ROCKLAND /Deering Square
Child-friendly atmosphere and an easy commute

By MAUREEN MCCARTHY
For The Patriot Ledger Area: 10.1 sq. mi.

POPULATION
2000: 17,670
2007: 18,188

Density: 1,801 res./square mile
Median age: 38
Median household income: $57,661

FINANCES
Tax rate: $9.78
Town budget: $46 million
Average water bill: $300/family of 4

HOUSING
Median home price (sales)
2007: $340,000 (11)
2008: $295,625 (4)
Median condo price
2007: $247,450 (4)
2008: 0

SCHOOLS
Number of students: 2,524
Number of teachers: 161
H.S grads to 4-year college: 56%
H.S grads to 2-year college: 26%
Median SAT score (2006): 1460

Twelve years ago, Violet Moore and her husband, John, sold their home in Rockland to move closer to their family – in Rockland. Today, they are enjoying being grandparents while living under the same roof with their daughter and her family.

“My daughter bought a home on Deering Square, and I was babysitting for her every day,” Violet, 65, said about her in-town move. “My daughter said, ‘Why not put your house on the market, and we will put an addition on ours?’ ”

Caring for their grandchildren is second nature for the Moores, who live in an in-law apartment at their daughter’s raised ranch on Deering Square.

“It is a great advantage having them here. It is just awesome,” daughter Colleen Murphy said. “I grew up in a multi-generational house, so I wanted my kids to have that same advantage.”

Deering Square is off North Street, just a few blocks from Holy Family Church on Union Street.

The quiet, child-safe street was once horseshoe-shaped until new home construction divided the neighborhood into two dead ends, Violet Moore said.

Real estate broker Liz McCarron of Coldwell Banker in Norwell said she is seeing a resurgence of multi-generational living in Rockland and surrounding towns. It is all about the family, she said.

“The home I sold recently was a setup for an in-law. That is what we are seeing now,” she said. “Years ago, we would see them using it (multi-families) as an investment. We are now seeing that people are buying as a family.”

According to McCarron, in the past six months, five multi-family homes have been sold in Rockland with an average sale price from $252,800 to $335,000. These two- to four-family homes offer 1,700 to 3,000 square feet of living space.

Deering Square and surrounding Tirrell Drive and South Douglas Avenue are attractive to buyers because of their accessibility to Route 3 and Boston, McCarron said. “The commuter bus is available near to Home Depot on Rockland Street.”

“It is so handy to town, shops, churches, the library,” Violet Moore said. “It is so conveniently located. Memorial Park Elementary, the middle school and high school are all within walking distance.”

The neighborhood is just south of the edge of the former South Weymouth Naval Air Station, east of Hartsuff Park and just west of Rockland Golf Course.

The Deering Square neighborhood is a good fit for the Murphy-Moore family, Violet Moore said, because it offers a child-friendly atmosphere, privacy and close proximity to town.

“We just love it here,” she said.