Newbies relocating to Boston, MA - Need advise PLEASE! (Framingham: best suburbs, apartments)

[JaneFrench]

Hi everyone!

My husband and I are hoping to get some incite from locals as we are about to move to Boston metro in the next few weeks.

My husband is about to take a new job either in Framingham (more likely) or Marlborough. We are not familiar with the area, so we need advise on the best suburbs/ neighborhoods. The commute needs to be not further than 20-25 miles for him.

The number one priority right now is to narrow down some suburbs where we can rent. The budget is not more than 2200-2300$ a month for a 2-bedroom. A nice condo complex with amenities, such as gym/pool would be ideal but not mandatory. We are 28 and 32, no kids, so schools are not a factor for now, however we would strongly prefer a clean/developed and safe area. It would be great if the neighborhood also has other young professionals. We enjoy going out to restaurants/bars/movies and being in a more urban environment, so hypothetically it would be ideal to be closer to Boston. But I understand that it might be unrealistic given the budget. So as an alternative a suburb would be fine as long as it is self-sufficient with a decent town center, and has enough going on in terms of places to eat and entertainment.

In about a year, we would like to purchase a house (probably at 500,000$ max for a 3 bedroom), but this is secondary at the moment.

For now, we were looking at Framingham and Natick, but don't know much about these areas. I would be grateful to hear any comments or recommendations.

Thanks in advance!

Jane & Nathan

[such sweet thunder]

Hi Jane, I might try asking this question on the Massachusetts forum. The collective knowledge here tends to be more Boston centric. Marlborough and Framingham are pretty good for commuting so I think you will have quite a few options. Best of luck.

[chicagoliz]

I think Natick is a good bet for you, as is Framingham. Natick is more expensive and Framingham is more varied, but the best bargain is if you find a nice place in Framingham, especially without kids.

Will you have a commute as well?

I'd also suggest looking in Waltham to see if you can find something (although your budget is on the low end).

If your husband ends up in Marlborough, there will be more housing in your price range, but I don't think it's what you want -- it will be further out from the city and won't have the urban vibe you are looking for.

[MMS02760]

You may want to look at Westborough which has a commuter rail station and is at the junction of routes 90 and 495. It would actually work for a job in either Marlboro or Framingham as it is equidistant. I believe apartments/condos for rent can be found in the town along the rte 9 corridor. I would also not be a bad town to later buy in.

[scorpio516]

Westborough, Northborough, Southborough, Hopkinton, Ashland, Shrewsbury.

You'll be able to find something nice in that range. $500k is the low range for houses in Southborough and Hopkinton, but those are sought after towns.

Shrewsbury is a 10 minute commute to Marlborough, but a bit longer to Framingham during rush hour.

[Ne999]

If you want to be closer to Boston you would obviously want to be east of Framingham although a lot of those areas can be more expensive. Natick is nice. Further east is dedham which you may find more affordable east of Framingham. Legacy place is a cool outdoor shopping area in Dedham and there are some condo complexes right near legacy place. They might run a tad over budget.

[Nobodybody]

I wouldn't recommend the 'Bouroughs' (Westborough, Southborough, etc.) as that whole area is nice but pretty sleepy.


Natick is great, and may be an ideal place for you to rent. It's a very desirable area due to proximity to Boston, schools (which don't impact you now but do have an effect on the housing market, etc). It isn't a thriving nightlife, but it has the most dense commercial corridor in the area, which offers a lot of restaurants, shopping, pubs and bars, etc. Being a bit more 'urban' than some of the other towns (but still a suburb), you will find more rentals than compared to other surrounding towns. Within an area called Natick Village you will find fairly standard apartments/condos below your stated budget, and near the Natick Mall you will find luxury apartments in buildings such as the Avalon, I believe within your stated budget. Natick has two commuter rail train stops which will provide easy access to Boston, or you can drive using the Mass pike as well and be downtown in less than 30 minutes outside of rush hour. As far as buying homes, you can still find homes under $500k, but they are typically more on the starter-home end or a condo. However, price appreciation and resale ability are stronger here.


Framingham is a bigger town (about to be reclassified as a city), and thusly has 'good' and 'bad' parts spread throughout. You may get more for your money here, but you may find it isn't as desirable as Natick, although certainly fine for renting and living in. It also has a commuter rail stop but the location is in a very busy area that can be a pain to get to. You can get a little more house for your money in this town.


My recommendation would be Natick, followed by Framingham, at least for starting out. This will put you close to work, in a nice town, and if you later decide you'd like to be closer to the city, you will at least have an idea of maybe where, exactly, you'd like to end up.

[JaneFrench]

Thank you so much everyone who replied! I really appreciate the input. We were a little worried about affordability, but it seems like there are definitely options out there for our budget.

I don't have a job in Boston yet, and am still looking. Another reason why we don't want to be far from the city, since my potential commute is unknown.

We were originally looking at Waltham, but my husband had a couple of hours to drive through and he said it's actually a little run down and not very clean (especially certain areas that are more affordable and within our budget). So I am very excited to check out Natick and other above mentioned towns near there since he is about to take the job offer in Framingham with Bose and there would be a pretty easy commute.

[SalamanderSmile]

Originally Posted by JaneFrench

Thank you so much everyone who replied! I really appreciate the input. We were a little worried about affordability, but it seems like there are definitely options out there for our budget.

I don't have a job in Boston yet, and am still looking. Another reason why we don't want to be far from the city, since my potential commute is unknown.

We were originally looking at Waltham, but my husband had a couple of hours to drive through and he said it's actually a little run down and not very clean (especially certain areas that are more affordable and within our budget). So I am very excited to check out Natick and other above mentioned towns near there since he is about to take the job offer in Framingham with Bose and there would be a pretty easy commute.

Nowhere in greater Boston is clean, you will get used to it, I have never lived anywhere as filthy with flat out littering than Boston.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by SalamanderSmile

Nowhere in greater Boston is clean, you will get used to it, I have never lived anywhere as filthy with flat out littering than Boston.

You havent lived many places then.