WALTHAM
This page is not cluttered with historical or demographic data. That information is available elsewhere. The focus here is on the things which you might find important. Instructions for viewing Waltham real estate listings are found at the bottom of this article...
Welcome to Waltham, a city on the Charles River about 10 miles west of Boston, which CNNMoney rates 28th best place to live in the US even though it is not served well by public transit; however, there is express bus service and light rail from Waltham to Boston. The combination of its population density in central and south Waltham (downtown and along the Charles Riverwalk, which is often crowded on summer nights by people fishing, jogging, or walking off a meal at one of the many restaurants), along with its parks, stores, and trails make Waltham a wonderful place to live. The three major throughfares are Rt 128/I-95, SR 60, and US 20; however, if you live in the northern reaches near Lakeview, you can access SR-2/the Concord Turnpike, while the southern reaches near Angleside, The Island, etc., can access the Mass turnpike/I-90. Unfortunately, Waltham's neighborhoods are predominantly "car-dependent"; so, keep this in mind when trying to determine which neighborhood to live in if you do not have a car.
Waltham includes the zip codes 02451, 02452, and 02453, if you would like to google specific areas within Waltham. When speaking of the Greater Boston area, Waltham has the second largest office market behind Boston. Waltham's diverse housing includes dense multi-family housing in the southern section of the city and larger lots of single-family housing in the northern section. Some of the names of neighborhoods or villages you might hear (their general boundaries/locations and maps are available online) include:
- Angleside
- Banks Square
- The Bleachery - this neighborhood and the the South Side have relatively good walkscore ratings.
- Cedarwood - a neighborhood just off Rt 128/95 at exit 26. Check out their page on Facebook.
- The Chemistry - probably the most walkable neighborhood according to WalkScore.com
- Glen Meadow - a neighborhood of ranch houses built in the 1950's in North Waltham. Many of these 2 and 3 bedroom homes have been expanded to larger ranches or multi-level homes, and a few have been torn down to make room for mansions.
- The Highlands
- The Island - its residential neighborhood is primarily situated along the Charles River and two of its coves, Cram's Cove and Purgatory Cove. Housing is mixed, including multi-family homes, small cottage style houses, large Victorians, and medium sized bungaloes and capes.
- Kendal
- Lakeview - a neighborhood on the northern side of Waltham adjacent to Lexington. It is centered north of Lake St. and as the name suggests several streets offer views of Hardy Pond. It offers easy access to Routes 128 and Route 2 along Trapelo road. The homes here are a mix of smaller older homes, some wonderful large homes and some new construction.
- The Lanes
- Northeast
- The North Side - a nice area of the city abutting Lexington and Belmont. Northeast of the town center it has a mix of new condominiums, ranch style homes older capes and new construction.
- Piety Corner - a wonderful area in central Waltham known for being extremely desirable with its tree lined streets and beautiful homes. This neighborhood has a prime location with easy access to schools, recreation, quick access to Routes 128/95 and the Mass Pike (Route 90).
- Pigeon Hill
- Ravenswood
- Robert's
- Rock Alley
- The South Side - Moody Street runs through the center with it's wide selection of restaurants and shops. This area is largely multifamilies and condos. This area provides some river access and access to the office park areas in the southwest of town.
- Warrendale - area between route 60 and Warren Street. It borders on Watertown and is a short drive east of the town center. It is a beautiful mix of older colonial styles, small capes and ranch style homes.
(As time permits, additional information will be added to the list)
The official web site for the city of Waltham has helpful civic news and information. If you have a specific property in mind that you think you might like to buy, Waltham also maintains a database for the City Assessor which you can access to see what value the City gives the property and what the annual taxes are. Scott Shurr, a local citizen, maintains a community web site with links to helpful resources. Waltham has a lot of attractions for you to see while living here.
If you have school-age children, the Waltham Public School district will take good care of them. Once you determine which school your child(ren) will be attending, find Its transportation policies and bus route outlined here.
To keep up with daily goings on you can check in online with the Waltham Daily News Tribune, The Patch, or, of course, the Boston Globe, and the Boston Herald.
Sold Statistics for Waltham
Single Family:
2012 - 281 sales. Lislt Price - $423,902 Sale Price - $411,163 Market Time - 93 days
2011 - 248 sales. List Price - $404,120 Sale Price - $387,992 Market Time - 90 days
2010 - 265 sales. List Price - $419,633 Sale Price - $406,446 Market Time - 72 days
Waltham didn't much care for 2011 when it suffered a 6% decline in sales and values; but, thankfully, 2012 saw losses in values wiped out with a 13% increase in volume.
Condominiums:
2012 - 244 sales. Lislt Price - $335,128 Sale Price - $325,631 Market Time - 86 days
2011 - 172 sales. List Price - $321,565 Sale Price - $310,977 Market Time - 104 days
2010 - 207 sales. List Price - $327,617 Sale Price - $318,322 Market Time - 87 days
Condominium sales and values fell off in 2011 but came roaring back in 2012. Although we are grateful for a modest average sale price increase of 4%.
Multi-Family Listings:
2012 - 50 sales. Lislt Price - $452,658 Sale Price - $443,921 Market Time - 101 days
2011 - 39 sales. List Price - $465,308 Sale Price - $441,808 Market Time - 83 days
2010 - 41 sales. List Price - $458,660 Sale Price - $429,702 Market Time - 90 days
Multi-family sales in Waltham have made consistent, albeit modest, gains each year in volume and average sale price.
The graphic, historical view of home sales shown below is not really accurate as it goes only through the 3Qtr of 2012; but it gives you a general picture of how things have been selling over the past 5 years.
To view all the current MLS listings in Waltham, you will need an ID which is "2365311" and the password "Jim". You can login here anonymously anytime, daily or weekly, as often as you wish. If you should see any properties you would like to view in person, give Jim a call or send a text or email indicating which properties and a couple of time frames and Jim will try to schedule you appropriately - please keep in mind that some owners and/or agents require 24-48 hrs advance notice and additionally keeping within a 30-60 minute window if they also require an accompanied showing.
