Toronto to...Memphis?! (Midtown: home, neighborhood, construction)

[Pearlbob]

South Bluffs is like a suburban apt complex, with parking right by your door. You'd have to pay extra and walk to a garage if you lived in Pembroke (although there is a garage right next door) as well as 10 Main (there is a garage behind it).

With some places, the rent depends on your income. If you make less than $24k a year, that is considered very low income. I don't know what you'll be doing at Fed Ex, but unless you're just working part time there, I highly doubt you'd be making anywhere near that low number.

Midtown IS old. It's the oldest residential part of Memphis, other than the few old homes downtown that are now law firms. To me, "old" looks good. "New" looks cheap and, well, new. Lots of people like homes that are old, it gives them character. there is a big diff between old and run down, and just plain old. Some duplexes in midtown will be old and run down, some will be old and well taken care of. Have to play it one address at a time.

Burbs are cheaper because you are so far out of the city and also because there are zillion apt complexes that all look alike and can house thousands of people in one place.

[AznTO]

How's this condo?

Chatham Village on Park Ave. next to St. Francis
Hospital.

[strumpeace]

Pretty good area, but it's next to a very busy train track.

[Pearlbob]

Agree wholeheartedly with strumpeace - that rail line is very busy and you can hear the horns all night. I can't imagine living that close. I've also seen a few times, that the trains just stop on the tracks (also at UM I've seen this a hundred times) because they must undershoot their stop. So the train is stopped and blocking the roads for a period of time. Big headache. not that it happens often, but enough that it would be a nuisance if you lived right there.

[Kabluey]

Originally Posted by Pearlbob

Agree wholeheartedly with strumpeace - that rail line is very busy and you can hear the horns all night. I can't imagine living that close. I've also seen a few times, that the trains just stop on the tracks (also at UM I've seen this a hundred times) because they must undershoot their stop. So the train is stopped and blocking the roads for a period of time. Big headache. not that it happens often, but enough that it would be a nuisance if you lived right there.

When I grew up, we moved to G'town Station, into a house that lined CD Smith, which abutted the railroad tracks. My room was the closest to the tracks. It takes adjusting at first. But I got used to it, maybe it was cuz I was young then. But even when I return, I don't wake up for it. Granted we have at least the backyard between us and the street and tracks, but we still feel the vibrations and hear the rumbles and horns. They're not incessant in terms of frequency, but they can be in terms of volume, if I'm making any sense.

[AznTO]

Hunter's Trace and The Vineyards are my two top choices ... I've come to the conclusion that I hate commuting for more than 20 minutes each way Commuting from downtown will be a pain ... I'd rather drive downtown in the weekend if I want to go to a show or something ... does anyone know of either place and can give me a review? I'd rather not have train tracks beside ... thanks!

[Pearlbob]

Both seem to be in Germantown so overall they should be safe places.

[strumpeace]

My good friend and fellow city planner lives at Hunter's Trace. She likes it. Have you gone through one of the apartments? They are very small. I trip over all her furniture every time I visit her. She told me that they rarely have crime problems, but when they do, it's usually a car break-in, and the apartment management is quick to notify all the residents. Have you looked at apartmentratings.com? I haven't looked at Hunter's Trace on there, but I'd bet they have some reviews on there.

[Pearlbob]

They actually did, strumpeace. Ithink Hunter's Trace had a 83% Positive rate on there. I didn't look up the Vineyards. Gotta take stuff like that with a grain of salt though....people are more likely to go on a site like that with a complaint than with something good to say. I'd guess 83% positive is probably more like 93% or more.

It's when you find ones that are around 50% or less positive that you know something must be really wrong!!!

[strumpeace]

Agreed. What I hate wading through are the fake reviews by apartment management. I lived in a hideous place in Little Rock a few years back; everyone who I knew there hated it. When I visited apartmentratings, it had an artificially high rating because management had bombarded the site with obviously fake reviews. Any review that includes "the girls in the office..." sets off a red flag for me.