Moving to Springfield-any advice? (Chicopee, Westfield: budget, apartments, houses)

[moving12345]

I will graduate with my MBA this summer, and am looking to move to the Springfield area for 2 years. Can anyone give me information regarding the good and bad places to live in and around Springfield? I am looking to rent a 1 bedroom apartment, and have a budget of about $1,000 a month. I would like a safe neighborhood with good access to highways. If possible I would like to be near American International College. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Russia25]

AIC is located in a VERY rough area of Springfield. I would suggest looking at towns immediatly outside of Spfld to commute from. Possibly Ludlow or even West Springfield. All of the towns around Spfld are very close to I-90 and I-91.

[south-bound]

I agree. The good sections of Springfield are not near the highways, and are on the outskirts of the city. And they don't generally have apartments; they are single-family houses. If you need an apartment, I'd suggest looking at the surrounding towns of Agawam, West Springfield, Chicopee, or Ludlow.

[jeffw]

good and springfield umm nope ......

check agawam, southwick, westfield, west spring has a few good spots. ludow is a bit of a commute that is not needed with other choices.

lots of choices for 1,000 month. you can get a entire house for close to that in agawam. check masslive.com for homes and area info.

[moving12345]

Thank you for your replies. How is the Westfield area? How long is the commute to AIC and to downtown springfield? What about the other suburb? Are there affordable apartments that are not too far from AIC? Thanks

[tecra260]

There are some nice decent Apts in W Springfield for around $740 approx