Porter Square median real estate price is $1,134,355, which is more expensive than 84.1% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts and 92.3% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.
The average rental price in Porter Square is currently $4,973, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 91.0% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts.
Porter Square is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Somerville, Massachusetts.
Porter Square real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) small apartment buildings and apartment complexes/high-rise apartments. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Porter Square neighborhood are relatively historic, built no later than 1939, and in some cases, quite a bit earlier. A number of residences were also built between 1970 and 1999.
Home and apartment vacancy rates are 7.5% in Porter Square. NeighborhoodScout analysis shows that this rate is lower than 51.0% of the neighborhoods in the nation, approximately near the middle range for vacancies.
The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.
People
In a nation where 1 out of every 4 children lives in poverty, the Porter Square neighborhood stands out as being ranked among the lowest 0.0% of neighborhoods affected by this global issue.
In addition, some neighborhoods have residents that are more educated than others. But in this neighborhood there is a dramatic difference. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that 48.0% of the adults here have earned a Masters degree, medical degree, Ph.D. or law degree. This is a higher rate of people with a graduate degree than is found in 98.9% of U.S. neighborhoods, where the average American neighborhood has 13.4% of its adults with a graduate degree. If you are highly educated, you may have much in common with many of your neighbors here.
Also, if you're a regular supporter of the arts and enjoy outings to the theatre, weekend boutique-ing, or even a finely aged wine with dinner, than you're in good company with the people of the Porter Square neighborhood. This neighborhood is uniquely immersed with more "urban sophisticates" than 98.6% of neighborhoods across the country. The people here truly stand out as a class among their own. They are an exclusive community characterized by refined tastes, cultural inclinations, and the means to live well. Urban sophisticates live a big city lifestyle, whether or not they live in or near a big city. They are educated executives or managers by week, and serial patrons of the arts by weekend. If this lifestyle pertains to you, than you'll certainly feel right at home in the Porter Square neighborhood. In addition to being an excellent choice for urban sophisticates, this neighborhood is also a very good choice for young, single professionals.
Real Estate
Three-deckers, duplexes, old Victorian homes cut up into apartments. Independent stores on the corner selling pizza. These are some of the hallmarks of neighborhoods with lots of small 2, 3, and 4 unit apartment buildings. The Porter Square neighborhood really stands out in this regard, however, as it is dominated by such small apartment buildings more than nearly any other neighborhood in America. This is a stunning visual and lifestyle example of this type of neighborhood. In fact, 61.2% of the real estate here are small 2, 3, or 4 unit apartment buildings, which is a higher proportion than found in 99.3% of America's neighborhoods.
In addition, if you like crowded places, then you will probably enjoy the the Porter Square neighborhood. According to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive data analysis, this neighborhood is more densely populated than 96.4% of neighborhoods in the U.S., with 26,805 people per square mile living here. Being a walkable neighborhood can help increase property values for the simple reason that people enjoy it and value it. To put it plainly, despite our love affair with the automobile, American's enjoy taking to the streets, sidewalks, paths, and courtyards of a place to get a coffee, relax, and take in the sights and sounds. And, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive and first quantitative walkable score index, the Porter Square neighborhood is one of the most walkable neighborhoods in America.
Modes of Transportation
In the Porter Square neighborhood, many people's commute means walking from the bedroom to the home office. NeighborhoodScout's analysis found that 36.8% of residents worked from home. This may not seem like a large number, but Scout's research shows that this is a higher percentage of people working from home than 99.1% of the neighborhoods in America. Often people who work from home are engaged in the creative or technological economy, such as is found in areas around Boston, and in Silicon Valley. Other times, people may be engaged in other businesses like trading stocks from home, or running a small beauty salon.
Also, would you like to be able to ride your bike to work? If you are attracted to the idea of getting a little exercise of the two-wheeled type while reducing your carbon footprint, bicycling to work might be the answer. But which neighborhood you live in can make this either impossible, or alternatively, a great and realistic option. NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that the Porter Square neighborhood is a fantastic option for bicycle commuters, as 6.8% of commuters here do ride their bikes to and from work on a daily basis. This is a higher amount than we found in 99.1% of the neighborhoods in America.
Finally, in the Porter Square neighborhood, 20.1% 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 97.2% of the neighborhoods in America.
Occupations
The Porter Square neighborhood has a higher proportion of its residents employed as executives, managers and professionals than 98.3% of the neighborhoods in America. In fact, 76.9% of the employed people here make a living as an executive, a manager, or other professional. With such a high concentration, this truly shapes the character of this neighborhood, and to a large degree defines what this neighborhood is about.
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 Porter Square neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 33.2% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 97.5% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Diversity
Did you know that the Porter Square neighborhood has more Brazilian and Portuguese ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 3.3% of this neighborhood's residents have Brazilian ancestry and 3.5% have Portuguese ancestry.
Porter Square is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 1.0% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Japanese at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 97.3% of the neighborhoods in America.
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 Porter Square neighborhood, a greater proportion of the residents living here today did not live here five years ago than is found in 96.5% of U.S. Neighborhoods. This neighborhood, more than almost any other in America, has new residents from other areas.
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 Porter Square neighborhood in Somerville 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 90.3% of the neighborhoods in America. In addition, 0.0% 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 100.0% of America's neighborhoods.
The old saying "you are what you eat" is true. But it is also true that you are what you do for a living. The types of occupations your neighbors have shape their character, and together as a group, their collective occupations shape the culture of a place.
In the Porter Square neighborhood, 76.9% 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 9.9% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (7.7%), and 5.5% 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 Porter Square neighborhood is English, spoken by 78.2% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish, Chinese and Langs. of India.
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 Porter Square neighborhood in Somerville, MA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (16.9%). There are also a number of people of Italian ancestry (11.1%), and residents who report Asian roots (10.7%), and some of the residents are also of German ancestry (8.0%), along with some English ancestry residents (7.5%), among others. In addition, 19.9% 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 Porter Square neighborhood spend between 30 and 45 minutes commuting one-way to work (37.7% of working residents), which is at or a bit above the average length of a commute across all U.S. neighborhoods.
Here most residents (21.5%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also take the train to get to work (20.1%) and 9.2% of residents also hop out the door and walk to work for their daily commute. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.
