Downtown Detroit or Royal Oak/ Ferndale--Help!

[Tnic]

Yeah, that isn't too far off. We haven't gone to look at any or anything, and probably won't for another few months. But from what i've seen listed...the cheapest that I would consider has been $650, in Harbortown area. Right outside what people consider the "general downtown", on the Riverwalk. They have a boat harbor and everything. My boyfriend's 2 bedroom 2 bathroom at Merchant's Row was $1200 a month. Full security, valet parking garage, nice staff, great neighbors. Debbie Stabenow actually lived nextdoor haha. I'm not really sure what a 1 bedroom would go for there. I'm guessing around $900. If you can swing it, it's almost worth it. GREAT location. In the center of everything. Now, we are going to look for cheaper 1 bedroom. I've seen some 1 bedrooms listed at $650 on the other side of W.Grand River on Woodward, but i'm not sure what apartments those would be because there are no pictures of the inside. Basically...you have to REALLY do your research. There are so many condo and loft projects, you just need to find one that is complete and available. Once we start to look more seriously, i'll make some updates. If you have any more questions about the area or different places, let me know!

[detroitlimited]

I would defiantly choose Midtown Detroit over the Royal Oak area.

Someone said there is no grocery stores. But that is simply untrue in Midtown, as there is already two full grocery stores and a health/vegetarian foods store. And two new grocery stores are opening up within months.

Also consider the amount of new places opening up in Midtown in the last year or so...


Recently opened:
Good Girls Go to Paris Crepes
Wasabi
Leopold's Books
City Bird
Shangri-La
Bigbee Coffee
Re:View Contemporary Gallery
Kim's Produce
Third Street Saloon (reopen)
Alvin's
AFB (Another ****ing Bar & Grill)
Expanded Goodwell's Health Foods
Curl Up & Dye
Burton Theatre
Starters Bar & Grille


Soon to open
Front Page Deli - Spring 2010
Sunflower Market (Grocery store) - Spring 2010
Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe (Grocery store) - May 2010
Slow's BBQ Midtown - Summer 2010
Corridor Sausage Co. - September 2010
N'Nambi Art Complex and Seva Vegetarian Restaurant - Spring 2010
Fatburger - Spring 2010


There is also a much more impressive housing stock in Detroit and Midtown than in Royal Oak. You can have pretty much any type of house that you want-- single family, apartment tower, apartment building, townhouse, duplex, flat, etc. Royal Oak doesn't have that much variety outside the downtown area.

Another poster asked why certain lofts Downtown are so expensive. Those are probably the Lofts at Merchant's Row, which are literally at the center of Downtown. There are also many very expensive condos in Downtown, the Riverfront and most of all Midtown (a relatively new development). For example the Park Shelton building on Woodward Ave at Kirby in Midtown recently was converted to condos, with extremely high prices for Detroit. This is just showing that many people desire an urban lifestyle.

But there is still a large amount of affordable housing, even in Midtown. And the walkability has improved in recent years, and transit is the best here outside of Downtown (people mover is great!), but you can just walk out to Cass Ave or Woodward Ave and wait for a bus, they come every 10 min, and you'll be Downtown speedy as can be.

But perhaps most importantly is the culture here. Royal Oak lacks where Detroit is thriving. Royal Oak has a stable economy with middle class residents, but Detroit has much more to offer as far as culture. World class museums, many many more galleries, terrific restaurants, immigrant neighborhoods that offer Mexican (Southwest side), Arabic (quick ride to Dearborn) and Indian/Bangladeshi cuisine (Hamtramck/NorHam), and old school Greektown and Corktown (for Irish fare). There are underground music venues where you'll see music like nothing you've heard, or art theatres where you'll see movies you can't see anywhere else in Michigan. You can experience and live among history, and maybe even do something about it.

People in the Suburbs often don't give the city a chance and people from all over the world are coming here to see what we have to offer, and they are finding themselves charmed, even though Detroit is a disaster, and a victim of capitalism.