You might need to just pick which one of those three things is most important to you in order to find an area to live in.

Boston is going to have the most nightlife, but it is the most expensive & longest commute.

Framingham is going to reduce your commute and housing cost, but has no nightlife.

Worcester has some nice buildings with lower rents than Boston, but still requires a decent commute and their nightlife does not compare to boston.

I feel like you are going to have a lot of trouble in Hopkinton area if you do not yet drive. That is a suburban/rural area. I’m not sure there are realistic public transportation options unless your office is next to a train station.

[deleted]

Try Brooklyn, new yorkers eunt domus

Waltham or Watertown perhaps. Yes hopkinton is pretty rural but could take commuter rail there (I think!) and maybe a short Uber ride to work? Idk, tough area did Ubers too maybe. Though I’m just spitballing here I don’t live there

Framingham would be the best bet for you.. there are some things to do! And you could take the train into Boston if you really wanted. Best chance for Ubers in Framingham too

There are still places in JP and Roslindale for that price. They are pretty cool neighborhoods well connected to the T. Probably Quincy as well but not so familiar. They won’t be super modern but pretty nice. I don’t think you’ll get a modern place on your budget honestly, and you will certainly require a car if you’re outside of Greater Boston (imo anyway).

Yea, I live in Upton, next town over from Hopkinton. If you're going to work in Hopkinton and can't drive you're not gonna be able to get to the office without carpooling or Uber. Did you check the public transit options before you took the job? Also, if you want to live somewhere that's a city and relatively close, then it's really Worcester or Framingham. Worcester has some rough parts, tbh. Worcester to Hopkinton should be about half an hour on 495.

Framingham has public transportation to Boston, diversity, some restaurants and a couple breweries.

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Bro you live in Upton too?

You are going to need a car. Hopkinton is extremely rural for a suburb. Daily ubers will not scale and it might even be hard to find one out that far on a consistent basis.

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Maybe try to find housing near work so you can walk and then uber into Boston on the weekend?

I know you dont want to dox yourself but not knowing where your work is located makes this extremely difficult to give advice to a non-driver.

THERE'S DOZENS OF US. I mean, it's a small town, but yea. I wanted to get a house with an actual yard when we were about to have our first kid. It's quiet, but I like it. Except for that fisher attack that killed all my chickens. The chickens came with the house, which is a story for another time, but it was not fun to have to bury the dead and euthanize the severely wounded :(.

Yeah I’m one of the few I guess! I’ve been on this sub for a little while time and I’ve never met another user that lived in my town haha

Can I guess your working at Perkin-Elmer? Message if you are are would be happy to help your relocation!

Move to Framingham. technically a city, easy train ride to Boston, and a short commute to your office. Lots of apartments in that range. https://www.rinconmgmt.com/featured-property/dennison-bishop-apts

Relying on a carpool is inherently unreliable. Ubering is going to cost you a lot.

I’d talk to your new employer about this maybe? I’d bet there will be carpool options from most nearby towns, especially if it is a larger company. Having said that, you’ll get more value for your rental $ in Worcester and it has improved a lot in the ~20 years I’ve been in this area. People still have a dated view of the city imo. Anyway, there are very nice apts within walking distance of the commuter rail and it is 2 stops to get you w/n a couple miles of Hopkinton center. Where you could Uber, catch a ride with a colleague or even bike on nice days. And you can fly round trip from Worcester to JFK for $150 (or less) when you are missing the city. It’s a 30-min flight. I’ve done that a lot myself.

Hey Moonbiter-

Another Upton guy here. What are the chances, lol??

FPL

Hey colelynch82-

Another Upton guy here. Crazy, no??

FPL

That entire area is boring. It's the quiet exurb smack dab in between Boston and the next "major" (minor) city. If you can't drive you'll need to find something in walking distance or get an e-bike or something.

Hopkinton is not really accessible by public transportation. The towns you listed that you are considering living in have commuter rail access but it is not feasible to commute to Hopkinton from any of those stations via public transportation. I am from the next town over and Hopkinton is not the place to work if you need to rely on public transportation.

I live in one of the mentioned areas and certainly OP can find somewhere in their budget here but it won't be feasible to commute to Hopkinton without a car.

There’s also at least commuter rail in Worcester too, so if OP wants to be in central-ish MA, can’t drive, and wants some nightlife and diversity, Worcester might not be a bad option.

Crazy

I wouldn’t wanna walk home from the train station in Framingham at night to that place.

OP is coming from NYC. I’m sure Framingham is fine.

Yup, like everyone said, you are gonna DIE! /s

Try looking at Marlboro

I live in grafton.. hi neighbors

With all due respect, if you don't drive, you should not take a job in Hopkinton. Not many jobs are worth totally transforming your lifestyle to such degree as a move from NYC to a car dependent suburb would entail. If this is a unicorn job for you, you need to learn to drive before you move to the area. If it's not a unicorn job, and you really want to live in Massachusetts, you should look for work in Boston or Cambridge instead.

>new yorkers eunt domus

Hah! No, you're most welcome but will be quite the transition from nyc to exurban Massachusetts. Ashland, Franklin-- white, white, white. Worcester is plenty diverse and Framingham is more diverse than surrounding Natick, Westborough, Sudbury, etc, but may be pretty segregated where working class, gritty neighborhoods are Latino and Brazilian and the middle class / upper-middle areas all white and suburban. Unlike Queens where it's all mixed up. But lots of beautiful woods, lakes, some farms, country roads in eastern/central Mass so don't overlook that advantage.

Framingham may be the winner. You can live near the railroad station and leave an e-bike (with good bright riding lights) at the Southboro station during the work week and ride to the office in Hopkinton. At 26 you'll pick up the driving skills soon enough and then not be bound by the car-free new yorker identity.

Yo!