Where to live in the Brighton/Brookline/Allston/Cambridge area? (Boston: rentals, how much)

[Nicoderm111]

Hello all,

I am coming from Ohio to the Boston area as a 24 year old single male. I made a big mistake in choosing where I am living now and I am not even sure if I will be able to get out of the lease, but I wanted to start my research now.

FYI I am living in a really family oriented, quiet town. This isn't a bad thing, but not much for a 24 year old single guy.

Anyways I was told by everyone I had met here so far that the Brighton/Brookline/Allston area is the young area to be.

I know they are all college town/young professional areas. So based on the following things I am looking for where would you suggest and which part?

- Parking
- Least noisy (more young pros that need to work in the morning opposed to college students)
- Cheapest
- Nice area/Safe (I know city life will be rough anywhere but I figured one of these have to be a little safer)'

Please, if you answer and help me, include a little about the best areas of the town to live in.

Thanks a ton!

[AnonChick]

Originally Posted by Nicoderm111

Brighton/Brookline/Allston area is the young area to be.

- Parking
- Least noisy (more young pros that need to work in the morning opposed to college students)
- Cheapest
- Nice area/Safe (I know city life will be rough anywhere but I figured one of these have to be a little safer)'

Thanks a ton!

Parking: Brighton
Least noisy: Brighton
Cheapest: Tossup between Brighton and Allston, though the area known as Allston-Brighton is probably the cheapest.
Nice area/Safe: Brookline, Brighton, Allston, Allston-Brighton, in that order. If you want somewhat less noisy -and- somewhat safe, I would avoid Allston-Brighton entirely, and I'd check Allston carefully before making a decision.

I have lived in Allston-Brighton, and in Brighton. I've spent nights in all the above, and lived in Boston proper as well. The best bang for your buck will be Brighton. It's not quite as collegiate as its neighbors, and is more blue-collar homeowners - sort of an "almost-suburb" within the city limits. In other words, some houses actually have front lawns

If you do a Google Earth search on Leamington Road and Peaceable Street, you'll see a pretty good chunk of blocks between the two. I lived on both - and everything inbetween was pretty decent, not -quite- family oriented, but more of a mishmosh of working class families, immigrants from Ireland and India (I know. I don't get it either.), college students, and young adults who have finished college and are working their way to fame and fortune (or misery and solitude, depending on their success level).

The rents are not cheap anywhere, no matter what part of the Boston area you move to. I'd recommend a roommate if you have time to search for one. There are services that do roommate matches in the area, maybe someone who lives there now can recommend one for you here on the forum. I haven't lived there in years but I visit often.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by Nicoderm111

Hello all,

I am coming from Ohio to the Boston area as a 24 year old single male. I made a big mistake in choosing where I am living now and I am not even sure if I will be able to get out of the lease, but I wanted to start my research now.

FYI I am living in a really family oriented, quiet town. This isn't a bad thing, but not much for a 24 year old single guy.

Anyways I was told by everyone I had met here so far that the Brighton/Brookline/Allston area is the young area to be.

I know they are all college town/young professional areas. So based on the following things I am looking for where would you suggest and which part?

- Parking
- Least noisy (more young pros that need to work in the morning opposed to college students)
- Cheapest
- Nice area/Safe (I know city life will be rough anywhere but I figured one of these have to be a little safer)'

Please, if you answer and help me, include a little about the best areas of the town to live in.

Thanks a ton!

Out of the places you've listed, Cambridge may be your best bet for finding the kinds of entertainment a young professional is likely to enjoy, without being surrounded by noisy undergrads. The trouble is, Cambridge often doesn't come cheap. I'll suggest some other options shortly, but to get back to Cambridge, you might want to pay especially close attention to the streets in the vicinity of Harvard Square and Porter Square. There are probably other good choices as well, but I don't know Cambridge well enough to recommend much beyond Harvard and Porter Sqares. You probably want to avoid the far northwestern section of Cambridge around Fresh Pond, which seems to be a family-oriented area that actually is somewhat suburban in appearance, despite the generally urban feel of Cambridge.

Somerville is an area near Cambridge which would be worth a close look by anyone who wants a young professional kind of place. Start your search in Somerville in the vicinity of Davis Sq.

As with Cambridge, one drawback with Somerville's young professional neighborhoods is that they may not be the least expensive areas you're going to find, but they may fit your other criteria well, so they're worth checking out to see what you can find that might fit your budget.

South Boston is an area that has gentrified siginificantly in recent years, but still might have some relatively less expensive rentals (by Boston standards) because of that area's longtime history as a blue-collar bastion. Southie, as South Boston is known locally, might very well offer you some young professional way of life without being such a long established young professionals area that rents have gone through the roof. Southie is worth a good look at the very least.

Jamaica Plain and the South End (a different area from South Boston, despite the similar names) are two of the more long established young pro areas in close to the city center. Housing costs are likely to be pretty high in those sections, so you need to work to ferret out any bargains there might be if you want something relatively cheap in those areas. Both sectons also seem to vary widely in terms of the safety of their neighborhoods, ranging from really nice to, um, not so nice (though not generally the worst neighborhoods in Boston), so you need to get the details on the neighborhood of any property you might be considering.

Jamaica Plain and the South End also differ some in their physical character. The South End is really the southern edge of the central city, so it's more densely built than most of J.P. The South End is especially attractive in the nicer areas, with elegant old rowhouse architecture, but J.P., being out a bit farther from downtown, may offer more parking options if you've got a car.

To get back to areas you are asking about, since you want some nightlife but also want to avoid being surrounded by noisy undergrads, Brighton, Brookline, and Allston can be tricky. Brighton and Allston seem to be either one or the other of what you want to avoid in most neighborhoods, either filled with noisy partying undergrads or more family-oriented. Brookline has some neighborhoods with somewhat of an urban feel in the sense of having restuarants and an eclectic variety of small local shops, but you're not going to find dance clubs and lots of bars right outside your door in those areas.

I'm not intimately familiar with most of Boston's outlying sections, including Brighton and Allston, not enough to give you a neighborhood-by-neighborhood rundown, but based on hearsay I think you may find a decent mix of families, young professionals, grad students, and maybe a few undergrads, but few enough so they don't dominate the scene with noisy parties, in the vicinity of Brighton Center. This is based on hearsay, though, so you'll need a more definitive word on this from someone who knows that area better than I do. (Holden (another user here who usually provides good details about Brighton), help me out here.) I believe that well over to the west side of Brighton is more family-oriented and blue-collar, and I do know that you definitely want to avoid the vicinity of Commonwealtha Ave. and the area around Cleveland Circle if you want to avoid noisy undergrad parties.

Allston is a very small area. As with Brighton, you want to avoid the side streets off of Comm. Ave. if the undergrad crowd is not your thing. It's my understanding that there is a very tiny area in the northernmost part of Allston that is more family-oriented. You might not be surrounded by young professionals there, but you would at least be only a short distance from the clubs in Allston, and public transit going toward downtown Boston and the nightlife in the inner neighborhoods, while having quieter neighbors than you'd have in most other parts of Allston.

It's tricky to find something that meets all your crieteria. Many areas have some of what you are looking for, but may fall short in terms of other criteria. One key question is what in terms of specific numbers for a housing budget you mean when you say you want the cheapest areas. In Boston, relatively cheap areas with especially young populations often are going to have their share of noisy college kids. The areas populated more by young adults, who want nightlife but also want to avoid the noisy kid atmosphere of the undergrad student ghettos, often aren't the least expensive sections to live in.

I'd suggest giving South Boston a close look for an area with a growing young professional population, which may not be quite as expensive as some of the other young professional neighborhoods. Also check around Brighton Center for a relatively less expensive area that may have a mix that includes some young professionals and grad students. You might also want to consider finding a roommate to share expenses. This could significantly increase the number of affordable options in such young professional areas as Jamaica Plain, the South End, and some neighborhoods of Somerville and Cambridge.

[brightdoglover]

I'd have to ask you to be more specific, like budget, where you work/what you do for work, etc.
None of these areas are particularly rough. Most of the Boston area could count as being a "college town," with some 250,000 college students in the area.
I personally would suggest Cambridge as being more young professional than college age. MIT and Harvard are smaller than, say, UMass or Boston Univ. and Cambridge doesn't have that same Everyone-under-22 vibe (at least, it didn't when I lived there, ages 22-39).
Parking is an issue everywhere, more so in the college kid areas of Brighton/Allston.
Brookline is overall a very nice and professional and cultural place to live
Nothing is cheap, and I'm hard-pressed to say if anything is cheapER. Rents where there are more college kids tend to be absurdly overpriced for junk housing.
But the OP is on the right track to be away from "quiet family area" such as suburban towns, that's for sure.
I personally favor Cambridge (Central Square up to North Cambridge) and Coolidge Corner and environs in Brookline. Brookline Village,too, really any part of Brookline that isn't out in the Brookline version of suburbia.

[stryker389]

Hello,

I am doing the same thing. I moved to Ohio from CT and hate it here. There's nothing to do and I am not a huge fan of my job and most of my friends are in the Boston area. I was actually looking in Brighton too. Also for something cheap, and as of now don't have a job set up there but am applying. I'm 24 too so kinda just starting off! Let me know if you find anything.

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by stryker389

Hello,

I am doing the same thing. I moved to Ohio from CT and hate it here. There's nothing to do and I am not a huge fan of my job and most of my friends are in the Boston area. I was actually looking in Brighton too. Also for something cheap, and as of now don't have a job set up there but am applying. I'm 24 too so kinda just starting off! Let me know if you find anything.

I'm 24, from Cleveland, moved to Brighton. I loved Cleveland, but Boston isn't bad either. However, I would suggest you don't live in Brighton. I'm looking to move as soon as it becomes feasible. Too many students, horribly slow public transportation (Green line can take 45 minutes to get downtown on bad days sometimes, despite being 5 miles away). It's also pretty boring here, which I guess could be a plus, depending on how you look at it.

If you can afford Cambridge, do it. If you're gonna live in Boston, I'd look into Jamaica Plain.

[Urban Peasant]

Any hip neighborhood that's attractive to young people in Boston will tend to be on the pricier side and not as easy to find parking. If you still want to stick to the popular places, then Jamaica Plain ought to suit you well. The Arnold Arboretum and Jamaica Pond are nearby for nice jogs, there are several shops and restaurants on Centre Street, a Whole Foods, and easy access to public transportation. Parking though not easy, is not as hard to find as other places like Cambridge and Somerville.

Another place to consider is Lower Allston, the part of Allston further away from the college kid infested section by Commonwealth Avenue. Lower Allston is centered around North Harvard Street and is more 20 something oriented with some families but has easy access to Harvard Square and Central Square, Cambridge by bus.

Keep in mind that competition is fierce for housing in these parts regardless of how much you are willing to pay. I've had friends that ended up venturing into more offbeat places such as Dorchester and East Boston to find housing that's slightly more affordable and in less demand. This actually might not be a bad idea if you do careful research.

[yaeger07]

I'm 25 and I live near Coolidge Corner in Brookline. There isn't much nightlife around here but it's nice and only 15-20 minutes to get to Back Bay by T. The other night it took 6 minutes from Brookline Village to Hynes. There are more bars/restaurants near Washington Square than CC. You have to pay for parking in Brookline (no overnight parking on the street) but on the plus side you don't have to worry about driving around the block for a spot, street cleaning, etc. I wouldn't live in Allston. Brookline is super safe, too.

[Urban Peasant]

Originally Posted by yaeger07

I'm 25 and I live near Coolidge Corner in Brookline. There isn't much nightlife around here but it's nice and only 15-20 minutes to get to Back Bay by T. The other night it took 6 minutes from Brookline Village to Hynes. There are more bars/restaurants near Washington Square than CC. You have to pay for parking in Brookline (no overnight parking on the street) but on the plus side you don't have to worry about driving around the block for a spot, street cleaning, etc. I wouldn't live in Allston. Brookline is super safe, too.

Brookline is interesting all right but doesn't it fall into the more expensive category? Still, if the OP can afford it, then by all means.

[yaeger07]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Brookline is interesting all right but doesn't it fall into the more expensive category? Still, if the OP can afford it, then by all means.

Yes, sorry. I meant to ask for OPs budget.