Waterfront West median real estate price is $968,818, which is more expensive than 72.6% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts and 88.3% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.
The average rental price in Waterfront West is currently $5,653, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 97.9% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts.
Waterfront West is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Boston, Massachusetts. This is a coastal neighborhood (i.e., is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet).
Waterfront West 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 Waterfront West neighborhood are established but not old, having been built between 1970 and 1999. A number of residences were also built between 2000 and the present.
Vacant apartments or homes are a major fact of life in Waterfront West. The current real estate vacancy rate here is 16.3%. This is higher than the rate of vacancies in 82.6% 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 Waterfront West neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.
The Waterfront West neighborhood is very densely populated compared to most U.S. neighborhoods. In fact, with 31,599 persons per square mile in the neighborhood, it is more packed with people than 97.1% of the nation's neighborhoods. Waterfront West is a neighborhood that is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Many times, such places have amenities that bring locals and visitors to the waterfront for recreational activities or to check out the scenery. In some densely populated areas that are less financially well-off, the neighborhood waterfront can be relatively industrial and less open to recreation. In addition to being coastal, Waterfront West is a very nautical neighborhood, meaning that it is somewhat historic, walkable, densely populated and on the water. This gives the neighborhood a very nautical feel, with some seaside and shipping feel, which some may really enjoy the sights and sounds of.
In addition, the real estate in the Waterfront West 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, 97.8% of the real estate here is classified as apartment complexes or high-rise apartments, which is more than is found in 99.6% of American neighborhoods.
Furthermore, the Waterfront West 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 95.1% 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.
Executives, managers and professionals make up 83.9% of the workforce in the Waterfront West neighborhood which, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis, is a higher proportion of such high-level people than is found in 99.5% of the neighborhoods in America. For this reason, this neighborhood really stands out as unique.
More people in Waterfront West choose to walk to work each day (36.4%) 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, if you like to ride a ferry to work, this neighborhood may be for you. NeighborhoodScout's research revealed that 2.0% of the Waterfront West neighborhood's commuters ride a ferry to and from work each day, which is more than we found in 99.5% of America's neighborhoods.
Finally, in the Waterfront West neighborhood, 15.2% 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 96.9% of the neighborhoods in America.
If knowledge is power, then imagine the cumulative power of one neighborhood where many of the adults have earned an advanced degree, such as a Masters, law degree, medical degree, or even a Ph.D. This is certainly the case in the Waterfront West neighborhood, where 50.8% have earned an advanced degree. Compare that to the average neighborhood in America, where just 14.1% of adults have completed a post-graduate degree, and you can see why this neighborhood is a stand out. In fact, this neighborhood has a higher rate of adults with an advanced degree than 99.2% of the neighborhoods in America.
In addition, there is an especially high percentage of incarcerated people (0.9%) living in the Waterfront West neighborhood.
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 Waterfront West neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 57.5% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 99.1% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Did you know that the Waterfront West neighborhood has more Eastern European and Armenian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 2.6% of this neighborhood's residents have Eastern European ancestry and 1.1% have Armenian ancestry.
Waterfront West is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 3.6% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Portuguese at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 98.8% of the neighborhoods in America.
The freedom of moving to new places versus the comfort of home. How much and how often people move not only can create diverse and worldly neighborhoods, but simultaneously it can produce a loss of intimacy with one's surroundings and a lack of connectedness to one's neighbors. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research has identified this neighborhood as unique with regard to the transience of its populace. In the Waterfront West neighborhood, a greater proportion of the residents living here today did not live here five years ago than is found in 98.1% of U.S. Neighborhoods. This neighborhood, more than almost any other in America, has new residents from other areas.
There are two complementary measures for understanding the income of a neighborhood's residents: the average and the extremes. While a neighborhood may be relatively wealthy overall, it is equally important to understand the rate of people - particularly children - who are living at or below the federal poverty line, which is extremely low income. Some neighborhoods with a lower average income may actually have a lower childhood poverty rate than another with a higher average income, and this helps us understand the conditions and character of a neighborhood.
The neighbors in the Waterfront West neighborhood in Boston are wealthy, making it among the 15% highest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 91.0% of the neighborhoods in America. In addition, 2.0% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 74.7% of America's neighborhoods.
A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.
In the Waterfront West neighborhood, 83.9% 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 8.2% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in government jobs, whether they are in local, state, or federal positions (7.7%), and 4.9% in clerical, assistant, and tech support 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 Waterfront West neighborhood is English, spoken by 69.8% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish, Chinese, Portuguese and German/Yiddish.
Ethnicity / Ancestry
Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.
In the Waterfront West neighborhood in Boston, MA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (19.6%). There are also a number of people of Asian ancestry (13.2%), and residents who report Italian roots (10.7%), and some of the residents are also of English ancestry (5.4%), along with some German ancestry residents (5.1%), among others. In addition, 27.1% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. The greatest number of commuters in Waterfront West neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (45.6% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.
Here most residents (36.4%) 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 (15.2%) and 7.6% 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.
