Submitted by Daddy-Long-Legs-85 t3_11lbuph in providence
Hi everyone! My job is moving to the heart of Boston, and I am considering Providence as a place to live. Partially because it’s one of the only cities I can afford a home. I went to college in RI so I am sort of familiar with the city.
What do people think about the train? Is it better to drive or take public transit. Are there certain times that are best if you’re trying to get into the city for a 9 to 5-ish kind of day?
Thanks!
Yeah, that drive/commute is just miserable. Even just going up to Boston for shows or to Logan, it's so crappy. I just groaned out loud reading OP's full post.
Also, depending on where you decide to live, driving or taking the bus may be needed. If you are driving, you will need to consider the costs associated with parking.
[deleted]
Where I currently live I'm 2 hours from Boston so I'm trying to figure out if living in Prov is better then staying where I am. The other factor I need to consider is my mortgage will double if I move to RI. I can't afford much close to the city. Worcester and Providence seem to be the most affordable areas close to Boston. I need a house thats less then 440K which seems harder then it should be...
Remember, it's not just the prices, but also the interest rates. I assume you're taking that into account on the doubled mortgage comment.
If your job is moving you into Boston and expecting you to dump your home, I sincerely hope they are adjusting compensation to reflect that.
We are getting a 10% pay bump, but thats not quite covering the massive cost of living difference. I live in western mass and have a 2,200 sqft house with a $1,400 monthly mortgage. With the increased interest rate i'm looking at $2,300-2,500 a month to get something even remotely close.
I'm 2 hours from Boston currently, trying to figure out if its better to commute from here 3 days a week since the cost of travel from RI plus increased real estate market will be so high.
Honestly, it just kind of sounds like they did you dirty. I would seriously reconsider making this kind of life altering decision for a company that isn't bargaining in good faith (10% lol) unless you love your job that much. No reason to upend your life and possessions for a job that might burn you going down this path.
Can this be done 100% remote from another company? (seeing its 3x now)
No reason you need to get another (worse) mortgage. If you're determined to see this through, then I'd get a rental while you assess the impact this has on your life and rent the house in MA. Besides, one in the hand better than two in the bush, and all that when it comes to finding new housing. Not only will you be paying double, but at your budget, I can almost guarantee it's going to be a huge step down from your current place in terms of location, schools, size, and probably more of a fixer upper.
Thanks for the advice. (speaking of doing me dirty, they laid me off once in the past but I returned a few years later) I do love my job but being an art director/graphic designer I can do my job remote, assuming I can find a remote position. The local area I'm in isn't great for my field.
I would definitely rent before buying to get a lay of the land/lifestyle.
Wild. For what it's worth, I had a friend who was going to sell his house here to move abroad and he had a sub-1k mortgage. He was going to list it. In the end, they rented it out still making plans to leave indefinitely and after a few months, realized the plan was to come back after a year to their old house. So, my advice is always to test out the waters before making a very expensive and permanent change. Glad you're open to renting instead.
You should do a search, this is a popular subject. Trains not terrible but it's gonna get tiring real fast, especially if you have to pay for parking. Driving will suck, especially if you go all the way into the city. If you do rive, park at Quincy Adams to take the T, but then you'll be dealing with the actual trainwreck the T is right now.
TLDR: Hopefully you don't have to go in 5 days a week or your job is paying you an arm and a leg because the commute will get tiring quick.
And parking in Quincy and taking the train adds more time to the commute as well. Just something to keep in mind. I did it years ago and it was a real drag.
That depends on where you are. There’s a lot of neighborhoods with decently affordable homes (by Boston standards anyway) that are an easy walk / bike ride from the train station. There are also a lot that aren’t, obviously.
Sure, if he's got coin to afford nearby it'll defiantly make life a wee bit easier but even when I was schlepping in all of 2 miles from Hope/Oakhill, it's still an additional pain in the ass in an already long day.
It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.
[deleted]
West side, Smith Hill, Fox Point. Not as cheap as they used to be but still deals compared to Boston
[deleted]
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/110gdx3/commute_to_boston_back_bay_from_providence/
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/10xb4hb/commute_from_boston/
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/10ljv6l/availability_of_uberlyfts_to_boston/
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/10jqma5/commute_to_boston_commuter_rail/
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/zwkbr0/commute_to_boston/
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/ywbct5/how_do_folks_get_to_pvd/
Bonus thread on parking
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/ud0xf1/train_station_parking_why_is_this_so_difficult/
That commute is going to suck. The trains are slow, unreliable and expensive. Driving absolutely sucks unless you’re able to work a shift that gets you in and out of the office super early.
If you’re going to Back Bay or South Station, it’s a little over an hour each way on commuter rail. The trains are on a very set schedule, so you don’t have to wait in the station if you plan your trip correctly.
You can also take Amtrak, and the trip is around 30 minutes. The schedule isn’t as frequent, and the Providence-to-Boston Amtrak trains are more likely to fall behind schedule. (The trains leaving from Boston are usually on time.) If your work hours allow it, a combination of commuter rail to Boston and Amtrak to Providence offers the best combination of speed and reliability.
Not another one
I wouldn’t wish that daily commute on my worst enemy. Sorry.
I don’t live in PVD (zone 8) but I’ve been a daily commuter to BOS as someone who lives closer to PVD than BOS. I’ve relied on the MBTA throughout college and now for work. It’s definitely doable, but like many have said here, it’ll take some advance planning, trial and error, and time to get used to.
One of the perks of using the commuter rail is that you can be more productive since your attention isn’t on the road. You can do work, relax, read, etc.
Subscribe to get text/email alerts directly from the T, and specifically for the trains you’ll be taking everyday, so you can get updates in case of delays or canceled trains. Have a back-up plan (drive yourself/Uber/WFH), because delays WILL happen.
Also having an employer who is aware of your commuting routine is good because they’ll be more sympathetic when your train is running late. Plus, a delayed train is easily verifiable because they’re posted, so your employer can trust you when you say you’re late due to train delays. But this also means you’ll be at the mercy of the train schedule. Their delays means your delays, and it feels unfair but that’s the trade off you make when you depend on an external system to get you to work on time.
[deleted]
Take the train. I drove to Quincy/North Quincy for 21 years and it SUCKED.
I have friends who commute via Amtrak - you can get tickets on Amtrak cheaper than on MBTA if you plan ahead. And it's a much nicer ride. But MBTA is not bad.
I did this for a little bit in 2015-2016ish.. I was right out of college and didn’t know better. That train ride is going to get very very tiring after about 6 months. Would not recommend.
Thanks for the perspective. Can I ask how long the train ride was on average? I see the Amtrak is faster but not always at convenient times and the MBTA seems to be about 1hr20min – 1hr40min.
What are you planning to comment to Boston? Be careful what you say - they can be kind of tough up there.
If you move to Providence, you will be inflicting increased cost of living on the working people here. Our rents have been going up exponentially even while our population is declining. Please be aware that your choices have consequences for the community you seek to enter.
Lol Providence is growing fast
Familiar_Ad1485 t1_jbbmc06 wrote
Do you want to spend 2.5 hours on a train every day and probably another 1/2 hour waiting for said train in the station… so approx 3 hours a day commuting?