Where to live near Umass Boston (Quincy, Adams: rentals, condos, houses)

[Mduflew]

Good afternoon,

We are contemplating accepting a position at Umass boston but we really don't know the towns near the University. Can we buy a decent home near the university or will we have to live in expensive Boston? Is Quincy a nice place to live? Thank you for the advice.

[bostonguy1960]

Quincy is ok...I've rented there for over 6 years now. Some areas are very blue collar, others middle class and Irish. As other posts on the "Boston" forum have mentioned, you'll find a very large Chinese population in N. Quincy and other sections. Not sure when they first descended here en masse. Many have opened restaurants, bakeries, tailors, etc. Some parts of Quincy at Marina Bay, Wollaston Hill and pockets off Furnace Brook Parkway as well as Squantum are pleasant.

The city just opened a new High School across from the YMCA, near the main library. So far, the three branch libraries are still in opration.

One still hears what I consider a thick Boston accent here,

I think South Quincy has an Italian Festival in the summer; not sure how many Italians are left here, though.

Great bus and subway access to Boston. Some parts of Quincy are near beaches. Quincy Shore Drive is lovely when the sun sets or rises. Some history to the city, esp. with that HBO special a couple years ago on John Quincy Adams. There's even a trolley tour in season highlighting certain points of interest. John Hancock is buried off of Hancock Street if I'm not mistaken.

Today was the holiday parade with Santa's appearance. Around Flag Day, the city has a parade and nice fireworks.

Some people don't like Quincy while others do.

Not many blacks here. More of a recent Indian population.

$350,000 gets you a bungalow (3 BR?) with a small yard and houses all around. You'll find fancy condos and rentals nowadays, unlike years ago.

As I mentioned, check the archives on the adjacent Boston forum for more Quincy info.

[shiver]

Quincy has been discussed quite a bit on these boards (plug in "Quincy" in the search function). I lived in Quincy for a few years and I think it has some pretty nice areas. One drawback, however, would be the school system. It's not terrible, but it's not the greatest. So it may be an issue if you have children. Other than that, what is your budget, what kind of area are you looking to live in (urban, suburban, etc.), do you have kids, are you going to be driving to work or do you need access to the T?