New And Updated! Apartment Hunting in Boston, Volume II

Welcome to Volume II of TRUE (and slightly embellished) STORIES ABOUT BOSTON APARTMENTS! Since many of you are likely starting to think about accommodations, we thought we'd bring up a few pertinent conversations.

STORY 1: We Are The Makers of Music
Once upon a time, an enterprising flute player inquired about a lovely, two-bedroom apartment in an ideal location. The owner of the apartment responded to her inquiry by calling her the next day. "I Googled you," said the owner, accusingly. "You're a musician." The flute player responded with somewhat shocked silence. "We can't rent to musicians, even if you never practice in the apartment," continued the owner. "Too many noise violations."
"Fine," thought the flute player. "I will look elsewhere."
So she did.
And she found a big apartment in an even better neighborhood, where the upstairs neighbors play guitar and are fond of music in the home.

House plus Piano equals FUN!

Lesson: Don't lose hope! While some landlords don't want musicians in their buildings, period, this isn't the case for all of them.
In our experience, the best bets are to
a) move into a bedroom in an apartment where there are already musicians living.
b) move into a large building rented by a company so huge that they won't care if you are a musician.
c) don't say anything, and keep your practicing at school.
Obviously all of this gets more complicated if you have a piano, but there are many, many situations where moving a piano into an apartment is just fine, and the neighbors love it.


STORY 2: Steps to the Green Line

*This is not at all what Boston looks like.

Long ago and far away, a BU graduate student was looking for an apartment with easy public transit to BU. Lo and behold, she came across a Craigslist ad for an apartment just "steps from the Green Line!" She immediately called a realtor, and the next day was off to see the apartment. Unfortunately, while lovely, the apartment was approximately 2,134,680 steps from the Green Line, which the graduate student considered to be TOO MANY steps.

Lesson: Ask your Realtor/landlord to point out the bus or train stop to you while you are looking at the apartment. If you are attending BU, you will likely be looking for an apartment on the B-Line of the Green Line subway. Keep in mind, however, that there are bus routes that also run directly to BU from Brighton and parts of Watertown. Apartments in these neighborhoods can be slightly more cost-effective, and the transportation can be just as fast (or faster).

STORY 3: Defining Terms
Once a young graduate student was beginning his apartment hunt. He called a realtor to get the process started.
"Great, what neighborhood would you like," said the Realtor.

So many questions!

"Uhh," said the young graduate student.
"Well... how many bedrooms?" asked the Realtor.
"Some?" said the young graduate student.
The Realtor paused in confusion. "Do you have any pets?" she finally asked.
"Mm... maybe?" said the young graduate student.

Lesson: Know what you want. Define your apartment hunt. Write some questions down, and answer them: How much time do you have to look for an apartment? Is your move-in date flexible? What is your budget? Do you want to live alone or with others? Are there any make-or-break considerations? Do you want a porch? Do you want utilities included (and does this affect budget)? Are you bringing a furry friend?

Once you have decided what is most important to you, you can structure your apartment hunt much more effectively. If budget is most important, things like space or location can be more flexible. If location is a must, maybe your move-in date can shift slightly.