What $550,000 buys around Boston now

Welcome to Curbed Comparisons, a weekly column that explores what one can rent or buy for a set dollar amount (or thereabouts) in the Boston area. Is one woman’s studio another woman’s townhouse? Let’s find out! This week it’s $550,000 in Boston.

We start in Dorchester, where an even $550,000 buys you 19 Edwin Street, a 1,952-square-foot house dating from 1900 and with two and a half bathrooms and the potential for five bedrooms.

A little farther northeast in Dorchester is Unit 1 at 251 Boston Street. The 1,022-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bathroom is asking $549,999. It includes a private patio. The condo fee is $190.

In East Boston’s Orient Heights, Unit 1 at 195 Gladstone Street is asking $549,900. It’s 1,007 square feet, and has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. The tag covers one garaged parking space too. The condo fee is $250.

Farther down Eastie and nearer Logan Airport is Unit 1 at 527 Bennington Street. The 990-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bathroom is also asking $549,900. It includes a finished basement, and the condo fee is $175.

We end in Back Bay, where $549,000 buys Unit 44 at 56 Commonwealth Avenue: A 370-square-foot studio. Not surprisingly perhaps, the listing touts the studio’s location more than anything.