Good neighborhood for female undergraduate who will be in the Longwood Medical area (Boston: apartment, to rent)

[jackshaw]

I have a daughter who will be studying nursing and thus will be working in the Longwood Medical area as well as at other hospitals in the Boston area. She needs to be near good public transportation. She's been looking to rent but I thought it might make more economic sense to buy something like a 3 BR condo and have her rent out 2 BRs to other young women. We've looked in Jamaica Plain, which has some pretty nicely priced places, and Brookline Village. The latter seemed very safe and pretty staid. On first impressions, Brookline Village probably a little old fogey-ish for a young woman and even in Jamaica Plain, it seemed more young couples with kids than student-y. Are my impressions of those neighborhoods correct or are there lots of students who just weren't there when I was there? Are there other neighborhoods you would recommend that are well linked to the medical area by public transport, are safe, and are a little edgier or younger feeling?

Some friends of friends (lovely couple that we've met many times) have a place in Back Bay and rent out a bedroom. They've offered our daughter a big, beautiful bedroom there for half of what they normally charge ($1000/month instead of $2000 per month) but they are going to have a baby, and I think that might feel uncomfortable. I suspect they'd hope she'd babysit and she loves kids (wants to do pediatric nursing) and they love her.

[jackshaw]

Can you suggest any other neighborhoods or are we looking in the right places already?

Thanks.

[RC1981]

The Longwood Medical Area comes to mind lol

But you might try poking around Coolidge Corner, Brookline. It's a pretty nice area that's more or less walking distance from the hospitals, and there's definitely buses that will get you there. The Fenway/Kenmore Square would probably be your best bet, though. Safe, well priced, but it can get kind of noisy depending on where you are due to the college crowd, but most of it will probably be to your liking.

Brookline Village is pretty much your typical well-to-do inner-suburb. Imagine Park Slope, Brooklyn but not really so trendy and a hundred or so years older. It'll probably be cheaper than both Coolidge Corner and Kenmore Sq. though, and a lot more quiet.

[ogre]

I don't know Jamaica Plain well enough to recommend specific areas, but from what I know of J.P. in general I'd recommend keeping it on the list of possibilities. J.P. is generally known to vary a lot in character from one neighborhood to another, even from one street to the next, so the family feel in the area where your daughter has already looked (I'm guessing farther west in J.P. from my general hearsay knowledge of the area) does not necessarily mean it's like this all over J.P. In fact, hearsay has it that young professionals have discovered J.P., though you'll need info from someone more familiar with J.P. than I am to tell you specifically where to find this crowd.

If your daughter keeps looking in J.P., I'd suggest getting info from someone very familiar with this district before she commits to living there. The same neighborhood-to-neighborhood/street-to-street variation in general character that is found in J.P. also applies to how safe the local spots are, so you need good advice from someone who knows J.P. well before moving there if safety is a concern, which it sounds as if it is.

If your daughter does not mind a bit of a subway commute that would include one transfer, I'd suggest that she take a look along the red line "Squares" stops north of downtown Boston (Central Sq., Harvard Sq. Kendall Sq. and Porter Sq. in Cambridge, Davis Sq. in Somerville). These areas have collections of interesting little local shops, restaurants, and bars. Davis Square in particular has had a young professionals crowd for some years now, while Porter Sq. is said to be (I have no recent familiarity with this neighborhood) a more recently developed/still developing young pros area. Central and Harvard Squares have more of a varied mix of residents, not so much a heavy concentration of young professionals, but still have their share of local shops, restaurants, and such.

Kendall Square would be the one of the "Squares" along that stretch of the red line which would probably be less suitable for someone with your daughter's demographics, but is still worth a look. Kendall Sq. is basically the MIT campus stop, and doesn't have so much to appeal to young people already out of college as opposed to the current undergrad crowd. However, Kendall is still worth considering, because it does at least have restaurants and shopping, and is only a couple of quick stops away from downtown Boston, and is the closest of the red line "Squares" stop to the transfer point to get to Longwood. Just understand that the vibe around there is more a mix of office buildings, some families, and a bunch of goofy undergrads than a high concentration of young professionals.

[jackshaw]

Thanks, ogre. That's good advice on JP. I don't know it, but I will ask around.

My daughter is actually an undergraduate studying nursing, so Cambridge would be appealing. She knows Harvard Square and has a few friends at Harvard. But, she's been focused on things accessible via the Green Line or Orange Line. My recollection is that the Orange Line has some relatively crime-heavy stops (Ruggles, maybe Forest Hills or Jackson Square) but that could be ancient history.

I suggested Central Square, because there's a bus and also a Harvard Medical School area shuttle run by Harvard that stops in Harvard Square and Central Square. I lived in between Harvard Square and Central Square as a grad student and when I was a professor, I bought our first house there, a few blocks from Central Square. Our my daughter was born when we lived there, but we moved when she was 2 so she doesn't know the neighborhood particularly. I'll take a look at Kendall Square. It's also very good if she happens to be working at MGH.

[Boston_Burbs]

Symphony, Fenway, Mission Hill, JP can get there on the E line or 39 bus.

On the D line... Brookline Village, Cleveland Circle (Reservoir)

Commuting from Cambridge might a bit of a pain.

[Boston_Burbs]

Originally Posted by jackshaw

Thanks, ogre. That's good advice on JP. I don't know it, but I will ask around.

My daughter is actually an undergraduate studying nursing, so Cambridge would be appealing. She knows Harvard Square and has a few friends at Harvard. But, she's been focused on things accessible via the Green Line or Orange Line. My recollection is that the Orange Line has some relatively crime-heavy stops (Ruggles, maybe Forest Hills or Jackson Square) but that could be ancient history.

I suggested Central Square, because there's a bus and also a Harvard Medical School area shuttle run by Harvard that stops in Harvard Square and Central Square. I lived in between Harvard Square and Central Square as a grad student and when I was a professor, I bought our first house there, a few blocks from Central Square. Our my daughter was born when we lived there, but we moved when she was 2 so she doesn't know the neighborhood particularly. I'll take a look at Kendall Square. It's also very good if she happens to be working at MGH.

Unless there is a shuttle, walking from Ruggles to Longwood is a bit of a hike.

[Verseau]

What about Mission Hill? It's not only walkable to Longwood, it's wedged right between the Orange and Green Lines - and there aren't many neighborhoods in Boston that have access to two different T lines at such a low price point. It's definitely younger than JP (lots of students) and grittier than the more family-oriented areas of JP.

[Boston_Burbs]

Originally Posted by Verseau

What about Mission Hill? It's not only walkable to Longwood, it's wedged right between the Orange and Green Lines - and there aren't many neighborhoods in Boston that have access to two different T lines at such a low price point. It's definitely younger than JP (lots of students) and grittier than the more family-oriented areas of JP.

Lived on the Hill for 4 years and loved it. The housing stock leaves a bit to be desired, but I always felt safe, was always able to park in front of my apartment, had tons of great food options, and was able to get to anywhere in the city in a reasonable amount of time.

I moved to Allston and could never find parking, the housing stock still sucked (I'lll take 3 deckers over apt building any time), saw way more crazy people, couldn't find parking, and it took me an hour + to get to the Garden.

[jackshaw]

Would Mission Hill be safe for a young woman who might be coming in at night (if she were doing a clinical shift at a hospital)? It had a reputation as not being safe, but that may well have changed.