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Can you get a roommate, or two?
This is not a long term solution, but it would give you time to look for another job, and or look for a cheaper place to live.
If you are determined to continue to live there, I would look for an affordable hovel that I could fix up. I would rather live in a dump that I could invest in, than throwing rent money down a hole every month.
Not trying to be off topic, but curious. I don't know if things work different in MA than NJ (where I'm from) but if a brought in another roommate (or more than one) I would get a rent increase. You can't legally have someone living with you who's not on the lease. As it seems the OP's lease for the year was signed in September. It's grounds for eviction.
You need to decide how much you like your job, hate commuting, and like the area where you live. If the job brings you experience and skills as a building block for the future, consider looking into roommate situations or commuting.
Rent to own -- NO!
Fixer upper far out -- NO!
Fixer upper close to work -- Possibly
Move to another city -- Possibly
I would move to a state with cheaper COL, But it depends....
Can you find a job in your trade in another state or transfer? Do you have family or friends elsewhere or does that not matter to you? You also have to weigh what you will be making in a cheaper state versus where you are now. Sometimes it makes sense, other times it doesn't. We moved just across the border from Illinois to Indiana. WAY lower COL and my husband still works in IL with his higher salary. I'm sorry, but for $2500 an month, you can buy a mansion here!!
Yeah, they are marked in purple on maps. I never had problems with the commuter trains before. Have they gotten worse?
Its just that its separate from the red/green/blue lines and we had to sit and wait like an hour to get to our hotel, which was not a big deal since we were on vacation but if that were my daily commute that would be unacceptable. Braintree was nice because it was the end of the red line which we never had to wait more than a few min for when we were in boston proper/MIT area.
Of course it depends on if the employer just kind of lets you get there when you get there, if you don't have a draconian work schedule then it could be ok but the stations at the outter reaches of the purple line are basicly just benches outside and that would not be much fun in the winter time.
I would of course want to buy and would never pay that much for rent that's just insane, of course even if you buy I cant imagine what the property taxes are. Sounds like the OP needs significantly more skills and to up their income.
We then stayed in lower New Hampshire for the second week of our trip and when we drove back in to the Boston airport the traffic was like nothing I had ever seen before so I would not recommend commuting from New Hampshire.
If the OP has to move out of state to money up and then go back so that they can buy in on one of the main lines red/green/blue then it could be a good deal. No idea what it costs to buy in to Cambridge. Also if the OP is not into engineering, medical or some other extreme professional program then it makes no sense to be in Boston. From what I could tell it was an extremely professional city with some of the top institutions in the world but if your not part of all that I don't know why anyone would want to fight the uphill real estate battle.
A key issue is the OP's profession. Some professions are needed in a lot of states, even where the cost of living is much lower. In that case it would make economic sense to move to a state where the ratio of income to expenses is much higher, for the same profession. If climate/weather is a huge issue, that restricts the choices severely. In general, the more adverse weather you're willing to tolerate, the better an overall situation you can find. And being able to tolerate all kinds of neighbors. The luxuries of desirable climate, desirable neighbors, etc., cost enough to leave some people struggling to make ends meet. We can't all have all the luxuries we desire. We have to choose some of them and do without others.
Right now, all I am doing is looking to see what's out there. There isn't much under $200,000 in the Boston area. Also, I have pets and I prefer an in-unit washer and dryer, so that further limits my options. The biggest limitation, however, is my salary which is low 60s, one step above poverty level here. I have the day off from work today and will be attending my city's affordable housing session this afternoon. My lease isn't up until next September so this is not urgent today but I am trying to plan ahead. I've already tried to get a job in another state, but I think employers are hesitant to deal with someone far away when they have locals they can easily hire.
A key issue is the OP's profession. Some professions are needed in a lot of states, even where the cost of living is much lower. In that case it would make economic sense to move to a state where the ratio of income to expenses is much higher, for the same profession. If climate/weather is a huge issue, that restricts the choices severely. In general, the more adverse weather you're willing to tolerate, the better an overall situation you can find. And being able to tolerate all kinds of neighbors. The luxuries of desirable climate, desirable neighbors, etc., cost enough to leave some people struggling to make ends meet. We can't all have all the luxuries we desire. We have to choose some of them and do without others.
And you can bank the savings in the low cost area and then buy back into the area you like without the burden of rent. Save enough to put something like 50% down on a condo in Cambridge and the OP will be sitting pretty. Then maybe they can take a general relativity class at MIT for me and I will be jealous . Even if you left you could rent the condo out for a fortune.
I would get out. Just give the time of what's left of your current lease to see if you luck into the low income housing lottery. If not, move somewhere cheaper unless you have good career prospects to meet the increasing cost of living.
No use fighting it and making yourself go broke to stay somewhere that's gotten too expensive. When you get to a cheaper place, be sure to buy before inflation prices you out of that market too.
Yesterday I scrambled about before work and at lunch filling out the housing purchase assistance application and gathering all of the required materials. Got everything together and mailed out!
I also drove by the building they're putting up which was mentioned in the housing information session. It doesn't look even close to being done yet. However, I am not a construction worker and it was at night, so I didn't get a great look. Maybe they're further along than what it looked like to me.
After the dust settles with the application and finding out more information, next step will be to get a preapproval, I believe.
Even if I don't win the lottery for this new construction, the home buying program also will help to purchase market properties. For 1 bedrooms, they will buy out 40%. Right now on Zillow, I see 6 one bedrooms in Cambridge for under $500k.
Right now I work as a private equity real estate accountant. My bosses are kind, decent people and my coworkers are professional, quiet people. I get 100% paid health insurance including the $2000 deductible and we don't work on Fridays during the summer. Last but not least, I only have to work 40 hours a week.
Previously, I worked in several large public accounting firms and it was a total nightmare. My body could not handle working 80+ hours a week sitting and many people in those places are sociopaths. Extremely toxic environments. It was not for me at all. But anyway, if I have to move, I'm sure I could find work as a tax or general ledger accountant.
I just hope I win the lottery so I can stay in Cambridge and keep working with my nice bosses.
Moving to commute that far will save rent money, but you will be at the mercy of gas prices. They are not likely to stay this low forever. Then imagine yourself being home for 2 or more hours less every day. A cheaper state is a good alternative as long as jobs there pay close to what you make now. More often, a lower cost of living means lower salaries.
I ran some local numbers several years ago and for most people in the area moving further from downtown in order to save money increased commuting costs more than it reduced housing costs.
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. Even if you left you could rent the condo out for a fortune.
