Massachusetts, known as The Bay State, has become a great place to call home for a variety of people.
If you are looking for a historic home state, Massachusetts is home to one of the first colonial settlements in Plymouth, and the capital, Boston, is known as the “Cradle of Liberty” for its role in sparking the American Revolution.
Or, if you are an academic, The Bay State boasts prestigious universities like Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston College, and Boston University.
For those looking to make money, Massachusetts is consistently ranked in the top five of states in terms of per capita personal income. It also has a general minimum wage of $11 that is higher than most. Not to mention, the state has the sixth-largest number of millionaires per capita in the U.S.
Further, 12 Fortune 500 companies call Massachusetts their home. Among these are Liberty Mutual, Staples Inc., Biogen, and Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company.
Finally, if you are looking to settle down on the beach, Massachusetts is home to beautiful communities like Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Martha’s Vineyard.
Overall, Massachusetts is a great choice for any type of homebuyer. But, how do you choose a particular town or city when there are so many great options in the state?
To answer that question, LendEDU has put together a list of the 100 best places in Massachusetts for homebuyers. After analyzing nearly 500 communities in the state, we narrowed our list down to 100 by judging each town on three parameters.
The following three parameters were deemed important for homebuyers:
- Home Income to Home Value Ratio Score (40 points, listed in table as Value)
- Five-Year Population Forecast Score (40 points, listed in table as Population)
- Five-Year Income Forecast Score (20 points, listed in table as Income)
Each of these three parameters were chosen because they can dramatically influence the investment a homebuyer makes. First, getting good value on a home relative to your income is always important. Second, if you choose to live in a community that is anticipating growth in both population and income then the return on your investment will increase with time.
The 100 Massachusetts towns you will find below have been recognized by LendEDU as the best places in the state for buying a home.
Ranking the 100 Best Places in Massachusetts to Buy a Home
Methodology
LendEDU has licensed all data used in this study from Onboard Informatics. Onboard Informatics’ dataset was broken down by ZIP Code, which was then simplified down to town and city names. If a large city, like Boston, had multiple ZIP codes then the ZIP codes and their respective statistics were averaged together and weighted by population. LendEDU’s original list contained nearly 500 Massachusetts cities and towns. An arbitrary population cutoff was implemented at 3,000, and any town or city with a population below 3,000 was taken out of consideration.
Home Income to Value Ratio Score (40 points maximum)
Home Income to Home Value Ratio Score was one of three parameters and was scored by dividing the median household income by the median household value. The value ratios were then ranked against one another on a percent scale from 0 to 100. Then, each percent rank was multiplied by its weight of 40 percent to produce the score. The maximum possible score was 40 points. This parameter represented the value a potential resident could expect from a typical home purchase in a given town.
Five-Year Population Forecast Score (40 points maximum)
Five-Year Population Forecast Score was the second parameter used to judge Massachusetts towns and cities. This parameter was calculated by using the current population figures and the five-year projected population figures. Each and every town in Massachusetts was given a five-year projection for population by Onboard Informatics. A percent change equation was used to find the percent increase or decrease in population over the next five years. Then, each individual percent change was ranked on a percent scale from 0 to 100 against the entire field. Then, each percent rank was multiplied by its weight of 40 percent to produce the score. The greatest point total possible was 40 points.
Five-Year Income Forecast Score (20 points maximum)
The third and final parameter was the Five-Year Income Forecast Score and was scored by finding the median household income and the five-year median household income projection. Onboard Informatics’ dataset presented the projected growth in income over the next five years in a given town. A percent change equation was used to determine the percent increase or decrease in income over the next five years for each town. The values were then ranked against each other on a percent scale from 0 to 100. Each individual percent rank was multiplied by its weight of 20 percent to produce the Five-Year Income Forecast Score, which carried a maximum point value of 20 points.
Every single town and city in Massachusetts was assigned a numeric score for each parameter. The parameter scores for a given town were added together to give us the final score. A score closer to 100 meant that town was better for homebuyers according to LendEDU. The 100 cities and towns that finished with the highest final scores were the communities featured in this report.
See more of LendEDU’s Research