Review of Boston Magazine's Best Places to Live 2009

Article and Photo (Scituate) by Eric H.

Boston Magazine recently published its Best Places to Live 2009, including lists for "10 Recession-Proof Towns," "10 Spots Holding Steady" and "Top Burgs for Bargain Hunters." All in all, we felt Boston Magazine's evaluations were spot-on, especially the bargain section that focuses on Norman Rockwell-types towns that we personally like: Medfield, Scituate, Easton and Westford.

The "10 Recession-Proof Towns" section includes more personal favorites like Hingham, Lexington and Winchester, while the "10 Spots Holding Steady" section includes more fine towns like Arlington, Duxbury and the underrated Merrimac.

We heartily recommend reading the Boston Magazine article for the well-written and researched specifics!

We'd also like to add a few of our personal favorites that weren't listed in the Boston Magazine article:

Walpole, a southwest Boston suburb, with a lot of community spirit, close-knit neighborhoods, strong schools (90 percent of grads go onto college) open spaces like the 89-acre Bird Park and 250-acre Adams Farm, homes with good-sized lots, and a real downtown (although too many empty storefronts, at this point). It's generally affordable, with some starter homes available at $350,000.

Maynard, a western Boston suburb, that is small, safe, and has a great Mayberry RFD-like downtown (with the legendary Maynard Outdoor Store as the unofficial anchor). The downtown features several restaurants and even has a movie theater! The schools are good, the overall feeling of the town old-fashioned, and like Walpole, close-knit. Also like Walpole, nice starters homes can be bought around the $350,000 range.

Holliston, a Metro West Boston suburb, features beautiful tree-lined neighborhoods and a small but quaint downtown with a general store, gift shop, independently-owned market and several small-town service-oriented stores. The high school is amongst the best in the region, we've been told many times by several people. Solid, basic homes can be bought in the $350,000 range.

Additionally, we, at VisitingNewEngland.com, have a popular section called "Best Places to Raise a Family in the Boston Area," that should give you additional insight on affordable places to move in the Boston area if you have a family.

Best wishes in finding the right town for you!