New to Baltimore (Ellicott City, Elkridge, Arbutus: estate, gated, for sale)

[sax33]

Hi I am a single woman moving to Baltimore. I would like to know where are the safest neighborhoods to rent? I would like a gated community and access to major highways one bedroom. Never been to this city before moving this summer. Also is the city's traffic problem really as horendous as I here?

[jonjj]

Cross Keys is the only "gated" community I know of in the city. It is in a nice area with shopping and close to the JFX.
Village of Cross Keys - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[ginbelt]

Originally Posted by jonjj

Cross Keys is the only "gated" community I know of in the city. It is in a nice area with shopping and close to the JFX.
Village of Cross Keys - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There is at least one other one between York Rd and Charles Street, on Homeland Avenue --- "the Villages at Homeland" Here is a link I found of a house for sale there (unfortunately, I couldn't locate a homepage for the devleopment itself)

Homeland townhome $335,900

My guess is that it's prolly not quite as "upper crust" as Cross Keys, being on the fringe of Homeland (and not squrely IN Homeland) and all, but hey, it IS gated. I used to rent in a decidedly NON-gated porchfront Victorian much closer to the dreaded York Rd, back in '99, and had no problems there, so I'd feel comfortable in guessing this development must be fairly safe.

There HAS to be other gated communities in Baltimore than these two though...

As far as traffic goes...if you want to stay away from the "horrendous" type, you'll do much better in a city like Baltimore than you'll ever do in a suburb of Baltimore, or, worse, a suburb of DC! I zip around most places without too much trouble (unless an Orioles game is happenning and I have to contend with all those @#&*$^&@ suburbanites!!)

[bawlmer]

Originally Posted by sax33

Hi I am a single woman moving to Baltimore. I would like to know where are the safest neighborhoods to rent? I would like a gated community and access to major highways one bedroom. Never been to this city before moving this summer. Also is the city's traffic problem really as horendous as I here?

There is a new gated condo community in Federal Hill right off Key Hwy. The name escapes me now.

[sax33]

Thanks I will remember that community. Also I will be working in Halethorpe. I have got my map out and done some research. It appears that Howard County is nearby, Ellicott City? Also this area is supposed to be a good area as far as schools go, crime rate etc? Can anyone tell me about the commute from Ellicott City to Halethorpe? Also what tax rate can i expect to have come out of my paycheck every two weeks. I heard Maryland has 5% income state tax then I keep hearing there are county or city taxes? Could that possibly raise the tax level to 8-10%? I certainly hope not? I know for the first year or so I will be renting so if I cannot find a gated community just a place that is safe. Everyone I know keeps telling me to stay out of Baltimore that the crime is too bad for a single woman? So I may have to rent in on of the suburb areas. All advice and suggestions is greatly appreciated I am so nervous about moving to this place!

[medfieldbum]

I can recommend Elkridge Estates and the Belvedere Towers apartments. Elkridge is a safe gated community, and the Towers is a high-rise, but pretty safe. You did not say your rental price range.

[sax33]

My max for an apartment is 1025. per month. Hopefully I can get a unit that includes something like utilities,cable,snow removal,etc? I will be working in Halethorpe? Is there transit running from Ellicott City to Halethorpe or from Baltimore to Halethorpe. I have lived in the south my whole life so I want to be close to public transportation because I have never driven in snow! So maybe I should consider Baltimore just because of the transit with a decent crime rate. What do ya think

[sax33]

Can anyone tell me about Preston Street in Baltimore, Md. I have come across apartments called the preston apt.s 218 e preston street zip 21202 in baltimore. safe location? it is in my price range

[medfieldbum]

Sax--218 E. Preston Street is a large apartment building on the eastern edge of downtown. A lot of MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art) students live there. Very urban! I would be hesitant to call it a safe location, though I'm sure others on the forum will call it "perfectly safe". Just across the bridge to the east over I83 is the extremely high crime area of East Baltimore.
\
Hardly any apartments include utilities in your rent, and you have to arrange cable on your own, as well. Snow removal occurs only in those garden style apartments with parking lots. I don't think 218 has parking, and if they did there would be an extra charge for it; downtown can run $75-100+/month for parking.
\
You would be better off looking for an apartment in the Halethorpe or Arbutus areas. There's a lot of student housing there (UMBC in nearby) and you should be able to find something in your price range (no gated communities in your price range, though.)
\
There's no reliable public transportation running between Ellicott City and Halethorpe. The MTA does run buses to Halethorpe, which is part of the greater Baltimore area, depending on your exact location you need.
\
While Baltimore does have an extensive bus system, I'm not sure what you mean by a "decent crime rate".
\
My most humble advice is for you to come a little early to the area, hook up with a native, perhaps someone from the company you're going to be working at, and explore for several days. If you are as nervous as you have stated, you might find the bus service to be, how shall I say, a little on the rough, edgy side; you might be uncomfortable.

[barante]

I second medfieldbum's recommendation. Come here early and look around. I would get something as close to Halethorpe as possible.
As to gated communities, they tend to be quite pricey here, particularly if gated is interpreted as meaning that there is a living gatekeeper at the entrance.
For example, the Villages of Homeland (which has been mentioned before). It is fenced in but has no real gate nor an attendant. And while many of the units are condos, others are rented to Loyola students. I know a couple who have a top floor apartment (combiding two regular units). They complain about noise from partying students.