St Pete Apartments (Tampa, Brandon, Gulfport: fit in, apartment complex, rentals)

[Baddestm0nkey]

I am moving to St Pete around September 1st from Wisconsin. I was wondering if anyone had insight on the 4th St N Area in St Pete? I am currently looking at 1 bedrooms and at Tamarin Bay and Mandalay on the 4th specifically. I also have interest in Seaside Vilas in Gulfport. If anyone has or is currently renting there, please let me know how you like it. Crime, nightlife, lifestyle, etc? It is impossible for me to take a tour as I'm in the midwest. Any input would be gnarly!

[smarino]

I'm not sure where those apartments are on 4th St N. We live in a senior mobile home park at around 53rd st N and 4th Av N, and crime is basically nonexistent. On 4th Av N, it's a little less nice from downtown to about 22 Av (but not that bad by any means), and after that it gets more upscale up to 54Th N, where it begins to get a little less so after that. It gets more lower scale after that is what I mean, especially around the mall area. Some of those apartments look too low end for me.

This parameter applies for the areas on either side of 4th St too. We love where we are. There's lots of restaurants, two Publix groceries, a Trader Joes, the Unity woo woo church w/ a great coffee house, a number of higher end yuppie type restaurants, a couple of StarSucks, etc. It's all a little white bread for me, but I feel safe at all hours of the day or night. Ck out the apartments you're interested in at night before moving in to see if there's a young party scene, but otherwise, if they're near the areas I described, they should be fine.

Whatever you do, take the time to get a weekly room somewhere (like Airbnb) and spend a couple of weeks checking out things before you sign a lease. There is no shortage of housing out here, so make the most of it and get a place you'll fit in and enjoy living in. Great city, we really like it here.

[Baddestm0nkey]

Originally Posted by smarino

I'm not sure where those apartments are on 4th St N. We live in a senior mobile home park at around 53rd st N and 4th Av N, and crime is basically nonexistent. On 4th Av N, it's a little less nice from downtown to about 22 Av (but not that bad by any means), and after that it gets more upscale up to 54Th N, where it begins to get a little less so after that. It gets more lower scale after that is what I mean, especially around the mall area. Some of those apartments look too low end for me.

This parameter applies for the areas on either side of 4th St too. We love where we are. There's lots of restaurants, two Publix groceries, a Trader Joes, the Unity woo woo church w/ a great coffee house, a number of higher end yuppie type restaurants, a couple of StarSucks, etc. It's all a little white bread for me, but I feel safe at all hours of the day or night. Ck out the apartments you're interested in at night before moving in to see if there's a young party scene, but otherwise, if they're near the areas I described, they should be fine.

Whatever you do, take the time to get a weekly room somewhere (like Airbnb) and spend a couple of weeks checking out things before you sign a lease. There is no shortage of housing out here, so make the most of it and get a place you'll fit in and enjoy living in. Great city, we really like it here.

Thank you for the reply. They are both east of 274 on 4th St N. I don't mind noise. I'm more worried about crime. Car theft, break-ins, etc.

I didn't think about looking at weekly rentals. That's a good idea.

[WildParrot]

Originally Posted by Baddestm0nkey

I was wondering if anyone had insight on the 4th St N Area in St Pete? I am currently looking at 1 bedrooms and at Tamarin Bay and Mandalay on the 4th specifically.

I used to live in an apartment complex on Gandy Blvd (near Derby Lane) which is close to there, but it's been quite a while.
I don't know much about those particular complexes, but it is a good area to live if you're new in town, the Howard Frankland & Gandy bridges to Tampa are very convenient. You also have good access to St Pete and central + southern Pinellas county. There are a couple of grocery stores close to there (less than 5 minutes.) It's mostly a residential area with a couple shopping centers around there but there is most of Tampa Bay within 20 minutes of there.

[Baddestm0nkey]

Originally Posted by WildParrot

I used to live in an apartment complex on Gandy Blvd (near Derby Lane) which is close to there, but it's been quite a while.
I don't know much about those particular complexes, but it is a good area to live if you're new in town, the Howard Frankland & Gandy bridges to Tampa are very convenient. You also have good access to St Pete and central + southern Pinellas county. There are a couple of grocery stores close to there (less than 5 minutes.) It's mostly a residential area with a couple shopping centers around there but there is most of Tampa Bay within 20 minutes of there.

That's what I was thinking. The commute to Tampa and St Pete seems very do-able. I just want to make sure about the area since I can't visit to check the places out. There isn't a shortage of apartments there either which is great. It looks like the perfect area for newcomers. Thank you for the input!

[paradiselost]

The commute to Tampa to St Pete is terrible and vise versa, If there is a hockey game, concert or an accident, you can be stuck on those bridges for 45 minutes to 2 hours! Worked in St pete Carillon and lived in Brandon it was a complete disaster!

[WildParrot]

Originally Posted by paradiselost

The commute to Tampa to St Pete is terrible and vise versa, If there is a hockey game, concert or an accident, you can be stuck on those bridges for 45 minutes to 2 hours! Worked in St pete Carillon and lived in Brandon it was a complete disaster!

I knew a couple people who made that commute for work - they came in to work early to beat the traffic. There is also the Selmon, which is a toll road but traffic moves better.

[sunigal99]

I like the 4thN St corridor of St Pete. Whenever I come to St Pete from N. Pinellas for a ballgame or event, I take 4th instead of 275. Everything you need in your life is on that street. Great restaurants, shopping, Trader Joes, bakeries, pet store, ice cream, health food. I've never felt afraid driving it at night and many times have spontaneously stopped to get gas, groceries or something to eat without safety worries.

I would go along with the suggestion to get an Airbnb for a week to see which apts seem better to you in person.

[themosthigh]

I just moved to St Pete from Downtown Tampa and live north of Gandy, Everything you could need can be found on 4th Street. Been here a few months now. It's ok. Quiet and havent had any issues. 4th Street traffic blows between 5 and 7pm though.

[craig10x]

@themosthigh: I was just curious...after living in downtown tampa and being familiar with the surrounding areas (ex: channelside, ybor and the other close in areas) do you find St. Pete to be a more interesting area to live with more things to do?