Two weeks to find a safe, quiet place (Minneapolis, St. Paul: apartment complex, rentals)

[CatLap10]

Hi there,

After 9 years in a home that was kind of a lemon (a lot of hidden defects--and our inspector was inept, we realize now), we were finally able get rid of it. But in order to give incentives to the new owner in this tough market, which were especially needed because the house still had a few defects, we paid down part of our mortgage and gave him a quick close. We have very little in the bank now and two weeks to find a place to live.

We've been looking and looking and are having trouble finding a place. We have one car, but one of us works at the U on the West Bank, and the other works in Whittier and has weekly appointments in the eastern suburbs--physical therapy, therapy, that sort of thing. So public transportation is really important.

We're used to living in a really quiet neighborhood in St. Paul. And safe (I've been sheltered, I think! I may have a skewed idea of "safe"). We're finding lots of condos or houses to rent, but the owners have been upfront about wanting to sell when the market picks up--and after living in a chaotic house with constant construction, we're looking for quiet and stability--not looking to show someone's house for them. We've looked at apartment buildings, and then go to apartmentratings.com and find horrible reviews for many of them. The best option would be an upper duplex, one that's decent (so many beat up places we've seen), but this doesn't seem to be a good time of year to apartment hunt...there's very little out there.

We could really use a) any recommendations for good apartment buildings b) contact from any owners out there with a nice, safe, quiet, place that accepts declawed/neutered cats and won't be sold for a couple of years at least c) ideas for neighborhoods where public transport is good and the area is safe. We've really benefited from living near a good busline.

I really just need a stable place to live. We've lived in chaos with this house over the years--so much has happened that I won't go into--and I'm sort of shell-shocked from it all. I've not had, in 9 years, a sense of "home"--we still have boxes all over the place.

Thanks,
CatLap

[nicholemarie]

Here is some info on the apartment style townhomes that I live in, in:

I live in Golden Valley, right off the border of Minneapolis. In an "Apartment style townhouse" called Valley Village. It runs about $720 for a one bedroom and they are pretty nice. I love living near the city without being IN IT. I use to live about a mile down the road in north minneapolis and it was way to "scummy"/rough. Surprisingly right down the road is Golden Valley and it is a completely different atmosphere.
The community is mostly single adults, I have seen maybe, 2-3 actual families with kids...there are a few seniors, and a handful of college aged people (mid 20's) including myself and my boyfriend. It is a generally quiet community. Not really any rowdy folk. pretty nice. and it's all within minutes of the major highways.

Check out Welcome to Valley Village Apartment Style Townhomes, Located in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metro Area in Hennepin County, Golden Valley, MN

It runs about $720 for a 1 bedroom (there are 2 bedrooms available also), but you get your own entrance (similar to a townhome), newer appliances, PETS welcome(only $15 a month!), outdoor pool, it's in a private area also (No other houses around besides the VV community), your backyard is a nice forest also connected to the Luce bike trail.

Hope that helps! If you end up looking into it, and call the apts. (Alex Moros is the community manager), tell him Nichole K sent you.

[Robert98]

It's getting tougher to find rentals with a private entrance. I've seen the Valley Village. It looks nice. I'm surprised at the low price. I toured some not so nice ones in Twin Fountains St. Louis Park that were $850 for one beroom. (730 sq ft)

[CatLap10]

Thanks Nichole, we'll check it out!

[nicholemarie]

no problem! Let me know what you think!

[awsun1980]

LOL--I think Nichole is trying to get a referral bonus!! She referred me, too--I am going to check them out soon, by the way. I'm hoping by this weekend I might stop by & take a look. Thanks again for the recommendation.

[nicholemarie]

Originally Posted by awsun1980

LOL--I think Nichole is trying to get a referral bonus!! She referred me, too--I am going to check them out soon, by the way. I'm hoping by this weekend I might stop by & take a look. Thanks again for the recommendation.

haha I totally am. BUT! I am truly recommending this place to you guys based on what you sound like you want. I think you two would like it. =) Once again, let me know what you guys think and good luck with the search.

[Slig]

Yeah, due to its location I think Golden Valley makes little sense for you as one works in Whittier and the other on the West Bank. From a convenience standpoint it'd be much more logical to look in SW Minneapolis or the Nokomis area. Both are quiet, safe and it'd be very convenient to get to both jobs.

[uptown_urbanist]

I'd also say no to Golden Valley, especially given the quote "public transportation is really important to us." I did a quick search on the location to see what popped up for a bus trip from the apartment complex to Whittier; there were a couple of express buses heading downtown in the morning, but absolutely no bus options listed in mid-morning. Now maybe the search was off, and I have taken the bus to and from parts of Golden Valley, but I think it's safe to say that this apartment complex is not the right match for this couple, at least not based on what they say they want. It wouldn't be all that convenient even if public transportation were not an issue.

It's one thing to recommend a place, but let's try to keep the poster's actual needs in mind, lest the cynical amongst us think the recommender is only eager for a commission...

You could also try St. Louis Park along Excelsior; I think there's an express bus to the U from there, and there's direct bus service to Whittier. The area itself is pretty quiet once you get off the main street, safe, walkable, lots of stores and restaurants within close distance, near (but not in) Uptown, and there are a lot of rentals (although not sure what is on the market at this moment).

[nicholemarie]

Wow - you guys ARE pretty cynical. It's not like I am going on this site posting specifically for people to live in my apartments. The reason I think it's good for them is because it is close to downtown and a nice private neighborhood. I also WORK in Richfield which is a drive and it works out just fine for me, along with me and my boyfriend only having one car also. It's not like I would recommend my apts to someone who works in burnsville or coon rapids, because that is NOT convenient. and To tell you the truth, AFTER I posted my first recommendation was when it was brought to my attention that I got a referral bonus. I am just trying to be helpful. So quit jumping down my throat about sht and let THEM decide for themselves.