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I am currently looking for affordable but safe housing near SLU School of Medicine. I have been told that Tower Grove, CWE and Lafayette Square are good locations. However, I am all the way across the country and won't be able to take a personal look at the apartments before I sign something. Preferably, I would like to stay within a 4 mile radius of the school. I have learned that the area directly outside the campus is pretty sketchy. I am either looking for a studio for $650/month tops including utilities. Or a 2 bed/2bath for preferably less than $1200/month. Does anyone have any recommendations? Safety is a major concern for me. I have noticed that listings on craigslist run for much less than those listed on apartment search engine sites but I don't feel comfortable working with a "non-company" since this will have to happen while I am outside of St Louis. I don't have a preference for being close to bars or restaurants...I would rather be in a safer neighborhood.
Also, what would utilities run for a 2bed/2bath unit? What about a studio? What is a reasonable monthly rent for the St Louis area? I thought it would be around $450-550/person per month but it seems that I was mistaken...
Yes, $450-$550 is usually reasonable, however that is taking a wider scope of areas into consideration (in the county and in up and coming areas, rent is usually less). The areas you are looking at, especially CWE and Lafayette Square are some of the more expensive areas in St. Louis.
I can definitely understand safety being a primary consideration, when I first moved to St. Louis when I was 22 and single, it was my #1 priority as well. I ended up living in Maryland Heights (about 25-30 minutes from downtown where I worked) but I realize that this would be way out of your 4 mile radius.
If you take a look at this website, St. Louis Crime Mapping it will give you an idea of what areas have the highest crime rates. 'High Crime' can mean different things to different people. For instance, I'm used to living in cities with high property crime, so I kind of 'expect it' (that sounds awful huh?) and accept it as a fact of life. Violent Crime has always been more of a concern to me- I wouldn't want to live in an area where I thought I was going to get attacked , but I've had no problems at all when exploring the so-called 'bad' neighborhoods.
So with that said;
I suggested to another poster attending SLU to try the Skinker DeBaliviere neighborhood (as I used to have multiple single, female friends living there who never had an issue). I just looked on the Crime Mapping website, and in the past 30 days they have had a few thefts in the area (4 thefts to be precise) but no crime that I would classify as 'significant'. The Wydown Skinker neighborhood may also be an option- it has seen less crime over the past month than Skinker DeBaliviere with just one theft. Obviously, you are going to pay a premium for these neighborhoods however. For memory though, DeBaliviere wasn't extraordinarily expensive for a 1 bedroom($500-700 range) and there are a lot of old Apartment Blocks in the area which may suit your needs. It's also convenient to the Metrolink and other amenities.
If you don't really need to be within 4 miles of school, and safety is more a concern than convenience, I would suggest looking at Creve Coeur or Maryland Heights- both places are super, super safe and have plenty of apartment complexes wherein you could get a studio for under $650 including utilities.
Where are you moving from, out of curiosity? This may help people get a better idea of where to suggest for you. Also, will you have your own vehicle or will you be relying on public transportation?
Yes, $450-$550 is usually reasonable, however that is taking a wider scope of areas into consideration (in the county and in up and coming areas, rent is usually less). The areas you are looking at, especially CWE and Lafayette Square are some of the more expensive areas in St. Louis.
I can definitely understand safety being a primary consideration, when I first moved to St. Louis when I was 22 and single, it was my #1 priority as well. I ended up living in Maryland Heights (about 25-30 minutes from downtown where I worked) but I realize that this would be way out of your 4 mile radius.
If you take a look at this website, St. Louis Crime Mapping it will give you an idea of what areas have the highest crime rates. 'High Crime' can mean different things to different people. For instance, I'm used to living in cities with high property crime, so I kind of 'expect it' (that sounds awful huh?) and accept it as a fact of life. Violent Crime has always been more of a concern to me- I wouldn't want to live in an area where I thought I was going to get attacked , but I've had no problems at all when exploring the so-called 'bad' neighborhoods.
So with that said;
I suggested to another poster attending SLU to try the Skinker DeBaliviere neighborhood (as I used to have multiple single, female friends living there who never had an issue). I just looked on the Crime Mapping website, and in the past 30 days they have had a few thefts in the area (4 thefts to be precise) but no crime that I would classify as 'significant'. The Wydown Skinker neighborhood may also be an option- it has seen less crime over the past month than Skinker DeBaliviere with just one theft. Obviously, you are going to pay a premium for these neighborhoods however. For memory though, DeBaliviere wasn't extraordinarily expensive for a 1 bedroom($500-700 range) and there are a lot of old Apartment Blocks in the area which may suit your needs. It's also convenient to the Metrolink and other amenities.
If you don't really need to be within 4 miles of school, and safety is more a concern than convenience, I would suggest looking at Creve Coeur or Maryland Heights- both places are super, super safe and have plenty of apartment complexes wherein you could get a studio for under $650 including utilities.
Where are you moving from, out of curiosity? This may help people get a better idea of where to suggest for you. Also, will you have your own vehicle or will you be relying on public transportation?
Best of luck to you!
Kindest Regards,
Amber
Thank you so much for the input, Amber. I will be moving from northern California, SF Bay Area, (where housing prices are ridiculous) so I basically have NO idea about the St Louis area. I also need to sign a lease while I am still in California, which makes things a little bit more stressful.
People have been telling me to live with a roommate because they said it would be "safer" that way but I just don't know. Trying to coordinate something with someone you don't even know can sometimes be stressful, if you know what I mean. I want to be in a safe area because I may need to walk from my car to the housing complex late at night (but before midnight), which could be a bit creepy. But I will start looking into the areas you mentioned.
Anyway, are there any housing complexes I can google? Either a studio or a 2bed/2bath would be fine with me. Just that the latter requires me to find a roommate...which I think I might be able to do.
Also, does the weather at St. Louis require parking your car in a garage to avoid the snow, hail or winds or anything like that?
If it's any consolation, I moved to St. Louis from Australia (also sight unseen- I was given a fabulous job opportunity in St. Louis and literally knew NOTHING about St. Louis or Missouri except that it was in the middle of the country somewhere!).
Whether you get a room mate or not depends on you. Personally I'm not a fan of room mates, I've had my fair share over the years and it seems more of a hindrance / hassle than any advantage (albeit a financial one). It's my personal preference that I would prefer somewhere smaller, and live alone (when I was single), and pay a little more, than pay half for half a shared apartment. That's a choice you have to make though for yourself.
I frequently worked late nights, so got back to my apartment at midnight or later, and never had any issues or feelings of danger, of course, I was out in the County as before mentioned. (I'll PM you the name of the apartment complex I lived in and some details about it, because I LOVED it there- when back in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago house hunting, I drove past it a few times and it still looks well maintained and no different from when I moved out a few years back).
As for Snow, some of the larger, more expensive / modern complexes have garage parking but a lot of them do not. St. Louis snows, but it's not as bad as in Minneapolis or even Chicago.
Generally, what I found a lot of people did (and finally caught on to myself), was if your car can't be garaged, to put cardboard over your windshield etc, to prevent as much ice build up overnight. The Snow is actually quite easy to shovel your way out of, and a good apartment complex will have already plowed the majority of the parking lot (mine was really good about this)- but it was always scraping off the Ice that was most aggravating to me personally. You literally just learn to get up an hour or two ahead of your normal schedule in order to do this. It is a pain, but the benefits of St. Louis, and the beauty of the snow, outweigh it for me
You'll be fine. The first couple of times it snows it is a bit of a freak out (at least it was to me- I'd been on skiing trips before but never had to 'live' in Snow before I moved to The Lou) but you get used to it very quick
I haven't lived here long, but I think you can get by without a roommate for safety depending on where you live. Some apartment complexes have restricted access and door people to monitor who comes and goes (though there is always the chance that other residents will commit crimes against you).
To me the area around the law school part of the university in the day time seems safe because there are usually lots of people around (I haven't visited other parts of it like the medical area). You can use Google maps to see what apartments are around the university and places you want to live. I think your price range is good for a regular studio. There are some fancy places that cost much much more.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newbie2012
Thank you so much for the input, Amber. I will be moving from northern California, SF Bay Area, (where housing prices are ridiculous) so I basically have NO idea about the St Louis area. I also need to sign a lease while I am still in California, which makes things a little bit more stressful.
People have been telling me to live with a roommate because they said it would be "safer" that way but I just don't know. Trying to coordinate something with someone you don't even know can sometimes be stressful, if you know what I mean. I want to be in a safe area because I may need to walk from my car to the housing complex late at night (but before midnight), which could be a bit creepy. But I will start looking into the areas you mentioned.
Anyway, are there any housing complexes I can google? Either a studio or a 2bed/2bath would be fine with me. Just that the latter requires me to find a roommate...which I think I might be able to do.
Also, does the weather at St. Louis require parking your car in a garage to avoid the snow, hail or winds or anything like that?
To me the area around the law school part of the university in the day time seems safe because there are usually lots of people around (I haven't visited other parts of it like the medical area). You can use Google maps to see what apartments are around the university and places you want to live. I think your price range is good for a regular studio. There are some fancy places that cost much much more.
The problem with the apartments across from the law school (and the ones along Laclede on the other side of the Frost campus) is that they are filled with undergrads. This means lots of noise. Most grad students aren't a fan of that. Some grad students I know lived there a year because it was a safe bet without a ton of unknowns, and once they got to know STL better, they moved on. Campus security also patrols the whole SLU campus, and since they were located across the street, there was an even larger element of safety.
These apartments are also fairly expensive--I think 1bdrms on Lindell by the law school ran in the $900/mo range + extra for parking when I looked way back in 2008. The University Heights Lofts on Laclede were cheaper (somewhere in the mid $700/mo + extra for parking). These prices are probably stale now, but it gives you a good idea.
Thanks everyone for the input. I would prefer to stay away from the undergrad area because people have told me there is a tendency for things to get a bit loud there. I also came across this listing: Byron Company - 6500 Clayton Ave.
What do people think about this area? How is the parking here? Also, how much would electric/gas cost for a studio less than 400sqft?
Thanks again! This is really helpful.
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