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Boston Housing | Sharing an apartment

sini


'Moving to Boston/Cambridge in September... Would you happen to know someone willing to share an apartment!?

Or, would you have any suggestions on how to find an affordable housing solution in Cambridge... ideally close to GSD.

Thanks!!!

 
Jul 22, 05 12:48 am
EcoArchSefa

sini- i'm gonna be doing the same thing this fall...have you done research on housing? i'm absolutely clueless as to how much housing is in Boston..ideally i must be within 10 to 15 mins of Newbury St as i intend to attend Boston Architectural Center.

Jul 22, 05 1:00 am  · 
 · 
sini

research, not yet, I'm just starting... +I don't really know boston context neither.

I heard that 1200$ is standard for a 2 bedroom; 1600-1800$ for a 3 bedroom.

BAC is downtown Boston, too bad that its so far from Cambridge campuses

Jul 22, 05 1:13 am  · 
 · 

thablueprintt:
for the BAC, check out living in Mission Hill/Jamaica Plains. They're not 10-15 minutes from Newbury Street (good luck finding something affordable in that price range), but a decent mixture of close/affordable that You'll be able to find. You may want to check out Allston, which is further out from the BAC, but another area popular with students.

sini:
Check out Somerville. Davis Square is the place to be right now (or so I'm told). Cambridge can be expensive, and Somerville is often the cheaper option.

The beauty of Boston/Cambridge is that in the fall, spring, and summer you can ride a bike anywhere, and in the winter there is the T.

Enjoy the city, I miss it like its my job!

Jul 22, 05 6:43 am  · 
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fulcrum

Somerville is expensive, too.
$1,200 for 2-bed? You *might* be able to get 1 bed with that price in Somerville, not to mention Cambridge. It's very expensive, although the rental market is slowing down a little.
Pixel is right, Somerville is still cheaper than Cambridge, but not that much.

Jul 22, 05 8:43 am  · 
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mnesikles

you can find an 1-bed apartment for $1200 in any part of the city -even beacon hill- although the apartment will most likely be a shoe box and will be pretty rough. for a decent 1-bed you should expect somewhere between $1300-$1600, depending on the location.
when i first moved here a few years ago, i had a small, but very clean and safe studio for $925 in brighton, which is about a 30 min T ride to downtown, but still in the city.
for BAC, look at places in the fenway (5-10 min walk)...if you are set on newbury st/back bay then expect a studio for $1100.
for harvard/MIT, expect studios in cambridge and somerville for $1000 and up

......of course you can always get lucky and find steal in any area

forget about a 2-bed unless you have $1800, or a roommate.

Jul 22, 05 9:19 am  · 
 · 
jbc

For sini:

Like everyone said, 2 bedrooms are expensive and rare. 3 bedrooms are more prevalent in the Cambridge/Somerville area, and can as low as $1700. Anything near a T stop - Porter Square, Central Square, Davis Square - is expensive. Many GSD students live NE of school, near Inman Square and along Beacon St. towards Porter Square. . If you plan to ride your bike a lot, you can move a little further away from Harvard Square (towards Union Square) and find even cheaper rent. I would say that $1400 is standard (or even cheap) for a 2 bedroom. Also, you may need to pay a $1400 broker fee upfront - something common in Boston.

I would check on Craigslist for apartments and roommate situations.

thablueprintt:
I would second the Fenway - it's a great neighborhood and you can find some cheaper places there. Otherwise, JP or Allston are your best bets. You could also live in Cambridgeport near the BU bridge, which would be a 5-10 minute walk to the Green line.

Jul 22, 05 9:47 am  · 
 · 
FrankLloydMike

Check out bostonapartments.com. You can search by neighborhood and can choose no fee and all that stuff. I got to Wentworth, which is in Fenway, and am living in Mission Hill for my second year. It's still pretty pricey--I shared a 3-bedroom with 4 other people this past year and we paid $2000 total, and that's cheap for this city, but you can find some affordable (in this context) in Mission Hil and it's still T-accessible there. It's pretty easy to get to Newbury Street in 10-15 minutes by T from there, but might be quicker from Allston or Brighton. Good luck.

Jul 22, 05 9:51 am  · 
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fulcrum

My recommendation is find two roommates and rent 3 bed for around $3,000 per month, that way you can find some decent 3-bed near GSD AND live like a human. Gosh, those pricy junk studios are so nasty.

Jul 22, 05 10:05 am  · 
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larslarson

wow..i'm reading this and i guess a lot has changed in two
years since i lived in boston...but from what i remember i
see a lot of misinformation...first of all 2 bedrooms are far
from rare, secondly somerville isn't nearly as expensive as
cambridge, davis square was the place to be about four
years ago...i'd try more around union square in somerville.
i lived on washington st which is right outside union sq.
(which is basically kendrick st. which is the street the gsd
is on)..and i worked in harvard sq. took
about five minutes by bike to get there.

bottom line, i never paid more than 625 a month for an
apartment in the seven years i lived there. my last apartment
there was in somerville, two bedroom, with a garage and parking
space for $1100 total..550 a month for me. if you have a
car you can find a cheap place anywhere.

as far as the bac. you can live across the river and bike mass
ave in the summer to get there easily and the redline is the
best subway in the city. so a commute from say central sq. is
basically 45 minutes...and since you're going to the bac i'd find
an apartment closer to your job than to the school anyway...

and i would say craigslist is the way to go..my last apartment
search through them took one day. also, i'd never pay a broker
fee in boston, but that's just me.

Jul 22, 05 10:11 am  · 
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fulcrum

Sorry larslarson, but I live in Davis Sq. and unfortunately, it's freaking expensive. You are right that you can get a cheap apt., but you have to be a damn lucky person to do that. I don't think there are any misinformation above... it's just plain expensive.
Of course, you can find a reasonably priced apt., but I guess people here are talking about ones that are close to T.

Jul 22, 05 10:33 am  · 
 · 
EcoArchSefa

Thank you all for your input.

Jul 22, 05 11:29 am  · 
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brian buchalski

i guess that i'm getting old too, but when i used to work on newbury street (not far from the BAC) i lived in brookline and i found that to be reasonable commute of maybe 15 minutes to copley square if you can get close to the d riverside line. as for our rent we were paying $1900 for a three bedroom (about $650 apiece) but that's probably out-dated information now.

Jul 22, 05 11:30 am  · 
 · 
sini

Great info! Thanks a lot everyone!!!

[regarding the gsd area, I'll have a look at somerville [ex. union square, etc]... and check out craigslist]

Jul 22, 05 11:33 am  · 
 · 
BE

Holden Green Apartments under harvard real estate was going for $1300 for two bedrooms when I was staying with my sis there. It is a graduate student community and is really close to the GSD, about 5-8 minutes walk away. Personally, I don't mind staying at Garden St, which is alot newer (not to mention warmer) and cheaper with internet, electricity and gas all thrown in. So a two bedroom there may be still cheaper if you take the long wintery weather into consideration. However, it is on the other side of the campus.

Jul 23, 05 2:34 am  · 
 · 
bucksleeper

Hey all,

I just signed a lease for an apartment 6 mins walking from Davis. At $1500 for a 2 bedroom it was one of the cheapest available.

Here's the deal with Boston 2 BRs: Recently many owners have converted them from 'apartments' to 'condos' which means they straight up sell them, instead of renting them out. That's why they're so tough to find.

Jul 27, 05 4:21 pm  · 
 · 
dasein

I just finished my search via Craigslist and ended up with a 2 bedroom near Inman square. Its slightly less expensive, less touristy than Harvard square and about a 15 minute walk from GSD.

I love the Davis square area as well, but did not want to have to rely on the T - since it stops at 12.

Anyone have advice about furnishing? I have been searching for furniture on Craigslist too, and found the results completely depressing. Any hints on where to find reasonably priced furniture that does not look like it came from some graduate school refugee camp?

Jul 27, 05 4:42 pm  · 
 · 
Living in Gin

Is there an IKEA store near Boston? They generally have cheap-yet-tasteful assemble-it-yourself furniture.

Jul 27, 05 8:20 pm  · 
 · 
desmondo

for the BAC attendee you should check out the south end, lived there for 3 years in the piano factory and it is an awesome neighborhood.

the fenway is great too. i had a small two bed there w/galley ktichen for $1200.

In the 7 years i lived in boston and cambridge i actually found the cheapest place to live (in terms of space for the $) was brookline... if you are willing to have a slightly longer t ride.

somerville is NOT cheaper than cambridge unless you live very far out and away from the T. at that point its not worth it. try to be near a t stop- that is better than having to get some where in the rain and snow. plus slumerville apts (at least all of the ones i have seen) were pretty crummy. go for fenway or south end!

i think the closest ikea is in nyc.

Jul 28, 05 4:39 pm  · 
 · 
sini

[prices]
best thing would be to be there, see areas, places & prices... something I simply can't do right now. otherwise, prices are quite abstract, rather meaningless. still, theoretically, I would aim at 2br@1300 or 3br@1800..

[apartments | roommates]
if anybody is looking for a roommate [GSD adj, somerville, or anything livable], drop me a line please!

[furniture > ikea]
I remember a rather controversial proposal, about 2 years ago, to convert a Marcel Breuer building into an Ikea... don't know what came out of that. otherwise, ny ikea aside, montreal Ikea is 5 hours away

Jul 29, 05 3:07 am  · 
 · 
sini

[prices]
best thing would be to be there, see areas, places & prices... something I simply can't do right now. otherwise, prices are quite abstract, rather meaningless. still, theoretically, I would aim at 2br@1300 or 3br@1800..

[apartments | roommates]
if anybody is looking for a roommate [GSD adj, somerville, or anything livable], drop me a line please!

[furniture > ikea]
I remember a rather controversial proposal, about 2 years ago, to convert a Marcel Breuer building into an Ikea... don't know what came out of that. otherwise, ny ikea aside, montreal Ikea is 5 hours away

Jul 29, 05 3:07 am  · 
 · 
MONARK

...there is a new ikea in new haven, CT

Jul 29, 05 5:33 am  · 
 · 
anti

An Ikea will be opening in the boston late this fall, until then New Haven...

Jul 29, 05 9:22 am  · 
 · 
anti

Look at Roxbury Crossing for cheaper stuff, its still on the orange and green lines. My girlfriend has a studio there for $625. Granted its a basement, but its not too bad.

Jul 29, 05 9:23 am  · 
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chico

simi,
a friend and i have a lease beginning sept. 1 for a 3-bedroom near union square in somerville. we will both be attending the gsd in the fall and are looking to find a third roommate. the apartment is about mile from gund hall, suprisingly nice inside, and has a (relatively) new kitchen. send me an e-mail if you would like to know more.

Jul 29, 05 10:51 am  · 
 · 
bRink

Allston is cheaper than Cambridge and its a decent neighbourhood, easy access to the green line... Alot of students around here, next to Boston University.

If you live near Harvard Avenue you can take one bus to Harvard... I'm currently staying in a small studio apartment on Comm. Ave. near the B Line (not a shoebox)... You can get into the city center in about 30 minutes.

Jul 29, 05 2:05 pm  · 
 · 
EcoArchSefa

Is any anyone attending BAC who is looking for a roommate?

Jul 29, 05 2:12 pm  · 
 · 
sini

ola, Thanks for your message Chico! I would be quite interested...

i tried reaching you by e-mail, but it didn't work... would you mind dropping me line at my address !? thanks

Jul 31, 05 3:12 pm  · 
 · 

anyone still looking for a situation in the Boston area? I'm looking at moving back to the city soon and would prefer a roomate with architectural incllinations. I wouldn't be attending classes, but hopefully working somewhere (I've had a couple sucessful (knock on wood) interviews over the past week. drop me a line if anyone is interested.

Aug 23, 05 7:13 am  · 
 · 
THREADS

I just put down a payment for a three bedroom in Somervill.

Rent $1,800 month

Aug 23, 05 1:12 pm  · 
 · 

Just curious, where abouts in Slummerville is that?

Aug 23, 05 2:01 pm  · 
 · 
THREADS

porter square

Aug 24, 05 2:07 pm  · 
 · 
LenaV

Ikea is opening in Stoughton in "the fall."

If you want to be near the GSD look for housing in the Inman Square Area in Cambridge/Somerville. It's relatively cheap and about a 10-15 minute walk from Gund Hall.

Otherise, check out Davis Square, in Somerville. Careful though, if you don't have a car stay near the Davis T Stop, otherwise you'll be walking forever. Porter Square is allright, but pretty ugly. It is near a shopping plaza though.....

A few of my friends are living in Central. A bit more on the expensive side of Cambridge, but definately worth it. Oh, and there's Cambridgeport. Beautiful community near the river and very decent price-wise.

Go on craigslist. That's where I've found all my Boston/Cambridge dwellings. Good luck!

If you want to be near the GSD,you can check out Allston as someone suggested, right on the other side of the river. You can easily take the bus from there, although sometimes the bus smells like pee and incoherent and drunk people try to talk to you....

Don't move to JP. Driving in Boston sucks. Stay close to the T, the T is your friend.

Aug 25, 05 7:21 am  · 
 · 
Living in Gin

Just remember that not all 'T" lines are the same. The Red Line (which serves Harvard, MIT, and the Davis Square areas) is by far the best line in the city, IMO.

On the other hand, the Green Line during rush hour could easily qualify as the 8th circle of hell.

The Orange and Blue lines fall somewhere between the two extremes.

Aug 25, 05 8:08 am  · 
 · 

I prefer the orange line myself, its got more character than the others IMHO. Just gotta make sure you don't get stabbed while at the station...

Aug 25, 05 8:33 am  · 
 · 
nervoussystem

I'm living on Calvin Street off of Kirkland directly on the Cambridge/Somerville line. A short walk from the GSD.

rent for us is $2200 for a four bedroom

Aug 25, 05 5:37 pm  · 
 · 
EcoArchSefa

any suggestions for a Northeastern student?

Aug 26, 05 1:57 am  · 
 · 

your studio is in the orange line station, so I'd say something out by forest hills...

Aug 26, 05 7:27 am  · 
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EcoArchSefa

Hey Pixelwhore..i know nothing about Boston. Are any of these places close or within a reasonable commute to Northeastern- Brighton, Sommerville, Jamaica Plain, Roxbury, Cambridge, Medford? any info will be beneficial..thanks

Aug 26, 05 11:36 am  · 
 · 

thablueprint:
I'll email you this evening when I have the chance, but what do you consider a 'reasonable commute'? Personally, I'd recommend living on a T line, but if you have a car and are willing to use it, that may open up some options...

Aug 26, 05 3:25 pm  · 
 · 
EcoArchSefa

reasonable commute will be a 20 to 30minute bus or train ride to Northeastern's campus. thanks

Aug 26, 05 5:03 pm  · 
 · 
kazbot

sini,
i found a place with some friends (4bdrm, 700 each) right off of beacon, very close to inman square. ive tried the walk to gsd and its under 15 minutes. there seemed to be a lot of places in the area turning over when i was there a couple of weeks ago. we found it through a craigslist connection . . . ill keep an ear open, if i hear of anyone looking, ill let you know. good luck.

Aug 27, 05 10:57 pm  · 
 · 
sini

Thanks chico, kazbot, and everyone for your advice!

through friend's friend connection, I found a pretty decent place, close to everything...and I'm looking for a roommate asap. Here's the story:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GSD architecture grad student seeking a roommate for a spacious charming 2 br at Inman Sq, close to GSD and MIT.

the place :: spacious bright 2 BR 2nd floor apartment on Webster Ave, between Cambridge St and Hampshire St, facing Donnelly Park, close to Inman Sq lively cafes and restaurants, and minutes away from the subway... but most importantly, a pleasant walk to GSD or to MIT. Webster is a quiet residential neighbourhood street, with plenty of trees and street parking [private bldg. parking in the back]. The neighbours are relaxed and friendly. The apartment is really spacious and bright, with 2 fair size b'rooms, large kitchen and living room. The room is cute, looks directly onto the park, and is available immediately.

me :: from canada, european background, easy-going, apparently funny, passionate about design and architecture, music, travel, handball... friendly, sociable, respectful, responsible...

you :: looking ideally for someone in a similar field, student at GSD or MIT... easy-going, traveled, open-minded, respectful, curious,... you like to whistle, dance, and read international news.

Rent is $500 /month [+utilities]. Feel free to drop me a line or to call for more info.

sinisha@ekip.ca
+1 514 963 5333

[ http://maps.google.com/?q=loc%3A+Webster+Ave+at+York+St+Cambridge+MA+US ]

Sep 5, 05 2:50 am  · 
 · 
aml

hello boston archinecteurs. i'm reviving this thread and looking forward to any updated advice anyone has on boston neighborhoods, search tips, etc. i think i'm early but at the same time, i need to get a place early on to arrange other stuff in my life and i'm far away- so i need to plan things carefullly and in advance... if possible.

i'll be going to mit and i'm looking at central sq, the back bay and the south end [thinking i can just hop on the no. 1 bus or bike it]. does this sound right? i lived at central sq a long time ago, but things change so an update on neighborhoods would be nice.

May 12, 08 10:35 am  · 
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e_bordenave

central sq is okay, back bay would be ideal if you had the money and the south end is pretty much back bay. Back bay certainly has the nicer (more expensive) neighborhoods.

May 12, 08 3:19 pm  · 
 · 

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