Affordable living in Eastern/Central Massachusetts
May 24, 2019 8:02 AM Subscribe
I'm thinking about moving back to New England. Difficulty level: I am a single person on a librarian's income with specific criteria for where I'd like to live.
I'm a New Englander considering a move back north. Western MA and parts of Maine/Vermont/NH are definitely on the list. However, I am looking for suggestions of places in Eastern/Central MA that might suit me, since that's where a lot of the jobs are.
I have lived in the Boston area and am not optimistic - all the places I like are crowded and expensive, and the rest seems to be geared toward families/retirees/tourists. However, I don't want to write off most of the state.
Criteria:
-Rentals available for $1200 or less (with an emphasis on the less). I'd be open to more expensive places if they're REALLY awesome, but they'd require me to get a roommate.
-Skews younger / is a good place to meet younger folks. I am in my early thirties, single, and not planning on kids.
-A minimum of urban/exurban sprawl. I could be happy in a downtown, a walkable neighborhood, or a more rural location. Green space is a plus.
-Some traffic okay, but I'd like to get away from the killer metro Boston traffic.
-I'm a sucker for an artsy/crunchy/college town vibe.
Feel free to include suggestions for southern New Hampshire as well. Thanks a bunch!
I'm a New Englander considering a move back north. Western MA and parts of Maine/Vermont/NH are definitely on the list. However, I am looking for suggestions of places in Eastern/Central MA that might suit me, since that's where a lot of the jobs are.
I have lived in the Boston area and am not optimistic - all the places I like are crowded and expensive, and the rest seems to be geared toward families/retirees/tourists. However, I don't want to write off most of the state.
Criteria:
-Rentals available for $1200 or less (with an emphasis on the less). I'd be open to more expensive places if they're REALLY awesome, but they'd require me to get a roommate.
-Skews younger / is a good place to meet younger folks. I am in my early thirties, single, and not planning on kids.
-A minimum of urban/exurban sprawl. I could be happy in a downtown, a walkable neighborhood, or a more rural location. Green space is a plus.
-Some traffic okay, but I'd like to get away from the killer metro Boston traffic.
-I'm a sucker for an artsy/crunchy/college town vibe.
Feel free to include suggestions for southern New Hampshire as well. Thanks a bunch!
You sound like a friend of mine to the point where I wondered if this was their question. They wound up living in Lowell, in a one-bedroom in a low-income apartment building near the UMass Lowell arena. Mill No. 5 is nearby and very cute. There is also decent commuter rail access - they commute to Cambridge every day for work.
posted by marfa, texas at 8:41 AM on May 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by marfa, texas at 8:41 AM on May 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
Would either of the two South Coast cities, Fall River, or New Bedford work for you?
posted by thegears at 10:09 AM on May 24, 2019
posted by thegears at 10:09 AM on May 24, 2019
Not in MA or NH but Providence fits your criteria.
posted by geegollygosh at 12:21 PM on May 24, 2019 [5 favorites]
posted by geegollygosh at 12:21 PM on May 24, 2019 [5 favorites]
Feel free to include suggestions for southern New Hampshire as well.
Check out Dover, NH, which is really creative and booming with arts/downtown/and 20-30 something residents who have flown from spiking rents in Portsmouth.
The problem with a lot of central/Eastern MA is that it's deadsville. Worcester doesn't sound like it would suit you. The towns are dull and family-oriented.
posted by Miko at 1:18 PM on May 24, 2019 [1 favorite]
Check out Dover, NH, which is really creative and booming with arts/downtown/and 20-30 something residents who have flown from spiking rents in Portsmouth.
The problem with a lot of central/Eastern MA is that it's deadsville. Worcester doesn't sound like it would suit you. The towns are dull and family-oriented.
posted by Miko at 1:18 PM on May 24, 2019 [1 favorite]
I think you might have more luck looking for a job first, then figuring out if you can make the job work in terms of commuting from a place that appeals to you. The library job market in Massachusetts is pretty tight, and if you decide you want to live in Lowell or something you might have a long wait before a job opens up there, and commuting between towns/regions in Eastern Mass totally blows.
That said, I’ll put in a vote for my new hometown, Malden - $1200 to live by yourself is marginal (i.e. you might be able to find a studio in an older building), but it has both green space (the impressive and underappreciated Middlesex Fells) and an increasingly walkable little downtown. Creatives seem to be moving in as they get priced out of Somerville. Traffic is not good but you might not need to drive much - I take the car out once or twice a week, and my husband doesn’t drive at all. Commute to downtown Boston is pretty easy on the Orange Line, hopefully getting even better as they replace the old cars. If you don’t like traffic you would not want to do a driving commute from Malden, though.
posted by mskyle at 6:24 AM on May 25, 2019
That said, I’ll put in a vote for my new hometown, Malden - $1200 to live by yourself is marginal (i.e. you might be able to find a studio in an older building), but it has both green space (the impressive and underappreciated Middlesex Fells) and an increasingly walkable little downtown. Creatives seem to be moving in as they get priced out of Somerville. Traffic is not good but you might not need to drive much - I take the car out once or twice a week, and my husband doesn’t drive at all. Commute to downtown Boston is pretty easy on the Orange Line, hopefully getting even better as they replace the old cars. If you don’t like traffic you would not want to do a driving commute from Malden, though.
posted by mskyle at 6:24 AM on May 25, 2019
Dover, NH does hit a lot of your boxes, but the real estate prices are getting close to your high end (especially if walking distance to downtown is something you want) and people do commute to both Boston and Worchester from there, but it can be a bit hellish. Seconding Keene as a better alternative, particularly for getting to western/central MA.
posted by damayanti at 7:41 AM on May 25, 2019
posted by damayanti at 7:41 AM on May 25, 2019
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I'd suggest a visit if it's possible, as you can't get a complete sense of its coolness online -- somehow, Keene has thus far escaped the online gaze of cool, funky, artsy, walkable towns in New England. We're moving from another place in NH, and we would never have known about it if we hadn't gone there. The town government and leaders are really focused on improving the town (walkability, rail trails, arts corridor, etc. etc. etc.), so I suspect it won't stay a secret for long.
posted by nosila at 8:25 AM on May 24, 2019 [2 favorites]