Looking for affordable areas around Cambridge for families (Boston, Newton: apartment, rental)

[stemcellguy]

I was offered a job at Cambridge that paid $120,000 pretax plus good health benefits. That would be our sole source of income. We are a family of four. My wife, myself, and two middle-school-aged children. I realize that this may not be sufficient for a city like Cambridge or Boston, and I was wondering if there are more affordable areas with decent school systems. I'm happy to drive up to Cambridge every day for 45 minutes if it means we can find affordable housing. Your input would be very much appreciated.

[yesmaybe]

Wife's going to have to get a job unless you are OK with living in a condo.

[bostongymjunkie]

In order to get thoughtful replies you would probably need to write more about your needs and preferences in housing and your preferred lifestyle. It's difficult to suggest places without knowing what you need/expect. Otherwise you will get random shots in the dark or responses from people that speak more to how they believe you should be living your life than about helping you find what you want or answering your question.

What you have laid out so far can probably be found, it just depends on what you're willing to sacrifice to get it. And it most likely won't be in Cambridge.

[Japanfan1986]

Affordable? Cambridge? Does not compute.

[G-fused]

Are you looking to buy or rent? how many bedrooms? Is a condo/townhouse an option? Will the missus be gettign a job eventually? And what does affordable mean to you? Do you have a budget?

[MtPleasantDream]

120k income with two kids, I suppose your max payment can be 3k per month.
If you want to buy a single family house in a good school district, try Westford, Acton, Littleton.
If you are ok with condos, Arlington, Newton and even Belmont are possible choices.

[BosYuppie]

Get on Route 2 at Alewife, and drive northwest until you can afford something

[stemcellguy]

Thank you for the replies.

I'm looking for a rent, condo or a town house, two bedrooms/two bathroom apartment. The wife is disabled and unable to work. This is going to be our income for the next two years.

[bostongymjunkie]

2 baths will be challenging and I don't know about your housing budget you might try Watertown and Arlington for a 2BR rental. If you don't find something in your budget in those towns try Woburn or Medford. If you must have 2 baths I think you will need to go further out. I'd also look in West Roxbury as that section of Boston has a significant number of decent sized rental units that may be in your budget. I think you're talking at least 3K in some areas to get a 2BR and more than 1 bath in a decent area within a 20 mile radius of Boston.


Here are some in the West Roxbury area. I see one in Chestnut Hill for under 3K.

https://www.zillow.com/homes/West-Ro...Boston,-MA_rb/


Arlington: https://www.zillow.com/homes/Arlington,-MA_rb/


Watertown: https://www.zillow.com/homes/Watertown,-MA_rb/


Woburn: https://www.zillow.com/homes/Woburn,-MA_rb/

[BostonMike7]

Honestly $120K for a family of 4 in MA is going to be tight. 2 BR's are exceeding $3K+/month. Car insurance is not cheap here. Lots of stuff here is not cheap. Kids activities are not cheap. It's a HCOL area for sure.

Obviously it can be done as the median HHI hovers just below $90K IIRC. It just all depends on what sort of lifestyle you are expecting for you and your family. It's manageable if you don't intend to contribute significantly to retirement or education accounts or plan on taking any family vacations/trips.

There are "affordable" areas to live, but they come with compromise.