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Whew. I know, that's alot of towns. I've posted before, and used all of the great advice I received to narrow things down. We're relocating from CT. My husband is working in No. Billerica. And we're trying to decide where to happily rent for a few years (house or nice complex) and then buy within the same area so as to not move our 8 year old once again
We like the towns mentioned in above for different reasons... obviously, since they all vary quite a bit.
So, I'm looking for positive affirmation on any of them and "steer clear" info on any of them to help us decide where to land. Ideally, we'd pick Westborough because of it's downtown area, amenities, proximity to Waltham, Greenville RI and Hartford CT... and because it has a nice New England feel despite the above. However, it's a bit of a haul for my husband driving an old pickup back and forth... so, we expanded our search.
We've driven by and through all of these places so as to narrow to this list, but need to dig deeper at this point.
Important to us:
-Health or fitness club / gym within 15 min. drive
-Grocery within 10-15 min drive
-Schools with a solid reputation, preferable offering lots of extracurricular in the areas outside of sports (in addition to the usual sports offerings)
-Good, solid citizens without "better than/less than you" insecurities
-A town that celebrates together -- I love the festivals and such
-A good latte within a 15 min. drive for days that simply need one
-A decent commute (ie not going with rush hour traffic) into No. Billerica
We'll be looking to rent a 2 bedroom 2 bath home or apt... and in a fe years looking to buy between 200 and 400K. I understand it will be small and likely in need of some TLC. We're up to the challenge.
We really want to avoid any areas of environmental concern... and think we have with the above list, but sometimes those things are kept good secrets
Of particular concern is the Wilmington problems and whether or not those affected / affect Bedford since that is one of the areas we've focused on.
Thank you so much. We really appreciate the time you all put into your responses!
I'd recommend just staying in Billerica. If you're looking to buy one day for under $400K, you're right on the lower end of Billerica's prices. There are decent schools from what I've heard and all your shopping needs are covered. You're right off Route 3 and about 20 - 30 minutes outside Boston. All of the towns and cities in the Metrowest area will have what you're looking for...coffee shops, supermarkets, decent schools, gyms etc.
Bedford is nice, but very small and a bit pricey. Great schools. In close proximity to Lexington, Concord, Carlisle, and Lincoln...all on the pricey side.
Westborough fits all of this criteria (including a fantastic new Y), except the commute, which is no fun from there.
Harvard & Bolton would be my next picks school-wise. I love Bolton and see lots of community events there but there isn't a whole lot in town. If being close to shopping is important that might drive you a little nuts, but you'll have that issue with many of those pretty small towns like Berlin (although they're close to a mall) and Harvard - They have beautiful winding roads and lovely scenery but tough to find a latte close by!
Also, Northboro has lots of the same nice qualities of Westboro, but I don't see it offering a substantially better commute (although they do have somewhat lower taxes than Westboro).
Any reason Chelmsford is not one of your picks? It offers pretty much all you want and borders N. Billerica. Those are all good towns and offer everything you want if you are willing to drive 15 minutes. All places mentioned due to their affluence will contain some uppity people but they are not as bad as let's say Lexington and Concord, there are plenty of down-to-earth ones as well. Acton, Boxborough, Bedford and Bolton will probably seem the stuffiest out of those, however.
As for Billerica the schools are OK but not as good as the others here. I've also known a lot of "tough kids" to come out of that town as well (not that that's always a bad thing, just be aware).
I'd recommend just staying in Billerica. If you're looking to buy one day for under $400K, you're right on the lower end of Billerica's prices. There are decent schools from what I've heard and all your shopping needs are covered. You're right off Route 3 and about 20 - 30 minutes outside Boston. All of the towns and cities in the Metrowest area will have what you're looking for...coffee shops, supermarkets, decent schools, gyms etc.
Bedford is nice, but very small and a bit pricey. Great schools. In close proximity to Lexington, Concord, Carlisle, and Lincoln...all on the pricey side.
You might look at Burlington too.
I agree with Coolhand for the most part here. Be aware, though, that the schools in Burlington and Billerica may be of a bit more ordinary quality than schools in many of the towns you have listed as possibilities. Not necessarily that the schools are bad, just not at the elite or near-elite level of the schools in some of these towns.
Out of the towns you've listed, Bedford would seem to have the best mix of good schools, fairly short commute to Billerica, and short driving time to grocery stores, latte shops, gyms, etc. However, you'll probably find fewer options for properties in your price range in Bedford than in, say, Littleton. But then, Littleton is a pretty fair commute from Billerica, and it's in a somewhat rural area where you might have to do some traipsing around to reach all the amenities you say you'd prefer to have nearby. In fact, most of these towns are in a semi-rural area where those amenities are likely to be widely scattered.
Living in many of these towns may involve compromises with some of your priorities. If you want to place a priority on finding more options for properties in your price range, Littleton is worth a look, but Littleton is a bit of a long commuting distance (or could be, depending on what part of town you lived in) and the schools, while I hear they have a solid reputation, may be a bit more on the no-frills, or at least low-frills, side than you'd really prefer. On the other hand, as I said above, Bedford might offer the most of what you're seeking out of the towns you've listed, except that property costs could be a challenge.
In addition to Massnative's suggestion of Chelmsford, a couple of possibilities I'll toss out here for you to consider are Wakefield and Lynnfield. One thing I'm not sure about with Wakefield is the schools. They may be fine, but I just don't know much about them, even by reputation. Otherwise, Wakefield could be a good possibility, as its property costs aren't through the roof, and it's a pleasant suburban town, with a fairly substantial downtown for a town its size, and a location which should put you close to most of the amenities you're seeking, either in Wakefield itself or in nearby towns. Lynnfield has fewer such amenities right in town, but you should find them closer by in neighboring towns than they would be in the more rural areas you've been considering, and Lynnfield gets a thumbs up on the reputation of its schools.
The main drawback with either of these towns would be the commute. The distance to Billerica is not so bad, but be warned that the traffic along the 128/I-95 portion of the commute would be brutal, at least during the usual rush hours. Otherwise, with some research into the quality of Wakefield's schools as one point you'd still need to learn about, these towns are both worth considering.
Ogre's comments about Bedford, Wakefield and Lynnfield are good, but they don't really jive with your proposed housing budget.
For a job in North Billerica, Littleton, Chelmsford and Westford should be on your short list of towns. The other towns you mention are either too pricey or too far. You won't find too much to buy in the $200-400K range in those communities, however. You'll either need to increase your budget or perhaps consider looking even further out in places like Dracut or Tyngsboro.
-Health or fitness club / gym within 15 min. drive
-Grocery within 10-15 min drive
-Schools with a solid reputation, preferable offering lots of extracurricular in the areas outside of sports (in addition to the usual sports offerings)
-Good, solid citizens without "better than/less than you" insecurities
-A town that celebrates together -- I love the festivals and such
-A good latte within a 15 min. drive for days that simply need one
-A decent commute (ie not going with rush hour traffic) into No. Billerica
Littleton is within the driving time for the things the OP wants. However, most of those things are in Westford and Chelmsford (although there is a great supermarket in Littleton). The Java Room is about a 15-minute drive.
I absolutely vote for Littleton for the "good, solid citizen" part. It feels very unpretentious, although prosperous, it's more like blue-collar from-Littleton prosperity. A lot of tradesmen, teacher, nurse, people who are from Littleton or whose grandparents left them the summer house that is now a year-round house.
A commute to Billerica would be against rush-hour traffic, so that might be OK. I-495 to Rt.3?
There is certainly housing available in that range. Best wishes.
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