City feel with commute to Bridgewater (Boston, Cambridge: 2014, apartment, loans)

[JavelinP]

Hi, I'm moving to MA in a few months for a job in Bridgewater. I don't plan to live in Bridgewater, but don't want more than an hour commute, with traffic. Ideally, I'm looking for a town closer to Boston, that preferably has restaurants/shops/etc. within walking distance of an apartment. Something near the commuter rail would be great. I've heard a lot about Quincy or Dorchester. Thoughts?

[massnative71]

Quincy or Braintree (near S Braintree Sq.) would work. An alternative would be Plymouth. Not really a city, but it has a good sized downtown with all sorts of stuff to walk to. Fun place. It is further from Boston though, if that is important to you.

Don't recommend Dorchester, there no reason to go there over Quincy or Braintree (especially if you will be commuting to Bridgewater).

And btw. have you actually been to Bridgewater? It's a nice place, and has a quaint little DT (while the restaurant pickings are a little slim). Where in Bridgewater is the job?

[raveabouttoast]

Originally Posted by massnative71

Quincy or Braintree (near S Braintree Sq.) would work. An alternative would be Plymouth. Not really a city, but it has a good sized downtown with all sorts of stuff to walk to. Fun place. It is further from Boston though, if that is important to you.

I agree with Quincy or Braintree. Both have locations near the T (Red Line) that can get you into Boston easily. South Braintree square isn't too bad of a suggestion if you'll be driving to Bridgewater. Depending on where you live in Quincy, there may be a good amount of traffic you'll have to deal with, but it'd still be under an hour.

If you go with a place near the commuter rail, check out the schedule first on www.mbta.com I believe there are some commuter rails that do not run on the weekends.

[mdovell]

Officially Authorized Website of the Brockton Area Transit Authority - Schedules & Fares it has links to Ashmont and to Bridgewater a bit and area around it.

[JavelinP]

Thanks! I hadn't considered Braintree. I do want a quick commute to Boston, so Quincy seems like the best option so far.

[MassNative2891]

I know other people have said Braintree/Quincy would be better, but based off of your initial post; Dorchester would be just as good.

You could take the Commuter Rail from JFK into Bridgewater on The Old Colony Line and you'd be near the Red Line as well. It's the best option to go into DTX/Financial District/Cambridge when needed. This would be assuming that you would want live near the JFK/UMASS area. You would be a bus or train away from DTX/Andrew/Broadway/etc.

Braintree isn't very urban (it's officially a city but formally known as "The Town of Braintree") but Quincy is and it is vibrant. Quincy often gets skipped but it is a major part of the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro. It's the southern anchor essentially. You could take a train from Quincy Center to go to Bridgewater. There is a whole project going on to upgrade that area, so you should get on it before prices skyrocket.

Plymouth is a city as well, however it's far flung on the South Shore. It's vibrant near the shore and the center, but Bridgewater is arguably closer to Boston and happens to be a college town. As far as commuting; 3A is one of the worst commutes around. That would be the highway to get out to Plymouth.

Good luck hunting!

[n1ey]

Originally Posted by MassNative2891

I know other people have said Braintree/Quincy would be better, but based off of your initial post; Dorchester would be just as good.

You could take the Commuter Rail from JFK into Bridgewater on The Old Colony Line and you'd be near the Red Line as well. It's the best option to go into DTX/Financial District/Cambridge when needed. This would be assuming that you would want live near the JFK/UMASS area. You would be a bus or train away from DTX/Andrew/Broadway/etc.

Braintree isn't very urban (it's officially a city but formally known as "The Town of Braintree") but Quincy is and it is vibrant. Quincy often gets skipped but it is a major part of the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro. It's the southern anchor essentially. You could take a train from Quincy Center to go to Bridgewater. There is a whole project going on to upgrade that area, so you should get on it before prices skyrocket.

Plymouth is a city as well, however it's far flung on the South Shore. It's vibrant near the shore and the center, but Bridgewater is arguably closer to Boston and happens to be a college town. As far as commuting; 3A is one of the worst commutes around. That would be the highway to get out to Plymouth.

Good luck hunting!

Do not make all of these recommendations.

How is the guy supposed to take commuter rail from JFK? The train doesn't stop.
The outbound for Middleboro in the morning stops at Quincy Center. It doesn't stop at Braintree or JFK. The individual might be able to take the commuter rail from QC. Yet, Braintree and JFK are off the table. Just getting to the JFK station from nice housing would be a chore. It would cost more and the train doesn't stop there!

The person might as well find an apartment in Raynham and drive like the rest of world.


Bill

[mdovell]

Driving gets old though.

Plymouth isn't far flung since the new 44 was put in. However it's pretty big. There's a huge difference between living near Bourne and living near Kingston.

Quincy was going to be upgraded but the developer pulled out. We might end up seeing a massive version of Filene's Basement in Quincy.

Street-Works to drop out of Quincy redevelopment - Business - The Boston Globe

Basically....this isn't going to work. Within another 16 months interest rates will start to go up. Also Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are being phased out so any bank that is trying to deal with commercial loans is going to see a significant increase in residential requests. Lending to people with homes right in front of you or lending to something that isn't even built yet..what's the higher risk?