Boston apartment rentals don’t get any cheaper, unfortunately

I was out with a client, last week. He just accepted a new job in Boston and needs an apartment. He wants to live within walking distance to work, which is in the middle of the Back Bay.

When he called me, he told me two things: his budget was from $1,300 to $2,000 and he was only going to be here for twenty-four hours, he was ready to make a decision right away.

He asked me, “Do you think I can find something in that price range?” and I kind of laughed – hell, yeah, I thought, especially since he was only looking for a studio or one-bedroom.

Well, the joke was on me.

We found only six properties (SIX!) in that price range of which four were dumps. The two nice places included a top-floor (seven-stories) studio apartment on Commonwealth Ave for $2,000 and a cute, somewhat spacious studio on the “sunny side” of Beacon Street for $1,650.

I was as surprised as he that we couldn’t find more of a selection in the mid-range.

Now the Boston Globe is out with an article stating what I just found out – rents in Boston are expensive.

While Boston housing values have dropped in the double digits over the last five years, rents have only dipped and now appear to be rebounding. As a result, prospective tenants looking to sign leases on apartments before the city’s traditional Sept. 1 rush will find high prices and few incentives, real estate brokers and property managers say.

According to an analysis by a rental research firm, Boston is the fourth-most expensive apartment market in the United States.

While vacancy rates have increased during the past several years, inventory is still tight, especially in the Back Bay. Renters have options in several of the new high-rise, “luxury” buildings including Archstone Boston Common and Avenir and NorthPoint but prices there begin at about $2,000 for a studio and over $2,200 for a one-bedroom.

Try swinging that on a young executive’s salary. Doesn’t leave much room for drinks at the Rattlesnake.

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