I lived at 100 mem for a year when I started grad school at MIT. For the numerous MIT affiliates who live in the building, the location cannot be more convenient. The building is sitting on the MIT campus, surrounded by MIT buildings (the Sloan School on one side, Senior House on another, and across the street from the med center and the lot where the new Media Lab extension is going to be.) The views of the Charles River and of Boston are grand, and the location is optimal for viewing the fireworks during the Fourth of July. The Kendall Square T stop and Cambridge Center are just a block away, and there?s a free shuttle bus to the Cambridgeside Galleria there too.



Other than location, there really isn?t all that much going for the building. Did I mention it?s expensive' The rent keeps going up and up and up. There is nice 24-hour concierge service, which is nice because they will sign for and deliver packages to your apartment. Maintenance is quick; in my experience the turn around time from a work order to work completion was less than 24 hours. The apartments themselves are small for the price, and have old features and appliances. The building itself is on the order of 50 years old and sound conducts fairly well through the apartments.



While I lived at 100 mem, I ended up living in a 600 sq-ft 2 bedroom with three other students. It was a bit tight but it was the only way we could afford to live so close to campus. Management had no problem with this arrangement, although they did have some annoying income requirements we had to meet in order to live in the apartment.



Parking is decent after-hours, since the MIT parking rules aren?t in effect after 5pm and before 8:30am, and there are two MIT lots adjacent to the building. Street parking is usually manageable after hours, but there are no guarantees. There?s a lot of construction in the area as well, so parking spaces disappear and reappear sporadically.



The other dwellers at 100 mem either seem to be the elderly, who I assume have relatively generous grandfathered leases, and MIT affiliates. The noise level therefore isn?t too bad, even though the walls don?t offer much sound insulation. The building is safe and clean, but there isn't anything special about it. There's a sky room with a wonderful view of Boston across the river on the 12th floor of the builing that residents can rent out for an evening for parties.



Overall, it?s a decent place to live, but I wouldn?t want to live there for more than a year because my bank account would have dried up quickly.

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