West Chester? (State College, Hazleton, King of Prussia: apartment, rentals, houses)

[Tier]

I currently reside in a small town near Hazleton, PA but I may be landing a job with SIemens in Malvern and am looking at towns in the area to relocate to. Ideally, I'd like to be able to spend around 600, maybe 650, per month on rent and utilities. From the looks of ads on craigslist, if I get a room with somebody, this is definitely achievable. I've been considering West Chester alot just because I enjoy the college town vibe but I was wondering if anyone had any opinions on other towns in the area. I'm 23 and definitely want some nightlife around to get nuts Thursday thru Sunday but I don't want to be caught up in a sea of drunks on Tuesday evening either (ahh, memories of State College hahaha) so... that's something to keep in mind. I know the Manayunk and Conshy areas are supposed to be pretty ideal for young professionals as well but it seems the commute to Malvern could suck a bit from that distance. I've also heard Phoenixville is starting to become quite the hot spot. Anyway, any advice from anyone living in the area would be appreciated. Thanks.

[KoZmiC NinJa]

Im off to work so I cant find it now, or write more...but I left a
detailed version of my 30 year stay in West Chester and a few opinions of it.
If you search for the thread in the Philly forum or my name
you will find it.
That being said, I think you are a prime candidate for the 'new' West Chester. I think you would really enjoy hanging out there. There is a more professional crowd that hangs at places like Iron Hill and the festivals are
fun '0 plenty !!!! Housing is expensive and stay away from rentals around the college or you will NEVER sleep and be sweeping up broken glass all the time...other than that, Good luck and have fun ! I had some great times in olde WC !!
I wouldnt even consider Pheonixville, yet. No comparison to WC, not
even close.
Also...dont discount Paoli or Malvern either. Nice places too and Paoli
is a very easy ride to where you will be working and you will appreciate
that when you see traffic on 202 !!!

Good luck, post your findings !

[Duderino]

I can honestly say that I LOVE West Chester. I lived there last summer with a friend for a temporary job (and will hopefully do the same for this upcoming summer) and just the whole atmosphere of the town just makes you want to stay forever -- really cool nightlife scene, check out Gay Street, especially. Due in no small part to the University, there is definitely a skew toward young adults. Also, renting an apartment can be a little pricey, but if you've found something on Craigslist that you can financially handle with a roommate, that's good news. Even though it sounds like you'd be content with West Chester, other areas that may suit what you're looking for if you're not looking to live in the city are some areas along Main Line. Also, look into King of Prussia. That's turning into a pretty vibrant "edge city."

[dcris]

I've heard (and read online) not so good information about a rental finding outfit called Locators (Locaters?) based in WC. If you decide to use a service, be very careful.

[KoZmiC NinJa]

^^ Those services are not really a scam, they just
charge lots of money for doing what you can do for free,
which is to call realtors or property owners and compile a list of rentals.
Rentals in WC disappear within days so a lot of times the list you
just paid alot of money for is no good anyway. There is a 'federation'
of rental property owners in WC that should be avoided. They rent
to young kids knowing they can charge more for rents and will find a
way to keep deposits honstly or dishonestly. They mostly cater to the
college student crowd though because they are motoriously hard on
houses and usually pack 5 or 6 people into an apartment. Obviously I
cant say in a public forum who they are but in WC it is common knowledge
so be careful who you rent from if you do find the ideal place.
A room in a nice old house on the North side might be an option too.
When I was in WC there were a few of those available occasionally.
Again though, if you have trouble finding a place in WC you can go
down Rt. 30 a little further and still be in a college town because
Villanova, Cabrini and Eastern are all right in the same area.
Wayne, Strafford, Ardmore, Villanova all have very lively atmospheres
and the rents are about the same as WC.

[rockky]

Keep some petty cash (in large denomination bills) aside for parking tickets in WC.

In other words, you may want to find out if there is off street parking available in your rental.

[KoZmiC NinJa]

^^^Great advice Rockky !!
I was picked up by constables twice and taken to
straight to District Court on both occasions for outstanding
tickets....Pay or sit in jail !!! Really ! Its hard to keep track
of which side of the street to park and on what nights without
an EXCELL spread sheet even in the places you can park
The parking garage on High St. has a high rate of vandalism too,
I found that out also...With WC the way it is now, I believe NOT having
a car would really uncomplicate your life considerably.

[rockky]

KoZ....When our son was in college in West Chester, the moving of cars in order to park legally was a game. Parking was OK in one place on some days and not others. Then there were also the time of day peramitors. The same parking spot changed depending on the day of the week, or on the time of day. Yeah. A spread sheet. LOL!

My husband called the town office to ask a couple of questions in order to determine if our son was givin' us a line of you know what. Nope. The woman he talked to bragged about the amount of revenue the city collects using this method. If I remember correctly, it was in the seven figure + range per year. She thougt it was funny. I was unable to find the humor in treating citizens this way.

And we wonder why people are stressed and on edge?!?!! It's the little stuff.

[tigersgorawr3]

I went to school at WCU living on and off campus. It is a beautiful area! It has alot of nice places to go to...and if your having a rough month...There is always Jakes Bar for .50 beers! I lived on Pa-3 known as west chester pike...I worked in malvern and it was a quick hop on 202 and 15 minutes to work. Traffic gets a little backed up near the 30 bypass. Look at Goshen Terrace apts...I definitely recommend living there. If you have a roommate...they have nice 2 bed 2 baths with a balcony for like 400 each person.

If you do look in the high street area of west chester...good luck on parking...if you park at a meter after 5 its free till 7 am...most of the time...we did calculate though if you parked on campus at a meter...it was cheaper to get the ticket then pay the meter all day...:-)