i am afraid that anything outside of boston is going to be more suburban since that's where couples in 30-40s escape to eg: quincy, nashua, framingham, burlington, waltham, worcester

city is filled with univ students and young professionals starting out, which might be more to your liking. but city has lot more older buildings than new...which means they charge substantial premium...1 bed will cost 3k or over. anything lower and real estate agents will be there

i made my peace by choosing an older building...it's affordable, didn't pay broker fee + first & last month only, in a young vibrant area, in walking distance of cafes/diners/bars.

i would recommend coming with a budget, and from there prioritizing which things you absolutely want and what aspects you are willing to compromise on