moving to Boston with kids (Cambridge, Quincy: real estate, apartments, rentals)

[asian_islander]

I'm currently living in Hawaii and planning to join my husband in Boston asap. He currently attends college at Berklee. We have two kids (ages 3 and 9). Where is an affordable city to live that is family friendly and has good schools. My husband needs to travel into Boston for school, and I'm sure anywhere near the T would do. We are hoping to rent a 2-3 bedroom for $1400 or less. Does anyone have any suggestions??

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by asian_islander

I'm currently living in Hawaii and planning to join my husband in Boston asap. He currently attends college at Berklee. We have two kids (ages 3 and 9). Where is an affordable city to live that is family friendly and has good schools. My husband needs to travel into Boston for school, and I'm sure anywhere near the T would do. We are hoping to rent a 2-3 bedroom for $1400 or less. Does anyone have any suggestions??

I think that you could find a decent 2BR apt in Newton, which would certainly have good school systems, and also on the Green Line. Newton is a pricy community for homebuying, but you could find a nice unit to rent,though.

A little south of the city ( Quincy, Braintree), you could also find decent housing, and these communities are on the Red Line.

I should point out that, since you're in Hawaii, heating for your abode will be important for the winter months; make sure to ask if heat/hot water are included in the price.....

BTW, you could also try Cambridge, but a 2 BR might be a little more expensive; the Red Line also runs through Cambridge; Somerville, also on the Red Line, might have some cheaper options, given that it's full of multi-family housing...

[RC1981]

I wouldn't recommend Cambridge or Somerville if you have kids that age, but you should definitely check out Newton, Watertown, or Belmont. If you live in Belmont you can catch the 71 or 73 bus and be in Harvard square in a matter of minutes, it's one of the best commuter options in town. Also Newton in particular (as mentioned) has amazing schools. Also Brookline as well will be a much easier commute and has wonderful schools, but might be a bit out of your price range. Some places in Brookline would even be walking distance to Berklee on a nice enough day.

[asian_islander]

Thank you! This helps a lot! I'm going to be looking at these places. Newton sounds perfect. What is the average cost for a 2-bedroom in Brookline?

As for the heating tip..thank you! I will definitely ask about heat and hot water. That is going to be really important in the winter especially for my kids.

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by asian_islander

Thank you! This helps a lot! I'm going to be looking at these places. Newton sounds perfect. What is the average cost for a 2-bedroom in Brookline?

As for the heating tip..thank you! I will definitely ask about heat and hot water. That is going to be really important in the winter especially for my kids.

Just go to "www.Boston.com" and check for "rentals" under the Real Estate Section. Type in the city requested, and see where it takes you.

[CaseyB]

I think Belmont is a good suggestion. My daughter rented a decent 2br there for $1350. It was a few years ago, but you might get lucky. Most likely Newton and Brookline apartments would be more.

[shiraziman]

There are plenty of 2-3 bedroom apartments in Quincy area in your price range:
Faxon Commons
Highlands at Faxon
or any other Corcoran properties are really good.
Corcoran, New York, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Hamptons, Shelter Island, North Fork & South Florida Real Estate, Rentals

[ogre]

Originally Posted by asian_islander

Thank you! This helps a lot! I'm going to be looking at these places. Newton sounds perfect. What is the average cost for a 2-bedroom in Brookline?

As for the heating tip..thank you! I will definitely ask about heat and hot water. That is going to be really important in the winter especially for my kids.

Brookline will generally have some of the higher rents of the towns that have been suggested. Also, Brookline does not allow parking on the streets overnight, so if you'll have a car, in Brookline you would need to find places with on-site parking, which is likely to mean a higher rent.

What kind of commuting time can you or your husband handle, by the way? There is a fairly wide range of commuting times you'd be looking at from the towns that have been suggested here.

I'll add my voice in agreeing with those who have suggested that Belmont would be worth an especially close look in order to strike a good balance between location, family feel, good schools, and cost of housing.

[RC1981]

A 2 bed in Brookline will probably start at about $1800 and could go all the way up to $3000...If you do have a car though, then you can check out the Chestnut Hill section which is a lot more quiet and suburban but priced cheaper because there's no public transportation.

At the end of the day though, I think I have to concur with the other posters and say Belmont is probably your best bet. You'll get a good place that'll be right in your price range and the commute is a snap, with or without a car. The schools are pretty good there as well and everything you need is pretty much walkable. The schools are better in Newton though, but the commute is a lot more complicated in some parts, and it'll generally be just a bit more expensive than Belmont.

[ncarson]

I was laid off from my job 5 months ago. I am thinking of relocating to Boston from Ft.Lauderdale,FL to work for a prestigious company that will be flying me in for an interview. If I am offered the job, it will be me and my 11 year old son. Relocating will be new for the both of us. However, in my line of work it will require me to travel about 40% of the time and I will be working from my home office. Of course one of my biggest concerns would be when I travel which is on average for a day, the most of 2 days if going to multiple cities. This job offer would be a chance of a lifetime and the salary would be more than enough the live there due to the higher cost of living. Living in Florida has become a major burden financially being it is quite expensive to live here and the pay doesn't nearly meet the expenses. I am over qualified for companies here in my area. I do believe the move would be great for my son and I, but I don't know what to do when it comes down to when I would have to go out of town for a day or two, 2-3 times out of the month at times. Any advice or suggestions? Also, the development I lease with have developments in the surrounding cities of Marlborough/Boston. Like Quincy for example. So my lease would be transferred. Which is great! Still what about my son when I have to go out of town? Open for suggestions?