This blog started not long after I read Richard Florida’s Rise of the Creative Class and blogged about how we chose to live in the Boston area. I followed that up with a post about how we further narrowed our search and moved from Needham to Westwood in 2006.
We like Westwood and I feel like I’m really becoming part of the community. But especially during my recent layoff, we realized how much money it takes to just be here. Lately, we’ve felt like we didn’t go far enough when we sold the expensive Needham house and found this great house in Westwood. What do we need vs. what do we want?
We don’t need a home office. My laptop is all I need; it’s finding the time to write that is the real challenge. We don’t need a big yard; I could care less about a lawn–my view is, “I cut the grass last week; problem solved. But then it came back.” We do need a place to ride bikes or walk to a park. We need 3 bedrooms…I can’t see “tripling up” the kids, but I do think bunk beds will be fun. So we started to seriously consider “downsizing” to reduce our mortgage further and focus on things that matter to us.
We’re not alone in wanting to downsize. Increasingly, people are discovering the virtues of living closer together and realizing space wasn’t what they wanted or needed after all.
One thing we REALLY want and need to avoid is the situation when we last moved and spend about 5 months with two mortgages. So we’ll sell first and then the fun will begin. We will be looking for a 3 bedroom, one bath, probably around 1200 square foot ranch or cape in Islington or the maze (neighborhood near Westwood High School) at the low end of the housing market here in Westwood. If we need to do work on the house, that’s fine as long as we can live in it while we renovate, but it’s all part of our calculation.
This weekend is our open house. Come check it out if you are in the market for a great house in a great town.
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To My Neighbor:
Dave, thank you for introducing me to your website. It is a pleasure getting to know our neighbors. From what I read, you seem to be the right person for the position you’re in.Transparency in government and clear communication are of great interest to me since I taught Business Writing & Rhetoric at Northeastern University for 35 years. And, of course, I am interested in anything you have to tell us about Westwood. Keep it up! And, good luck in your move.
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