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Life in Boston, Massachusetts

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Are you thinking of moving or relocating to Boston, Massachusetts? Would you like to know what the quality of life is like living in Boston?

Samantha reports in this review:

Weather	How much crime?	What are the neighborhoods like?	What are the people like?
Summers are pretty mild, it rarely gets over 90 degrees, which is good, because most places in the city do not have central AC. The winters are horrible. There is a ton of snowfall, but it rarely falls below 0 degrees, which is also good as few people drive.	Most people who want to avoid crime avoid the Orange Line, but I just do not go deeply South in the city. As it is a large city, there is crime everywhere scattered about, but it is rarely violent crime. Most of it is robberies of local stores.	Best neighborhood is Beacon Hill. Some of the worst are in Roxbury and South Boston, but these are becoming gentrified very quickly. Allston and Brighton are full of students, and the neighborhoods reflect this transitional nature.	People are very efficient, and don't like you to waste time. This can be charming in a way and it can also come off as abrupt. It is one of the least diverse big cities in the US, but each neighborhood has its ethnic lines. The North end is heavily Italian, Roxbury is Black, South Boston has alot of Irish.
Downtown Area	Restaurants	Schools	Single life
Downtown Crossing is having a revival, it used to be dangerous. The Cambridge Galleria in Kendall is a great mall. Newbury Street is the high end shopping destination.	The North End has hundreds of Italian restaurants. There are many gastropubs throughout Boston. If I had to pin down a favorite neighborhood for restaurants, it would be the South End, they have many French fusion places.	The public schools are excellent, some of the top in the country. You won't have to send your kids to private school.	Yes! There are many singles as it is very college heavy and there is a growing tech presence. There are many many types of bars to suit every interest.
Noise	town comparison vs.	Best hospital	Tourist attractions
The train runs above ground in some places, so check that out before you move in.	Worcester is a dump compared to Boston, New York is clearly better. Cambridge is basically Boston, with a hipper identity. For vacation, check out Providence or Newport as they have more of a beachy feel.	Massachusetts General Hospital is actually #1 in the country!	There is a ton of history here. Check out the JFK library, the Tea Party museum, Fanueil Hall. In the summer you'll never run out of things to do!
General comments
Town is great, the city is growing very rapidly with the new mayor. They are extending transportation as well as keeping the city open later. Boston is becoming world class. A great place to grow!

Are you thinking of moving or relocating to Boston, Massachusetts? Would you like to know what the quality of life is like living in Boston?

Silas Brunk reports in this review:

Weather	How much crime?	What are the neighborhoods like?	What are the people like?
Boston has an overall good climate. Summers are mild and not overly hot. The autumn is brisk but pleasant. During the cold month temperature can plunge into sub freezing conditions. Seldom hurricanes which arrive north or south of the city can increase winds and precipitation.	Boston is a large city with over 600,000 resident and thus crime is common. The crime I personally experienced while I visited Boston was when I bought six pack of beer. When I left the store a man came up from behind me and grabbed my bag and ran off. Petty theft seems common place and one just needs to keep a sharp eye. I also noticed when I walked near Boston College that many young people were doing recreational drugs in the open.	The downtown and Charlestown are the two best places in the city.This is where most upper-class people live. Cambridge where Harvard University is located is high income and very expensive. Some of the most expensive real estate in the cities lies in Cambridge. The Southeast side of the city seems to be the most crime ridden and run down.	People tend to be a little cold and distant. Also many residents of Boston have a strong New England accent. Boston is made up of many ethnicities not just the normal black and white relations. There are many regions of the city that host certain people like Russians or Chinese. The city is very diverse in culture and ethnicity.
Downtown Area	Restaurants	Schools	Single life
Very nice, and they offer a wide range of stores from upper class shopping to retail shops.	The best restaurants are not cheap. I visited a restaurant called Salts while the food was excellent and prepared by a master chef the price tag was too much for my wallet. if on a budget one can easily find a cheap Chinese restaurant of a fast food cafe that serves wraps.	This depends on where one lives. Some of the public schools in Boston fall far below the States acceptance level. If in the well to do areas like Cambridge or Beacon Hill then the schools are some of the best in the state.	Boston has a 50-50 male female ratio so it shouldn't be too hard to find romance. Also Boston has a good nightlife and 100s of cafes and coffee shops that make meet up for a casual date convenient.
Noise	town comparison vs.	Best hospital	Tourist attractions
Boston is a very noisy city and when they were doing the 'Big Dig' it was at time too overly bearing. Also the airport is located to the north of city and flights are often heard even if one is in the downtown area.	Since Boston is a large city it would be best to compare this city with other large cities in the region. Providence, Rhode Island is smaller but similar to Boston in many ways especially historically. But, Boston has a sea port and much deep history and a better infrastructure. Portsmouth, Maine would be in many ways a smaller version on Boston minus Bostons deep history. Both offer universities and sea port and a fishing industry.	The General Hospital is one of the best in the country.	I enjoyed my visit to Charelstown to see the Battle of Bunker Hill and the War of 1812 'still commissioned' frigate Old Ironside.
General comments
I stayed in Boston for 1 week and I thoroughly enjoyed my stay. The city has much to offer from fine arts to museums of every kind. What I loved about the cities is its youthfulness. Boston has over 30 colleges and it seems that nearly 50% of the population are under 25 years old. The city also has a touch of culture and class with its many churches and art galleries. My impression is that Boston is a city of sophistication.

Boston, Massachusetts population: 617594

How many black people live in Boston? How many white people?

Number of White People	333033	Percentage of White people	53.9%
Number of Black People	163629	Percentage of Black people	26.5%
Number of Hispanic People	128711	Percentage of Hispanic people	20.9%
Number of Asian People	62479	Percentage of Asian people	10.1%
Number of American Indian People	6529	Percentage of American Indian people	1.1%

Note: Numbers may add up to >100% because some people are more than one race.

Boston, Massachusetts

Percent college grads: 42.5%
Percent grad school grads: 19.1%
Unemployment rate: 9.3
Median house value: 395200
Median income: 50684

How many singles in Boston?

Single men ages 20-34	Single women ages 20-34	Ratio of single men to women age 20-34
84885	83282	1.02men for each woman
Single men ages 35-44	Single women ages 35-44	Ratio of single men to women age 35-44
21475	23539	0.91men for each woman
Single men ages 45-54	Single women ages 45-54	Ratio of single men to women age 45-54
18366	20840	0.88men for each woman

Crimes in Boston, Massachusetts

Crimes	Absolute numbers	Average percentage chance of being a victim in
by type	of crimes	One Year	Five Years
Murders	73	0%	0%
Robberies	1926	0%	2%
Aggr. Assault	3564	1%	3%
Burglary	3587	2%	8%
Auto Theft	2037	0%	2%

Weather History for Boston, Massachusetts

Boston, Massachusetts Basic Temperatue and Weather (30 year averages)

Month	Number of Days 30's (degrees)	Number of Days 40's (degrees)	Number of Days 50's (degrees)	Number of Days 60's (degrees)	Number of Days 70's (degrees)	Number of Days 80's (degrees)
January	31	0	0	0	0	0
February	21	8	0	0	0	0
March	0	31	0	0	0	0
April	0	0	27	3	0	0
May	0	0	0	28	3	0
June	0	0	0	0	30	0
July	0	0	0	0	0	31
August	0	0	0	0	17	14
September	0	0	0	8	22	0
October	0	0	12	19	0	0
November	0	10	20	0	0	0
December	12	19	0	0	0	0
Average year	64	68	59	58	72	45

How many days and how much precipitation and snow for Boston, Massachusetts?

	Number of days of rain (.1 inch or greater)	total rainfall	Number of days of snow (.5 inch or greater)	Total snowfall
January	6	3.36	7	12.9
February	5	3.25	6	10.9
March	7	4	4	7
April	6	3	1	1
May	7	3	0	0
June	6	3	0	0
July	6	3	0	0
August	5	3	0	0
September	5	3	0	0
October	6	3	0	0
November	6	3	0	1
December	6	3	5	9
Average year	76	43	26	43

Realistic temperatures, taking into account precipitation, amount of sunlight during the day, winds during the day, and humidity during hot days.

Month	Number of Days 0-20's (degrees)	Number of Days 20's (degrees)	Number of Days 30's (degrees)	Number of Days 40's (degrees)	Number of Days 50's (degrees)	Number of Days 60's (degrees)	Number of Days 70's (degrees)	Number of Days 80's (degrees)
January	31	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
February	13	15	0	0	0	0	0	0
March	0	25	6	0	0	0	0	0
April	0	0	9	21	0	0	0	0
May	0	0	0	3	22	6	0	0
June	0	0	0	0	0	25	5	0
July	0	0	0	0	0	0	30	1
August	0	0	0	0	0	0	26	5
September	0	0	0	0	2	18	10	0
October	0	0	0	16	8	7	0	0
November	0	7	12	11	0	0	0	0
December	1	30	0	0	0	0	0	0
Average year	45	77	27	51	32	56	71	6

How many hot humid days a year does Boston, Massachusetts have?
How many cloudy days a year does Boston, Massachusetts have?
How many sunny days a year does Boston, Massachusetts have? How sunny is it?
How many windy days a year does Boston, Massachusetts have? How windy is it?
See below for the answers!

Month	Number of hot, humid days	Number of very windy days	Number of clear days	Number of moderately cloudly days	Number of somewhat cloudy days	Number of very cloudy days
January	0	31	9	2	5	13
February	0	28	8	2	4	11
March	0	31	8	2	5	13
April	0	30	7	2	6	13
May	0	31	7	3	7	12
June	0	30	6	3	8	10
July	26	31	7	5	8	9
August	13	31	8	4	8	9
September	0	30	9	3	6	9
October	0	31	10	3	6	10
November	0	30	8	2	5	12
December	0	31	8	2	5	13
Average year	39	365	99	40	79	141

(Note: Humidity, wind, and cloudcover information is based on (a) 30 year averages and in many cases (b) a large nearby weather station. If you're in an area with a lot of "micro climates" actual conditions may vary.)

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Sources of information: Census, FBI Crime Statistics, NOAA
Disclaimer: The information presented here are for the general population, assume the same rate of crime in the future, and an evenly distributed amount of crime throughout the city in question. They are not meant to accurately predict whether one person in particular will be a victim of crime. Percentages are based on the population of the city/town in question, except for burglaries, which are based on the number of households.