Boston is famous for it's incredible culture and small town feel, which is why it's been one of the fastest growing metros in the country over the past decade. It's home to some of the worlds finest higher learning institutions, and for this reason it's been attracting a hefty sum of venture capitalism over the past few years. All of these factors have led to a surge in the local population, fueling housing demand and driving up rent prices for apartments in Boston.
At this moment, the average rent price for a 1 bedroom apartment in Boston is over $2100. That's NYC prices! A 2 bedroom apartment is pulling almost $2600 and a 3 bedroom apartment is well over $3K a month on average. When you get into some of the cities trendier neighborhoods, prices for apartments can be 20-30% higher than the average. How the heck is a student supposed to make it in this town?
Most of Boston's Universities are situated near the Charles River. Boston College and BU sit in Fenway and Brighton, while Harvard and MIT sit outside of city limits in nearby Cambridge, MA. Northeastern University is situated in the heart of downtown, bordering both Back Bay and the South End. These are all prime neighborhoods in Boston, so students looking to live close to campus can hardly afford it.
In 2020 they are considering rent control to keep housing affordable for the masses, but the last time they tried this in 1994 it ended up doing more harm than good as landlords decided to sell off their properties rather than take a pay cut, which caused a shortage of housing supply and ended up lifting prices even higher. Those that did keep their investment properties let them fall into disrepair, bringing down the home values of some of the owners in the neighborhood.
Right now the city has to commit to building more affordable housing in and around Boston. Right now, luxury buildings are popping up all over the skyline, but rarely do you hear about a project adding thousands of affordable units to the city's inventory. If you're a student in Beantown looking to live off campus, you may get pushed out of areas close to campus as apartments in Allston and surrounding areas continue to climb.