Looking for a studio (good areas to live in) (Boston: apartment, crime rate)

[Massachusetts-studio]

Hello,

I am moving from Minneapolis to Boston and I am looking for an affordable studio apartment. I will be working in west end, so anything close to the red line would be great. I am having a hard time finding an affordable studio in the surrounding areas. Places I've been looking at are - Back bay, North end, Somerville and Cambridge. I am a single woman and looking for a place in a safe neighborhood.

If someone has any recommendations for areas or apartment buildings I should look into, please let me know.

Thanks!

[tysmith95]

JP is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Boston and it's an easy commute on the orange line to the north station/west end area. Melrose is a great town and has an orange line stop at its southern end (in my experience the orange line is faster and less stressful than I-93 during rush hour). Malden is also fairly safe and would be worth a look.

[Massachusetts-studio]

Great, will look into those areas. My budget is $1300, so hopefully I can find some good options in JP, Melrose and Malden. Thanks!

[tysmith95]

Also take a look at Quincy which is on the Red Line.

[Massachusetts-studio]

I've heard that quincy isn't very safe. Is that true? I am looking for a safe neighborhood that has good public transportation.

[tysmith95]

I find Quincy to be safe. The crime rate is lower than the city of Boston and about equivalent to Malden.

Do you want to live in an urban area or are you ok with a less walk-able suburban environment? What's your maximum commute time?

If you want to live in a nicer neighborhood you could always consider finding roommates. It's very common in the Boston area among people of all ages.

[Massachusetts-studio]

I won't have a car so something with an easy T line commute to MGH is what I'm looking for. Anything under 30-40 mins would be my preferred commute time.

[tysmith95]

Melrose would be challenging without a car. Will the southern part of town is next to Oak Grove the city is pretty suburban.

If I was in your situation I would try to find roommates. You can get a much nicer place if you're open to that.

[bostonguy1960]

Quincy is quite safe overall. It's a city, so there will be strange people and such but overall you should be fine.

Hardly any CL ads for studios under $1,300 in places you've mentioned. There's a basic one in Malden for $1,300. Wow, Malden has become expensive.

Arlington has a studio/1 br for $1,300. It's next to North Cambridge, near buses to the red line. It's a nice alternative to Cambridge.

Not even much in Quincy.

This isn't Minneapolis-St. Paul for prices for studios I've seen on CL, that's for sure.