Moving to New Job in Olivette--Suggestions on Areas to Live (St. Louis: real estate, renting)

[BRbloom]

Will be moving to Olivette for a new job and would like suggestions for areas to look at that are within 20-30 minute commute. What are median home costs looking like now in this area (looking at middle class area). Would like to be near a dog park and be reasonably safe area. Any areas to concentrate on or ones to avoid?

Any recommendations for real estate agents.

Thanks

[aragx6]

20-30 minutes from Olivette puts you in a wide variety of areas. Without knowing specifically what you are looking for I would suggest Clayton or Ladue if you want to be in the nicest areas of St. Louis, but you'll need 300k+ to get into a nice single family home there. Some of the best public schools in the metro.

If you like a more urban vibe University City or the Central West End neighborhood in St. Louis would be a good bet. You can get a condo for less than 150k or a mansion for a couple mil in that area- there's something for everyone, but most of the housing stock is older, so if you wanted new construction this wouldn't be the right place for you. These neighborhoods are walkable, have access to the metrolink which goes downtown and is full of cool bars and restaurants. If you have kids you'll want to look into private or magnet school options, as the general public schools leave a lot to be desired.

If you like old suburban neighborhoods geared toward families I would suggest the Kirkwood/Webster Groves area. A lot of older homes on tree-lined streets, crime is very low. Again there's a big range of prices, but you can get into a SFH for as little as 175k, but I'd guess the median is about 275k. Very good schools.

Areas north of Olivette and west of 170 are decent, working class neighborhoods. The schools are average but home prices are certainly lower. Crime is higher than Webster Groves, but plenty of families live there. There has been some changing demographics in the last 30+ years leading blacks out of the city to those ares, and whites fleeing further west, oftentimes to places like St. Charles. A lot of people argue on this forum about this area. Schools are highly debated here. I'd call them average.

I wouldn't suggest living north of Olivette and east of 170.

St. Charles is also a possibility, newer construction, reasonable prices, plenty of options in the 150-250k range. It's more sprawled, but there's a lot of parks and it's very family-oriented. Schools are above average, I'd call them solid, and parent participation is high. The commute would be on the high end of what you asked for- probably right about 30 minutes from most parts of St. Charles.

There are a lot of small communities in St. Louis county, so know that when i say Kirkwood/Webster Groves, there are also a couple of other options in the vicinity that will be similar like Rock Hill etc.

I hope this helps! If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

[RhondaHMo]

We're IN Olivette, although renting....we're in a little neighborhood directly behind Chevy's on Olive (directly west of 170) and love it. Very nice, close-knit neighbors who watch out for one another and I see it as pretty safe. The housing has actually went down in the bit over a year we've been here....houses in our neighborhood averaged $200,000 for small 2BR/1B homes! You ARE paying for the school district, so if you don't have kids....I can see why you'd want to get out of the area. But I've seen quite a few right in our subdivision that are down to $150,000 in the last few months. Still not sure we're going to buy in this area when we get to that point, but the longer we're here, the worse it will be on the kid if we take him out of his school. <shrug>

You are lucky! I've been looking for work right in Olivette since we moved here and couldn't find a thing. And I'm just general clerical work! I finally found a decent position just down the road in Creve Coeur. They have a dog park, but haven't heard much about it.

-Rhonda
Olivette, MO

[jojojohnson76]

Olivette would be a nice place to look, plus its in the Ladue school district which is another plus if you have kids (sorry didn't read the whole post). Plus its just a 5 minute drive up Olive Boulevard to hit University City which is full of some eclectic clubs and restaurants, a very young area. Drive 10 minutes up Olive to Skinker Boulevard and you are in the city (after driving a mile or so down Skinker). Olivette is a nice area and a good location. The police cars are white with green trim and they say "In the center of it all." I guess that's pretty accurate.

[Bobster]

Hi there....As aragex said, within a 20- 40 minute commute you have just about any kind of neighborhood that you could want. That's one of the cool things about St. Louis.


Moderator cut: no soliciting, no signatures in posts please

[mytjo95]

plenty of options, i've like some of the options that everybody has suggested. I wish I knew of more dog parks, but the only one I know of is in North St. Charles, It's great, just went there the other day, and I loved it. Enjoyed my time there very much...

DuSable Dog Park - St. Charles Park and Recreation

providing you lived right over the river in St. Charles, you'd be well within a 20-30 minute drive to Olivette.

So I guess St. Charles is my suggestion, Not to familiar with Olivette, but from what I here it's great, I like how centrally located it is as well...

Check out Maryland Heights too!

Good luck in your seach.

[CellarBelle]

Don't forget to look on the Illinois side (O'Fallon, Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, and so on). It will put you pushing a 30 minute commute, but it gives you more options. Good luck!

[STLnative]

Dog Park...There's an unofficial dog park in the area...very unofficial but very cool. SHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
Ask and I'll tell you but mum's the word.