Top Reasons to Buy a Home in Back Bay Boston

Boston is a historic city, and every neighborhood has its own unique history and culture, but Back Bay stands out amongst the storied districts of Beantown. Nestled along the south shore of the Charles River, Back Bay features Parisian-style row houses on tree-lined avenues.

Bostonians moving to this affluent neighborhood rub shoulders with the Boston elite and live a stone’s throw away from a collection of boutiques and designer outlets. Plus, commuting to the rest of Boston is a breeze for Back Bay residents, as the neighborhood is near both Cambridge and Downtown Boston. 

There are many reasons to move to Back Bay, and below is a quick list of some of the most mentioned reasons why buyers choose to live in Back Bay. 

 

Reasons to buy a home in Back Bay

• Riverfront living on reclaimed land
• Wide avenues and tree-lined streets
• Parisian-style homes with mansard roofs
• Shops, boutiques, and designer outlets
• Easy to access the rest of Boston

Riverfront living on reclaimed land

Back Bay sits on the shore of the Charles River, making it a premier destination for Bostonites. By crossing over Storrow Drive, residents can watch boats lazily float by from the Charles River Esplanade. 

Homes positioned on Beacon Street provide a stellar view of the river, and condominium units on this street command a hefty price for their view of the Charles River and Cambridge across the river. Homeowners in Back Bay can wander down to the river to watch the sailing schools that launch out of Back Bay, and they can even join in on the fun at the Community Boating landing based out of Beacon Hill. Runners and neighborhood hikers will fall in love with the Back Bay waterfront as there are plenty of running trails along the esplanade. 

If residents wander about the edge of the river on the right day, they can hear music wafting from the Hatch Memorial Shell on the northeastern side of the park, where the city hosts concerts, movie viewings, and other events. The Boston Symphony will also perform shows here, playing concertos in the evenings for residents. 

Wide avenues and tree-lined streets

When Puritan colonists first founded Boston, they built the city roots on a small peninsula, and Back Bay was just a saltwater marsh that jutted out into the Boston Harbor. Over the coming decades and centuries, developers routinely had to fill in the fens to create space for new arrivals to Boston, and Back Bay was one of the largest projects.

Back Bay originally was a tidal basin that drained to expose marshy flats when the tides went out. Developers wanted to construct a dam to power the mill industry while creating a new toll road to ease traffic on the Boston Neck. 

While the dam opened up traffic and became Beacon Street, the lack of tidal forces meant the marsh could not flush wastewater out into the bay. And once the Back Bay dried up, a fetid stench hung over Boston. Naturally, residents demanded a fix, and developers proposed a new neighborhood, but instead of winding roads, Back Bay would feature wide avenues in a grid format. In 1882 the fens were filled in, and developers built three-story Victorian homes on alphabetically-named streets lined with trees. 

Today, these trees are full-grown, and homeowners living in Boston have beautiful treetop views when they look outside of their window. Residents also have access to the expansive Commonwealth Avenue Mall, a green space stretching throughout Back Bay east to west, making it a perfect getaway for Bostonites after a day working downtown. 

Parisian-style homes with mansard roofs 

When city planners filled in Back Bay, they knew they had a chance to create a truly unique neighborhood in a city known for tight, winding streets. Developers bought the land and built world-renowned Edwardian and Victorian row houses that make Back Bay famous. 

While Boston residents flock to Back Bay, designer brands do as well, as some of the Brownstones have storefronts built into the first floors, and French Academic details crown Parisian Mansard roofs. Residents can find these buildings as they wander towards Massachusetts Avenue, where the commercial space on the first floor seamlessly blends into the residential bliss of Back Bay. 

Wealthy buyers who were tired of the constricting streets of Beacon Hill and the North End in the 1880s bought up Back Bay real estate in droves to trade up from their Acorn Street apartments. 

Historical societies sprung up over the years to protect these historic buildings from destruction, so buyers closing a deal on a Back Bay home are buying a piece of Boston history. 

Shops, boutiques, and designer outlets 

While Back Bay is a retreat for local residents escaping the hustle and bustle of Seaport and the Financial District, there are plenty of high couture shopping outlets for residents. Most of Back Bay is beautiful residential space, but wealthy buyers wandering around Massachusetts Avenue will find a gaggle of restaurants and boutiques built into the first floor of the buildings lining Massachusetts Avenue. 

If sushi is your favorite food, Uni on Massachusetts avenue has some of the best sushi in Boston. But if Bostonites are looking for a day of shopping and a bite to eat, Newbury Street provides access to high-profile retailers and cafes renowned for blending bookstores and cups of coffee. Thinking Cup and Pavement are two cafes beloved by residents, but a favorite amongst Back Bay residents is Trident Booksellers & Cafe. 

Stores like Patagonia, Arc’teryx, Allbirds, and MUJI all have outlets on Newbury Street, but new residents will rejoice to know that Back Bay has a Trader Joe’s on Boylston Street. Along the towering Spine of Back Bay, the Prudential Center and Copley Place have a collection of stores for Bostonites to explore. 

Easy to access the rest of Boston 

Back Bay is a fun waterfront community with a residential feel with plenty of kitschy stores to frequent. But workers in the technology, financial, and academia sectors love this neighborhood because of how convenient it is to travel throughout Boston from Back Bay.

Residents can easily make their way to the financial firms located in Seaport and Downtown Boston if their office does not have an office in the Spine of Back Bay. Technology and academia workers moving to Back Bay can access Cambridge and MIT by using the Harvard Bridge, which spans the Charles River. 

Bostonians coming to the neighborhood for the day can take the Green or Orange lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to get to the Spine of Back Bay. If residents travel east along Commonwealth Avenue on the mall, they will reach the Boston Public Gardens. 

Finding a home in Back Bay

There are plenty of condominium ownership and building ownership opportunities for buyers wealthy enough to close a deal. These storied homes come with a hefty price tag, but there are ways Bostonites can offset the costs that come purchasing one of these storied homes. 

Not all real estate firms offer a commission rebate, but tech-enabled brokerages like Prevu give buyers all the tools they need to seek out properties, make offers, and purchase homes all from one platform. Prevu rebates up to 1% of the purchase price back to new homeowners, which can total thousands of dollars that buyers can use for renovations or new appliances. 

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