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my boyfriend and i are starting new jobs the second week of april and need to find an apartment pretty quickly. we live in a pittsburgh suburb now and are both from small towns. i will be working in center city philly and he's been transferred to cherry hill nj. we've been studying this site and others and have decided to live in nj rather than the city but could use some expert advice on apartment hunting.
here's the basics:
-we're both stable 35 year olds with no kids - we don't care about schools
-we need 2 bedroom with 2 parking spaces
-i will need to drive every day into philly, not taking public transport
-no highrise 'tower' buildings - unless it's a really cool loft apt!
-safe (of course)
-we are friendly and respectful and would like similarly nice neighbors, but we don't care about ethnic or religious makeup. we'd rather not have the drama of college students, though.
-he smokes (outside only, not inside, so a patio/balcony is nice)
-prefer quieter community - we'll go into the city when we want action!
-we have a small dog
-would like to stay around $1000/month - we like to spend our $ on fun stuff, not rent
-on site pool, gym unimportant. makes me feel like i'm in a hotel!
-we have a pretty simple lifestyle and fit in better with bluecollar folks than executives - nothing too fancy lol
does anyone have experience with specific neighborhoods, complexes or anything 'off the grid' (not on craigslist, etc.)? our stuff is going into storage this week and we're staying in a hotel until we can find a place, so i need to get moving! THANK YOU!
How about the commute distance and time? and do u guys have a lot of stuff? In NJ and a budget of 1,000 U can find a one bedroom, but for 2 bedroom in a nice community it'll cost more... Ideally I would recommend Echelon Glen in voorhees because I lived there. It might be 1100, its a big community so u can probably find a desirable unit if u tell them what u want, like new appliences, balcony, etc.
I'd stay away from haddonfield and camden (too urban) and anywhere that's too far east on 70, 73 or 38 because the traffic is bad. Voorhees Marlton Maple Shade, Cherry Hill itself or a riverside town if u want a shorter commute but not north of Riverside or Delran because it gets sketchy past there.
Ideally I would recommend Echelon Glen in voorhees because I lived there. It might be 1100, its a big community so u can probably find a desirable unit if u tell them what u want, like new appliences, balcony, etc.
Echelon Glen? Really?
I've heard some bad stories about that place, and that the rent was down to $650/month-ish, not $1100. Has it changed? This was a few years ago, I know someone who works in property management and has called Echelon Glen a step up from the projects in Camden. He said there's legitimate gang activity there and all (I've heard more than one person say this), but this was a few years ago, maybe it's changed since then? That whole section of Voorhees seems pretty shady though.
The good thing is that they're re-vamping that mall, now calling it Voorhees Town Center, my uncle's brother is the manager of that mall, so maybe that's helped change a lot of things.
I've heard some bad stories about that place, and that the rent was down to $650/month-ish, not $1100. Has it changed? This was a few years ago, I know someone who works in property management and has called Echelon Glen a step up from the projects in Camden. He said there's legitimate gang activity there and all (I've heard more than one person say this), but this was a few years ago, maybe it's changed since then? That whole section of Voorhees seems pretty shady though.
The good thing is that they're re-vamping that mall, now calling it Voorhees Town Center, my uncle's brother is the manager of that mall, so maybe that's helped change a lot of things.
whoelse that sounds insane, I lived there in '02-'05 by Lucas Ln. The only thing shady about that area is the trees shadowing the grass. I heard an occasional story (I think all from this board) but I use to walk around the community at all hours and never noticed any of it.
awesome - thank you all. the thousand bucks would be ideal, but going up to about twelve fifty wouldn't be a problem if we really liked the place. the advice from people who actually know the area is invaluable. how did people plan big moves before the internet?
it's hard to beat the cost of living where we're at now outside of pittsburgh. we have a great place - big lr, dining room, 2 big bedrooms and a patio in a wooded, secluded, safe complex for $650/month. finding suitable rentals in our future hometown is giving us sticker shock lol! thankfully, we knew what we were getting into when accepting the jobs, and we're completely psyched to relocate, even if it means tightening our belts a little bit.
all your help is much appreciated by both of us - thank you!
look at the reviews for echelon glen on aptratings.com. nuff said.
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