Anyone know anything about Arlington, MA?

[Anonymous]

Brother might be relocating to suburban Boston and is eyeing this town. Firsthand knowledge welcome!

[Anonymous]

Yes. It's a wonderful town, with a strong community spirit/sense of place, great schools, and nice housing stock. Most parts of town have very easy access to public transit, and getting to Cambridge and Boston is a breeze from Arlington. Bonus: It has a lot of interesting history (google Menotomy + Revolutionary War; Menotomy was its name before it was named Arlington).

Depending on budget, your brother should look at the Jason Heights/Spy Pond/Menotomy Rocks Park neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. It's a wonderful town, with a strong community spirit/sense of place, great schools, and nice housing stock. Most parts of town have very easy access to public transit, and getting to Cambridge and Boston is a breeze from Arlington. Bonus: It has a lot of interesting history (google Menotomy + Revolutionary War; Menotomy was its name before it was named Arlington).

Depending on budget, your brother should look at the Jason Heights/Spy Pond/Menotomy Rocks Park neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

My brother lives in Arlington, MA with his family.. they love it there and his commute into Boston is easy. They're very close to Spy Pond. The downtown area with shops and restaurants is really nice, too.

[Anonymous]

It’s a nice area. Hopeful he’s well paid because Boston real estate prices have gone through the roof in recent years. And the traffic is even worse than this area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s a nice area. Hopeful he’s well paid because Boston real estate prices have gone through the roof in recent years. And the traffic is even worse than this area.

Not really; the difference is negligible.

https://www.moneycrashers.com/worst-us-cities-traffic-commute-time/

https://www.businessinsider.com/us-cities-with-most-traffic-2019-2019-2#1-boston-ma-15

The housing stock is nicer and similarly expensive to what it is here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My brother lives in Arlington, MA with his family.. they love it there and his commute into Boston is easy. They're very close to Spy Pond. The downtown area with shops and restaurants is really nice, too.

I would move there in a heartbeat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My brother lives in Arlington, MA with his family.. they love it there and his commute into Boston is easy. They're very close to Spy Pond. The downtown area with shops and restaurants is really nice, too.

I would move there in a heartbeat.

Me too. A lot of my friends have moved there for schools/ more space than Cambridge. It’s a wonderful place to raise a family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s a nice area. Hopeful he’s well paid because Boston real estate prices have gone through the roof in recent years. And the traffic is even worse than this area.

They bought back in 2008, they're good.

[Anonymous]

It's like living in bethesda or maybe Chevy Chase DC. urban-suburban.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's like living in bethesda or maybe Chevy Chase DC. urban-suburban.

My sister lives in Arlington, MA. I agree with others that people like it there for the strong schools, easy commute, good community. But it's not nearly as nice or rich as Bethesda or Chevy Chase DC!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's like living in bethesda or maybe Chevy Chase DC. urban-suburban.

My sister lives in Arlington, MA. I agree with others that people like it there for the strong schools, easy commute, good community. But it's not nearly as nice or rich as Bethesda or Chevy Chase DC!

Chevy chase DC? It's about the same. CCMD? Agree it's richer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's like living in bethesda or maybe Chevy Chase DC. urban-suburban.

My sister lives in Arlington, MA. I agree with others that people like it there for the strong schools, easy commute, good community. But it's not nearly as nice or rich as Bethesda or Chevy Chase DC!

Chevy chase DC? It's about the same. CCMD? Agree it's richer.

I just looked at real estate. You may be right. But I'm surprised!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's like living in bethesda or maybe Chevy Chase DC. urban-suburban.

My sister lives in Arlington, MA. I agree with others that people like it there for the strong schools, easy commute, good community. But it's not nearly as nice or rich as Bethesda or Chevy Chase DC!

That depends on what you mean by "nice." Arlington, MA feels real/genuine in a way that neither Bethesda nor Chevy Chase DC or CC MD do.

As far as "rich" goes, that depends on which part of Arlington you are talking about. Certain areas of town are quite expensive and others less so. That's part of the appeal of the place.

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/45-Hopkins-Rd_Arlington_MA_02476_M42629-29407

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/18-Kensington-Rd_Arlington_MA_02476_M46242-59985

[Anonymous]

I would say chesnut hill, newton and parts of Brookline are actually more comparable to Chevy Chase and Bethesda. Arlington, VA is the same as Cambridge (across the river from Boston). And Arlington MA would maybe more like falls church or silver spring or Rockville? Or whatever is next over. I grew up in Cambridge and Belmont (which has a similar feel to Arlington - they call it “arlmont” although Belmont hill is very wealthy) . Great schools and great vibe! If I could move back to Boston I’d live there in a heartbeat.