Richmond Relocation from Los Angeles (Petersburg, Chester: short sale, apartments, lofts)

[SolidForce]

Hi everyone,

I am so happy I have stumbled upon your forum! There is an amazing amount of information here that I have spent a few hours looking through, but would like some "updated" information if possible. The threads that directly answered my questions are ~3 years old, hence the new thread. I hope it does offend anyone.

A bit of history:

I am a doctoral student finishing up my degree in clinical psychology. I just received an internship opportunity in the Richmond area, so I will be moving towards the end of July. My internship is a year long paid residency at FCC Petersburg (the federal prison). Myself and the wife are traveling late June to look for apartments.

I am a 29 year old looking for a one bedroom apartment that is somewhat close to Petersburg. I am tired of the hour and a half commute to the current hospital I work at, and really would like something quite shorter. I have been recommended to look in the Chester area as well as the "West End." I have been told that the commute will be upwards of 45 minutes from the West End though, which is not to my liking. I am interested in somewhere as safe as possible, with good eateries, some type of gym, cheap (750 - 850 a month), and a minimal commute. Night life is not important to me.

So can anyone recommend first, a decent area that might accomplish some of my goals? I have priced out 7 or so complexes in Chester that I will be visiting in June, but if someone has some first hand knowledge about certain complexes to check out and which to stay away from, that would be amazing!

Again, thank you for your time and help!

-SF

[nikkayx333]

I'd say check out Chester or Midlothian. They're really good areas both with a different feel to each. Whatever you do, DON'T move into Petersburg. Not a safe area at all. Chester and Midlothian are both in Chesterfield, Chester being closer to Petersburg than Midlothian. Midlothian is about 30+ minutes away from Petersburg but SO well worth it. It's where you're gonna find a majority of the newer shops, gyms, restaurants, ect. Chester is a nice place too but a little older & not as many nice ammenities as Midlothian but since Midlo and Chester are close to each other, you could always live in Chester [ closer to Petersburg ] and drive to Midlothian for ammenities. Chester is about 15-20 minutes away from Midlothian depending on where exactly you are. My vote? Probably Chester. It pays to live in a good area around here & drive a little ways away. Good luck & welcome to VA :-D

[SolidForce]

Thank you so much for the advice!!!!

-SF

[onevthoki]

I'll side with Chester too! But since you've researched the Forum, I'm sure you're not surprised! :-)

[confusedprotoplasm]

Chester is a good bet. With on going widening of Route 10 to 3-4 lanes each way at the sprawling intersection with I-95 and the new I-295 cloverleaf interchange and auxillary lanes development (towards the east) for the Technology park, this area will grow even further in the near future.

[BJeanelle]

I am a DOD civilian who recently moved out of the area to DC. I have a 3 bedroom 2.5 bath townhome in Chester, VA that was built in 2010.

I paid around 163k but it is being sold at 120k because I qualified to sell as a short sale because of my situation. It is an excellent deal for someone looking for something in a quiet, safe neighborhood. It is within 12 minutes of Fort Lee!

This is why a single, 25 year old young professional should think a little harder before making a 30 year committment. I barely know where I will be 3 years from now, I have no idea why I thought it was a good idea to buy a house. lol. Oh well....my loss will be someone elses opportunity!

If you would like more information please call Steve Norris at ProFlex Realty (804) 677-7653


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[SparrowGirl]

There are actually a lot of cool lofts and renovated apartments located in Old Town Petersburg that are right near the little area with good restaurants. Petersburg is becoming quite a community for artists due to cheap rents. I'm just saying, there are certainly unsafe parts, but there are some really cool, safe pockets of Petersburg.