CARVER /Rickard, Watson, Thatcher and Old Main Streets
North Carver neighborhood comes of age

By TERI BORSETI
For The Patriot Ledger

Area: 39.8 sq. mi.

POPULATION
2000: 11,163
2006: 11,281

Density: 301 res./square mile
Median age: 39
Median household income: 61,782

FINANCES
Tax rate: $11.02 residential/ $17.65 commercial
Town budget: $30 million

HOUSING
Median home price (# sales)
2007: $306,500 (90)
2008: $265,000 (11 through Feb.)
Median condo price
2007: $269,150 (18)
2008: $253,663 (3 through Feb.)

SCHOOLS
Number of students: 1,995
Number of teachers: 146
H.S. grads to 4-yr. college: 57%
Median SAT score (2006): 1517

Judi Fox calls her house her “little Irish cottage.” The salmon-colored home is hidden from the street by ivy-covered trees. It has an English garden and a white picket fence.

“We lived in Hyannis and decided to downsize and get off the Cape,” Fox said. “We’ve been in this house for two years and I just love it. It’s very private and everything was already planned and planted before we bought the house.”

Her Bijon friese, Guinness, likes to frolic among the roses and peonies. The charming property is in a North Carver neighborhood just a couple of miles from Route 44, which leads to routes 3 and 495, making it a convenient spot.

“We loved the house (and it has a pool), but it was the idea of being so close to Route 44 that convinced us to move here. Carver is one of the few quiet towns left on the South Shore,” said Fox.

The area is comprised of Rickard, Watson, Thatcher and Old Main streets – all of which are just off of Route 58. Most of the capes, ranches and raised ranches were built in the 1970s and the neighborhood is starting to turn over from its original owners.

Julie Murphy, real estate broker for Plymouth Village Realty in Plymouth, said many residents have started to downsize after living there for 30 to 35 years.

“Their children all went through the school system and went off on their own, so now it’s time for a new generation to move in and grow up there,” Murphy said.

Buyers can get a lot of house for their money, Murphy said. She has a listing for a four-bedroom split-level ranch for $314,500. “That’s a good average price for the area,” she said.

Linda Schlager and her family are selling the house they have lived in for 35 years to downsize. “It’s a really nice neighborhood, and we were always happy with the schools here,” she said.

Houses with post and rail fences, yards with bird feeders, and dog-walking pedestrians are common sights along these streets.

The neighborhood is about two minutes from Route 44 and a new Shaw’s shopping plaza. The bridge to Cape Cod is about 10 minutes away and those who want a quiet, well established neighborhood may also find house prices a bit more affordable than in other South Shore towns.