Recommendations for downtown Phoenix living? (Buckeye: apartment complex, for rent, condos)

[Milight]

I am moving to Phoenix from Denver this winter to attend ASU at their downtown campus and trying to determine a safe place to live. I am a female in my early 30's and like the arts, diversity, and being physically active. I also would love to be able to walk to the grocery store if possible and be close to a gym. Since I do not know Phoenix at all it is really hard to figure what is safe and what is not. Can anyone provide recommendations for downtown living? (I am defining downtown as the "rectangle" of highway 10 and highway 17/60, but I could be totally wrong here) Thank you!!!

[BuckeyeBoyDJ]

Well it would be much easier to recommend apartments/condos if you provide us with a budget. Downtown is actually a very small area. Downtown&Midtown is pretty much just considered one area. I pretty much refer to the downtown area as anything between Jefferson and Thomas and 7th Ave to 7th St. Some areas around there are safe and other areas not so much. I would try to stay within close proximity to the lightrail if you don't want be dependent on your car too much. However you will need your car to go the grocery store, mall, run errands, etc. It's just too difficult trying to do those things walking or using public transit.There are a couple of gyms downtown that you can walk to/take the lightrail. As far as safety goes pretty much anything immediately south, east, and west of the downtown gets a little sketchy but you'll be fine if you use common sense and just be aware of your surroundings. Being a female especially just be cautious if you're out jogging, walking any where, etc and that goes for any time of the day not just when the sun goes down. Other than that you will really enjoy living downtown and the ASU campus downtown is very nice and there are some great amenities (restaurants, things to do) in the immediate area. I hope I helped.

[TransatPhD]

Hi, Milight, I like to respond to downtown PHX posts because I live here at 44 Monroe (I'm also a woman in my early 30s). Agree with BuckeyeBoyDJ about the relative smallness of downtown as an area and about the area around ASU downtown being a good indicator of where you should be looking. In addition, you should definitely consider some of the midtown condo/apartment buildings, most of which are on the light rail (on Central), allowing you to get to "true" downtown pretty fast.

You will not be able to walk to a grocery store if you live in what we're defining as downtown Phoenix, MAYBE with the exception of living near the McDowell and 7th Ave or McDowell and 7th St intersections, but that's not "downtown" to me

Most of the buildings you'd be looking at have gyms in them. There's also a Gold's Gym in CityScape, walkable from most true downtown apartment buildings.

As far as safety goes, if you are in an entry-controlled building (with a doorman), you'll be okay inside your apartment/condo, and you'll just need to exercise normal caution (normal for any city) when out on the streets alone at night/early mornings. But I would venture that the south part of the "box" you describe (south of the President streets) is more marginal than the "northern" side, in general. I walk around downtown constantly, and I get accosted by the homeless VERY regularly, some more aggressive than others, but that's the cost of being able to walk to restaurants, the movies, the light rail, etc. It certainly hasn't stopped me from walking around.

When we moved here, we moved into the most expensive building we could afford, thinking that it would be safer than cheaper buildings. I don't know if that's true, but I certainly feel safe in 44 Monroe. It's mostly the doorman-as-security that makes me feel safe.

The Orpheum building is close to us and has tons of style; just beware they have parking problems and don't have a freight elevator (making moving in harder). There's the new Roosevelt Point apartment complex, but that seems very geared to undergraduates.

[Milight]

Thank you both very much. I appreciate you giving me the streets/areas to be aware of and ones to consider. Phx is huge!

I currently live in downtown Denver and pay $1200 for a one bedroom, so looking at rent in Phoenix seems much more affordable. If I could pay less than $850 I would be happy with that. Also, I have lived in Washington, DC so I use common sense, but a lot of the posts on this forum and in other places makes me concerned about the crime. I am not sure if it is just normal urban living or really worse in Phx?

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by Milight

Thank you both very much. I appreciate you giving me the streets/areas to be aware of and ones to consider. Phx is huge!

I currently live in downtown Denver and pay $1200 for a one bedroom, so looking at rent in Phoenix seems much more affordable. If I could pay less than $850 I would be happy with that. Also, I have lived in Washington, DC so I use common sense, but a lot of the posts on this forum and in other places makes me concerned about the crime. I am not sure if it is just normal urban living or really worse in Phx?

Just remember that you basically get what you pay for. $850 a month is a fair price for rent, but even that will get you a pretty average place. $1,000 or more will grant you increased security and amenities that you won't find in the average complex. Also, if you're concerned about crime, you will more than likely be paying more in rent & living costs to reside in a safer location. Overall, crime isn't any more of a problem in Phoenix than it is in Denver or just about any other large city, but there is still enough to be concerned about.

[TransatPhD]

Agreed with Valley Native. Personally, my goal price was (at least) $1100/mo as far as increased security goes.