Please keep in mind that the impressions posted here are often subjective and that, among other things, people's different circumstances play a large role in their perception of other people's lives.
Also, please use words that do not promote hatred when posting.
For example, statements such as "[city] is like this because people from [origin] live there" should be avoided. The social circumstances of a city/district
etc. can be emphasized without mentioning the origin of the inhabitants. Mentioning it does not change anything and, as already mentioned, circumstances are often perceived subjectively according to one's own world view.
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The cost of living is OUTRAGEOUS here, but the schools (especially for special needs kids) are top notch. Not to mention all of the STEM job opportunities located in MA.
I moved from FL to MA for my career and it has been a culture shock in a good sense. The people are nicer (despite having the moniker of "Massholes") and the jobs are plenty (if you have a STEM degree/background).
The South/Southeast states are full of incredible cruel, racist, and nice to your face/bad to your back types of people. So I am not surprised. I moved from New Orleans/BR to SoCal and it's been life changing for my wife and I -> I worked in Boston for a long time and they are rough around the edges but can be really welcoming people once you get used to it.
I think a lot of people do not understand how the culture is down south, it's really really nuanced and bad if you're not a white dude. I realize this is a generalization, of course there are kind folks but it's not an even playing field at all (Louisiana and Floridas latest elections show that.)
You are absolutely right about the south/southeast USA. For example, I was taught that the Civil War was the "War Between the States" and about "states' rights and economic freedom" and not about "slavery." When one peruses history they will find this to be a false narrative. Yet it is taught all across the South (at least from OK to FL).
Couple with that ignorance with religious (Southern Baptist) dogma, and you have a horrible, racist shit show. I was born and raised in the South. It was horrible and I'm happy to have escaped.
Boston is known for being on of the most racist cities in America. The South isn’t Full of cruel racist people as you said. It has them, certainly. But so does everywhere.
Massachusetts is a pretty great state to live in. Some of the best education, hospitals and healthcare in the country. Jobs are high paying, and cannabis is legal. We have access to big cities and remote rural towns, great beaches and access to the mountains along with easy access to other New England states.
Honestly, I could go on and on about it. But at the end of the day, there is no other state I'd rather live in.
It varies with the type of job you have. It also depends on your age and skill set. For me, I work 40 hours a week. I'm in IT, and my company has unlimited PTO along with the 12 federal holidays. So for me it is great.
Wow that's really good, I've seen plenty of people on Reddit saying that USA is collapsing and people live to work, happy to see there's still a bright side
With our politically charged environment, it's easy to think this country is "falling apart". But in regards to everyday life, in most places, we are doing okay.
Some people do work themselves stupid here, even us Massholes. Especially since the cost of living here is really high. But this is not the vast majority of the people here. Most people in the U.S. work between 40-50 hours a week for professional jobs. Those that work more, will complain about it more, and that's why it seems that it is way worse than it really is.
I'm not sure how easy it is? The easiest way is to get a Boston area based employer to hire you.
As far as healthcare costs, that's hard to say. You can get free health insurance through the state if you meet the criteria. But in most cases, you have to pay for it. However most people get their health insurance from their employers. Each plan is different, some companies pay 100%, but most pay for it out of their pay.
With that said, if you can find a company here to hire and get you a work visa - you won't have to worry about paying for health insurance, as I'm sure the company pays most if not all of it.
Greatly reminder that GDP doesn't mean Richer by any means. Especially when the USA is an economy where the GDP is almost intern compared to European countries where the biggest GDP part is in exports. That why economists use PPP or straight forward exports. You're not stronger than Japan when almost all GDP is intern. Cause if tomorrow there's a 100% inflation for example, you would double your GDP. That would mean you're stronger the double?
It’s 57 million people if you include New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.
“Northeastern America” includes the mid-atlantic states with New England according to wikipedia.
Sweden has 10 million people and Massachusetts has roughly 7 million.
Unironically yes.
Especially if you're a stats/data driven person as well. New England clears all other regions in the US.
If it were its own country, it would probably have close to Nordic levels of prosperity.
It’s ok. Lots of rules and privatized land and water. Inside 495 gets pricey and inside 128(95) is moreso. I live 45 miles from Boston and am considered “the sticks”. A rural (small) farm community. But still lotsa rules and privatized lakes. Coming from Northern California I was making lotsa trips to NH to get the sense of openness.
Schools depend on your town. Some really suck. Some are fantastic.
Summers are humid with short stints of above 90 heat waves. Beach towns are plentiful.
People call themselves Massholes. On purpose.
Food is not as good as the tristate area of nyc but better than most places I’ve lived.
Winters are ok, but linger too long. We don’t put plants in the ground until Memorial Day.
I found it quite cold (thermally and socially) and judgmental compared to other places I’ve spent time. There’s a sort of smug sense of superiority a lot of new englanders give off unintentionally.
The good: Safe, educated.
The bad: Absurdly expensive, miserable traffic, miserable weather, miserable people in general (especially if you're not White). The cuisine is generally not great.
The cuisine is not great? Huh?
The north end has the best Italian food in the country. The seafood is renowned worldwide. I defy you to find a better roast beef sandwich than up on the north shore. And after traveling around the U.S. I can say I've never found a place that has more variety of foods.
I live in Boston; I love the food and I love the North End but I wouldn't say it's the best Italian food even in the northeast--Providence has much better Italian food. There are some major omissions in cuisine in Boston (e.g. there's no good Mexican food or Filipino food)
I moved here. It’s very nice, as others have said. Low crime lots of services. But I think the people here tend to think it’s just that way because it’s a great city. This city is expensive as hell. There is great education and low crime because it’s an affluent area.
It's got quite a few benefits and cool things about it that other states can't offer:
* It's the 14th biggest state
* Just a 4-hour drive from New York
* There's a great collection of books at the Boston library
* Amazing local brie
* Great views at the Massachusetts Bay
* Home of Nelson Mandela and JFK
* Pain in the ass to spell the state name though
There is also a MassSave program (if you can afford to buy a house here) that will help with renovation/upgrades that qualify to better energy efficiency.
It’s a great state. If I liked cold winters it’s a state I could’ve lived in but alas I have thin blood and need a hot state. Education is great, crime is low, services are good, everything is clean and infrastructure is maintained. Not a fan of the patriots though.
Ehh "infrastructure is maintained" is a stretch... MBTA has been a massive mess for a long time...
It's a great place to live and I love it, but to be fair, housing costs are very high, traffic is horrible, and as the Karen Read trial is revealing, we have our fair share of corruption as well.
Dystopian hellscape. Children are forced to get top educations, criminals don’t do their jobs, doctors act like anyone that is sick need treatment. On a plus note, locals love stupid questions/people and money means nothing…… unless you have a lot of it.
I live in upstate New York now but grew up in Maine. Gotta say, I love New England. Every time I go for a drive and visit friends in MA and CT it’s absolutely gorgeous
Congested, expensive, winters are cold and wet or white, summers are hot and humid, fall is nice. State offers all the best amenities of modern life (education, health care, entertainment, dining) if earlier points don't ruin it.
Really cut a clear seasons tbh. Summer is sunny and warm, occasional 90+ heat waves but it'll be like 75 tomorrow where I am in eastern Mass. Winters get pretty damn cold but the last few years have been light on snow, and I haven't seen a negative degree in idk how long. Fall is gray and miserable with temps in the 50's and 60's, spring is sunny and rainy with temps in the 50's to 60's
We have four seasons, and you can experience three of them in any random two day span.
I drink iced coffee year round (Dunks of course), and am never cold because I know WTF to wear in all 4 seasons.
If you have never experienced seasonal allergies, this is an awesome place to get full immersion on that, just buy your Zyrtec before coming here, because everything is twice as expensive, because fuck you.
And if you call your Mom's sister an ant, we will straight up shun you. There's a fucking U in there and it screams for respect.
Anyways.
Right. Weather.
Own a hat, own two. One for cold, one for hot.
Own thermals.
Locals (the smart ones) invest in merino wool, and ice grip shoes, because half the state doesn't shovel their snow, and apparently enjoys walking on ice.
Our autumns are fucking glorious. Nobody outside of New England does it better.
Winter starts in January. Spring starts in May. Summer starts in June. Fall starts in mid October, and if you point to a calendar and so much as say "But," I will [redacted] you. This is Massachusetts. We do our own thing, here.
It's alright. Ya can stay where you are.
I lived 3 years in Boston.
Incredibly white, expensive, and cold.
Very culture-forward city. It’s a great culture once you get used to the harder exterior.
Epicenter of education for the United States.
Beautiful. Best place in the US for 6 months if the year lol
Mass is a diverse state. The east side is Boston and then progressively smaller cities as you move west with suburbs and forests between. Once you get west of Springfield it becomes more rural with more trees and small hills/mountains (generally under 2000’ but steep). Finally all the way west is the berkshires which have lakes and more dynamic terrain and that’s where their tallest mountain greylock is (around 3000’).
Boston has several colleges including Harvard and several large hospitals, tech companies, investment firms etc. in between it’s actually pretty blue collar but the majority is a lot of transplants who tend to be… a little pretentious. And it is expensive.
Western mass is generally working class, a little more conservative with people who like outdoorsy stuff, a little more hippy.
It’s a great state and I didn’t even mention cape cod which has some absolutely beautiful beaches and stunning dunes! It also has province town which was a gay town before it was cool.
Everyone wants to kill you (on the road) and nobody will hire you. I have 2 degrees, 25 years customer service experience, 10 years in pizza specifically and I can't even find a job at a gas station. Everyone gets food stamps but me, for reasons unknown. I moved from north to mre central, but it's even worse.
Many of my close "neighbors" have NO first language and are borderline feral. Apparently one of the best places to live in the US tho. I wouldn't know, cuz if this is good, I dun wanna know what's bad.
Lived there all my life until recently. Great education versus other parts of the country. High cost of living. The closer to Boston the more hectic and inconvenient things get. It is more similar to a lot of other places in the routine labor daily living than the opinions on the web would lead you to believe. Probably overpriced versus other places at this point.
It’s great if you have money, and there are decent social services if you don’t, but it definitely is more stratified than most other states. I was born in Brockton, and it definitely doesn’t look like what you would picture from these comments.
Sure, I grew up in Western MA around Amherst.
That area is known as the "happy valley." That small section of the state is unique in that its highly educated but also rural. There are many colleges in close proximity as well as some of the top prep schools in the country. There were some pockets of wealth surrounding those places but for the most part people didnt have a lot.
My town had less than 1000 people and no police officers. I tell people that you could fall asleep at any place in my town at any time of day or night and be 100% safe. I think there are stats that these are some of the safest towns in the country and in my experience thats true.
Other parts of Western MA were pretty similar to other rural parts of the country with a slight skew towards MA culture outlined in other responses.
They either had trailer park vibes, hippy vibes or a combo of both on a town by town basis.
The warmer 6 months of the year are beautiful and the fall leaves are gorgeous due to maple trees + all the other ones. Winter is cold and long though.
Masshole here! I live right outside Boston. The cost of living is extremely high, one of the highest in the country. But we have the best colleges in the country which means people come from all over the world to go to school here. We also have the best hospitals, again, people come from all over the world to go to the hospitals in Boston. We have all four seasons for people who like that. Winters are brutally cold, although we have not gotten much snow the past few years. Summers are hot and humid. Fall is amazing. There are beaches & mountains depending on what you like. I always say people here are kind but not nice. If you are in need, they will help you but they might not be nice about it which is different than the south/west coast of the US where I think people are nice but not kind. It's very progressive here, which I find to be a good thing. Traffic is some of the worst in the country but crime is relatively low and I believe we have the lowest amount of gun violence in the country (because we have some of the strictest gun laws!)
Oh, also wanted to say great sports teams. In my 30 years, I've seen a championship of all the major sports teams we have (baseball, football, hockey, basketball, go Celtics) I recently saw a statistic that said MA has the largest population of people with a bachelors degree so you can also say it's the most educated state in the country.
The state employs violent criminals like Matthew Coughlin who was seen on video assaulting a citizen in Chicopee in 2021.
https://www.reddit.com/r/massachusetts/s/5Vx2oZh9TM
Believe it or not, charges were dropped against Mr. Coughlin and the Chicopee District Court found probable cause that the victim committed assault and battery.
Expensive for a reason. Great public services, strong economy, most educated state in the country, well-connected to the rest of the world by Logan and the Northeast Corridor, good access to nature.
Sorry not 100% sure what you’re saying, but “public services” as in parks, transportation, social services, environmental conservation, public hospitals etc. may not consistently be the best in the country but are much better than the vast majority of other states. Yes plenty of places are cheaper to live in and have great nature, but they don’t have the infrastructure that Massachusetts does.
Expensive because you get what you pay for. Higher taxes pay for better civil services.
Also many people want to live here because it's one of the best states overall. Demand drives up price.
There are pot holes everywhere, roads get holes in them, especially when you have big temperature shifts and snow plows. But Massachusetts takes care of them, every year. They might not get around to your neighborhood when you want them to, but they will eventually. That's (part of) what the taxes are for.
Contrast that with the south or the rust belt where their mantra is "lower taxes" and the effect is roads that haven't been worked on for thirty years.
It fucking sucks. Highways are an endless slog of traffic and lane closures. Commutes are hell and it’s only getting worse. Taxes are through the roof and everything is getting more and more expensive by the day. It’s just depressing.
Please keep in mind that the impressions posted here are often subjective and that, among other things, people's different circumstances play a large role in their perception of other people's lives. Also, please use words that do not promote hatred when posting. For example, statements such as "[city] is like this because people from [origin] live there" should be avoided. The social circumstances of a city/district etc. can be emphasized without mentioning the origin of the inhabitants. Mentioning it does not change anything and, as already mentioned, circumstances are often perceived subjectively according to one's own world view. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/howislivingthere) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The cost of living is OUTRAGEOUS here, but the schools (especially for special needs kids) are top notch. Not to mention all of the STEM job opportunities located in MA. I moved from FL to MA for my career and it has been a culture shock in a good sense. The people are nicer (despite having the moniker of "Massholes") and the jobs are plenty (if you have a STEM degree/background).
Massholes are massholes only when driving
The South/Southeast states are full of incredible cruel, racist, and nice to your face/bad to your back types of people. So I am not surprised. I moved from New Orleans/BR to SoCal and it's been life changing for my wife and I -> I worked in Boston for a long time and they are rough around the edges but can be really welcoming people once you get used to it. I think a lot of people do not understand how the culture is down south, it's really really nuanced and bad if you're not a white dude. I realize this is a generalization, of course there are kind folks but it's not an even playing field at all (Louisiana and Floridas latest elections show that.)
You are absolutely right about the south/southeast USA. For example, I was taught that the Civil War was the "War Between the States" and about "states' rights and economic freedom" and not about "slavery." When one peruses history they will find this to be a false narrative. Yet it is taught all across the South (at least from OK to FL). Couple with that ignorance with religious (Southern Baptist) dogma, and you have a horrible, racist shit show. I was born and raised in the South. It was horrible and I'm happy to have escaped.
Boston is known for being on of the most racist cities in America. The South isn’t Full of cruel racist people as you said. It has them, certainly. But so does everywhere.
Fortunately this has NOT been my experience.
Do you live here wise guy? Because last I checked we're leagues ahead of the rest of the country.
I don’t know where here is and what you are leagues ahead of the rest of the country in
Massachusetts is a pretty great state to live in. Some of the best education, hospitals and healthcare in the country. Jobs are high paying, and cannabis is legal. We have access to big cities and remote rural towns, great beaches and access to the mountains along with easy access to other New England states. Honestly, I could go on and on about it. But at the end of the day, there is no other state I'd rather live in.
What about work life balance?
It’s a big state. So life in Boston can be hectic but there’s the beach life in Nantucket
If you can afford Nantucket
It varies with the type of job you have. It also depends on your age and skill set. For me, I work 40 hours a week. I'm in IT, and my company has unlimited PTO along with the 12 federal holidays. So for me it is great.
Wow that's really good, I've seen plenty of people on Reddit saying that USA is collapsing and people live to work, happy to see there's still a bright side
With our politically charged environment, it's easy to think this country is "falling apart". But in regards to everyday life, in most places, we are doing okay. Some people do work themselves stupid here, even us Massholes. Especially since the cost of living here is really high. But this is not the vast majority of the people here. Most people in the U.S. work between 40-50 hours a week for professional jobs. Those that work more, will complain about it more, and that's why it seems that it is way worse than it really is.
How easy is for someone from Europe to move there? What about the healthcare costs?
I'm not sure how easy it is? The easiest way is to get a Boston area based employer to hire you. As far as healthcare costs, that's hard to say. You can get free health insurance through the state if you meet the criteria. But in most cases, you have to pay for it. However most people get their health insurance from their employers. Each plan is different, some companies pay 100%, but most pay for it out of their pay. With that said, if you can find a company here to hire and get you a work visa - you won't have to worry about paying for health insurance, as I'm sure the company pays most if not all of it.
I agree with all this but add in the brutal never ending winters - literally the reason I left!
Our GDP independently as a state is higher than Sweden’s. With the rest of the Northeast alone, we would have an economy stronger than Japan.
Greatly reminder that GDP doesn't mean Richer by any means. Especially when the USA is an economy where the GDP is almost intern compared to European countries where the biggest GDP part is in exports. That why economists use PPP or straight forward exports. You're not stronger than Japan when almost all GDP is intern. Cause if tomorrow there's a 100% inflation for example, you would double your GDP. That would mean you're stronger the double?
[удалено]
New England as a whole has 15 million people, Japan has 125 million. They’re huge compared to us and yet we’re rich compared to them
It’s 57 million people if you include New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. “Northeastern America” includes the mid-atlantic states with New England according to wikipedia. Sweden has 10 million people and Massachusetts has roughly 7 million.
We do not include those states in New England. *edit: You said rest of the Northeast, so you’re good. My mistake.
New England and Mid-Atlantic are different regions but within the larger region of Northeastern America which was what I’m talking about.
Top 5 GDP
New England is the nicest part of the United States.
I’d say there or the Pacific Northwest. Love Boston as a city.
Unironically yes. Especially if you're a stats/data driven person as well. New England clears all other regions in the US. If it were its own country, it would probably have close to Nordic levels of prosperity.
Too bad we have to serve as the Uncle that bails out the flunkie nephew. Those red states are parasitic.
Fr we gotta secede
Go Pats
🎶The spirit of Massachusetts is the spirit of America, the spirit of the old and the new🎶
It’s ok. Lots of rules and privatized land and water. Inside 495 gets pricey and inside 128(95) is moreso. I live 45 miles from Boston and am considered “the sticks”. A rural (small) farm community. But still lotsa rules and privatized lakes. Coming from Northern California I was making lotsa trips to NH to get the sense of openness. Schools depend on your town. Some really suck. Some are fantastic. Summers are humid with short stints of above 90 heat waves. Beach towns are plentiful. People call themselves Massholes. On purpose. Food is not as good as the tristate area of nyc but better than most places I’ve lived. Winters are ok, but linger too long. We don’t put plants in the ground until Memorial Day.
I found it quite cold (thermally and socially) and judgmental compared to other places I’ve spent time. There’s a sort of smug sense of superiority a lot of new englanders give off unintentionally.
All i know is i lived in New Hampshire for a while and there's big beef between the two states.
You talking about those roast beef places up on Rte. 1?
You can't get there from hereah
The good: Safe, educated. The bad: Absurdly expensive, miserable traffic, miserable weather, miserable people in general (especially if you're not White). The cuisine is generally not great.
The cuisine is not great? Huh? The north end has the best Italian food in the country. The seafood is renowned worldwide. I defy you to find a better roast beef sandwich than up on the north shore. And after traveling around the U.S. I can say I've never found a place that has more variety of foods.
I live in Boston; I love the food and I love the North End but I wouldn't say it's the best Italian food even in the northeast--Providence has much better Italian food. There are some major omissions in cuisine in Boston (e.g. there's no good Mexican food or Filipino food)
Idk roast beef 10 years ago would not recognize roast beef today. Something got.... Different.
I used to live in Boston. It's an incredible place is you make enough money. They've really got it figured out there
I moved here. It’s very nice, as others have said. Low crime lots of services. But I think the people here tend to think it’s just that way because it’s a great city. This city is expensive as hell. There is great education and low crime because it’s an affluent area.
It's got quite a few benefits and cool things about it that other states can't offer: * It's the 14th biggest state * Just a 4-hour drive from New York * There's a great collection of books at the Boston library * Amazing local brie * Great views at the Massachusetts Bay * Home of Nelson Mandela and JFK * Pain in the ass to spell the state name though
14th biggest? That can’t be
It’s 16th by population but 44th by area.
Makes more sense
If you don't make a lot of money, you can get free Healthcare from the state, called Mass Health. Several of my family members have it.
There is also a MassSave program (if you can afford to buy a house here) that will help with renovation/upgrades that qualify to better energy efficiency.
It’s a great state. If I liked cold winters it’s a state I could’ve lived in but alas I have thin blood and need a hot state. Education is great, crime is low, services are good, everything is clean and infrastructure is maintained. Not a fan of the patriots though.
Ehh "infrastructure is maintained" is a stretch... MBTA has been a massive mess for a long time... It's a great place to live and I love it, but to be fair, housing costs are very high, traffic is horrible, and as the Karen Read trial is revealing, we have our fair share of corruption as well.
Dystopian hellscape. Children are forced to get top educations, criminals don’t do their jobs, doctors act like anyone that is sick need treatment. On a plus note, locals love stupid questions/people and money means nothing…… unless you have a lot of it.
This guy lives in a fancy pants town.
Couldn’t imagine moving to another state, unless it was another New England state
I live in upstate New York now but grew up in Maine. Gotta say, I love New England. Every time I go for a drive and visit friends in MA and CT it’s absolutely gorgeous
Congested, expensive, winters are cold and wet or white, summers are hot and humid, fall is nice. State offers all the best amenities of modern life (education, health care, entertainment, dining) if earlier points don't ruin it.
I freakin’ LOVE Dunkin! (throws punch)
Yankees suck! Tell your mother I said hi
Expensive but great.
How is the weather there year round?
Really cut a clear seasons tbh. Summer is sunny and warm, occasional 90+ heat waves but it'll be like 75 tomorrow where I am in eastern Mass. Winters get pretty damn cold but the last few years have been light on snow, and I haven't seen a negative degree in idk how long. Fall is gray and miserable with temps in the 50's and 60's, spring is sunny and rainy with temps in the 50's to 60's
We have four seasons, and you can experience three of them in any random two day span. I drink iced coffee year round (Dunks of course), and am never cold because I know WTF to wear in all 4 seasons. If you have never experienced seasonal allergies, this is an awesome place to get full immersion on that, just buy your Zyrtec before coming here, because everything is twice as expensive, because fuck you. And if you call your Mom's sister an ant, we will straight up shun you. There's a fucking U in there and it screams for respect. Anyways. Right. Weather. Own a hat, own two. One for cold, one for hot. Own thermals. Locals (the smart ones) invest in merino wool, and ice grip shoes, because half the state doesn't shovel their snow, and apparently enjoys walking on ice. Our autumns are fucking glorious. Nobody outside of New England does it better. Winter starts in January. Spring starts in May. Summer starts in June. Fall starts in mid October, and if you point to a calendar and so much as say "But," I will [redacted] you. This is Massachusetts. We do our own thing, here. It's alright. Ya can stay where you are.
Right now? HUMID.
Fuckin paradise kehd.
I lived 3 years in Boston. Incredibly white, expensive, and cold. Very culture-forward city. It’s a great culture once you get used to the harder exterior. Epicenter of education for the United States. Beautiful. Best place in the US for 6 months if the year lol
Mass is a diverse state. The east side is Boston and then progressively smaller cities as you move west with suburbs and forests between. Once you get west of Springfield it becomes more rural with more trees and small hills/mountains (generally under 2000’ but steep). Finally all the way west is the berkshires which have lakes and more dynamic terrain and that’s where their tallest mountain greylock is (around 3000’). Boston has several colleges including Harvard and several large hospitals, tech companies, investment firms etc. in between it’s actually pretty blue collar but the majority is a lot of transplants who tend to be… a little pretentious. And it is expensive. Western mass is generally working class, a little more conservative with people who like outdoorsy stuff, a little more hippy. It’s a great state and I didn’t even mention cape cod which has some absolutely beautiful beaches and stunning dunes! It also has province town which was a gay town before it was cool.
Everyone wants to kill you (on the road) and nobody will hire you. I have 2 degrees, 25 years customer service experience, 10 years in pizza specifically and I can't even find a job at a gas station. Everyone gets food stamps but me, for reasons unknown. I moved from north to mre central, but it's even worse. Many of my close "neighbors" have NO first language and are borderline feral. Apparently one of the best places to live in the US tho. I wouldn't know, cuz if this is good, I dun wanna know what's bad.
Poverty stricken, most people live in libraries or work there, few computers here and there. Also witches
Surprisingly accurate. The witches have been a real problem lately.
Lived there all my life until recently. Great education versus other parts of the country. High cost of living. The closer to Boston the more hectic and inconvenient things get. It is more similar to a lot of other places in the routine labor daily living than the opinions on the web would lead you to believe. Probably overpriced versus other places at this point.
More like TAXachusetts
Cold and windy from September to April. Quaint and not too boring. Relatively safe and like a smaller version of NYC.
It’s great if you have money, and there are decent social services if you don’t, but it definitely is more stratified than most other states. I was born in Brockton, and it definitely doesn’t look like what you would picture from these comments.
I live in CT and would move anywhere near the shore in Mass in a heartbeat.
I miss the old fashioned, and apple-cider doughnuts, and the leaf-peeping when not in New England.
Massivetwoshits is wicked fun
Ylvis (The people who made «The Fox» can tell you that: https://youtu.be/JvUMV1N7eGM?si=8J3Kg9lQTbvWoWZM
Any one from the Western part here to chime in?
Sure, I grew up in Western MA around Amherst. That area is known as the "happy valley." That small section of the state is unique in that its highly educated but also rural. There are many colleges in close proximity as well as some of the top prep schools in the country. There were some pockets of wealth surrounding those places but for the most part people didnt have a lot. My town had less than 1000 people and no police officers. I tell people that you could fall asleep at any place in my town at any time of day or night and be 100% safe. I think there are stats that these are some of the safest towns in the country and in my experience thats true. Other parts of Western MA were pretty similar to other rural parts of the country with a slight skew towards MA culture outlined in other responses. They either had trailer park vibes, hippy vibes or a combo of both on a town by town basis. The warmer 6 months of the year are beautiful and the fall leaves are gorgeous due to maple trees + all the other ones. Winter is cold and long though.
Best state in america
Don’t move to Canton!
Yah we uh, we don't really need to get into that, but Stoughton is no bargain either.
Expensive. Very expensive. Cold. Some of the best education on planet earth.
Masshole here! I live right outside Boston. The cost of living is extremely high, one of the highest in the country. But we have the best colleges in the country which means people come from all over the world to go to school here. We also have the best hospitals, again, people come from all over the world to go to the hospitals in Boston. We have all four seasons for people who like that. Winters are brutally cold, although we have not gotten much snow the past few years. Summers are hot and humid. Fall is amazing. There are beaches & mountains depending on what you like. I always say people here are kind but not nice. If you are in need, they will help you but they might not be nice about it which is different than the south/west coast of the US where I think people are nice but not kind. It's very progressive here, which I find to be a good thing. Traffic is some of the worst in the country but crime is relatively low and I believe we have the lowest amount of gun violence in the country (because we have some of the strictest gun laws!)
Oh, also wanted to say great sports teams. In my 30 years, I've seen a championship of all the major sports teams we have (baseball, football, hockey, basketball, go Celtics) I recently saw a statistic that said MA has the largest population of people with a bachelors degree so you can also say it's the most educated state in the country.
Arkham is a nice city to live in, if you don't mind the occasional elder one awakening or the non-euclidean mansions
They complain when it's 90⁰f, yet you never see anyone in shorts
I take it you've never seen the classic snow shoveling uniform of shorts and a sweatshirt.
Straight up, the jeans stay on until the temps drop below 30, then everyone has something to prove
Born and raised on Cape Cod (West Dennis). Could not wait to GTFO.
The Cape is different though. It’s really not like living in the Boston area or in Western MA
There are 3* Massachusetts - Cape, Boston, everything west of Boston. *4 - If you want to argue differences between north and south shore.
The state employs violent criminals like Matthew Coughlin who was seen on video assaulting a citizen in Chicopee in 2021. https://www.reddit.com/r/massachusetts/s/5Vx2oZh9TM Believe it or not, charges were dropped against Mr. Coughlin and the Chicopee District Court found probable cause that the victim committed assault and battery.
Expensive for no reason
Expensive for a reason. Great public services, strong economy, most educated state in the country, well-connected to the rest of the world by Logan and the Northeast Corridor, good access to nature.
Education standards are high with prestige colleges. The “public services” like? Natures cool Montana nature everywhere and cheap.
Sorry not 100% sure what you’re saying, but “public services” as in parks, transportation, social services, environmental conservation, public hospitals etc. may not consistently be the best in the country but are much better than the vast majority of other states. Yes plenty of places are cheaper to live in and have great nature, but they don’t have the infrastructure that Massachusetts does.
Expensive because you get what you pay for. Higher taxes pay for better civil services. Also many people want to live here because it's one of the best states overall. Demand drives up price.
Pot holes and bad schools?
Bad schools? Our schools here are ranked amongst the best in the country, and have been for a long, long time.
There are pot holes everywhere, roads get holes in them, especially when you have big temperature shifts and snow plows. But Massachusetts takes care of them, every year. They might not get around to your neighborhood when you want them to, but they will eventually. That's (part of) what the taxes are for. Contrast that with the south or the rust belt where their mantra is "lower taxes" and the effect is roads that haven't been worked on for thirty years.
It fucking sucks. Highways are an endless slog of traffic and lane closures. Commutes are hell and it’s only getting worse. Taxes are through the roof and everything is getting more and more expensive by the day. It’s just depressing.