Safe areas in Tucson Metro (apartment complex, rentals, crime)

[karrahs]

Hi, I will be moving to the area in a few months. I will be swimming at UA's swimming pool with the club team, Tucson Ford Aquatics, so I want to be within a 15 min drive. I want to be close to the grocery stores in case I need to walk or take the bus. Can you mention areas that are not too expensive? I am 38yrs old, single, female, non partier. I will probably rent a room to start off and then rent a townhouse or house. What are the rental ranges for a room to rent? (I know this can vary)

[robabeatle]

No offense, but you are starting several threads asking very similar questions, many of which have been asked many times before...

That said:

You could find a place just east of the U in the Sam Hughes district. Maybe a guest house or share a house if you dont mind. Craigslist has a lot listed but there are just as many rentals in Tucson that you will only find by driving through the neighborhoods. For instance, my last place there was ~650 sq ft., very large lot, very quiet, duplex (my neighbor was older and never made a peep of a sound) in mid town. I paid $450 for rent, not including electric, internet, gas. I dont think that I can find that kind of a deal on CL. Anyway, you can walk to grocery stores fro Sam Hughes, depending on exactly where you live. I would suggest a bike though. It will make you much more mobile and you can get to anything you need with a bike.

[karrahs]

Thanks for the input. So you rented your own place for $450/mo? If so, thats a steal. Did they do a credit check? Im in the process of repairing mine which is why I am thinking of renting just a room.

Karrah

[robabeatle]

No credit check. If you have reasonable circumstances, talk to the landlord and be honest. Maybe offer two months up front?

I personally would not rent in an apartment complex, though you would likely get better (newer) appliances, nicer interior, etc. for the same price. But, you have neighbors all around (noisy). The benefits of the complex don't matter too much to me. YMMV

Seriously, your best bet is to get to town and drive around.

[karrahs]

Will do once I get to town. Thanks again!!

[acatalanb]

Karrahs, in addition to what robabeatle suggested, might want to look at areas close to the UMC, the U of A Hospital (north of U of A). I wouldn't live in the south of U of A. West of U of A , might want to avoid that also .

Here's a thread that I responded, Traffic, West Tucson, and other questions . There's 2 small apts that you might like (with links). And yes, the "nicer" apts in Tucson do check your credit record. My credit history swings wildly, so I had experience Good Luck.

[coatimundi]

You can rent a room relatively close to the university in a house or townhouse for under $500 including utilities. I would worry more about the roommate than the house, but you should generally stay east and north of the university. There is an area on the northwest corner of Euclid and Speedway where my wife lived for a period with a roommate. Very cute house, nice neighborhood, and I think she paid about $500. Wrong side of campus, obviously, but good luck with finding something close to the aquatic center that isn't student-y or very expensive. I rented on the east side of Sam Hughes (a block from Country Club) and paid about $500. I could walk to Rincon Market from there, which was nice.
That said, being walking distance to a supermarket and still in a good area is extremely rare in Tucson. My own personal experience has been at the place I mentioned and when I lived on Campbell across from the Albertson's. You can look at the latter area, but it's not as safe as other areas. A lot of low-end rentals and some street crime (female friend of mine in the same complex got mugged in the middle of the afternoon and there were a number of car break-ins). The big benefit there is that you qualify for a UA CatTran shuttle pass, which runs down Mountain Avenue to campus. There are buses as well into UA if you don't want to drive. I would ride the bus or bike, if I were you. Parking can be a bit much at UA.
Hope that helps.