Best Towns Around Boston?

[preppy]

Sept 16, 2012 18:22:21 GMT -5 magdala9 said:

Boston Magazine best schools ranking 2012:

www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/best-schools-boston-2012-top-50/

Boston Magazine best places to live:

www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/2012/02/boston-best-places-to-live-2012/

Personally, I have enjoyed living in Cambridge, Arlington and Medford. I have not enjoyed living in Brockton and Quincy.

Charlestown is a neighborhood within Boston.

These articles are really helpful, thank you!

[preppy]

Sept 16, 2012 19:38:47 GMT -5 sapphireblue said:

Sept 16, 2012 17:15:42 GMT -5 preppy said:

I think Newton, Brookline, and Arlington are tops of the list right now but we are going to check out a lot of places.

My best friend said I should look at Charlestown, she said it is a little less suburban. I think it might be too "city" but what do people think of this area?

Those are all great choices! The schools are excellent, I think that Newton and Arlington will be more suburban feeling. Parts of Brookline are suburban feeling but a lot of it is also more urban.

I personally would not be interested in Charlestown. It is totally urban, I think parking would be really rough, and I think the yards would be tiny. But I haven't been there in years.

I think it's a good move to pick communities that have great subway lines. That's the best way to really enjoy Boston--ditch the car and take the subway for less stress.

When we lived there in college we didn't have cars and lived near back bay, so it was super easy. I am thinking if we live close to a T stop we can get away with 1 car in some of the towns we are thinking about. I just gave up a company car after I quit my previous job, so if we can avoid having to buy a second car it would be awesome. The way you describe Charlestown it doesn't seem like it would be ideal for our needs.

[Deleted]

I'd really steer clear of north,or south shore. 93 is a mess. Always. Newton, Arlington, cambridge, natick, needham, Belmont are all nice. Burlington too.

[devonpow]

I'll throw in another vote for Brookline - it is where we live. We have a house and yard but are also right by everything we need....one block from the T, all the shopping and restaurants we need a 5 minute walk, etc. We only have one car and it is totally fine (I actually don't drive at all). Our street feels suburban, the town itself feels small enough that I know people everywhere I go/walk, but I can take the T downtown in 15 minutes (or just walk there in 30). The schools are excellent (my oldest is kindergarten now) - the only issue we are having now is too many kindergartners since so many people move here with young kids for the schools...they are moving some of the preK classrooms out of some of the schools and into other centralized locations, adding extra classrooms at some schools, debating renovations at some schools or potentially opening a new grammar school, etc.

In general it is a phenomenal place to raise kids - great parks/open spaces, great schools, extremely easy access to everything in Boston, etc etc. It is expensive - you will get more house/yard and still good schools in Newton or Needham. But for me the city feel and ability to walk to everything I need trumps yard space.

[preppy]

Sept 16, 2012 21:20:53 GMT -5 devonpow said:

I'll throw in another vote for Brookline - it is where we live. We have a house and yard but are also right by everything we need....one block from the T, all the shopping and restaurants we need a 5 minute walk, etc. We only have one car and it is totally fine (I actually don't drive at all). Our street feels suburban, the town itself feels small enough that I know people everywhere I go/walk, but I can take the T downtown in 15 minutes (or just walk there in 30). The schools are excellent (my oldest is kindergarten now) - the only issue we are having now is too many kindergartners since so many people move here with young kids for the schools...they are moving some of the preK classrooms out of some of the schools and into other centralized locations, adding extra classrooms at some schools, debating renovations at some schools or potentially opening a new grammar school, etc.

In general it is a phenomenal place to raise kids - great parks/open spaces, great schools, extremely easy access to everything in Boston, etc etc. It is expensive - you will get more house/yard and still good schools in Newton or Needham. But for me the city feel and ability to walk to everything I need trumps yard space.

When I lived in Boston in college I was a nanny for a family in the Lawrence School district and was really impressed with the school. Brookline does have a ton going for it location wise. Any idea how much rent might be for an updated 2-3 bed in a multi family (not apt building) with parking and at least a tiny yard area? I am wondering if $3k a month would be enough.

[shopgirl07]

Sept 16, 2012 22:28:14 GMT -5 preppy said:

Sept 16, 2012 21:20:53 GMT -5 devonpow said:

I'll throw in another vote for Brookline - it is where we live. We have a house and yard but are also right by everything we need....one block from the T, all the shopping and restaurants we need a 5 minute walk, etc. We only have one car and it is totally fine (I actually don't drive at all). Our street feels suburban, the town itself feels small enough that I know people everywhere I go/walk, but I can take the T downtown in 15 minutes (or just walk there in 30). The schools are excellent (my oldest is kindergarten now) - the only issue we are having now is too many kindergartners since so many people move here with young kids for the schools...they are moving some of the preK classrooms out of some of the schools and into other centralized locations, adding extra classrooms at some schools, debating renovations at some schools or potentially opening a new grammar school, etc.

In general it is a phenomenal place to raise kids - great parks/open spaces, great schools, extremely easy access to everything in Boston, etc etc. It is expensive - you will get more house/yard and still good schools in Newton or Needham. But for me the city feel and ability to walk to everything I need trumps yard space.

When I lived in Boston in college I was a nanny for a family in the Lawrence School district and was really impressed with the school. Brookline does have a ton going for it location wise. Any idea how much rent might be for an updated 2-3 bed in a multi family (not apt building) with parking and at least a tiny yard area? I am wondering if $3k a month would be enough.

$3K in Brookline won't go terribly far right now as rents have really skyrocketed. I think you could find a nice 2 bedroom, 3 bed would be a stretch.

[preppy]

Sept 17, 2012 7:58:16 GMT -5 shopgirl07 said:

Sept 16, 2012 22:28:14 GMT -5 preppy said:

When I lived in Boston in college I was a nanny for a family in the Lawrence School district and was really impressed with the school. Brookline does have a ton going for it location wise. Any idea how much rent might be for an updated 2-3 bed in a multi family (not apt building) with parking and at least a tiny yard area? I am wondering if $3k a month would be enough.

$3K in Brookline won't go terribly far right now as rents have really skyrocketed. I think you could find a nice 2 bedroom, 3 bed would be a stretch.

Figured I could dream;) We don't really need 3bedrooms. I would like rent under $3500 so we can save to eventually buy.

[LoveTrains]

Sept 17, 2012 11:05:32 GMT -5 RockNVoll said:

Sept 15, 2012 22:54:14 GMT -5 LoveTrains said:

I wouldn't do Waltham if you are thinking about schools.

Dude, you have to stop bashing schools in Waltham when you admitted last time that you weren't really sure you were right about them! They're not the creme de la creme like Brookline, Newton or, Lincoln-Sudbury but my understanding is that they're pretty respectable. It's not like it's Malden High or Everett (feel free to bash those, I went to schools in those towns--but in small parochial schools--and still ended up in the Ivy League ).

I am just saying that all my friends that live in Waltham now - and have kids - are freaking out and don't want to send their kids now. Personally - for me - I wouldn't pick Waltham if I was looking for a town with a top tier school district. It is not bad, but its not the best.

I think we might just have to agree to disagree on the topic. I admit that based on the school I work at now, my opinion might not be the most applicable to everyone.

I don't know, I just don't get the Waltham love. Sorry! Feel free to tell me that the schools in my city are terrible (they are) and that you wouldn't want to live where I live. I am not trying to be rude or offensive, I just don't like it. that is my personal opinion.

[liveintheville]

Sept 17, 2012 11:05:32 GMT -5 RockNVoll said:

They're not the creme de la creme like Brookline, Newton or, Lincoln-Sudbury but my understanding is that they're pretty respectable. It's not like it's Malden High or Everett (feel free to bash those, I went to schools in those towns--but in small parochial schools--and still ended up in the Ivy League ).

Yeah if you're going strictly by schools you're talking Weston, Wellesley, Lincoln, etc.

But, hey, my kid started Somerville Public last week

Also, I'm no longer sold on Arlington schools after hearing more about them.

[rikki]

Sept 16, 2012 22:28:14 GMT -5 preppy said:

Sept 16, 2012 21:20:53 GMT -5 devonpow said:

I'll throw in another vote for Brookline - it is where we live. We have a house and yard but are also right by everything we need....one block from the T, all the shopping and restaurants we need a 5 minute walk, etc. We only have one car and it is totally fine (I actually don't drive at all). Our street feels suburban, the town itself feels small enough that I know people everywhere I go/walk, but I can take the T downtown in 15 minutes (or just walk there in 30). The schools are excellent (my oldest is kindergarten now) - the only issue we are having now is too many kindergartners since so many people move here with young kids for the schools...they are moving some of the preK classrooms out of some of the schools and into other centralized locations, adding extra classrooms at some schools, debating renovations at some schools or potentially opening a new grammar school, etc.

In general it is a phenomenal place to raise kids - great parks/open spaces, great schools, extremely easy access to everything in Boston, etc etc. It is expensive - you will get more house/yard and still good schools in Newton or Needham. But for me the city feel and ability to walk to everything I need trumps yard space.

When I lived in Boston in college I was a nanny for a family in the Lawrence School district and was really impressed with the school. Brookline does have a ton going for it location wise. Any idea how much rent might be for an updated 2-3 bed in a multi family (not apt building) with parking and at least a tiny yard area? I am wondering if $3k a month would be enough.

Are you sure it was Lawrence? I work in Lawrence and it has the highest drop out rate (54%), the highest teen pregnancy rate, and the lowest standardized test scores in the state. The state government just took over the schools because they're so awful.

[noodleoo]

Sept 17, 2012 12:21:30 GMT -5 liveintheville said:

Sept 17, 2012 11:05:32 GMT -5 RockNVoll said:

They're not the creme de la creme like Brookline, Newton or, Lincoln-Sudbury but my understanding is that they're pretty respectable. It's not like it's Malden High or Everett (feel free to bash those, I went to schools in those towns--but in small parochial schools--and still ended up in the Ivy League ).

Yeah if you're going strictly by schools you're talking Weston, Wellesley, Lincoln, etc.

But, hey, my kid started Somerville Public last week

Also, I'm no longer sold on Arlington schools after hearing more about them.

Oh yeah? What did you hear about Arlington? My friends moved there a few years ago and their kids will start school in a few years.

Picking based on school districts alone is tough. The towns with the best school ratings are incredibly expensive (although if OP can afford $3500 in rent, that's not a problem for them. ). I loved living in Waltham for years. We ultimately moved further out when we bought a house because we wanted more land, but we looked seriously in Waltham for a while and there are a lot of nice houses there.

We looked in Arlington too (for the location and schools) but our budget would have gotten us a fixer upper, which we did not have the time or money for. I'd love to live in Lexington, Brookline or Wellesley, but there is no way we could afford it. C'est la vie I guess.

[Deleted]

I wouldn't worry too much about schools. The biggest indicator of your child's success in any school whether it is Lawrence or Weston is how much money you make and how involved you are in your child's education.

[liveintheville]

Sept 17, 2012 13:23:42 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

Oh yeah? What did you hear about Arlington? My friends moved there a few years ago and their kids will start school in a few years.

It's very segregated and the school board isn't doing anything to combat that. Kids are shipped in from Dorchester and the residents disapprove and it shows in the high school. Instead of fostering any sort of communal school spirit it's and us vs. them outlook.

Our old nanny student taught there and told us. Plus a few other parents I've spoken to at the park have mentioned it. It's not a comfortable diverse community, which is what I would want.

[preppy]

Sept 17, 2012 13:17:12 GMT -5 rikki said:

Sept 16, 2012 22:28:14 GMT -5 preppy said:

When I lived in Boston in college I was a nanny for a family in the Lawrence School district and was really impressed with the school. Brookline does have a ton going for it location wise. Any idea how much rent might be for an updated 2-3 bed in a multi family (not apt building) with parking and at least a tiny yard area? I am wondering if $3k a month would be enough.

Are you sure it was Lawrence? I work in Lawrence and it has the highest drop out rate (54%), the highest teen pregnancy rate, and the lowest standardized test scores in the state. The state government just took over the schools because they're so awful.

At the lawrence school in Brookline? It's only k-8 so I think you must be talking about a diff school maybe?

[fbf2006]

Sept 17, 2012 15:08:20 GMT -5 preppy said:

Sept 17, 2012 13:17:12 GMT -5 rikki said:

Are you sure it was Lawrence? I work in Lawrence and it has the highest drop out rate (54%), the highest teen pregnancy rate, and the lowest standardized test scores in the state. The state government just took over the schools because they're so awful.

At the lawrence school in Brookline? It's only k-8 so I think you must be talking about a diff school maybe?

Yes. Lawrence is a city/town outside Boston. So when you mentioned the Lawrence school district, that's most likely what the other poster was referencing.

[preppy]

Sept 17, 2012 15:24:06 GMT -5 fbf2006 said:

Sept 17, 2012 15:08:20 GMT -5 preppy said:

At the lawrence school in Brookline? It's only k-8 so I think you must be talking about a diff school maybe?

Yes. Lawrence is a city/town outside Boston. So when you mentioned the Lawrence school district, that's most likely what the other poster was referencing.

That makes a lot more sense!

[glendi]

Sept 17, 2012 13:32:26 GMT -5 liveintheville said:

Sept 17, 2012 13:23:42 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

Oh yeah? What did you hear about Arlington? My friends moved there a few years ago and their kids will start school in a few years.

It's very segregated and the school board isn't doing anything to combat that. Kids are shipped in from Dorchester and the residents disapprove and it shows in the high school. Instead of fostering any sort of communal school spirit it's and us vs. them outlook.



Our old nanny student taught there and told us. Plus a few other parents I've spoken to at the park have mentioned it. It's not a comfortable diverse community, which is what I would want.

What the wuh?!?
I can't speak to the actual dynamic in the high school , but I cannot disagree more about it not being a comfortable diverse community. Sure, in order to buy here in Arlington, you're looking at house prices that limit the potential buyer pool. But there's tons of rental properties that are financially and geographically accessible to a much larger segment of potential residents. I have both my daughters in the public school system (elementary and preschool), and I'm always so happy to see such diversity of culture in their classrooms... way more than you'd find in Winchester, Lexington, or Concord. That's what I love most about Arlington... we're obviously a desirable town (surrounded by even more desirable towns) that has recently drawn in an upper middle class population, but we certainly haven't totally gentrified.

[liveintheville]

Lexington census:

White persons, percent, 2010 (a) 75.5%
Black persons, percent, 2010 (a) 1.5%
American Indian and Alaska Native persons, percent, 2010 (a) 0.1%
Asian persons, percent, 2010 (a) 19.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, percent, 2010 (a) Z 0.0%
Persons reporting two or more races, percent, 2010 2.6%
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, percent, 2010 (b) 2.3%
White persons not Hispanic, percent, 2010 73.7% 76.1%

[liveintheville]

Arlington census data

One Race Percent in Arlington, MA
At the time of the last census survey, the number of people of one race in Arlington, MA was 41,729.

White Population in Arlington, MA
The estimated White population in the Arlington community is 38,561, which is 91 percent of the total population (The U.S. average is 75.10%).

Black Population in Arlington, Massachusetts
The estimated Black/African American population is 719, which is 1.7 percent of the total population in town (The U.S. average is 12.30%).

American Indian and Alaska Native Population in Arlington, MA
In 2000, the number of American Indians or Alaska Natives in Arlington, MA was 57.

Asian Population in Arlington, Massachusetts
At the last survey, the total Asian population in the community was 2,107.

Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander Population in Arlington, MA
The number of Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders living in Arlington was an estimated 6.

Other/Multiple Races
The number of residents identified as “some other race” was 279, while those of “two or more races” was 660 at the time of the last census.

Hispanic Population
The Hispanic population in the Arlington community was 787, or 1.9 percent of the total population (compared to the national average of 12.50% percent).

[liveintheville]

Sept 17, 2012 18:44:22 GMT -5 glendi said:

Sept 17, 2012 13:32:26 GMT -5 liveintheville said:

It's very segregated and the school board isn't doing anything to combat that. Kids are shipped in from Dorchester and the residents disapprove and it shows in the high school. Instead of fostering any sort of communal school spirit it's and us vs. them outlook.



Our old nanny student taught there and told us. Plus a few other parents I've spoken to at the park have mentioned it. It's not a comfortable diverse community, which is what I would want.

What the wuh?!?
I can't speak to the actual dynamic in the high school , but I cannot disagree more about it not being a comfortable diverse community. Sure, in order to buy here in Arlington, you're looking at house prices that limit the potential buyer pool. But there's tons of rental properties that are financially and geographically accessible to a much larger segment of potential residents. I have both my daughters in the public school system (elementary and preschool), and I'm always so happy to see such diversity of culture in their classrooms... way more than you'd find in Winchester, Lexington, or Concord. That's what I love most about Arlington... we're obviously a desirable town (surrounded by even more desirable towns) that has recently drawn in an upper middle class population, but we certainly haven't totally gentrified.

I'm sure many people love the schools there. But I completely disagree about Arlington being diverse. Lexington is MUCH more diverse.

[auggie]

I can only speak to the school we are in in Arlington, but I found it to be diverse. My kids are in elementary and when I had a birthday party my brother commented on it being like the UN. In Kindergarten, my daughter had friends with parents from India, China, England, Ireland, Scotland, Macedonia, and Germany, as all as many other students of color. Once on the playground, I counted 5 different languages being spoken. Other schools in Arlington may be far less diverse, and I have no idea how well things blend at the high school, but I've so far been happy. The town is itself is great; very accessible to Boston and Cambridge, a decent number of restaurants and small enough to run into people I know every time we're at the playground, the library, etc. From my house I can walk to the school in 2 minutes and can walk to the library, the movie theatre, and probably 10 restaurants in about 15 minutes. We're also really accessible as far as public transportation goes. It's pricey to me and I haven't ruled out moving further out for more house, but I think you'd be fine with your budget. GL!