Relocating to Lafayette 2015 (New Orleans, Baton Rouge, New Iberia: apartment complexes, rental, buy)

[jdenny0316]

Hello,

I am trying to get some information on what parts of the city I should start looking at to move into. I am a 25 year old male in the oil and gas industry. I am moving down for a job that will be located in New Iberia, but was told to live in Lafayette.

I am looking for an area that has young professionals that like to go out and hang out. Not sure if Lafayette has different parts of the city that are more geared towards a younger crowd or not (outside of the colleges). What are the areas that most of the bars and night life is at?

Looking to either rent an apartment of buy a house.

Any information on where to start looking would help a lot!

Thanks

[Innotech]

Bars and club nightlife are on McKinley street above the University and also downtown. Looooooots of restaurants and sports bars too.

Move to the southside near verot school road or along ambassador or kaliste saloom for quicker access to highway 90 down to New Iberia.
Welcome!

young professionals more likely can be found around River Ranch.

[Mzurie]

If you choose Lafayette, you're going to be pretty much screwed traffic-wise regardless of where you live because everyone else will be schlepping out toward New Iberia to and fro with you. Youngsville or Broussard will put you closer to work and yet you'll still be very close to Lafayette night life. Be prepared to spend more than you may have thought for housing regardless of where you choose.

If nightlife is super important, than you might suck it up on the daily commute, and choose the northeastern area of Lafayette to position yourself closer to Baton Rouge for a regular change of pace.

[bpollen]

If you want the city-run high speed fiberoptic wifi internet, you have to be in Lafayette city limits.

[Mzurie]

^^^ True. Also true that some apartment complexes in Lafayette will not give tenants the permission necessary for LUS to install the fiber optics.

[norman_w]

River Ranch is pretentious and the music isn't that good. Go to Johnston St around the University

[CajunCountryGal]

We live off Kaliste Saloom, just south of River Ranch and love our location. My husband works downtown and has about a 10-15 min commute, and we're also 10-20 min away from other places we like - all the libraries, downtown parks, Youngsville, etc. We moved here last year and I'm glad we're renting first b/c we knew nothing about the area - however, trying to find a decent rental was a struggle - I would recommend searching with a realtor or contact prop management companies - we didn't have much luck with craigslist. If you do buy, beware of all the new crap construction - everyone I know who has bought a new place in youngsville has had issues. River Ranch is pretentious, and also has bad construction problems, but for yps, it's a good place to meet others and there's new places opening all the time. And you're close to every store too on Amb Caffrey - Target, Whole Foods, etc. Downtown, imo, feels a little like a ghost town on weekends when the professionals aren't there.

[CajunCountryGal]

*Also, depending where you're moving from, you'll be pleasantly surprised with the "traffic." It does get slow at times but nothing like the bumper to bumper we encountered daily on the east coast.

[norman_w]

I said that because he's 25. They all want to walk around or ride bikes and meet other people walking around or riding bikes. I lived off Johnston and Stewart and absolutely loved it. If he was 35 he would be into being in a car and traffic etc doesn't matter

[norman_w]

You are so right about Craigslist. Everyone is complaining that you can't get anywhere using Craigslist anymore. Almost all the ads are really from picture collectors. A girl posted that she put up a Housing Wanted and didn't get a single real reply. It wasn't like that just a few years ago. They must have migrated to a different site now.
However my friend in New Orleans found a room share right away using Craigslist. She's 20.
Craigslist was right. When they took out the erotic services section (they had to), it all went into the other sections and ruined CL. Example : the ad says please be a professional - respondent "I'm a Professional." "Health Care." "Wellness healing." She's a hooker giving healing erotic massages.