How should I look for an apartment convenient to Harvard med school?
January 2, 2016 11:05 AM   Subscribe

My cat and I are relocating from Seattle to Boston at the end of March. Help me decide where and how to look for an apartment when I visit for four days at the end of February.

The main considerations for the new place in order of importance are:
  1. Convenient public transit commute to the Harvard Medical School campus in Brookline.
  2. Under $2,000 for a studio/1BR of at least 400 ft².
  3. Minimal crime and raucous neighbors.
  4. Walkable to nice restaurants, cafés and green spaces.
After reading through the dozens of AskMe questions and comparing the super helpful maps at Trulia, it seems like JP is the best bet. And specifically the Central, Sumner Hill or Hyde Square (south of Centre St) neighborhoods.

Questions:
  • Are these good locations?
  • Are there others I should be considering?
  • Should I make use of an agent, or just obsessively scan Craigslist and walk around?
  • Should I get rid of my car? In other words, how hard/expensive is it to keep a car in JP?
posted by Cogito to Home & Garden (14 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
I grew up in the city and haven't lived there in a few years, but one thing to keep in mind is that the T, and especially the green line that services HMS, is abysmal and should be avoided like the plague that it is. I would live as close to school as possible (in Brookline or Fenway even). If I remember correctly, the commute from JP to HMS would require Orange line to Green line, and you're gonna want to shoot yourself after that commute every day. Check out the South End, it's not too far to bike to HMS, and in the winter you can catch a bus.

As far as actually getting an apartment, the switchover is Sept. 1 and most leases run on this schedule. I would definitely be obsessively checking craigslist and emailing/calling the specific agents that have the listings you want to see. Bring a blank check with you and be prepared to take a spot within minutes of seeing it. The good spots will get scooped up from under you that fast. And cars are expensive but good to have. In JP, it would be cheaper to have a car but parking in Boston is maddening and there aren't many good parking spots around HMS. And don't get me wrong, I love JP! Just thinking about commuting and want you to not underestimate how shitty public transport can be in that city. Also, I didn't have a car and used zipcar for the most part, and that went pretty well. Good luck! Send me some mail if you want some more specific help.
posted by pwally at 11:43 AM on January 2, 2016


Response by poster: Thanks for the info!

I was thinking to avoid the green line. The commute from JP should be just orange + a few minutes walk or a bus. I'm avoiding Brookline because it's just too expensive (~30% more than JP) and the south end is even more so (and has more crime).
posted by Cogito at 11:53 AM on January 2, 2016


I'd look in Brookline or Copley. Or fenway or mission hill. Commuting from JP would be a pain.
posted by emd3737 at 11:55 AM on January 2, 2016


Response by poster: What would be so bad about the commute from JP? It looks like < 30 minutes the orange line or bus. I was under the impression that the green line was terrible, but I hadn't read anything bad about the orange.
posted by Cogito at 12:01 PM on January 2, 2016


Do the trip from campus to JP on public transit a few times while you're here. Residents of the area pretty much universally agree that JP is a (lovely, wonderful, charming) black hole that is an enormous PITA to get into or out of.
posted by amelioration at 12:28 PM on January 2, 2016 [1 favorite]


Will you be working at HMC? If so, look into Harvard Affiliate housing, which is typically sliiiightly below market rate and easier to navigate than the regular housing market - though, like the regular market, most leases go September-August, so choices will be limited.

Failing that, your best bet for convenience is Mission Hill. It used to have a bad rap, which keeps rents relatively low, but it's been gentrifying for about a decade so there are lots of nice restaurants, etc. And if you live there, you can walk to work.

Brookline is definitely expensive but I have had non-rich friends who lived there, especially in the areas near Allston, and in mansions around Brookline Village (which is very close to HMC) that have been divided into apartments, so it's a possibility. Do note that there is NO overnight street parking in Brookline, so skip it if you are planning on having a car - you'd have to pay for a parking spot on top of rent.

Finally, you may want to consider a sublet when you first get there. I know moving twice in one year really sucks, but there really is so much more available for September.
posted by lunasol at 12:29 PM on January 2, 2016


Oh, also, if you can afford to burn some money on an agent (anticipate 1-2 months' rent as a fee), do it. It will save you a lot of grief, and with a limited time frame, probably increase the likelihood of finding something reasonable. They can start sending you listings now for places they know are coming open in your timeframe.
posted by amelioration at 12:35 PM on January 2, 2016


Best answer: I don't think JP to Longwood would be that bad. JP to ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD is really, really difficult. If you decide on JP, you will probably want to keep your car, which will probably mean parking on the street; keep an eye on how much parking there is on the street near the places you're looking. February will probably be the worst-case time for parking (due to snow).

I lived in Brookline until five years ago and we paid $1700 a month for a 2 bed/2 bath. So I would encourage you to look in Brookline if you can - there may not be *many* apartments that fit your budget, but there will probably be some. And if you're anywhere on/near Beacon, you can probably walk to HMS easier than taking the bus/T (I lived near Washington Square and walked to Longwood all year round; it was really not bad). If you move to Brookline, you pretty much MUST get rid of your car; there is no on-street parking and off-street parking rents for $150 and up (way up).

Mission Hill is very student-y now, with inflated student rents and potential raucous-ness, but it is very, very convenient to Longwood.

A huge percentage of craigslist apartment ads in Boston are placed by agents, so you might not be able to avoid them regardless. I have never really had good luck with agents, but they can at least set up some showings for you. I've rented two apartments through agents, and in both cases it was a "see agent's ad for apartment on craigslist, contact agent, pay agent for the privilege of being shown the apartment" situation - no actual help from the agent.

I agree that you might want to sublet or AirBnB at first - there's not always a lot of good "next month" inventory, and you'll get a better sense of the neighborhoods than you can in four days, and you'll be on the spot so that you can run to a good-sounding open house with a check and a copy of your credit report in hand.
posted by mskyle at 12:42 PM on January 2, 2016 [2 favorites]


Best answer: Lifelong JP resident here, and I let rooms to Harvard Medical Students all the time, and I just have to say that 90% of what is written above is totally false and most likely written by people who don't spend anytime in Jamaica Plain. Jamaica Plain is one of the best places to live if you want green space, good restaurants and a community feel. There is a very wide range of folks who live in JP, though it has turned the corner of gentrification. We have a Whole Foods now, as well as some of the very best restaurants in the city. You want to be somewhere off of Centre St, so you can hop on the #39 bus. The area around where Centre and South Huntington split is ideal, and there are many rentals in that area. In the nicer months, there are many ways to ride a bike to that area as well as walking down the Emerald Necklace (it's a long walk but very nice). Harvard Medical used to have a very good message board where I would post ads to find renters, but too many people were scammed on it. I am sure they have something comparable now, I just haven't managed to find it.

Parking in JP depends on the street where you live and if there is residential parking or not. Some places will have driveways, though the majority are on street parking.

One sort of very oddball place to check is Jamaica Tower- it's this odd high rise with a doorman, tennis courts, and a pool, but I have had friends, family and former tenants who have lived there and it's pretty reasonable for what you get. I also know a few people who have rooms in their homes or apartments that let space (my own is filled for the spring), feel free to memail me, and I can put you in touch with them.
posted by momochan at 1:46 PM on January 2, 2016 [2 favorites]


Please don't listen to people who don't know the specific route you're talking about. This is one of those cases where people know a little bit of information about Boston and it's not necessarily relevant to your specific question. Your route sounds fine. The orange line is great, and the 39 bus is frequent, reliable, and one of those double wide buses that is super good for commuters, and basically duplicates much of the green line route. Weirdly, the buses were sometimes way better than the T during the blizzard last year - think about it - if something goes to hell on the T, everything stops. But another bus will always come! It will just be slower. Having said that, I think there's a lot to be said for the ease of being able to walk to work, especially if your hours will be unpredictable. Given your budget and location, that's easily doable.
posted by leedly at 1:52 PM on January 2, 2016 [1 favorite]


Keeping your car would probably be worth it if you can afford to pay for a parking space. Boston in general has lousy public transportation and as others have noted above, JP is a bit of a public transportation black hole. To give you an idea of how ridiculous it can be, traveling from Downtown Allston to JP is a 15 minute drive but can easily take over an hour via public transportation.

However, street parking is an incredibly hellish nightmare, one that I really can't overstate. Street parking is 70-80% resident parking only, and depending on the neighborhood a resident permit can be hard to obtain-- I had a friend who was unable to get one for Allston despite being on the lease for an apartment there and changing her plates and registration to Massachusetts. The rest of the spaces on the street have two hour time limits during weekdays, and as such are very hard to obtain evenings and weekends. When winter comes, all bets are off. Parking spots disappear en masse, and cops will happily ticket cars buried under 1+ feet of snow.
posted by fox problems at 3:43 PM on January 2, 2016


Best answer: I used to live in JP - I always liked the Orange Line, it ran frequently and reliably. I hated, hated, hated the buses and still hate all of the buses of Boston to this day. You don't want to know how many times they have either not showed up on me (for popular designated routes) or flown past me when it is freezing/snowing. The last time I was in Boston, I sent complaint e-mails to the MBTA *EVERY SINGLE DAY* due to this. Fortunately there are alternatives like uber/lyft nowadays, so you have options if you get stranded.

JP is awesome, but people noted accurately that getting in and out is rather hilarious - you have to learn your routes, you can get turned around easily, but with GPS etc. you'd be fine. Also, the Orange Line is a straight shot, runs regularly, is reliable and is easy to take.

Other places to consider are Cambridge - as there is a designated bus (I believe it is paid for by Harvard, not an MBTA bus, so more reliable) from Central/Cambridgeport. There might be other buses like this in other parts of Cambridge/Somerville that are worth looking into. This would just increase your options. In general, being on a train line is great, speedy and reliable. Relying on MBTA buses is miserable.
posted by Toddles at 5:11 PM on January 2, 2016


I worked on the same block as HMS for five years, and commuted using the Orange Line most days. It is a fine walk and manageable in the worst weather.

(Check out the burrito place on Peterbourough St, called El Palon, delish, filling, cheap for the location.)
posted by rip at 8:06 PM on January 2, 2016


I love JP! We lived near Hyde Sq / Stony Brook station for 12 years. I would avoid the Green Line. The Orange Line is fine.
posted by reddot at 12:02 PM on January 3, 2016


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