Renting

Looking to save money on rent? Move one T stop away.

In some cases, it can save you hundreds of dollars. In others, thousands.

The MBTA's Green Line along Commonwealth Avenue in Boston.

September 15, 2023

In a rental market as difficult as Boston’s, renters are looking to get the most for their money, and living near a T stop can be crucial to navigating life here.

A whopping 93% of T stops experienced an increase in rent for two-bedroom apartments between the first quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, according to a study RentHop, an online marketplace, published in April.

RentHop included 125 stops its study, using data from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and listings of unfurnished two-bedroom apartments that were on the site between Jan. 15 and April 15. Listings within 0.62 miles of an MBTA stop were included only if there were at least 20 different data points. If not, researchers widened the field to within 1.2 miles of a T stop.

In the first quarter of 2023, the median rent in Boston jumped 6.7% year over year, according to the study, and traveling an extra T stop could offer as much as a $1,000 price difference in some cases.

The largest price disparity was between the Copley ($4,929)🟢 and Hynes Convention Center ($3,800)🟢 stops, for a savings of $1,129. To save $1,008, choose Massachusetts Ave ($3,800)🟠 over Back Bay ($4,808)🟠. Going past Copley ($4,929)🟢 to Prudential ($4,050)🟢 can save $879.

More on renting

The difference between Kendall/MIT ($4,268)🔴 and Central ($3,400)🔴 is $868. Renting near JFK/UMass ($2,675)🔴 rather than Andrew ($3,475)🔴 can mean an extra $800 in your pocket. You can save $700 renting near Andrew ($3,475)🔴 rather than Broadway ($4,175)🔴.

You can scale back your costs and save $500 when you stay on the Blue Line to Maverick ($3,050)🔵 instead of getting off at Aquarium ($3,550)🔵.

The two-bedroom rentals near these T shops saw the biggest increase in the median asking price in the first quarter of 2023:

T Stop	price	year-over-year ⬆
Reservoir 🟠🟢	$2,850	15.74%
Prudential 🟢	$4,050	15.71%
Haymarket 🟠🟢	$3,500	15.7%
Englewood Avenue 🟢	$2,825	15.31%
State 🟠🔵	$3,900	14.71%

Source: RentHop

And these five T stops had the highest median asking rents for a two-bedroom:

T Stop	price	year-over-year ⬆
Arlington 🟢	$4,964	10.28%
Copley 🟢	$4,929	9.53%
Back Bay 🟠	$4,808	11.23%
Chinatown 🟠⚪	$4,500	2.27%
Tufts Medical Center 🟠	$4,500	1.12%

Source: RentHop

These five stops saw the biggest decreases in median asking rents for a two-bedroom in the first quarter of 2023:

T stop	price	year-over-year ⬇
South Station 🔴⚪	$4,435	-6.27%
Forest Hills 🟠	$2,650	-3.64%
Newton Highlands 🟢	$2,250	-2.17%
Broadway 🔴	$4,175	-1.76%
Roxbury Crossing 🟠	$2,950	-1.67%