Moving to Philadelphia (Chester, West Chester, Ardmore: apartment, to rent, house)

[kings4cup]

Hi, I'm a 23 year old male and recent college graduate from the Los Angeles area.
After deciding on which city to move to Philadelphia became the one that I felt was best for me.

I want to move to Center City considering its the area that I'm most familiar with but if I can't wind up finding a place there then what else would be areas that you would recommend.

Is Temple a nice area?
Is University City a cool area or is it an area where only college students live?

Also, I don't plan on owning a car and selling mine before I make the move, is that going to be a problem? Are cars essential?

[kuvopolis]

The area around Temple is North Philadelphia, one of the most crime-ridden sections of the nation. I recommend not to live there.

University City, surprisingly is dominated by universities: U Penn and Drexel. A nice area, but you would be better served in other neighborhoods.

Rittenhouse, if you can afford it, is a nice area. Old City is trendy. Society Hill is stuffy. Northern Liberties and Fishtown are hipster paradises. Fairmount/ Art Museum area is nice but the transportation is not as good as the above neighborhoods. Manayunk is good if your job is in the western suburbs. Queen Village has a funky vibe.

A car is not essential, provided your job is in Center City or otherwise near public transportation.

[john_starks]

Temple is ghetto

if you'r from LA, think So Central...lol

[rainrock]

Center City
University City
Manayunk
Chestnut Hill
Main Line suburbs (Bala Cynwd,Wynnefield,Ardmore,Narberth,Bryn Mawr Haverford,Rosemont,Wayne)
Conshohocken
West Chester-25 miles west of center city will need a car.
Cherry Hill NJ -Will need a car.

Good luck

[solibs]

You don't need a car if you live in the city. Some neighborhoods are more convenient than others but you'll figure that out quickly. My suggestion would be to rent a room in Center City for 2-3 months until you learn your way around town. That way you can figure out the neighborhood that's best for you.

In my opinion/experience, renting an apartment that you've never seen in a neighborhood that you're completely unfamiliar can lead to serious trouble.

[nkosiek]

I'm sorry, but Temple itself is not ghetto. There are areas right around there that are great, and there's a ton of investment going on in certain areas there that are trying to turn the tide. Its much safer than areas like Strawberry Mansion and some places in West.

[solibs]

Originally Posted by nkosiek

I'm sorry, but Temple itself is not ghetto.

I agree. Temple isn't bad and there's so much positive stuff going on there right now.

I don't know if I would choose to live there unless I was a student, though. Only because it's very student oriented and most of the time I'd probably be headed to other parts of the city to hang out anyway.

[kelb]

Manayunk is full of people like yourself...recent college grads looking for a neighborhood where they can walk to stores and bars, but a quick hop by train to center city. You can easily find a roommate or house share situation on craigslist.