Woking in Cambridge near Kendall Sq. - Need Suggestions (Boston: apartment, for rent)

[JackoDrummer]

Hi all,

I'm a married 30's professional, no kids, couple of small dogs, wife's a stay at home artist and I started a job a few months ago in Cambridge near Kendall. In a pinch, we landed in a 3-family unit in Medford near Tufts. But after living here a few months and researching a little more, we're paying way too much for this area, my bus-to-T-to-walk commute to work is grinding me down, the landlord's obviously used to dealing with frat bros and not people who expect quality, and the neighborhood has really gone downhill since the winter semester.

So the question is - where should we be looking along the T, where we're more likely to find a place with a yard, fair/attentive landlords who appreciate good tenants and less of a chance of having neighbors always up our a**? Are we asking too much? We'd love to find an actual single family home (not an attached apartment that holds one family, there's a difference you realtors).

Thanks for any advice you can provide!

Steve

[jayrandom]

What's your budget? I'm guessing it's not astronomical, so you're going to have a hard time. Kendall just isn't convenient to the suburbs, despite being relatively centrally located. The only places convenient to the Red Line with affordable SFHs is probably Quincy/Braintree, and those are both pretty far away. If you were going to Boston or Porter Sq. I would recommend looking along the commuter rail lines, but those just aren't that convenient to Kendall (which is where I work, too).

My suggestion would be Arlington. It would probably be bus + T but you might be able to find a SFH. It's not a somewhat quiet, family-oriented town with many nice areas. There's stuff to do nearby but it's not as vibrant or dense as Cambridge or nearby Somerville. Belmont or Watertown might be options, as well.

Of course, if you're independently wealthy there are some great parts of Cambridge itself. Since you didn't mention budget I'll throw that out there.

[kingeorge]

West Somerville, Cambridge or Arlington would all work. Also Belmont in parts as well.
But without budget you have in mind it is hard to give you sound advice.

[JackoDrummer]

Ah yes! Sorry about that. We're wanting to stay within the $2800-$3200/mo range for the right place. Just wanting to shave down the commute, get out of bro-ville/into a little more white collar area, and hopefully get into a small yard. 2-3BR SFH preferable for that kind of money, but could stretch a little for the right situation.

[jayrandom]

In that range Belmont, Arlington, Watertown are all reasonable options. There just aren't a lot of SFHs for rent in those towns, but you might find something. Newton would probably have more SFHs but the public transport to Kendall isn't great. Lexington is an option, too, if you're OK with a longer bus ride.

[Trail-head]

Riding my bike from Aquavia Rd, Medford to Kendall Sq. It's 25 minutes. Car the same inbound and outbound. Public is great if you have a foldable bike to get to Oak Grove and get of Community College Station. That's also 30 minutes total with little biking. There is a single family for rent on Zillow. Just came on.