Where to live between Worcestor and Brookline? (Boston, Worcester: apartment complex, to rent)

[ypp]

Hi everyone

We are going to move to Boston area this fall. Still don't know where to live.

I got a job in U mass Med School, and my husband will work in Harvard Medical School. We have 2 kids. Does anyone have idea which area is good for us? And how long would it take to our Worcestor/ Brookline? We prefer taking public transportation rather than driving.

[kmann-sherborn]

You're probably better off moving a little closer to Brookline than Worcester since the west to east commute will be longer than east to west. A few bits of info would be helpful for folks to make a recommendation: What type of community are you looking for (urban/rural/suburban)? Are schools important? Looking to buy or rent? Budget?

[ypp]

We want to rent a two bedroom apartment at quiet and safe suburban area. Hope the rent is below 2,000/mo. My daughter is about 2, and I might send her to daycare.

[Netta Lizondo]

Definitely look into Northborough, Southborough or Westborough. There are a couple of new upscale apt. complexes.

[kmann-sherborn]

Avalon Communities is a newer apartment complex in Northborough & Westborough.

[holden125]

Northboro, Southboro, Westboro are much closer to Worcester. Pretty far from Brookline. Natick or even Newton might be worth a look. If you live near the Mass Pike in Newton, the drive to Worcester would largely be against traffic. Maybe 45-50 mins. Natick is closer to the halfway point.

[jlyang]

I worked at Harvard Med for 4 years, and can attest that traffic going into Harvard Med is a nightmare. It can take 20 minutes to go the last 1-1.5 miles into Harvard Med sometimes. Sounds impossible, but you have to see it to believe it. If you try to drive into Harvard Med during rush hour from west of town, 5 miles can take 30-45 minutes.

Anyways, for your situation, you're likely best off living near the Riverside MBTA Green Line T stop in Newton. The T will take you to Harvard in about 30 minutes. It's near the Mass Pike so that you can hop on and go westbound to UMass. It's probably a 30 mile reverse commute to UMass, so morning traffic would be light. Evening traffic going back to Newton could still be moderate to heavy sometimes, though.

With towns like Natick which are in between UMass and Harvard, you'd have to drive to Harvard during non-rush-hour in order to keep your sanity-- driving from Natick to Harvard Med during rush hour both ways will be a killer.

[Highwyre237]

You may want to look into the apartment complex thats located right on the Woodland T stop, Arborpoint at Woodland
Arborpoint at Woodland Station - Apartments in Newton, MA (http://www.arborpoint.com/woodland-station/newton.html - broken link)

Not sure on the prices, but it looks like a nice complex, and super convenient to commute into brookline. Also very close to the 90 and 95.

[Highwyre237]

Another option could be to get close to the Frammingham/Worchester line. That train line has a stop called Yawkee, that ends up pretty close to the longwood area. I know Dana Farber has a free shuttle from there, harvard med may too. Also, that same line outbound goes to worchester. Not sure exactly where Umass Med School is, but that may be an option for you too.