Relocation to Boston! (Waltham, Natick: apartment complex, rent, preschools)

[OutdoorLover]

Sadly, in the Boston metro area, the two phrases "convenient commuting" and "reasonably priced", never appear in the same sentence.

[mdeedub]

I’ve noticed several people mention busses and trains. Is that more desirable that driving? SF is the only city I’ve lived in where public transit was preferred to driving. Should we be focusing our search along major routes?

[simplexsimon]

Yes Boston and SF are similar in a lot of ways - public transportation and relative cost of living.

[OutdoorLover]

Originally Posted by mdeedub

I’ve noticed several people mention busses and trains. Is that more desirable that driving? SF is the only city I’ve lived in where public transit was preferred to driving. Should we be focusing our search along major routes?

A lot of people do use buses, subway (T), and commuter rail. You can find the route maps on the MBTA site.
https://www.mbta.com/

[NewfieMama]

No suggestion on towns, but I think a single family house will be your best bet with two dogs. We had two newfoundlands when we were renting and had the best luck with houses. Ours also had a couple of titles (canine good citizen, certified therapy dogs, etc.) that made it clear they were well-trained and well-behaved, which helped. Not sure if that's worth exploring for you.

[mdeedub]

Thanks for the suggestions. We should have got something like that for them some time ago to make people less wary of renting to us! They are both seniors now and super friendly breeds so we don’t typically have an issue anymore, at least once someone is willing to entertain the idea of pets.

[bugelrex]

Objections to pets are really caused by demand of the rental unit.

Any decently priced and good apartments will have multiple applicants... why take the renters with large dogs when they can just wait for the next applicant..

[bohemka]

Another wrinkle you may be forced to consider is the Massachusetts Lead Law. That was a surprise to us when we moved here with a ten-month-old. We overthought it, and it didn't turn out to be an issue, but still. It may play a factor when landlords are considering you as tenants.

[jayrandom]

Originally Posted by bohemka

Another wrinkle you may be forced to consider is the Massachusetts Lead Law. That was a surprise to us when we moved here with a ten-month-old. We overthought it, and it didn't turn out to be an issue, but still. It may play a factor when landlords are considering you as tenants.

The law, as written, is very one-sided towards tenants. Basically they have to provide you with a lead-free apartment if you have kids under 6. They aren't allowed to ask you if you have kids under 6 and if they do and then deny your application, you can get them in trouble.

https://www.massfairhousing.org/hous...and-lead-paint

https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housin...discrimination

In practice, I've never ever ever seen it work like that. Even on here, landlords have basically come out and said that they commit housing discrimination but in such a way that "they can't get caught". Like I said, the law is so one-sided that I see why that is what happens, but just be ready to deal with illegal housing discrimination.

[kodakodakoda]

Natick might also work for you. Depending on your interests. It's west of Boston, lower rent and access to the commuter rail. There is a lot of shopping in the area, parks, kids summer camps, preschools. Decent spot if your budget is $2,500.
Waltham is developing quickly. Lots of good restaurants on Moody St. New apartment complexes have been built. But access into Boston will be driveable but not as simple as the commuter rail.