By John Vincent
ENTERPRISE CORRESPONDENT
LAKEVILLE – Faith and David Moynihan of upstate New York are house-hunting in southeastern Massachusetts and they’ve pretty much made up their minds where they want to go.
“One of the towns we’re really focusing on is Lakeville,” said Faith. “My husband is a salesperson for Titleist in New Bedford and it has nice proximity to his sales area and we really like the area, with all the lakes and ponds.”
While they’ll be selling their home in New York for $229,000, Faith said, “$450,000 is what we’re anticipating on spending. It’s a little scary but we think we can make it.”
“We’re definitely willing to pay a little more to get the area we want to live in. We have two children who are school age and we’d like a decent school system for them.
“There’s two other towns we like that we’re looking at but the school system didn’t rate as high … and Dighton and Rehoboth are not as accessible as Lakeville,” she said. “We’re just waiting for the right house to come on the market.”
The Moynihans are not the only ones who want to move to Lakeville, and the town is quickly changing from a rural outpost to an enclave for well-off professionals who want to find an idyllic home to raise their children in.
Barbara Raynor of Neves and Cashman Realty on Main Street said, “Prices have risen considerably in the last five years. … I feel like it all began when the train came in and we got a different level of buyers in the area … couples earning a higher income and therefore able to buy the higher-priced homes and it’s just been a continual upswing since then.”
Anne Marie Guinen, also of Neves and Cashman, agreed.
“The housing market right now is a better investment than the stock market, so they’re putting their money where they can get their best return,” said Guinen. Though she said some aren’t even looking for the return.
“Rather than thinking they’re buying one house that they might switch for a bigger house in five years, they’re building their dream house right off the bat,” said Guinen. She said with lot prices going from $175,000 to $225,000, “when you’re paying that much more for raw land, you have to build a better home to justify it.”
“I think people are choosing Lakeville because of the MBTA station, because it’s surrounded by highways, the school system, because of the quiet lifestyle,” Guinen said.
“It’s a close-knit community, too,” said Raynor. “They have a lot of involvement in the schools, they have a lot of community activity with the new library being built and the senior center … the Ted Williams Camp has been converted into a beautiful playground and ball field and they do things there over the weekend.”
The median-priced home in Lakeville for the first quarter of 2004 was $368,500 according to the MLS Property Information Network Inc. That has risen steadily over the years from $215,000 in 2001, $267,000 in 2002 and $310,000 in 2003.
Some homes have sold for almost double what they were a few years ago. A Colonial on Nachomet Road that sold for $279,549 in 2000 sold again for $437,900 in 2003. Similarly, a Colonial at 47 Old Powder House Road sold for $259,000 in 2000 and resold for $369,000 in 2002, according to town records.
“You’re seeing people travel farther and father to get to work because of the affordability and the quality of life,” said Realtor Debbie Blais. “A lot of people are looking for a nice neighborhood, and the quality of education and the tremendous amount of activity for kids they have here. All of those things are a tremendous draw and being able to step on the T and get to work in 55 minutes really helps,” Blais said.
“We lagged behind other communities in upscale housing for a long time and we’re catching up,” Blais said, adding that towns to the north such as Sharon, Westwood and Canton have been a step ahead of Lakeville the whole way.
She said new construction is very much in demand, such as in The Settlement, Lakeville’s newest and most ostentatious development, where she said house prices ranged from $550,000 to $800,000.
“It’s a beautiful subdivision,” said Joe Malloch of Malloch Construction in Berkley who built many of the houses in The Settlement. “It’s probably the finest one around.”
“Lakeville is an up-and-coming town and there was a need for larger houses. …These are not your first- or second-time homebuyers. These were third- or fourth-time homebuyers. They knew what they wanted in a house. They want the 9-foot ceilings, the granite countertops and the tile flooring,” said Malloch, adding that almost every one of the houses was custom-built.
“Surprisingly, quite a few of them were local people who lived in Lakeville who did a lot of traveling who were moving up to bigger home,” Malloch said, though adding that there’s also a good market for the smaller, less posh homes in Lakeville, too.
Blais agreed, saying, “The market is still great down here …everybody can’t get into that bracket.” She did say the bottom only goes down so far, though, as the price for a starter home in Lakeville is now $250,000 to $350,000. She said she just sold a raised ranch with one bathroom and no garage for $350,000.
“It’s a very country town,” said Realtor Zinta Betts, who has lived in Lakeville for 20 years. “We still have a lot of open land, a lot of woods and ponds, hence the name, Lakeville, and a lot bogs, so it’s maintaining its rural character.
“It’s a great place to raise a family,” said Betts. “It’s 45 minutes to Boston, a half-hour to Providence and the Cape. You’ve got accessibility no matter where you need to go.”
This article previously appeared in the Brockton Enterprise.