The Boston Indicators Project

Profiles: Peoples & Places

Allston-Brighton

US Census Bureau data by Boston’s neighborhoods are only available from the 2000 Census. However, the 2010 Census is under way and new neighborhood data will be available in 2011. Visit the Census Bureau for more information on the 2010 Census. For more recent sub-municipal Boston data, see the “at-a-glance” pages for Boston’s 5 Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMA's) with data through 2008. Click for a map of Boston's 5 PUMA's.

POPULATION

	1990		2000		Change
	#	%	#	%	%
Total Population	70,284	100.0%	69,648	100.0%	-0.9%
% of Boston Population		12.2%		11.8%

RACE & ETHNICITY

Non-Hispanic	63,871	90.9%	61,190	90.9%	0%
White	51,395	73.1%	47,828	68.7%	-6.9%
Black or Afr American	4,650	6.6%	2,982	4.3%	-35.9%
Asian or Pacific Islander	7,371	10.5%	9,737	14.0%	32.1%
Native American	109	0.2%	97	0.1%	-11.0%
Some other race	346	0.5%	546	0.8%	57.8%
Two or more races	na	na	2,076	3.0%	na
Hispanic	6,413	9.1%	6,382	9.1%	-1.2%

AGE

< 5	2,688	3.8%	2,165	3.1%	-19.5%
5-9	1,822	2.6%	1,908	2.7%	4.7%
10-14	1,429	2.0%	1,459	2.1%	2.1%
15-19	4,511	6.4%	4,096	5.9%	-9.2%
20-24	17,367	24.7%	17,377	24.9%	0.1%
25-34	20,996	29.9%	20,749	29.8%	-1.2%
35-44	7,416	10.6%	7,249	10.4%	-2.3%
45-54	3,518	5.0%	4,898	7.0%	39.2%
55-64	3,421	4.9%	3,162	4.5%	-7.6%
65-79	4,948	7.0%	4,682	6.7%	-5.4%
80+	2,168	3.1%	1,903	2.7%	-12.2%

POPULATION BY AGE AND GENDER (2000)	TOTAL	Male	Female
All Ages	69,648	34,020	35,628
Under 5	2,165	1,125	1,040
5 - 9	1,908	1,098	810
10 - 14	1,459	729	730
15 - 17	818	458	360
18 - 24	20,655	9,951	10,704
25 - 44	27,998	14,399	13,599
45 - 64	8,060	3,825	4,235
65+	6,585	2,435	4,150

Source: Boston Redevelopment Authority, Allston-Brighton 2000 Census of Population and Housing (also includes population by race, by gender and age).

POPULATION AND HOUSEHOLDS (2000)	Neighborhood		Boston
	#	%	#	%
Total Population	69,648	100.0%	589,141	100.0%
Population in families	30,282	43.5%	382,668	65.0%
Foreign born (naturalized)	7,892	11.3%	56,681	9.6%
Foreign born (not a citizen)	14,124	20.3%	95,155	16.2%

Population 5 and older	67,483	100.0%	557,376	100.0%
Same house in 1995	20,696	30.7%	266,242	47.8%
Speak Spanish	5,729	8.5%	75,711	13.6%
Speak other Indo-European languages	10,269	15.2%	67,706	12.1%
Speak Asian languages	7,647	11.3%	34,765	6.2%
Speak other language	859	1.3%	8,009	1.4%

Total Households	30,561	100.0%	239,603	100.0%
Linguistically isolated household	4,478	14.7%	25,660	10.7%

Average household size	2.16		2.31
Family households	2.96		3.28
Non-family households	1.75		1.39

Median household income	$38,941		$39,629
Family households	$46,124		$44,151
Non-family households	$34,823		$33,332

Workers 16 years and over	39,522	100.0%	278,463	100.0%
Took public transit to work	15,142	38.3%	89,906	32.3%
Walked to work	2,747	7.0%	36,323	13.0%

INCOME & POVERTY

	1990		2000		Change
Median Household Income *	$39,375		$38,941		-1.1%
Per Capita Income *	$21,136		$21,937		3.8%
Individuals in Poverty **	13,297	20.1%	15,251	23.0%	14.7%

*Income data from the 1990 and 2000 Census are for the prior calendar year (1989 and 1999). The 1989 income data were adjusted for inflation to 1999 dollars.

** Excludes institutionalized people, people in military group quarters, people in college dormitories, and unrelated individuals under 15 years old

HOUSING

	1990		2000		Change
	#	%	#	%	%
Total Housing Units	30,862	100.0%	30,988	100.0%	0.4%
% of Boston Housing Stock		12.3%		12.3%

Occupied Housing Units	29,427	95.4%	30,505	98.4%	3.7%
Owner Occupied	6,100	20.7%	5,980	19.6%	-2.0%
Renter Occupied	23,327	79.3%	24,525	80.4%	5.1%
Vacant Housing Units	1,435	4.6%	483	1.6%	-66.3%

Family Households	10,663	36.2%	10,237	33.5%	-4.0%
Married-couple family	7,374	25.1%	7,075	23.2%	-4.1%
Single-person household	3,289	11.2%	3,162	10.3%	-3.9%
Nonfamily Households	18,764	63.8%	20,324	66.5%	8.3%

Residential Housing, by Type (2005)

	#	%
Single Family	1,599	26.1%
Two Family	2,522	41.1%
Three Family	918	15.0%
SubTotal 1, 2, 3 Family Properties	5,039	82.2%
Four-Six Family	281	4.6%
Apartment Buildings	355	5.8%
Mixed Residential/Commercial	135	2.2%
Condominium Associations	320	5.2%
Total Residential & Mixed Properties	6,130	NA

	Neighborhood		Boston
Median Residential Sales Prices	2003	2004	2003	2004
Single Family	$380,000	$439,000	$338,950	$379,000
Two-Family	$520,000	$570,000	$386,000	$456,000
Three-Family	$687,500	$710,000	$430,000	$515,000
Condominium	$236,000	$253,000	$319,000	$350,000
All Residential Sales	$259,900	$285,000	$380,000	$374,500
Median Monthly Rent (two-bedroom)	$1,350	$1,300	$1,500	$1,450
Foreclosure Deeds	2	4	33	43

	Neighborhood		Boston
Median Residential Sales Prices	2005	2006	2005	2006
Single Family	$479,000	$450,750	$386,995	$370,000
Two-Family	$602,500	$585,000	$480,000	$479,450
Three-Family	$755,000	$615,000	$540,000	$526,250
Condominium	$285,550	$285,000	$350,000	$350,000
All Residential Sales	$314,500	$324,000	$390,000	$382,000
Median Asking Monthly Rent	$1,300	$1,300	$1,500	$1,650
Foreclosure Deeds	4	6	60	261

	Neighborhood		Boston
Median Residential Sales Prices	2007	2008	2007	2008
Single Family	$454,500	$440,000	$370,000	$335,000
Two-Family	$560,000	$552,800	$440,100	$308,750
Three-Family	$753,900	$611,500	$470,000	$305,000
Condominium	$269,000	$273,000	$355,000	$370,000
All Residential Sales	$293,000	$302,500	$374,500	$352,000
Median Asking Monthly Rent	$1,400	$1,500	$1,800	$1,850
Foreclosure Deeds	4	22	703	1,215

LAND & OPEN SPACE (2000)

Land Area (Sq Miles)	4.36
Persons per Sq Mile	15,974
% open space	19.4%
Open space per 1,000 people	7.8 acres
Protected open space per 1,000 people	4.8 acres

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NEWS RESOURCES & INFORMATION ABOUT ALLSTON/BRIGHTON

Allston/Brighton Data Common : Data mapping tool with neighborhood-specific data and information.

Allston Brighton Community Development Corporation: creates affordable housing, greenspace, a healthy local economy, avenues for economic self-sufficiency, and increased understanding among and between our neighborhood’s diverse residents. ABCDC also provides a list of neighborhood resources including community groups, elected officials and neighborhood assets.

My Neighborhood Boston: Allston/Brighton: get to know these neighborhoods through the words and art of the residents.

City of Boston Office of Neighborhood Services: link to neighborhood coordinators and access important City information and notifications about Allston/Brighton and all neighborhoods.

Brighton/Allston Historcial Society: links to books, maps and archival information on the history of Allston and Brighton.

Allston Brighton Tab: the neighborhood newspaper of Allston/Brighton

02134: an Allston/Brighton community blog with links to local news and neighborhood events

Brighton Centered: community blog dedicated to the neighborhood of Brighton

Universal Hub's daily news for Allston and Brighton

For more detailed demographic data about Allston-Brighton from the US Census Bureau, download the Boston Redevelopment Authority's Allston-Brighton 2000 Census of Population and Housing.

For more detailed information about the health status of the residents of Allston-Brighton, download the Boston Public Health Commission’s Health Status Report for Allston-Brighton , as well as the Health Commission's Health of Boston 2009 , an annual compendium of Boston health statistics, with data by neighborhood.

See also the Greater Boston Data Portal on the Boston Indicators Project homepage.