Chinatown median real estate price is $673,950, which is more expensive than 49.7% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts and 79.2% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.
The average rental price in Chinatown is currently $4,126, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 74.3% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts.
Chinatown is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Boston, Massachusetts.
Chinatown real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and small apartment buildings. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Chinatown neighborhood are newer, built in 2000 or more recently. A number of residences were also built before 1940.
Vacant apartments or homes are a major fact of life in Chinatown. The current real estate vacancy rate here is 20.1%. This is higher than the rate of vacancies in 86.9% of all U.S. neighborhoods. In addition, most vacant housing here is vacant year round. This can sometimes be the case in neighborhoods dominated by new construction that is not yet occupied. But often neighborhoods with vacancy rates this high are places that can be plagued by a protracted vacancy problem. If you live here, you may find that a number of buildings in your neighborhood are actually empty.
Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Boston, the Chinatown neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.
Modes of Transportation
More people in Chinatown choose to walk to work each day (42.1%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.
Also, in the Chinatown neighborhood, 14.8% of people ride the train to work each day. This is a very high percentage compared to most places. In fact, NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals that this is a higher level of train ridership than in 96.4% of the neighborhoods in America.
Real Estate
What you'll find when you visit or move to this neighborhood is one of the most crowded neighborhoods in all of America. With an incredible 79,205 people per square mile, it is more densely populated than 99.3% of America's neighborhoods. Even if you drive or take transit to your place of employment, many people enjoy being able to walk in their neighborhood. What many people don't realize is that most of America's premier vacation locations are also very walkable. The Chinatown neighborhood is among the top 5% of American neighborhoods in terms of walkability.
In addition, the Chinatown neighborhood is very unique in that it has one of the highest proportions of one, two, or no bedroom real estate of any neighborhood in America. Most neighborhoods have a mixture of home or apartment sizes from small to large, but here the concentration of studios and other small living spaces is at near-record heights. With 92.9% of the real estate here of this small size, this most assuredly is a notable feature that makes this neighborhood unique, along with just a handful of other neighborhoods in the U.S. that share this characteristic.
Furthermore, the real estate in the Chinatown neighborhood really stands out in the way it looks for a unique reason: this neighborhood has a higher proportion of apartment complexes or high-rise apartments than nearly every neighborhood in the country. Most neighborhoods are a mixture of real estate and housing types, but here it is almost entirely dominated by big apartment buildings and complexes. In fact, 90.0% of the real estate here is classified as apartment complexes or high-rise apartments, which is more than is found in 98.2% of American neighborhoods.
Also of note, 93.2% of the real estate in the Chinatown neighborhood is occupied by renters, which is nearly the highest rate of renter occupancy of any neighborhood in America.
Car Ownership
Most American households own a car or other vehicle. Many own two cars or perhaps three. In the United States, it is useful to have an automobile not only for commuting, but also for shopping and getting to other services one needs. But NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that households in the Chinatown neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 63.1% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 99.3% of U.S. neighborhoods.
People
An extraordinary 13.7% of the residents of the Chinatown neighborhood are currently enrolled in college. This is such a large part of life in this neighborhood that the neighborhood changes a great deal with the change of semesters and is far quieter during the summer when many students are away.
In addition, the types of households in a neighborhood can tell a lot about the character and lifestyle of those living here. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood, above nearly every neighborhood in America, has a greater percentage of its residents living alone: 50.2%. This is a higher percent living alone than we found in 95.7% of all U.S. neighborhoods. Often residents who live alone are new arrivals to an area who are single, and often senior citizens who have lost a spouse.
Diversity
Did you know that the Chinatown neighborhood has more Asian and Ukrainian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 56.4% of this neighborhood's residents have Asian ancestry and 2.1% have Ukrainian ancestry.
Chinatown is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 42.4% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Chinese at home. This is a higher percentage than 99.8% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
Migration / Stability
Do you like to be surrounded by people from all over the country or world, with different perspectives and life experiences? Or do you instead prefer to be in a neighborhood where most residents have lived there for a long time, creating a sense of cohesiveness? NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals that this neighborhood stands out among American neighborhoods for the uniqueness of the mobility of its residents. In the Chinatown neighborhood, a greater proportion of the residents living here today did not live here five years ago than is found in 95.7% of U.S. Neighborhoods. This neighborhood, more than almost any other in America, has new residents from other areas. What is also interesting to note, is that the Chinatown neighborhood has a greater percentage of residents born in another country (56.8%) than are found in 98.8% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the Chinatown neighborhood in Boston are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 86.4% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 35.3% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 85.9% of U.S. neighborhoods.
What we choose to do for a living reflects who we are. Each neighborhood has a different mix of occupations represented, and together these tell you about the neighborhood and help you understand if this neighborhood may fit your lifestyle.
In the Chinatown neighborhood, 49.8% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 27.1% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations (18.2%), and 5.0% in manufacturing and laborer occupations.
Languages
The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the Chinatown neighborhood is Chinese, spoken by 42.4% of households. Other important languages spoken here include English, Spanish, Arabic and French.
Ethnicity / Ancestry
Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.
In the Chinatown neighborhood in Boston, MA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Asian (56.4%). There are also a number of people of Irish ancestry (5.3%), and residents who report German roots (5.3%), and some of the residents are also of Dominican ancestry (4.4%), along with some Sub-Saharan African ancestry residents (4.3%), among others. In addition, 56.8% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in Chinatown neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (51.6% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.
Here most residents (42.1%) hop out the door and walk to work to get to work. In addition, quite a number also take the train to get to work (14.8%) and 9.6% of residents also drive alone in a private automobile for their daily commute. This is a special neighborhood for the number of people who walk to work. Combining exercise, low cost, and reduced pollution, plus the chance to see your neighbors, walking to work is fairly uncommon in America but likely to increase as people try to reduce their dependence on automobiles, and this neighborhood offers that opportunity today.
