Moving to Cleveland from NYC. Buy or rent? Neighborhoods? (Parma: leases, mortgage)

[Chrismary23]

Hello! I am graduating with my Masters and taking a job at NASA in June. I stayed out there in the summer for my internship and really liked Fairview Park. I see some small cape cod or bungalow houses in Fairview, Olmsted Falls, and Brook Park that are affordable. I'd pay the same or less to own and that includes taxes.

Basically, I don't know if I should buy a small house or rent at first. If I wanted to upgrade later and rent the smaller house that shouldn't be too hard right? Since they say not to sell for at least 3-5 years? I just hate the idea of living with people above me (I'm from NYC so I am sick of that) and losing all that money in rent. I'd be happy to get feedback from locals and experienced homeowners.

Also, I don't really know Brook Park. Any feedback about the area? I've only gone through for work.

Thanks so much!

[216facts]

Check out these:
Cleveland city real estate / housing trends
Renting vs Buying

Good luck.

[WRnative]

Will you pay Cleveland municipal income tax in your job at NASA? If so, perhaps understand the Ohio municipal income tax system well before buying a residence in another city (what is that city's municipal income tax rate, residential credit, etc.).

Old Brooklyn is part of Cleveland and apparently is gentrifying rapidly. A touch of New York in Cleveland? If you like biking, you would have good access to the Towpath Trail, and to the Flats and eventually Lake Erie. Perhaps another place to consider.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Brooklyn

https://www.cleveland.com/entertainm...lyn_cleve.html

Portrait of a neighborhood: Old Brooklyn

Old Brooklyn, Cleveland

And soon, Old Brooklyn will have a Menard's, a (superior?) Midwest alternative to Home Depot and Lowe's.

https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/...of-job-seekers

Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is located in Old Brooklyn. It's one of the better zoos in the U.S. Having a membership there would afford a person a great place for exercise, especially in the off-season when traffic is more sparse. The immediate area, inclusive of Parma, has great ethnic eateries if that is an interest. If Italian is a favorite, you would be a short drive from Bruno's, a personal favorite for a lunch break when visiting the zoo.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...land_Ohio.html

What are your interests? As for east side alternatives, the following thread may be helpful, especially check out post 3 for an overview of considerations regarding living in Greater Cleveland.

Compendium of threads & posts on Univ. Circle, Cleveland Hts., Shaker Ht., Univ. Hts., Beachwood area

My concern about buying a house would include 1) costs of ownership; 2) lack of familiarity with Greater Cleveland and where you would most enjoy living; 3) reliability of employment at NASA given mounting financial woes of the federal government. A reason to buy a house now are low mortgage rates and the low cost of housing in Cleveland, although prices are beginning to rise faster than the national average rate of increase.

Good luck!

[j_ws]

I'd definitely recommend renting for a year or so before buying. It's important you get a feel for places. I rented for a year and ended up buying a house in a neighborhood that was not initially on my radar and it's been great.

You can easily rent an entire house and not have to deal with upstairs neighbors. Some of the suburbs are a bit more boring than they look on paper, IMO. I second the suggestion of maybe looking into Old Brooklyn if you want something quieter (and those low, low Cleveland taxes).

[HueysBack]

Originally Posted by j_ws

I'd definitely recommend renting for a year or so before buying. It's important you get a feel for places. I rented for a year and ended up buying a house in a neighborhood that was not initially on my radar and it's been great.

You can easily rent an entire house and not have to deal with upstairs neighbors. Some of the suburbs are a bit more boring than they look on paper, IMO. I second the suggestion of maybe looking into Old Brooklyn if you want something quieter (and those low, low Cleveland taxes).

Agreed. The market is just coasting along, you won't miss out on anything.

[Chrismary23]

Thanks for the feedback! I am going to rent for six months. I found a complex that offers short term leases. It's a little more a month than I want to spend but this will give me time and its short term.

Thanks again!!

[usaf_1832]

Good luck on the move!

One neat aspect to the area is where NASA Glenn sits, next to the Rocky River Reservation -- part of the Cleveland Metroparks "Emerald Necklace."

Great for jogging, biking, and kayaking / paddle boards.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attracti...land_Ohio.html

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attracti...wood_Ohio.html

https://www.yelp.com/biz/rocky-river...-north-olmsted

[usaf_1832]

Whenever you're looking to buy, I'd also suggest looking at Cleveland city as well. There a couple areas that are gentrifying quickly, where you can gain some property value increase (at least in the next couple years).

1) Old Brooklyn:

ARTICLE:
https://www.cleveland.com/entertainm...lyn_cleve.html

STREETSVIEW:
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.4415...7i13312!8i6656

2) Kamm's Corners

ARTICLE:
https://expo.cleveland.com/news/g66l...continues.html

STREETVIEW: https://www.google.com/maps/@41.4487...7i13312!8i6656

[Mbarker52]

I just left Cleveland about 3 months ago. Stay out of the City of Cleveland unless you are on the upper Westside or Farther out East. Fairview, North Olmstead, Brookpark are all nice areas and close to NASA. Cleveland itself? Not so much. Maybe the Westpark neighborhood is decent. Lakewood is also nice, taxes are just very high. Old Brooklyn, Parma...there are decent places but well known cities for high drug usage, sales, and overdoses.

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by Mbarker52

I just left Cleveland about 3 months ago. Stay out of the City of Cleveland unless you are on the upper Westside or Farther out East. Fairview, North Olmstead, Brookpark are all nice areas and close to NASA. Cleveland itself? Not so much. Maybe the Westpark neighborhood is decent. Lakewood is also nice, taxes are just very high. Old Brooklyn, Parma...there are decent places but well known cities for high drug usage, sales, and overdoses.

"Upper Westside"

Yeah this dude doesn't know Cleveland at all.