GUESS WHAT!! We are moving up to Rhode Island! (Providence: apartment, rentals)

[Fudgecopper]

Hi everyone! So, can you believe it! We are moving up to Rhode Island from California around August 1st-10! What we want to do is move somewhere that is safe. We are looking for places (houses to rent) in between $1200-1500 that allows dogs. We dont have kids so we are not concerned about the schools for now. We dont really know the areas well so we are checking online sites for home rentals but we dont really know if there are some areas to stay away from.

While Im trolling past threads, I was wondering if anyone could give me places to definitely stay away from. Right now we are seeing homes in Middletown, Newport, Narragansett, Portsmouth, and warwick. Are all the areas there fairly safe? We will be working in providence and I dont mind the drive for now. We just want a safe place to live for the rent that we want until we have the opportunity to explore for ourselves to see where we would want to live and buy a house next. I know we are taking a huge risk, moving to a place we have never been, but we figure--heck, we are young, no children, why not? We researched, and researched, and researched and talked to people here in California that came from RI and we feel that this is a good choice. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks a ton everyone! Im so excited!

[ocngypz]

All the towns you mentioned are fine. The only one which is really a commutable distance is Warwick.

Now, the $64,000 question. Just where are you finding HOUSES in these towns for 12-1500 a month? Small houses near the airport in Warwick, maybe... but definitely not on Aquidneck Island... nor Narragansett.

[GermanSpy]

Generally, all the areas you quoted are pretty safe. Once you home in on some houses you might want to ask again to make sure you didn't pick that 'one street' every local knows to avoid.

Don't underestimate the commute involved when picking your new location. While we certainly don't have traffic issues like you're used to from the West Coast you need to keep in mind that there's a rather large body of water which you'll have to drive circles around. All of those commutes from the towns you mentioned can be done but most of them won't be very much fun.

Warwick and Portsmouth will both offer acceptable commutes, Newport, Middletown and Narragansett are hikes and will be extra troublesome in the summer time. People want to go to the beach after all.

Also, don't forget the seasons. We do get some snow here from time to time and you don't really want an hour long commute one way in the snow up the hill with no tires driving your kid brother if you can avoid it.

Last but not least, do consider the East Bay area in your search for houses, those would be towns like Bristol, Warren and Barrington. Those would put you in good shape for a commute to Providence. And Bristol seems to be the canine capital of Rhode Island according to my cat.

Also, the East Bay is pretty safe, here some quotes from the Warren Police Report:

A Liberty Street caller told police a beaver was struck by a vehicle.

A Main Street caller told police someone cut his fishing line.

The excitement never stops around here.

Good luck in your search.

[Fudgecopper]

Originally Posted by ocngypz

All the towns you mentioned are fine. The only one which is really a commutable distance is Warwick.

Now, the $64,000 question. Just where are you finding HOUSES in these towns for 12-1500 a month? Small houses near the airport in Warwick, maybe... but definitely not on Aquidneck Island... nor Narragansett.

There are plenty of online rental sites which show plenty of houses in these areas for $1500. Not just little houses either. Pretty roomy houses with a yard and plenty of space. It just takes research. On the rhode island living website for instance, there are tons of rentals and on rentalhomes.com. We could pay more in rent if we wanted to but we rather save the hell out of our paycheck and add it to our savings and buy a house at the end of the year once we know what area we want to live in.

[Fudgecopper]

Originally Posted by GermanSpy

Generally, all the areas you quoted are pretty safe. Once you home in on some houses you might want to ask again to make sure you didn't pick that 'one street' every local knows to avoid.

Don't underestimate the commute involved when picking your new location. While we certainly don't have traffic issues like you're used to from the West Coast you need to keep in mind that there's a rather large body of water which you'll have to drive circles around. All of those commutes from the towns you mentioned can be done but most of them won't be very much fun.

Warwick and Portsmouth will both offer acceptable commutes, Newport, Middletown and Narragansett are hikes and will be extra troublesome in the summer time. People want to go to the beach after all.

Also, don't forget the seasons. We do get some snow here from time to time and you don't really want an hour long commute one way in the snow up the hill with no tires driving your kid brother if you can avoid it.

Last but not least, do consider the East Bay area in your search for houses, those would be towns like Bristol, Warren and Barrington. Those would put you in good shape for a commute to Providence. And Bristol seems to be the canine capital of Rhode Island according to my cat.

Also, the East Bay is pretty safe, here some quotes from the Warren Police Report:





The excitement never stops around here.

Good luck in your search.

Thank you so much for the information. I got the link you sent and it has tons of useful information. Thank you so much. The quotes are so cute and I will definitely be checking out Warren now too.

[Hollytree]

I find this to be a good source of houses to rent- especially close in to Providence.

http://www.brown.edu/Administration/...w.php?TypeID=3

[Fudgecopper]

Originally Posted by Hollytree

I find this to be a good source of houses to rent- especially close in to Providence.

http://www.brown.edu/Administration/...w.php?TypeID=3

Wow, thanks! Thats a good site!

[ediet]

Well, welcome to RI. I moved here a couple of years ago and LOVE IT, with a few exceptions. Some things to keep in mind when moving: Try to avoid the "Festival Field", "Park Holm" and "Hillside" area in Newport. If you look in Newport, remember that the Thames and Americas Cup area is a huge tourist pull, so as a local, the traffic really sucks getting home and to work if you live down in that area--it looks great because it is so close to the water, but that is where everyone wants to be. If that doesn't bother you, the Point section and the 5th ward are fantastic. has some reasonable listings and they actually return your calls. Newportrents.com says they will return your calls--but never do. Actually, seeing that you will be working in Prov, there is one bus (the 60) that goes from Newport (or Middletown, or Portsmouth or even through Bristol, Warren and Barrington) directly to Kennedy Plaza. Yeah for public transportation!
Second, if you look in Warren or Bristol, the downtown area is ADORABLE and has a lot to offer for a shopping walking area. However, you want to be sure you stay away from rentals near the water in those towns. In the summer there is an algae problem and it STINKS! Especially near the water processing plant in Warren (hint, it is by the small baseball field when you are looking at maps). But, if you are just a few blocks away and in walking distance, there are great areas there and almost none are bad. Some might have a few run down homes, but over all they are really great. P.S. Bristol is close to Colt State Park where the beach is FABULOUS! Middletown and Portsmouth are great as well, but they are on the island and Portsmouth might be a little out of that price range. You might find something there, but it will be a little smaller and less house (or apartment) then somewhere else. The same goes for Barrington, and Barrington has a shopping area, it is just not as quaint as Warren or Bristol. Barrington is very close (about 10 minutes) to Seekonk, MA where there is a Target, Kohls, Lowes, etc.
OK, I think I have run out of breath here. Hope this helps and doesn't add any more wrenches to your works! Good luck!

[POhdNcrzy]

Originally Posted by GermanSpy

Also, the East Bay is pretty safe, here some quotes from the Warren Police Report:

A Main Street caller told police someone cut his fishing line.

Well, I hope the police told that person, "Try not to cast your line too far out, and definitely not around corners!"

[GermanSpy]

I'm honestly at a loss trying to imagine what they tell people who call in with stuff like that.