0 Boston Off Campus Housing Search

Posted on May 11, 2012 by All Access Boston

Congratulations college students on another semester finished. Hopefully, you made it through with most of your hair. Now, it’s time to find that apartment for next semester. If you’ve lived in Boston for awhile, you are aware that off campus housing for September 1st starts renting in January. That isn’t to say you’ve missed the bus completely, but now it’s time to hustle.

Here’s the issue…over the last few weeks you’ve said to yourself, “Hey, self, I should get a group of my new favorite friends together to live with next year because my old friends are lame. I mean, who still listens to Vampire Weekend? I hate Josh.”, or something like that.

The next thing you did was go online to search for an apartment in Boston and of course you ended up on the best website for Boston off campus housing, AllAccessBoston.com. You signed up, found a few apartments you liked…maybe you even exchanged a few emails with a real estate agent. Then you disappeared off the face of the Earth into the dark land of finals.

As finals went on you forgot all about your apartment search. Eventually, you passed everything and hopefully saved the school while getting back at the evil dean in some Van Wilderesque moment. Then of course, it became time to celebrate. The next week ended up being a blur of parties, after-parties, and walks of shame. But wait, didn’t you need an apartment?

So, two to three weeks have passed by since you looked at those great Boston off campus housing options on AllAccessBoston.com and do you know what happened? They rented. That’s what happened. Uh-oh. Alright, new game plan. Get yourself back onto AllAccessBoston.com and let’s start your Boston off campus housing search in earnest. There are two very simple avenues we can choose. You can find a number of listings that interest you and click the “Request A Showing” button on each, or, you can respond to the e-mail that your assigned real estate agent sent you. You can even just call our office at 617-981-6900 and yell “HELP” into the receiver. We’ll take care of you all the same.

What’s important is that you get moving on your apartment search now. Soon you’ll be off on vacations, finding a summer job, or holing yourself up in your home so that no one can interrupt your 3 month Call of Duty binge. The priority needs to be your next apartment though. Let us help you get that taken care of before all of your options are gone. Once we get your Boston off campus housing search squared away, you are free to enjoy your summer without a care in the world.

2 Boston Spring Cleaning

Posted on March 20, 2011 by All Access Boston

I’ve spent the day doing a little Boston Spring cleaning around my apartment. Every once in a while I have to stop and laugh at myself as my own worlds collide. On the one hand, I’m grabbing landlord’s listing sheets that I have down in my living room that I’ve been pouring over for a client…and right next to that is a pile of unmarked CDs I’ve ripped to play downstairs. You’d think by now I’d have the concept of titling my CDs down, but I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same. With that in mind, lets go over a few Boston Spring cleaning (and regular cleaning) tips I’ve learned over the years that have helped me keep my Boston apartments sparklingly fresh.

'This was me today except manlier.'

1. GET A VACUUM. Seriously, your broom just isn’t cutting it…and while you’re at it, get a nice mop. I’m looking at you college kids. If your floor is sticky with beer or not beer, you are practically sending out invitations to ant colonies and mice.
* Here’s the secret tip for vacuuming. If you have carpeting in your apartment and take the time to shampoo it (which you totally should, it will change your life), you need to know how to make your shampooing effective. I always thought that you simply shampooed and then let the machine suck the dirty water up. That isn’t the way to really get it done though. You need to vacuum the carpet after it dries because the shampooer breaks up a lot of deep down dirt and then simply leaves it there. The final vacuuming takes care of that.

'Its not child labor if they're related to you.'

2. Do you have a garbage disposal? Does it have that not so fresh feeling? You could pour a bunch of dish soap down there and accomplish nothing, OR you could use an age old trick that I learned a few months ago. Cut up a lemon or a lime into slices and toss them down there and simply turn it on. Suddenly people will be complementing you on the freshness of your garbage disposal with alarming frequency.

3. Cleaning your range is about more than wiping it off. Is it electric? Take out the heating coils and clean under there. Any food that gets under there (boiled over milk is the worst) will absolutely stink each time you turn on your stove unless you get in there with some bleach. Just make sure they’re cool first. Is your stove top gas? See if you can lift the top completely up to get under the entire range. When you do, you’ll most likely run into a nighmare of burnt bits of food and other things you can’t identify. That’s because this part of the stove needs to be cleaned out but most people (college students) don’t even know its there. Buy some rubber gloves and get in there. It will be gross, but you’ll feel better once its done.

4. You live in your apartment. You may not notice any funky smells because you’ve grown accustomed to them. Invite a friend over to give your apartment a walk through and evaluate the overall scent. You may find areas that need a serious cleaning that you hadn’t even noticed. On a related note. Take out your trash. You may be able to live with a few bags laying around but A. Your neighbors will hate you and B. Again, mice everywhere will be e-mailing their friends about the buffet you are leaving out.

That should be enough to get you started. I find with the right tools and the right soundtrack, you can rip through a solid cleaning session without even thinking about it. Just make sure you have the right cleaning supplies, rubber gloves, and about 3 hours of solid music.

Any tips to add? Feel free to leave a comment. All Access Boston – We are your source for motherly advice.

'If we were your Mom, we'd be awesome at it.'

0 Finding A Boston Apartment For Your Child

Posted on December 13, 2010 by All Access Boston

Search Boston Off Campus Housing

Is your child going to be attending college in Boston? Are they already a student in Boston but have decided to move off campus? If you’re in either of these situations, you’ve probably had some sort of discussion with them about where they’re going to live. You may even be planning on viewing apartments in Boston with them. The fact is, you need to understand the Boston apartment rental market in order to help them best.

The most important thing you need to be aware of before you get into searching for your kid’s next apartment. Let’s put this in bold so it’s the first thing you see on the page. The Boston apartment rental market runs way ahead of schedule…it’s unlike anywhere else in the country. This is especially true of off campus housing because Boston students move around so often. What this means is that you need to be searching for apartments months ahead of your desired move-in date.

This doesn’t mean that you have to search so that you get a chance to see everything. It means that Boston off campus apartment availability will be on the market months in advance so you need to actually find and apply for an apartment before all the best are rented.

There’s a very good reason why I bring this up. With the Spring semester coming up on us, there are a lot of students coming into Boston for the first time who may not have been able to get a dorm room due to space. Also, some students opt out of the dorms mid-year and begin looking for their first off campus apartment now. The problem we have is that this flood of apartment hunters isn’t aware of this important facet of the real estate market because they are renting for the first time, OR, they were accepted to class late and didn’t have a choice but to begin hunting for apartments late.

Regardless, this creates an issue that really limits renter’s options. There’s really only one thing to do this time around and that’s get out to find an apartment and do it now. If you have to take a day off work, make it happen. I currently have a number of clients who need apartments but want to wait until next week to do it. I understand that they may have finals, but taking a few hours to see their options needs to be a priority. By next week their options could be slashed in half. Some may have only a couple options left depending on their apartment needs. Your off campus housing search needs to be a priority.

Now that we have that down, there’s really only one thing to do and that’s to start your Boston apartment search today and then (after an All Access Boston agent contacts you), get back in touch with them immediately to schedule a showing.

Don’t be left out in the cold this year. Let’s get your apartment hunt started and finished before the week is out. It will give you one less thing to stress out about during the holidays.

1 Moving to Boston 2011

Posted on December 6, 2010 by All Access Boston

Moving to Boston this Coming Year?

Its that time of year again… “Jingle Bells” is playing on loop at your local mall. Everyone is being extra nice to each other (probably to get better presents). Everyone is waiting for that first heavy snow when all of our cars will be plowed in (and we’ll immediately stop being extra nice to each other).

Its the holidays!

Now we know what you are thinking, “Oh no, I have to stress out about getting everyone I know a gift”. Don’t worry about it because the fact is, you have way bigger things to worry about. For instance, where will you be living on New Year’s Day? Hint: If you don’t know yet, that’s a major issue.

So what do you do? Ok, settle down. Santa knows when you’ve taken too many Xanax and he’s not a fan. This can all be settles very easily. In fact, you may be able to save a few bucks on your January 1st apartment rental. How? We’ll tell you.

So you need an apartment for January 2011 in Boston. Maybe you’re moving to Boston to attend class at one of the city’s fantastic schools like BU, Boston College, Northeastern, or Berklee. Maybe your current lease is up and you’re sick of living in your current apartment. Maybe you’re moving to Boston for work. Regardless of the reason, you probably know that having a roof and a mailing address is preferable to not.

Of course, you’re immediately going to contact an All Access Boston real estate professional to find you the perfect apartment and walk you through the rental process. On top of that, you might get a little holiday treat as there are some great deals on the Boston rental market at the moment.

With so many landlords moving forcing leases to end on August 31st of 2010, there was a glut of supply this past September in a year that saw a very low demand. More and more college students were staying home and commuting to class instead of living off-campus. Young professionals who were in a financial bind weren’t coming up with the money to relocate. As a result, vacancies abound. What comes naturally with Boston apartment vacancies? Rent decreases.

So here’s where you come in. You need an apartment in Boston for January and we’ve got the know how to find you the right place at the right price. Everyone loves a deal. How do no fee Boston apartments sound? Pretty good I’ll bet especially since you have to fork over a few hundred in various gift cards this month.

So, whether you’re moving to Boston or simply relocating to a new neighborhood, simply follow our “Contact” link to get in touch with one of our staff members. It’s easy as one form, a couple of e-mails, and a nice, relaxed apartment showing. You’ll be all set by the end of the week.

0 Spring Semester Boston Off Campus Housing

Posted on October 31, 2010 by All Access Boston

Fall is finally in the air. Yes, it took its sweet time getting here, but Boston has finally succumbed to colored leaves, crisp breezes, and hot apple cider. This is all well and good, but is it as much fun if you don’t have an apartment? The answer is an obvious no, it’s hard to get stoked on the change of seasons if your mailing address is more fiction than fact. If you’ve lived in a Boston apartment before, then you most likely signed your lease for September 1st. However, what if you were in on-campus housing for the fall semester and find yourself in need of spring semester off-campus housing? As always, you are in luck with All Access Boston…finding spring semester off-campus housing is just one of the many things we do all the time.

Off-campus housing is one of our specialties here at All Access Boston. Searching for spring semester off-campus housing can melt one’s brain if not done with the guidance of a trained professional (us). What do you look for? Where do you look? What do you wear on the showing? Allow me: an apartment, near your campus, pants. All Access Boston has apartments near every college in the Boston area (all 72-ish of them) and are ready to get you the spring semester off-campus housing you need to continue your scholarly pursuit.

The Spring semester is a bit of a misnomer (being that it starts in January), and the resulting lack of availability can produce cold sweats. Now don’t worry, we’re professionals. All Access Boston still has plenty of apartments available (many of them no fee), so let’s get going…call us today, we’ll make it hot.

There is one thing I have not touched on, so i’m going to. Consider the possibility of having two more years of undergraduate studies, then immediately transitioning into graduate school, then seamlessly enter the work force with a six figure salary. Life sounds good they way I describe it, doesn’t it? For these driven people, there is an option that makes more sense than renting. You guessed it, it’s totally buying. If you are guaranteed to be in Boston for a minimum of five additional years, it makes far more sense to build equity, improve your credit, and bask in the warm satisfaction of being a homeowner. All Access Boston has condos available for sale that will surprise you. You’ll be surprised that you can own your own place for what you’re currently paying in rent….and the best part, it’s yours! Think it over…give it a shot, you are gonna love it.

Whatever your spring semester off-campus housing needs, All Access Boston has you covered. Give us a call…you’ll like the way you live (I ripped off this saying).