<prompt> Human: Hello,We are currently renting in a town west of Boston. We are pretty secure with our finances, and would really like to buy a property in the area. However, as first time buyers we have a few concerns and reservations.-Is the 3x gross income still a good rule to go by?-It really seems like the houses here are overvalued. How concerned should we be about a potential housing bubble? Should we wait it out?-What are the alternatives?-What time of year is a good time to buy?Thank you! Looking forward to some helpful advice.Assistant: Greater Boston is complicated, and housing costs are sky-high and still climbing in desirable towns, especially areas with subway and streetcar access. 3x gross income is not a bad guideline, but you need to find what works for you. Run the numbers.In the 2008 housing bubble, towns like Concord, Lexington, Arlington, Needham, Wellesley, Winchester, and even most of Newton, were barely affected. I mean hardly a hiccup. While there were foreclosures, values didnt really drop. A lot of Bostons economy is based on five engines, and has been for decades: higher education, high tech, health care, pharma RD, and finance. When one sector drops, the others generally keep chugging along. Housing costs are unlikely to go down.The only alternatives are to find up-and-coming towns rather than buying in the already-expensive towns if you cant afford it. If youre able to shop in the 500k-600k price range a little less for condos, you can get a house in Arlington, and many streets are on a bus line. The same prices might still be available in Watertown, but theres very little availability there. Medford and Waltham used to be cheap, but are now rising; young families are moving in and trying to improve the schools, as happened in Somerville over the past ten years or so. Location is always key, and West Medford is much different than Medford Square, which in turn is much different than the part of Medford east of I-93.Without more information on your potential purchase situation your house buying budget, do you want a house or a condo, need to be near the city or near out-of-town employers, do you need good schools for kids, MBTA bus or train access, etc, its really hard to give specific advice.The best time to buy is pretty much anything outside of the spring market, which usually has a price bump because people hope to close before school enrollment closes. This years spring market kind of fizzled due to low inventory and poor weather. In midwinter you might be able to offer less, but it will be harder to see some problems that older houses have.Human: Thanks for the thorough response. In regards to our buying situation:-Our gross income is about 200k-No debts-We have enough to cover the 20 down payment-We work pretty far apart Im near Worcester, shes in South End, so a central location is pretty important for us. Were considering near I-495I-90.-We still need to figure out whats best for us house, townhouse, condo. Some of the HOA fees ive seen seem outrageous . . .  <response>: Okay, Ill give it my best shot. 3x your income is 600, and you have your 20 down. If you have enough to avoid a jumbo mortgage, thats even better.If you want to be near CambridgeSomerville with a 45-minute commute into the South End, Arlington might be in your sweet spot for city access and commuting access. Small houses are in your price range, or you can get a condo over within walking distance of Alewife. The schools are solid, the house prices are a little high, but when you need to sell, the properties sell quick. Arlington has lots of things going on in town, great restaurants, and a lot of young people moving in. The houses in your price range arent large, and most are on small lots, but youll save on lawn mowing.One issue with Arlington is that this gives you a 1-hour commute each way tofrom Worcester on Route 2 west to I-190 south, but Id take that over the rush hour commute on the Mass Pike any day. The trade-off is that the commute to the South End wont involve driving or the commuter rail to North Station and the Green Line, as there are frequent buses to Alewife or Harvard Square.If you want to be further west, then Id go out along Route 2 along the Fitchburg commuter rail line. Concord is historical and semi-rural, has top schools, a very active town life, and a few 600k properties close to the commuter rail. Acton is the next town to the west, I have friends who brought up their kids there who are well-educated, and you can get a house in walking distance from the commuter rail stop for 470k-530k. I know less about Littleton, but theres a stop there too.Down by I-90, youve probably been scoping out Ashland, Framingham and Natick. The Commuter Rail runs to South Station, which may be better, but I dont really know much about those towns. There appears to be nothing much at all under 600k in Wellesley, Needham, Newton or Brookline. 