Living Options as ODU Grad Student (Norfolk, Chesapeake: apartments, rental, townhouse)

[amehlert]

Hello everyone! I am considering a doctoral program at ODU in Norfolk and have talked to a few people about the area. My budget for rent is about 1000-1200 and want a safe area with a commute that is typically no more than 30 minutes on most days. As a doctoral student, I may have the option to adjust my schedule to avoid rush hour to some extent, but I do not know for sure right now.

I have been told a variety of things about where to live. Some have said that I should absolutely live in Norfolk as traffic can be tough from VB or Chesapeake, so they recommended Larchmont or Ghent for safe neighborhoods. Others have said that certain areas of these surrounding cities wouldn't be too bad.

What would be a realistic commute time from a nice area of VB (Chic's beach, NW VB) or Chesapeake for rush hour vs off hours? Would you recommend this commute or would I be better off looking for a safe neighborhood in Norfolk?

[Isabella Tiger Moth]

Living on the peninsula, I don't know too much about commute times southside. In general, though, people around here advise living on the southside if you work (or, in your case, study) on the southside and living on the peninsula if you work on the peninsula. I've never seen much in the way of warning one way or another regarding commuting *within* either area. What you don't want to do is commute through either the HRBT or MMBT. You would avoid that as long as you stayed southside. Good luck on your studies!

[rtandc]

Originally Posted by amehlert

Hello everyone! I am considering a doctoral program at ODU in Norfolk and have talked to a few people about the area. My budget for rent is about 1000-1200 and want a safe area with a commute that is typically no more than 30 minutes on most days. As a doctoral student, I may have the option to adjust my schedule to avoid rush hour to some extent, but I do not know for sure right now.

I have been told a variety of things about where to live. Some have said that I should absolutely live in Norfolk as traffic can be tough from VB or Chesapeake, so they recommended Larchmont or Ghent for safe neighborhoods. Others have said that certain areas of these surrounding cities wouldn't be too bad.

What would be a realistic commute time from a nice area of VB (Chic's beach, NW VB) or Chesapeake for rush hour vs off hours? Would you recommend this commute or would I be better off looking for a safe neighborhood in Norfolk?

Stick with living in Norfolk, the interstate does not really run that close to ODU so much of your time will be traveling on the surface streets and they themselves can be a major headache during rush hour. Even living within the city limits of Norfolk can put you at that 30 minute drive to ODU.

[randomlikeme]

If you're cool with a studio, The Watermark at Talbot Park is pretty nice, but pricy (I think a studio is what is in your price range there sadly, but it has all of the new bells and whistles). You're paying more for amenities than space. Lafayette Apartments are pretty nice and would get you more space for the money and is a fast commute to ODU. A friend of mine had a good experience at Colony Point Apartments, which is also a pretty quick commute to ODU.

When my husband was going to college at ODU and we were a one income family, we lived in Riverpoint Apartments for about a year while we determined if we liked living in Norfolk. The apartments were okay and you got 0 amenities other than no water/sewage/trash bill which saved a good deal of money, but the neighborhood they were in was nice and the two bedroom townhomes were about $800/month and gave you a good amount of space (and my husband's commute to ODU was quick - we ended up renting a small house in that neighborhood later but don't really have anything negative to say about the townhouse we stayed in... we liked it and it was exactly what we wanted at the time - a safe place to live, but it was super old).

Watermark and Riverpoint Apartments are both in the same neighborhood essentially and is a nice option if you can't do Ghent or Larchmont. Larchmont is pretty pricy.

[amehlert]

Thanks for the replies everyone! I have started looking at various rental options (apartment and house) and it does seem clear that you probably have to pay a little bit more than I am used to get into a desirable neighborhood. I will continue to look and any suggestions from people that have had good experiences either renting apartments or houses are always welcome!

Thanks again for the help.