> there are plenty of locations with very few people that might be an hour from a city like Boston. Boxborough, MA is an hour from Boston while covered in fores

> there are plenty of locations with very few people that might be an hour from a city like Boston. Boxborough, MA is an hour from Boston while covered in forest. I'd think of it as "suburban", but it might the rural/pastoral feel you're looking for while still being within commutable distance to everything. This is a good bet. There are many towns in the vicinity of cities where houses are spread out and you have a rural feel, even if it’s not strictly rural. Often they are inhabited by people who can afford to move out of the city, or just want more space. On average, people are educated and have decent incomes, as opposed to many cities, where you often get extremes of poverty and wealth and an eroded middle class.