Work in Holden/Worcester - Where is a single early 30's professional to live? (Boston: apartment, for rent)

[rippersid]

Hello,

I am a single early 30's professional moving from Seattle to the general Boston area.

I need a little help in figuring out the best place to live for someone like me, moving from Seattle

Facts about me:
Single
Male
Liberal
Hetero
Early 30's
Will be working in Holden
Will have a car
I currently pay ~$1800 for a 1 bedroom + covered parking in the heart of downtown Seattle (4th Ave/Belltown for people familiar with Seattle)
I'd be comfortable paying around $2200 for a nice place

What I am looking for:
1 bedroom apartment for rent (not really into living with room mates given I like having my own place)
Easy access to get on/off the Pike
A neighborhood with young, single professionals
Easy access to downtown Boston via the T
Preferably urban environment with walking access to restaurants, bars, grocery stores, gyms etc

What I've found so far that meets some of my criteria:
Fenway
Cambridge
Brookline/Coolidge corner
Davis Square
Porter Square
Copley Square
Possibly Framingham/Natick
I've ruled out Worcester given that I've been told that it might not be the best place for someone like me.

Questions/Concerns:
How bad of a commute is it? I used to walk to work (8 minutes door to door here in Seattle) so I am mentally getting ready to give up that luxury.
Is this really a reverse commute?
Do people really do the commute from the general Boston area to Worcester?
What should I know if I lived within the Boston city limits?
What would be the best way to go about finding a place? Craigslist or a Realtor?

Any help or insights are much appreciate O wisdom of the crowds

In return, I plan on updating this when I've made my decision and how I went about doing so.

Thank you

[scorpio516]

Originally Posted by rippersid

How bad of a commute is it? I used to walk to work (8 minutes door to door here in Seattle) so I am mentally getting ready to give up that luxury.

Bad. Your looking at well over 1 hour. A couple hours when there is snow. Without traffic, Copely square to Holden is over an hour...

Is this really a reverse commute?
Do people really do the commute from the general Boston area to Worcester?

Kinda and yes. I used to work with someone who commuted from Malden and someone who commuted from Somerville. They both lived there and commuted to Worcester because their spouses either worked in Boston or went to Harvard.
Quite a few people commute outbound, as lots of people work along 128 or 495.

Any help or insights are much appreciate O wisdom of the crowds

My advice?
Don't.

Your going to spend all your time commuting. Live closer to Holden. If you live close enough to be walkable to a T line, your going to be so far from work your never going to use the T because you'll have just spent 11 or 12 hours in your car and at work.

Holden is a great town, however if your not building a family, it's a little slow.
Worcester would be fine. I live around a lot of doctors, but mostly families.
West/North/Southborough would be ok if sleepy. Shrewsbury too.
Framingham/Natick would be as far from Holden I would live. Depending on where, your still looking at at least 30-45 minutes each way.

This really should moved to the Mass. parent forum.

[495neighbor]

My first suggestion would be to find the better safest areas of Worcester, maybe around the colleges. I think the Northwest part of Worcester is decent. While not as fun as Boston, there will be graduates as well as undergraduates including the medical school there so at least there are some young single people around.

Mt.Wachusett is a nice local recreational area near Worcester if you like night skiing and day hikes.

If you want to live closer to the big action, Waltham would be the place. At over 50 miles each way you will be burning up a lot of gasoline, but at least you will be going against traffic. Waltham along Moody Street has a decent restaurant and bar scene. Waltham is home to Bentley University and Brandeis and attracts young professionals along with students.

[thenewtexan]

I'm a big advocate for the Framingham/Marlboro/Westboro area, since work is in Holden, and you want to stay close to Boston. No more than 30 minutes in either direction. It's right near the T, 495, 290, and the Mass Pike.

[Mordi]

coming from seattle, you will not want to live in worcester or the surrounding areas -- trust me on this. people are always gentle on this forum b/c they dont want to offend anyone, but worcester is a pretty much a dump. holden is a decent suburb, but a suburb of a dump isnt exactly a winning lottery ticket, either.

your best bet is framingham. 40 minutes to worcester, access to rt 9 and the pike, and a half hour or so to boston with T access. framingham is also not perfect, but it allows you contact with the boston world and a commute that wont make you want to jump out into traffic.

if you can afford it and dont mind an hour in the car (not an unreasonable commute for the boston area), then newton might be an option. you will find many more like-minded people, restaurants, singles, etc.

[rippersid]

Originally Posted by scorpio516

Bad. Your looking at well over 1 hour. A couple hours when there is snow. Without traffic, Copely square to Holden is over an hour...



Kinda and yes. I used to work with someone who commuted from Malden and someone who commuted from Somerville. They both lived there and commuted to Worcester because their spouses either worked in Boston or went to Harvard.
Quite a few people commute outbound, as lots of people work along 128 or 495.



My advice?
Don't.

Your going to spend all your time commuting. Live closer to Holden. If you live close enough to be walkable to a T line, your going to be so far from work your never going to use the T because you'll have just spent 11 or 12 hours in your car and at work.

Holden is a great town, however if your not building a family, it's a little slow.
Worcester would be fine. I live around a lot of doctors, but mostly families.
West/North/Southborough would be ok if sleepy. Shrewsbury too.
Framingham/Natick would be as far from Holden I would live. Depending on where, your still looking at at least 30-45 minutes each way.

This really should moved to the Mass. parent forum.

Thank you. I appreciate the well thought of answer. I am still torn on the issue. How about if I got on the Pike around 6-6:30 AM and got back on around 4-4:30 PM from Holden? Would that be much of an issue?

Also, I know that Boston is much older than Seattle and all the places that I have been looking at, pretty much none of them offer covered parking? Is parking really that much of a hassle? If I were to get a car, what neighborhoods of Boston would you rate to be better to have a car in?

Thank you

[rippersid]

Originally Posted by 495neighbor

My first suggestion would be to find the better safest areas of Worcester, maybe around the colleges. I think the Northwest part of Worcester is decent. While not as fun as Boston, there will be graduates as well as undergraduates including the medical school there so at least there are some young single people around.

Mt.Wachusett is a nice local recreational area near Worcester if you like night skiing and day hikes.

If you want to live closer to the big action, Waltham would be the place. At over 50 miles each way you will be burning up a lot of gasoline, but at least you will be going against traffic. Waltham along Moody Street has a decent restaurant and bar scene. Waltham is home to Bentley University and Brandeis and attracts young professionals along with students.

I've really been told by quite a few people, including my hiring manager (who lives in Shrewsbury) to stay out of Worcester. I was there for a night at a hotel and did walk around town and I think I agree with the general consensus about the town.

[rippersid]

Originally Posted by thenewtexan

I'm a big advocate for the Framingham/Marlboro/Westboro area, since work is in Holden, and you want to stay close to Boston. No more than 30 minutes in either direction. It's right near the T, 495, 290, and the Mass Pike.

Any town in particular that you would specifically recommend for me?

[rippersid]

Originally Posted by Mordi

coming from seattle, you will not want to live in worcester or the surrounding areas -- trust me on this. people are always gentle on this forum b/c they dont want to offend anyone, but worcester is a pretty much a dump. holden is a decent suburb, but a suburb of a dump isnt exactly a winning lottery ticket, either.

your best bet is framingham. 40 minutes to worcester, access to rt 9 and the pike, and a half hour or so to boston with T access. framingham is also not perfect, but it allows you contact with the boston world and a commute that wont make you want to jump out into traffic.

if you can afford it and dont mind an hour in the car (not an unreasonable commute for the boston area), then newton might be an option. you will find many more like-minded people, restaurants, singles, etc.

Thanks Mordi for the straight up answers. How about Natick? Is Natick better than Framingham?

What about other areas within greater Boston? How about Somerville/Davis Sq. or Allston/Brighton, Fenway etc etc?

I understand that there are going to be tradeoffs, but I'd like to know from people who've done something similar and know the area well - which i think people on the forum do.

Thanks once again for your help!

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by Mordi

coming from seattle, you will not want to live in worcester or the surrounding areas -- trust me on this. people are always gentle on this forum b/c they dont want to offend anyone, but worcester is a pretty much a dump. holden is a decent suburb, but a suburb of a dump isnt exactly a winning lottery ticket, either.

your best bet is framingham. 40 minutes to worcester, access to rt 9 and the pike, and a half hour or so to boston with T access. framingham is also not perfect, but it allows you contact with the boston world and a commute that wont make you want to jump out into traffic.

if you can afford it and dont mind an hour in the car (not an unreasonable commute for the boston area), then newton might be an option. you will find many more like-minded people, restaurants, singles, etc.

Huh, I'd pick Worcester over Framingham any day of the week.