13 reasons why you should NOT move to the Berkshires, Massachusetts
Berkshire County is a true highlight of western Massachusetts, and there are plenty of reasons why so many people decide to make it their home. But like anywhere else, there are drawbacks to living here! When you’re making the decision to spend a significant amount of money on either your primary residence or a second home, it’s only fair to get a feeling for what those drawbacks may be. So, you can either watch the video below, or read on, to explore some of the reasons why the Berkshires may–or may not–be right for you.
Seasonal Population Swings
Let me start by saying that there are plenty of people who live in the Berkshires year-round who enjoy experiencing the different seasons. Personally, I love the fact that living in Pittsfield means that I’m within 15 minutes of a couple of different ski areas, which makes our “off-season” of the winter months enjoyable. However, there are a lot of second-home owners in the Berkshires who primarily come to the area to enjoy summer activities like exploring our lakefronts or our summer music/theater festivals. This even extends into autumn: our fall foliage is world-renowned and attracts “leaf peepers” from all over!
Once all the leaves are gone and we really enter into that “off season,” though, it really does feel different. You’ll see less people out and about. But if you’re okay with having a quiet winter (and with shoveling snow…) this is no problem at all.
Rural Isolation
Are you coming from a city where you can walk out of your front door and be greeted by a whole community of people, or walk to the nearest bodega in under 5 minutes? That convenience and population density is going to be difficult to replicate in the Berkshires. It’s not impossible, but you will be paying a premium in your hunt for a home within walking distance to some of our scenic downtowns.
Most homes in the Berkshires will be set in more of a suburban, or even rural, setting. There are plenty of properties out there where you can’t even see your neighbors. This is one of those conditions that’s a huge draw to some who are looking to escape the city, or can be a setback depending on your preferences.
Tourist Traffic
If you make this your year-round home, you are sure to see a big difference in traffic levels during our tourist-attracting summer months. The influx of people (who are often driving slower than locals like to take in the scenery!) can add a few minutes to your drive times. This can be really frustrating when you’re a local!
This translates to more than the roads, too–expect wait times at your favorite restaurants, or long lines at the best coffee shops. It’s just the nature of living year-round in a place that people wait all year to visit on vacation.
Distance to Amenities
When people look at the Berkshires, they fall in love with attractions like our arts and culture–think MASS MoCA, The Clark, Jacob’s Pillow, Tanglewood–and think it will be easy to patronize all of these establishments on a regular basis. But you should be aware that some of these attractions are a pretty significant distance from each other. For example, if you wanted to check out an exhibit at MASS MoCA in North Adams during the afternoon, and then see a show at the Egremont Barn at night, you’re looking at almost an hour and a half drive between the two venues.
While all of these things can be accessible to you, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re as “at your fingertips” as they may seem from a quick Google search. So keep in mind what’s most attractive to you as you explore the different towns of the Berkshires.
As you consider your move, you should keep in mind what you feel is a reasonable drive to the amenities you need, as even grocery stores can be a further distance from your home than you may expect. For example, if you’re looking at Becket because you want that “house in the middle of nowhere” where you can’t see your neighbors, you should expect at least a 20 minute drive to pick up your necessities.
Cell Service
If you’re not from somewhere like the Berkshires, it may come as a surprise that there are parts of this area where connectivity can be an issue. I don’t mean to say you’re cut off from the world here–but if, like me, you take a lot of business calls while driving around, you’re going to run into some dead zones where your calls drop. It’s just a fact of life here to get used to–I drive the same routes so often that I know exactly where my cell service will fail!
This can be frustrating, and occur in places you wouldn’t initially expect. For example, I have almost no cell service in the middle of downtown Great Barrington with Verizon, and need to find WiFi to connect to in order to do most tasks on my phone. If you’d like to live here, you just have to adapt to that environment and wait for things to improve with time.
Seasonal Access Issues
During the winter months, the Berkshires can experience some harsh storms. If you’re splitting time between the Berkshires and New York City in particular, the Taconic State Parkway can be difficult and dangerous to travel directly after a snow storm. This also applies to other sources of travel that get you in and out of Berkshire County.
If you’re living in the Berkshires during the winter, we do have plow trucks that take care of the roads, and some towns are faster and better at their snow removal than others. You’ll find the most-used roads will be prioritized first, especially considering the speed limits tend to be higher on these roadways. But if you live on a quiet side street, your road might be at the bottom of the list and be plowed last. If we get a big storm, you may wait half a day until you see a plow truck on your road. It’s worth your consideration to make sure your vehicle is capable in the snow, and locals will often prioritize an all-wheel drivetrain or higher clearance when choosing their cars to get over small amounts of snow with ease.
Property Maintenance
Those coming from other parts of the country may not have the same conditions that cause wear & tear in the Berkshires. For example, snow can form into ice dams on your roof and cause issues that lead to water coming into your home. There are all sorts of ways that our seasonal weather can make your home need more maintenance. And this doesn’t just apply to damage: think landscaping, or leaf/snow removal as well. It’s worth considering the time or money associated with maintaining a property in an area like the Berkshires.
In addition, many of our homes in the Berkshires tend to be older, and may sometimes require more upfront maintenance than first-time home buyers might think. For example, a home that hasn’t sold in 40 years may come to the market with lead paint of knob-and-tube wiring that needs to be remediated for safety and insurance reasons. This is one of many reasons it’s key to work with a real estate agent–I’ll use my network of professionals to get you all the information you need on what our local contractors will charge for the work required on your next home.
Travel Convenience
Touching on air travel specifically, you should take our distance to major airports into consideration. While the Berkshires do have a couple of small private and public airports, you’re most likely going to head out of the county to fly. Be prepared to travel to Albany, Hartford, or even as far as Boston or JFK depending on what your regular destinations are.
This is something that prospective second-home owners in particular should keep in mind. After a long flight, you may have another few hours in the car ahead of you before getting back to the Berkshires.
Local Regulations & Restrictions
If you have a very specific vision in mind for your future property, I’d encourage you to bring it up early with me as your agent. Each town in the Berkshires have different rules–for instance, if you want to buy a second home that you’d like to also list as an AirBnB, you should know that many towns have particular restrictions on vacation rentals. As an example, at the time of writing, Lenox has a 75-day limit on any short-term rental property. You also have to apply for permission from the town. Permits are also required in Great Barrington, and homeowners can only have one short-term rental. However, there are other towns that don’t currently have any such regulations.
This is just one, more “hot button” example of the types of restrictions that might not be immediately obvious when you begin your home search. You may also have to take into account our local conservation commissions (if, for example, you’re looking to buy a waterfront property).
If you have specific zoning questions about the Berkshire area, please do get in touch with me. I use my local expertise every day to ensure my buyers are making wise investments in the Berkshires.
Limited Available Contractors
We have very limited contractors of all kinds in the area at this point. It’s something to keep in mind if you’re looking for a property and envisioning the changes you’d like to make.
Builders and different contractors in the Berkshires typically have long waitlists–and often smaller projects that are the most difficult to hire for. Our contractors will typically prioritize more major renovations to leverage their time for more money.
I don’t mean to say that you can’t find these people–and I’m happy to make recommendations for the type of service you need. But you can expect it to be slightly more challenging to find them than other parts of the country where you have an abundance of tradespeople.
Cold Temperatures
We’ve covered the seasonality quite a bit, but it’s worth emphasizing: if you can’t handle the cold, don’t expect to love it here year-round! If you live in a warmer climate and just want to travel here for the summer, feel free to disregard this, because the summer months are beautiful here.
If you plan to live here full-time, we can have some cold, harsh winters. In my opinion, it’s actually more miserable when we don’t get a lot of snow: instead of ski days, we get sleet, freezing rain, and windstorms. The snow can be scenic and beautiful, but be prepared for anything if you plan on spending your winters in this area.
Limited Major Retailers
This can be a bonus to lots of visitors–we have some truly incredible and inspired small businesses for you to shop at when you are in the Berkshires. We even have the Lee Outlets, which features some more recognizable retail shops. But if you’re someone who loves a big, central shopping area where you can browse Gucci and Louis Vuitton to your heart’s content–you won’t find it here.
There are a few big box stores in the county, but depending on the town you live in, you can expect a long drive to reach them. For example, you could be 40 minutes from your local Home Depot or Target for your DIY home renovations. And, if you’re into camera gear or other tech like me, you have to drive an hour to get to Albany for the nearest Best Buy or Apple Store.
Once again, we have some amazing local shops–but you can expect some gaps if you like to shop brick-and-mortar.
Seasonal Business Closures
I’d like to make it clear that not every business shuts down for the winter, and that the Berkshires don’t turn into a ghost town in the off-season the way some other “vacation towns” might. But there are certainly quite a few businesses that make their living by catering to tourists, and those businesses will stop operating during the time of year that is not as profitable. Or maybe they just want to flee to Florida for the winter!
With all of this taken into consideration, the Berkshires really have a lot to offer. I encourage you to check out the rest of my blog, or my Youtube channel, to learn more about what life in this area can be like.
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