at least a year before buying a home to really get to know the area. We've been looking at townhomes and apartments to rent online. Should we be working with a realtor or are rentals easy enough to come by in that area if we come down for a couple of days to secure a place?

- Are locals concerned about the water quality in this area? We have read a bit about the Ft. Detrick cancer cluster.

- Anyone familiar with or lived in Massachusetts and can tell us any major cultural differences/similarities between outer Boston suburbs and the Frederick area?

- Are folks generally friendly and open to meeting others? Of course this varies but we are just trying to get a sense of the culture.

- Any recommendations on high quality day cares and prices?

Thanks everyone...we are very excited about this possibility.

[MidValleyDad]

I would not worry about the 'Cancer Cluster' Even if it was true in the past all the 'affected' areas are on city water now and you can get water quality reports (That are mandated on every public system in the state). Our town posts them on their web site. Is your husband being transferred into the area?



What area of town or the region he will be working in may make some difference in exactly where you want to look.



I'm not sure what the school systems are like where you are coming from but in Maryland the are run at the county level. Frederick County Schools are one of the largest employers in the county. You say Higher education There is at least one 4 year college (Hood) in Frederick City as well as Frederick Community College. Mount Saint Mary's University is north of the city in Emmitsburg.


There is a broad spectrum of employers in the area but a lot of folks commute 'down the road' for better pay.


There are a lot of family friendly areas. Besides Frederick itself their are independent towns in Frederick County as well as unincorporated areas that seem like towns.


The Frederick News Post is the local paper and a good way to get a feel for the area https://www.fredericknewspost.com/


I think people are generally friendly, The county as a whole leans conservative (Republican) but Frederick itself leans liberal (Democrat) but saying that a few years ago when 'Gay Marriage' was on the ballot Frederick was one of the 4 counties where the measure got a majority of the vote (The measure as a whole passed) so I think as a whole the county is pretty 'middle of the road'


I can't help much on daycare and such my kids have been beyond that for many years.

[lucyava]

Thanks for your response! By commuting "down the road" do you mean all the way to DC or just to suburbs further south?

[heather3]

Hello,

I did this same move in 2012, but backwards. Frederick County MD to a suburb of Boston for 3 years and back to Frederick County MD when my husband could telecommute.

Big differences between New England and the Mid-Atlantic Maryland area: Our winters are more humid and therefore feel more cold than yours, but they don't last as long. Our summers are hot, humid and hazy. I LOVED New England summers. That one week a summer that you all had to use your AC or people who didn't have it went to the mall/movies etc? It's like that from June to mid September here. 90% of the homes have AC.

Our winters are very cold in Jan and Feb. We get most of our snow in Feb. And it doesn't stick around until April like it did up in MA when I was there!

We are friendly, laid back, a bit more "hick" than where I was in MA. I found that people in the Boston area were polite, friendly but weren't very warm and welcoming to outsiders. I also was a stay at home mom and there weren't many in the suburbs of Boston, so I felt excluded. Here, you will find many stay at home mom and dads and just as many dual working parents. You will see farming equipment on the roads during harvest time and will get stuck behind one. We have numerous day cares, many of them tied to the schools. There is before and after care at your child's school or even some day cares will bus them to the school. I work for a preschool and we have a school bus that comes and picks up the K-5th graders.

I remember our MA realtor looking at me like I was crazy when I asked if there was a pumpkin patch. She pointed to a garden center that had pumpkins. We are a farming community. Many farms, after they harvest the corn/soy beans or hay have their fields planted with pumpkins. You can get a hayride, go on horse back rides, walk through a corn maze...basically spend all day doing outside activities in the fall and eat amazing food. She also thought the 15 minute drive I had from my MD home to Target was very long. When I lived in MA it took me literally 5 minutes, if the lights cooperated, to get to Target. Here, everything is measured in time: Example: I live 50 minutes from DC, about 3 hours from the beach. I am an hour from BWI Airport. This is because rush hour to DC is terrible. I've been in Boston rush hour and it moves. It's not terrible. It's bad here. If your husband, or you, have to commute to DC, I recommend not living in Frederick County unless you are okay with 1.5-2 hours on the road each way if you leave at a normal time (like 6:30 to 7am) to get to DC.

Urbana is a nice area, but right off the busy 1270 highway. It's one of the more expensive areas of Frederick County but has a nice planned community. My sis lived here for a year and I felt that it was very "uppity" and if you weren't from the Villages of Urbana, they looked at you like you were less than. There are very nice houses and other developments outside of that, of course. Search them on Zillow.

One of the "up and coming" and cheaper, but just as nice, is Brunswick Crossing in Brunswick, MD. My sister just built a home there. It's great for kids and many of my students live here and their parents love it. Spring Ridge is very similar to BC but older. It is bigger, has the same kind of HOA Planned Community and feeds into good schools. This is on the "other side" of Frederick County; closer to the 70/270 highways that take you to the major cities.

Middletown is very nice and highly sought after. It's gorgeous, has one of the best schools and there are homes from town homes to single families. Many people rent a Glenbrook townhome as Middletown doesn't have many apartments.

For jobs, I would go on INDEED and search Frederick MD with a 25 mile range and that'll give you an idea. If you go towards Baltimore/Columbia, the commute from here isn't too bad. Then, go to ZILLOW and check out houses in the areas I mentioned.

Hope this helps; feel free to message me if you want more info!

[19Frenchie]

My family is considering moving to Frederick or Hagerstown, coming from MA. I have read online that Frederick is bigger than Hagerstown but as we don't want to be stressed with commute time in a new environment , we will settle in H-town for the first year.
I hope we all like it there in Western MD. Good luck with your research!

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by 19Frenchie

My family is considering moving to Frederick or Hagerstown, coming from MA. I have read online that Frederick is bigger than Hagerstown but as we don't want to be stressed with commute time in a new environment , we will settle in H-town for the first year.
I hope we all like it there in Western MD. Good luck with your research!

Western Maryland is Allegany and Garrett Counties. They are very different places than the counties you both are considering.

[lucyava]

Any thoughts on Ballenger Creek? Seems to have a lot of rentals in the area but I've heard mixed messages about safety/crime in the area.

[whatiscp]

For those that commute toward DC, how much more would you expect to make? 10 maybe 20%? We are considering a move from Charlottesville after coming here from New Hampshire

[ibeg4sushi]

Originally Posted by lucyava

Any thoughts on Ballenger Creek? Seems to have a lot of rentals in the area but I've heard mixed messages about safety/crime in the area.

I have the same question about the Ballenger area!

[Chief Sipwiaac]

Originally Posted by ibeg4sushi

I have the same question about the Ballenger area!

It isn’t the nicest part of Frederick but it isn’t the worst. Generally, the higher the home values in the immediate area, the less crime there will be (which varies within Ballenger Creek itself). That being said, it’s Frederick, which all in all is a very safe city.