Visiting Boston April to hunt houseing, Any Suggestion? (Newton, Brookline: hardwood floors, for sale)

[plee1]

I am going to start work July at longwood medical area.
Me and my wife decide to visit next month to make a contract for housing.
We are looking JP or Newton (including Chestnut Hill). Actually, if there are better place any suggestion will be appreciated.
We have one baby that I heard we need a de-leaded place.
1) Shall I go through realtor? or by myself (rent a car and go through craigslist)?
2) Does anyone have lived in a 2 or 3 family house? How's it work?
Different entrance door? or same door with stairs? Can you hear upstair or downstair?
3) I searched this forum and figure out JP pond area should be nice and safe. And they have #39 bus that I can easily reach to longwood. Am I right?
4) If I look around Chestnut hill or newton, I may have to end it up family house. Is it a good idea with a baby?
5) Our budget is around 1800 for two bed. Will that be enough for all places?
6) Shall I get Heat and how water included? or not. How much it cost if I rent around 1000sf two bed?

I have to much questions!!! Thank you in advance!!!!

[HowGoesIt]

Short answers to your questions.
1) Most apartments are listed through a broker. I would find a broker in the area and go from there. Plus, they know the area well.
2)Most of the housing stock in Boston are 2/3 family homes. Each home is different, but they manage to do it. It's actually kinda cool.
3)Yes, the #39 bus goes from JP to Longwood. Be careful though. JP is still a bit rough and the buses aren't always the best place to be late night. I lived in JP when I was in college (a couple years ago) and it was nice for the most part, but still a little rough late night.
4)I don't see why a family house wouldn't be good for a baby. Make sure to check it's de-leaded, or it might not be good for your crazy lead paint chip eating baby
5)Yes, it should be enough for most of the Boston area. Newton is nice and more family friendly than JP. JP is more young, hipster/poseur types.. with a few housing projects sprinkled throughout. I would also check out Brookline if you are working in the Longwood area.
6)Try to get H&HW included. If you live in a big building, usually H&HW are included. In most 2/3 family homes, you usually have to pay utilities yourself. Can be kind of pricey in the winter time.

[eevee]

regarding question #2, I've lived in several triple deckers, and, from my observation most double and triple deckers are set up in these ways:

1) one main door to the house. inside that main door is a vestibule w/ 2 doors, one for the 1st floor apartment, and one for the second and third apartment. depending on the LL, this second door upstairs may or may not be locked. this is more likely in triple deckers from what I've seen

2) there are two main doors to the house, one to the 1st floor apartment, the second to the 2nd/3rd apartment, though this set up is far more likely in a double decker, so each apartment would basically have it's own private entrance.

if you have the option, try to pick the topmost floor. my reasons why:

1st floor pros:
-less stairs. so much easier to move in and out (movers charge more if there are stairs involved and I sincerely doubt any double or triple decker would have any elevator).
-closer to basement amenities. if your LL provides washers and dryers in the basement or storage space, these will be closer at hand. I've lived in one apartment where the LL let us keep a storage freezer in the basement, and we never had to go far to grab the food out of there
-if you ever happen to get a dog (you never know; JP is VERY dog friendly), living on the first floor will be a godsend. all you'll have to do is just open up the door (or even a window!) and let it out, and just look out the window to make sure it's not destroying anything important. so much easier than having to drag the pup down a flight(s) of stairs.

1st floor cons:
-tends to be the smallest due to stair and door placement (can be about one bedroom/room smaller).
-they are less secure due to proximity to the ground, though if you pick your neighborhood right, this will likely not be an issue (some LLs put grates on the windows. the thing is to figure out whether these grates are just up to make people feel safer in an already safe neighborhood, or were they put up b/c the apartment proved to be a target? again, in Pondside JP or Chestnut Hill, you shouldn't have to worry too much or at all)
-if your building has outdoor decks, the first floor either doesn't get any, or they aren't private. you won't have the luxury of hanging out on a private deck or using it as storage
-the noise. apartments with hardwood floors are loud. if you are sensitive to noise, avoid this (remember the dog scenario from above? a few select dog friendly LLs will only rent 1st floor apts to dog owners b/c of the persistent clicking of dog nails. if there is a dog above you, this WILL drive you insane, trust me)

2nd floor pros:
-more secure than the first floor, yet not as many stairs as the 3rd floor
-if there is a outdoor deck, not only will it likely be private, but it will be covered by the 3rd floor deck, so you'll be protected from the rain (makes an excellent storage option). if you're really fortunate, you'll have both a front and a back deck

2nd floor cons:
-the NOISE! you will be in a no win situation here. the folks upstairs will likely drive you bonkers, and the folks downstairs will accuse YOU of driving them bonkers. if you choose the 2nd floor, I'd throw in some shag carpeting and hope your neighbors upstairs did the same (and don't own a dog)


3rd floor pros:
-very secure and more private since you'll be the only ones up there. the stair landing tends to be larger as well, so you could use that area for a bit of storage (like keep your bike or folded up stroller there. so long as it doesn't block the stairs of course)
-heat rises, so it will be toasty in the winter
-better views and lighting (esp. if you're Pondside, try to get a view of the Necklace). however, expect to pay a steep premium for that view.

3rd floor cons:
-the stairs may kill you. nothing like hauling up dozens of bags of groceries up 2 (oft times steep) flights of stairs. expect to have a tough time moving stuff like sectionals in and out (it's usually a tight curve between the 2nd and 3rd floor, the bane of many movers) and expect to pay top price for movers
-heat rises. expect to be toasty in the dead of summer (you'll most likely need an AC)
-in some places, there may be slanted eaves (though this isn't too typical in triple deckers, but I've seen them in doubles)

I'm sure I've missed a few pros and cons, but I've already made this reply way to long, so that will be it for now

[missionhill]

A three-decker "scholar" once wrote that the Roxbury triple usually has a pitched roof and so has eaves above the third floor apartment, and usually a front porch only on the first floor. The Dorchester decker is flat-roofed and apt to have porches all the way up. A historical factoid.

For both two and three-family houses, the Boston version is almost always split horizontally, with one unit per floor, rather than vertically.

[jlyang]

Hi,
I was at Harvard/Longwood 2001-2005 as were most of my friends, so I know the area and your situation well. Here are some thoughts:

1. Some people I know, mostly those looking for cheaper housing, did live in Jamaica Plain and take the #39 bus into Longwood. The bus runs fairly often and it should be a 10-30 minute ride depending on which part of Jamaica Plain you are in. Some areas of Jamaica Plain are high-crime, and one of my friends who took the #39 and lived in JP did run into crime problems sometimes.
Re. the JP pond area, it does look nice, but I don't know about safety-- the area right next to the pond (Perkins Street, the street running alongside the pond) is a very popular place for car thieves to steal cars. Aside from car theft, I've not heard of significant crime issues by the pond, though.
2. Brookline is the best place to live for your situation, since it is easily walkable to Longwood. Most medical residents/grad students/postdocs/etc I knew lived in Brookline. Brookline is a nice urban/suburban town bordering Longwood, and from many parts of Brookline it's a 10-15 minute walk to Longwood. You can survive in Brookline without a car. Renting a parking spot in Brookline costs about $150/month.
3. Deleaded apartments are rare and do cost extra. For a deleaded apt in Brookline I'd estimate $2000 and up maybe. You can get an idea of prices on craigslist classifieds: jobs, housing, personals, for sale, services, community, events, forums.
4. If you don't live in Brookline, then your next best bet is Newton, since the subway/train from there goes to Longwood. You want to live along the MBTA D Line trolley, preferably within walking distance to the station, (MBTA.com > Official Website for Greater Boston's Public Transportation System), since that takes you right into Longwood. The #60 bus also runs from Newton to the Longwood area.


So, Brookline and Newton would be your best bets. Newton is a little cheaper than Brookline, and you can probably find a deleaded 2-br for $1800 there. Again, price will vary depending upon if you're within walking distance to public transportation.

If you don't plan on having a car here, then Brookline would be a better place to live, to walk to Longwood. Be aware that the Boston public transportation system shuts down around 1am-5:30am.

If you'll be driving to Longwood, parking in a Harvard garage costs low $100s/month if you're a medical resident and have subsidized parking. If you're a Harvard employee, Harvard usually charges about $300/month for parking.

Hope this helps!

Originally Posted by plee1

I am going to start work July at longwood medical area.
Me and my wife decide to visit next month to make a contract for housing.
We are looking JP or Newton (including Chestnut Hill). Actually, if there are better place any suggestion will be appreciated.
We have one baby that I heard we need a de-leaded place.
1) Shall I go through realtor? or by myself (rent a car and go through craigslist)?
2) Does anyone have lived in a 2 or 3 family house? How's it work?
Different entrance door? or same door with stairs? Can you hear upstair or downstair?
3) I searched this forum and figure out JP pond area should be nice and safe. And they have #39 bus that I can easily reach to longwood. Am I right?
4) If I look around Chestnut hill or newton, I may have to end it up family house. Is it a good idea with a baby?
5) Our budget is around 1800 for two bed. Will that be enough for all places?
6) Shall I get Heat and how water included? or not. How much it cost if I rent around 1000sf two bed?

I have to much questions!!! Thank you in advance!!!!