Help about Boston pleaseeeeee!!! (Cambridge, Fall River: fit in, apartments, rental)

[jrokjam]

We are military, and POSSIBLY being stationed in the Boston area. I say possibly because we will find out today or tomorrow for sure. I just need to know good (safe) areas that are affordable. It is just me and my husband, no kiddos yet, but we do have 2 pugs. We are from San Antonio so are used to larger cities. I hear outskirts of Boston may be a better fit? We are looking for a 1 or 2 bedroom, doesn't have to be huge, but in a good/safe neighborhood. Any advice/suggestions/feedback etc would be appreciated. We have about a week to find a place to live (if we do indeed go to Boston) so trying to make the search as easy as possible..thanks in advance!!

[sobo16]

Do you have an idea of what your housing budget will be? Also, where would your job(s) be? Housing is expensive here, and the traffic can get pretty bad. I'd start your search around where you'd be working.

[jrokjam]

It's going to be a recruiting station in the boston area, but couldn't say until the end of the day today or early morning tomorrow. We would like to keep it at $2,000 or below, but like I said, not looking for anything big. Just want safe, simple, and I guess an easy commute. However, like I said, we are from SA, 1.3 million ppl or so, so traffic, not an issue, we have dealt with that plenty.

[jrokjam]

Ok found out we are going to Quincy, MA...suggestions? tips? advice??

[Cliff Clavin]

Quincy itself isn't bad. Plenty of rental options in your price range, safe and of course the commute would a breeze.

[MassVt]

Quincy itself would be fine, and not extremely expensive by Boston standards. It has the additional plus of having several stops on the Red Line(subway) heading back into Boston. If pressed for time, then this would be a decent place to start.

[ogre]

First, thank you for your service.

I agree that Quincy itself is a good possibility, but it depends on what you're looking for. Are you aiming to rent a house for 2k, or would an apartment work so long as they would accept your dogs? Though pets can be an issue, a rent of 2k will give you a number of options in the Boston area, if you're looking for an apartment. If you want a house for that price, your options will be more limited, and you may need to settle for the simple description you gave of what you're looking for.

Whether you're looking for a house or apartment, a little more info on the kind of neighborhood you'd prefer if possible would help narrow the possibilities. Would you prefer urban, suburban, a bit out in the country, some mix of these? Shopping or dining within walking distance? Do you want ready access to public transit?

Quincy is in the transitional zone between areas that are urban and suburban in character, so Quincy has some areas that are somewhat urban and others that are more suburban. It depends on the neighborhood. Quincy is a good choice if you'd like a basic small city with some local shopping and dining. A town to consider if you really want suburbia is Braintree, just south of Quincy.

[jrokjam]

It's actually my husband who serves, but he said he appreciates your words
We are looking for an apartment to rent for 2k or less. We found a couple in Norwood and Canton. What parts of Quincy should we consider? We would like a mixture or suburbia and city if that's possible. We are used to a big city, so walking distance to food/shops etc would actually be really nice! San Antonio is sooo spread out that you have to drive everywhere here. It would be nice to not have to drive everywhere and to use public transportation! Are there any other places around Quincy to consider? I will look up Braintree, I know I saw some apartments there. We were originally scheduled for Fall River, so I know this is a better place to be right?? lol, we heard a lot about FR..We would also like easy access to Boston if that is possible as well. Thank you so much for the input so far!!

[ogre]

Okay, 2k for an apartment should give you some good flexibility. I don't know the details of Quincy well enough to recommend particular neighborhoods, so let's hope others chime in with that info. In terms of Quincy's general character, it seems like a great place for you to start your search, because it has that urban/suburban mix you're looking for. You might want to follow up on those places you've learned of in Braintree just because the town is so close to Quincy that the commute would be convenient, but keep in mind that Braintree might not be the best fit in terms of overall feel, given what you've added about feeling it would be nice to be able to walk to local businesses. Braintree is pretty suburban in character.

For some other options, even if the commute would be longer than it would from right in Quincy itself, you may want to check out neighborhoods around the stops along the red line (the subway line that serves Quincy) in Cambridge and Somerville. Those would be Central, Harvard, Porter, and Davis Squares. You might at least look around Kendall Square as well, although it's more oriented around commercial activity and the MIT campus, while the other "Squares" neighborhoods along that stretch of the red line have more of a mix of commercial activity and urban residential. Porter Square is the least urban of those neighborhoods, more of that urban/suburban mix while the others tilt more toward urban, but Porter also has less going on in the way of commercial activity. Don't know whether this appeals to you, but Davis Square has a concentration of young professionals.

How long a commute is okay for your husband? That has a bearing on what other areas might work for you, if any, such as areas along other T (subway) lines than the red line which would mean a transfer during the commute.

Map of the subway system, so you can get some picture of the layout and what areas the various lines connect to: MBTA Subway 'The 'T' > Maps, Schedules, and Fare Information for the Boston Area Subway System. Click on the "Interactive Street Map" tab and you'll see the subway lines overlaid on a map of the city, so you get a better idea what's actually near each stop. The four stops on the red line from North Quincy on the north to Quincy Adams on the south are all in Quincy.

[sm4269a]

Hingham, Cohasset and Scituate are great towns on the water near Quincy. Weymouth is nice also. Norwood and Canton are nice too but they might be a little bit of a hassle to commute from