What is there to like about Richmond? (Chester, Windsor: apartment, rent)

[itinérant]

Hello:

I am looking into a job opp in Richmond. I am trying to come up with reasons why I would want to relocate to Richmond and I am struggling. From what I can tell, housing isn't very affordable (I hail from the Midwest, where housing tends to be pretty cheap), there isn't a lot of attractions, and there are pockets of crime. The only thing positive I can think to say is that the weather is nice. Can you think of any other reasons that someone would want to live in Richmond? I don't have family or any other salient ties to the area.

Thanks for your input.

[richmondpics]

It sounds like you've already made up your mind, but what do you like to do? What are you looking for in an area?

[Va4Ever]

so.....a 2 bedroom townhome ranging from $620-$700 with all amenities is not affordable? where as...lets just say nyc for example AND from experience...a 1 bedroom apartment is a thousand dollars. and by new yorkers standard thats dirt cheap. I dont care if you do get paid more in ny thats just entirely too much especially for a 1 bedroom apartment.

please OP do your research before you post "i can tells" especially if you've never been here before

[mrstewart]

Well, what is it that you enjoy doing? That could help us answer your question!

Richmond is actually very affordable! As you said the weather is nice (usually!), rafting in the james, triathalon clubs, hiking,rock climbing clubs, golfing, decent shopping, the area is saturated with amazing history, good independently owned restaurants (in Richmond proper),there are several foreign film festivals a year, several ethnic food festivals a year, horse races an hour away, the marathon, the 5 k, several art galleries that are amazing, the VMFA just opened after a massive addition and renovation and it has world class exhibits, we are 2 hours from the beach, and an hour and a half from DC, and hour and a half from the mountains...what is it you are looking for?

[rvasonicbloom]

It's not what Richmond can do for you, it's what you can do for Richmond.

[itinérant]

Well, that's precisely it: I am looking for a job. All other desires are subordinate to that goal. I am basically asking what objectively there is to like about Richmond. Someone said a 2bd townhouse runs for 700 a month. If that is in a good area, I would consider that affordable. I am from the Midwest, and I am paying 750 for an older townhouse that is in one of the nicer areas in the city (i.e. non-suburban). Is that the only thing there is to like--affordability of the housing?

[mrstewart]

I posted a reply that had several things listed...not sure what else to tell you...you will get as much out of a location as you are willing to put into it...

For $700 per month, you will not be living in the upper echelon area of town. You will not have a mailing address in Windsor Farms or Westhampton...sorry, but it is true. You can rent a townhouse in the neighborhood on Monument Ave near 195...they run about $850 or so.

[richmondpics]

Good shopping from regional mall to local shopping district, not much congestion, lots of outdoor festivals/concerts, historic neighborhoods with lots of character, good schools, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, slightly better unemployment rate than the national avg, diverse economy (healthcare, finance and banking, law, education, manufacturing, corporate, etc), good local restaurants, a growing farmer's market scene, the Byrd Theater, Busch Gardens and Kings Dominion are close by, outdoor activity in the James River Park System, 4 distinct seasons...

...and you're 1 1/2 hours from the beach, 1 hour from the mountains, and about 2 hours from D.C.

[Anders15]

This should be interesting.

Since we're off to such a slow start, I'll add that Richmond has the folk festival.

[GeorgiaTransplant]

Originally Posted by itinérant

Hello:

I am looking into a job opp in Richmond. I am trying to come up with reasons why I would want to relocate to Richmond and I am struggling. From what I can tell, housing isn't very affordable (I hail from the Midwest, where housing tends to be pretty cheap), there isn't a lot of attractions, and there are pockets of crime. The only thing positive I can think to say is that the weather is nice. Can you think of any other reasons that someone would want to live in Richmond? I don't have family or any other salient ties to the area.

Thanks for your input.

"Housing isn't affordable compared to the Midwest." And really only compared to the Midwest; it's quite reasonable compared to the rest of the country. If you tried to move to Raleigh, or Atlanta, or Seattle, or Houston, you'd get sticker shock, also-perhaps much heavier sticker shock. So if pure housing costs are your driver, you'll need to stick to the Midwest and some of the mountain states/rust belt states.

"There isn't a lot of attractions." Untrue. A lot of smarter folks than I have already listed quite a few. Perhaps the biggest attraction is the superb location; really quite reasonably close to history, mountains, sea, and DC when all the things in Richmond get too old.

"Pockets of crime." True. The metro area actually does have some crime, but it's not a sea of criminal activity; stay out of the really bad areas, you probably won't see much of that crime.

The biggest attractions for me: housing prices (see my counterargument to your assertion the housing isn't affordable-I personally have no desire to live in the midwest), traffic is pretty darned good, location, weather, and some really quite excellent school districts in Henrico, Chesterfield, and Hanover Counties.

You can look up what constitutes the MSA on a million other threads, but the short version: Richmond the city is very small due to Virginia's bizarre independent city/county laws. Richmond the metro, in other words the "functional" city (which definitively includes parts of those three counties) is pretty large. Where Richmond the metro ends is a source of endless debate-but I really don't think anyone would argue that the metro is definitely enclosed by the rough ring defined by 295 to the north and east, and 288 to the west and south.