Winter/Spring Student Co-Op in Massachusetts

Submitted by busrideenthusiast t3_y84vno in boston

Hello

For some context, I attend Texas A&M University and have lived in Texas my entire life.

I've been offered a co-op in Burlington, Massachusetts this upcoming spring and am thinking of accepting the position. I'm just a bit worried about a few things and was hoping I could get relevant advice here.

My biggest concern is transportation. I know weather can vary per year, but I'm not sure if I would be able to get myself around on icy/snowy conditions. Is it really terrible or are there options for public transportation in the area that could ease this process for me? Should I take my own vehicle there or what do you recommend?

Also as for housing, how easy could I get a sublease for the spring in the area? What do prices look like? Is there somewhere specifically you would recommend living at? And, is there a better place to look for housing advice/opportunities for this area?

So far these are all the questions I have, but I would really welcome any other advice you may have. Thank you!

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charons-voyage t1_isxzr8q wrote

Howdy! If I lived in Burlington I would probably want a car. No specific recommendations for housing in the Burlington area but good luck with the co-op. Hopefully others on this sub can help more. Gig ‘em!

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_isy0tfv wrote

Thanks for the advice! I'm considering staying in the Boston area as I'm more likely to find housing options there with more people my age (students) as well as more options with things to do in my free time. If you have advice on this, I'd appreciate it. Thanks again and gig 'em!

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DooceBigalo t1_isy5mmg wrote

Finding an affordable place close to Boston is not going to be easy, would recommend something closer to Burlington. Also Burlington and surrounding cities have quite the traffic.

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_isy6v0r wrote

Thank you for the advice. My workplace is about 20 minutes from downtown Boston, any other places that are about as far out from Burlington that would be suitable?

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bostonthrowaway135 t1_isydw4x wrote

Even with out traffic, Burlington is not 20 minutes away from downtown Boston. Burlington is not far, but it could be an hour commute depending on where exactly your office is

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GigiGretel t1_isyt1el wrote

I used to commute from Boston to Burlington by car. I gave myself an hour each way, usually in the morning it took 35 minutes and 45 to an hour home. The biggest hold up being around Alewife. Look at Allston, Cambridge, Watertown, Arlington for places close to route 2

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handleinthedark t1_isy1pog wrote

Howdy as well! I moved up to the city after gradscholl in CStat so I feel you. It's cold but honestly only truly freezing for a month or so.

If you are going to be in Burlington you will want a car unless whoever you will be working for has a shuttle go transit/Boston Proper. And if you have a car you'll want to be out of the city as parking will be $$$ or a pain

As for finding a place Burlington will have less rigid turnover dates than Boston and around the universities. Prices are high and bigger complexes might be more willing for short term stuff. Getting a sublet just for spring may be a pain but you might check over at the Northeastern University subreddit. Since such a big fraction of folks take Co-Ops each semester there are often sublets needed for similar time periods.

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jkjeeper06 t1_isy3z1e wrote

You will want a car to commute to burlington otherwise you'll be taking several trains and busses. While it snows here, we clear and treat the roads very quickly. You could try to just stay home on the snowy days if possible, it is rare the roads wouldn't be clear by the next day. If you have to drive, its all about good tires, safe speeds, and safe following distances.

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_isy725k wrote

Thanks for your advice. Being from Texas, I've grown to become a safe driver and don't like following too closely as there are way too many incidents of road rage and idiots on big trucks. Hopefully that'll come in handy.

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FreshOwl3084 t1_isymivm wrote

If you’re a student and want to get a good sense for Boston and the surrounding cities (Cambridge/Somerville), don’t bother living in the burbs. Yes, the burbs will be cheaper and your commute may be quicker, but it will be more boring and harder logistically to spend time in the city.

As far as where to live to get a good balance between ease of access to the city, and a not terrible commute to Burlington, I’d recommend Somerville near Davis Square (fun area in its own right), Ball Square, or in Winter Hill. Check out Craigslist, sometimes apartments.com will list sublets, and there are Facebook groups for Boston and Somerville specifically with people offering sublets. Rent all depends on how many roommates you want and the quality of apartment. If you’re hoping to have only 1 roommate, I’d anticipate in the neighborhood of 1400/month for something decent.

What I will also say is the commute time is heavily time of day dependent, as getting onto 95 from 93 (one of the routes to Burlington from Somerville) can get quite backed up during rush hour. It is important to check Google maps during your actual commute times to get a good sense of how long your drive to/from work would be. Since it is a reverse commute, I’d expect 45 minutes or less, but not 100% on that.

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_iszw1h0 wrote

Thanks for the advice. I've been looking on some facebook groups and found pretty reasonable rates!

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riski_click t1_isytrtm wrote

fwiw, if you're looking for housing in/around boston without being in/around boston, it's highly likely your going to get scammed. scammers can smell you coming from a mile away, and they know tricks you haven't even imagined yet.

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_iszw7o0 wrote

Are there any places where I'm likely to avoid scammers (i.e. facebook groups, etc)?

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riski_click t1_iszzh80 wrote

in person. that's the only way to avoid scammers. You can do the preliminary search online, but never send anyone a penny until they show you the inside of the place in person. Not over zoom, not over facetime, and not even if you walk by the place and see the "for rent" sign on it. Sometimes they string you along for a while to get you really excited about a place and then tell you you'll need to pay them a little money, or else they'll rent it to someone waiting in their office right now with cash. don't fall for it.

Also, the #1 rule to remember (especially in boston housing), is that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_it063g9 wrote

Any advice for me if I can't really see the apartment in person until I move there? I'm in Texas and have school going on. It would be too much for me to make a preliminary trip to MA just to do apartment hunting and then come back home for all my stuff and then finally move back over there.

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riski_click t1_it07a74 wrote

Personally, I have no advice other than have a trusted friend out here who can do the legwork for you (and don't trust someone you met online). It's a tough market and the scammers know it.

Someone else in the sub may have better advice, tho..

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bostonstrong781 t1_isy7kc9 wrote

If you're ok with living in the burbs, you might be able to find a good sublet in Burlington -- it's not overrun with students the way Boston, Cambridge and Somerville are. But affordable housing all over Greater Boston is a huge issue.

Here's a page with the various bus routes that serve Burlington: https://www.burlington.org/736/Transportation

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busrideenthusiast OP t1_isyhmwv wrote

Thank you for the advice! Any sites where I could look for housing options (rent or sublease) for suburbs?

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