I kinda like the New England exurbs. I went to high school in Central Massachusetts - that area is gorgeous (bucolic farms, forests, fall foliage small country roads), and yet it's still only 45 minutes away from Boston/Cambridge if you want to go to events in the city. There're a lot of towns like that in the Boston area - once you get outside of the 128 belt, the population drops off dramatically, and yet you're still fairly close to the city.
Only problem is property values - the prettier low-density towns that happen to be close to the city (Weston, Lexington, Carlisle, Concord, Bedford) now have houses that are going for $1M+. If you're willing to live an hour or so outside of the city, though, you can still get some really affordable stuff in Groton, Pepperell, Bolton, Acton, Littleton, etc.
I'm kinda wondering if there's anything similar in other metropolitan areas. The Bay Area is pretty much a lost cause: if you want forests, there's Portola or Woodside (for like $5M a house), Marin (ditto) or the Berkeley hills (tritto), while if you want something halfway affordable like Dublin or Pleasanton, it's suburban strip malls all around.
Portland, OR maybe? I know there's an urban growth boundary, but are there any pretty wooded neighborhoods in the Portland area? At least property values there haven't skyrocketed, last I heard.
Only problem is property values - the prettier low-density towns that happen to be close to the city (Weston, Lexington, Carlisle, Concord, Bedford) now have houses that are going for $1M+. If you're willing to live an hour or so outside of the city, though, you can still get some really affordable stuff in Groton, Pepperell, Bolton, Acton, Littleton, etc.
I'm kinda wondering if there's anything similar in other metropolitan areas. The Bay Area is pretty much a lost cause: if you want forests, there's Portola or Woodside (for like $5M a house), Marin (ditto) or the Berkeley hills (tritto), while if you want something halfway affordable like Dublin or Pleasanton, it's suburban strip malls all around.
Portland, OR maybe? I know there's an urban growth boundary, but are there any pretty wooded neighborhoods in the Portland area? At least property values there haven't skyrocketed, last I heard.