Allston or Somerville? (Boston, Winchester, Harvard: apartments, houses, neighborhood)

[supernuckolls]

Hey guys. Im might be moving to boston and im looking for a place with a younger crowd. im 26 years old and two of my choices for work are allston and somerville. im not afraid of the college areas, but am looking for a little nicer area. let me know what you think.

thanks

[slang75]

Somerville. Stick to the areas around Davis, Inman and Union. There is a lot to do and less of a college crowd than Allston. The red line is FAR better than the B line, too. Commuting to the city for fun will be much easier.

[DreamworksSKG]

Definitely Somerville over allston any day

---jeff
Winchester, MA

Look into an apartment in Davis Square near Tufts Univ.

[HowGoesIt]

Go with Allston. It's cheaper, hotter babes (BU, BC chics.. less bohemian), more bars and clubs, and much closer to Boston. Definitely more of a city vibe in Allston.

I never knew what was so great about Somerville. It always struck me as too suburban.

[eevee]

well, I've lived in both Allston and Somerville and I say, SOMERVILLE ALL THE WAY! Allston is not much more than a student ghetto. the apartments tend to be overpriced and run down, and the decent apartments are extremely expensive (price gouging scumlords). the students in Allston are a different breed than the students in Somerville, w/ the Allston bunch being far louder, drunker, immature, and disruptive and the Somerville group. theft is a major problem there, as is bed bugs (DON'T ever move into a furnished Allston apartment!!!). the B line sucks beyond all belief (it's actually quicker at times to take the 57 bus than the trolley!).

Somerville, mostly the area around Porter and Davis Sqs, have much better apartments (mostly houses compared to the larger buildings in Allston. I prefer houses b/c there's a better chance of ending up w/ a landlord that actually lives in the state as opposed to some major corp. plus, houses tend to be bigger), more green space (the Minuteman trail), better commute option, and some great hangouts (including those w/in easy commutes like in Harvard Sq and Central.)

Allston does have some good thrift stores (just make sure you wash everything first) and some good hangouts (esp. if you commute to the Fenway). still, it's a nice place to visit, I just wouldn't want to live there (ever, ever again!)

I guess it all depends on the type of crowd you want to live w/. I'm admittedly a quieter person, and prefer the mostly more mature undergrads/grads of Tufts, Lesley, and Harvard, then the mostly rowdier students of BU (BC kids mostly stick closer to Cleveland Circle). I mean this as no insult to any BU students or course, but those kids drove me crazy!

best bet is to check out the areas personally-PREFERABLY when school is in session!!!

[mapl]

Originally Posted by eevee

well, I've lived in both Allston and Somerville and I say, SOMERVILLE ALL THE WAY! Allston is not much more than a student ghetto. the apartments tend to be overpriced and run down, and the decent apartments are extremely expensive (price gouging scumlords). the students in Allston are a different breed than the students in Somerville, w/ the Allston bunch being far louder, drunker, immature, and disruptive and the Somerville group. theft is a major problem there, as is bed bugs (DON'T ever move into a furnished Allston apartment!!!). the B line sucks beyond all belief (it's actually quicker at times to take the 57 bus than the trolley!).

Somerville, mostly the area around Porter and Davis Sqs, have much better apartments (mostly houses compared to the larger buildings in Allston. I prefer houses b/c there's a better chance of ending up w/ a landlord that actually lives in the state as opposed to some major corp. plus, houses tend to be bigger), more green space (the Minuteman trail), better commute option, and some great hangouts (including those w/in easy commutes like in Harvard Sq and Central.)

Allston does have some good thrift stores (just make sure you wash everything first) and some good hangouts (esp. if you commute to the Fenway). still, it's a nice place to visit, I just wouldn't want to live there (ever, ever again!)

I guess it all depends on the type of crowd you want to live w/. I'm admittedly a quieter person, and prefer the mostly more mature undergrads/grads of Tufts, Lesley, and Harvard, then the mostly rowdier students of BU (BC kids mostly stick closer to Cleveland Circle). I mean this as no insult to any BU students or course, but those kids drove me crazy!

best bet is to check out the areas personally-PREFERABLY when school is in session!!!

Being a Somerville resident myself (I've lived here for 20 years), I agree with you about Somerville's being a liveable city with things to do, and being close to Boston and all. Somerville's also got a very different flavor than the Allston/Brighton area. However, although I agree with most of what you have to say about Somerville's being a liveable city, I take issue with one aspect of your post: Although Somerville's got fewer students, and therefore fewer of the problems of partying til all hours of the night, etc., it still goes on, nonetheless. Residents in some parts of Somerville, too, have complained about some of the students in their area partying, making lots of noise and playing loud music, etc., until all hours of the night. It doesn't happen to the same degree as it does over in the Allston-Brighton area with kids from BC, BU, Harvard, but it does occur, nonetheless.

[Coem]

Believe it or not, at age 26 you are actually too old to live in Allston. The Allston crowd is very young and it will drive you crazy, trust me. I lived in Allston during my mid 20s and was rejected by more than one girl there as being "too old". Also, as mentioned above the B train is the absolute worst line in Boston. The only good thing I have to say about Allston is that my favorite restaurant in all of Boston is there... Sunset Grill

[LeavingMA]

Originally Posted by HowGoesIt

Go with Allston. It's cheaper, hotter babes (BU, BC chics.. less bohemian), more bars and clubs, and much closer to Boston. Definitely more of a city vibe in Allston.

I never knew what was so great about Somerville. It always struck me as too suburban.

I'd agree. Somerville never seemed that great to me. Some people loved the Davis Square area, but I never thought it was anything special other than being able to jump right on the red line.

I would suggest Brighton over Allston and Somerville, although it is slightly further out from Boston.

[Bluefly]

I'm not sure any college students are more mature than any other - i.e. BU students less mature than Harvard. I live in Brighton - which is right next dooro but a world away from Allston. But I'm about your age and feel like an old man in Allston. I've done my fair share of nightlife scenes, but never seen anything as homogenous and bland as Allston. Even if a particular bar draws a certain crowd. I'm accustomed to being able to bounce to another bar for another crowd. In Allston, EVERY bar draws the same identical crowd -21-22 (if that), middle class, college frat, white... oy. It's a horrible neighborhood. And, you might not realize it yet, but at 26 you're going to outgrow that scene real quick. Might want to set roots where there's another scene you can jump into.

One time I took my dog on a walk to return a video and this girl says, "You bring your dog out just to show off?" It just showed that in her mind - and many - Allston fails to be a neighborhood and is nothing more than a string of bars where someone with a dog is showing off. Has some interesting shops to meander through during the day, though.

[LeavingMA]

Originally Posted by Bluefly

I'm not sure any college students are more mature than any other - i.e. BU students less mature than Harvard. I live in Brighton - which is right next dooro but a world away from Allston. But I'm about your age and feel like an old man in Allston. I've done my fair share of nightlife scenes, but never seen anything as homogenous and bland as Allston. Even if a particular bar draws a certain crowd. I'm accustomed to being able to bounce to another bar for another crowd. In Allston, EVERY bar draws the same identical crowd -21-22 (if that), middle class, college frat, white... oy. It's a horrible neighborhood. And, you might not realize it yet, but at 26 you're going to outgrow that scene real quick. Might want to set roots where there's another scene you can jump into.

One time I took my dog on a walk to return a video and this girl says, "You bring your dog out just to show off?" It just showed that in her mind - and many - Allston fails to be a neighborhood and is nothing more than a string of bars where someone with a dog is showing off. Has some interesting shops to meander through during the day, though.

That is going out in Boston for you. I don't really do the bar scene anymore, but when I'm out there with friends, if your 25 or older you'll feel old and feel like you've done the same thing 100+ times before. It doesn't seem like anything changes, with the a lot of people being drunk, obnoxious college students.