Questions from a soon to be newbie! (Austin, Hudson: apartment complex, rental)

[tick-tack]

I have a job and will be moving from Philadelphia to Austin July 10th.

1. I have a small 125cc scooter here, which I love. Are there many scooters scooting around Austin? Is parking an issue downtown? Would it be practical to have one in the SOCO or Arboretum areas?

2. I will be working on SW Parkway. Any recommendations for apartments or areas? I would like to limit my commute to 30 min one way. I like to be able to walk to coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc.

3. I would like a 2 bed / 2 bath apart for around $1000 ish a month. I want a garage or covered parking. It must be cat friendly. I would like a balcony/porch. I don't care if it is new or old as long as they are well maintained.

4. Any good thoughts on where a 33 yr old female can meet fun people?

Hook Em Horns.......Can't wait to be there!

[atxcio]

Hmm, not even a newbie yet? But a "pre-newbie?"

I see a lot of scooters around the SoCo area. Probably anywhere in 78704 or downtown will be fine for scooters. The Arboretum is more car-centric, but a little more scenic in the parts close to hwy 360.

For your job on SW parkway, SoCo is an easy commute. Might also look into Barton Hills and Rollingwood. SoCo will probably be the most happening place.

$1000 can get you a 2 bedroom in pretty much any neighborhood here. Maybe not get you the nicest 2BR, depending on the neighborhood you might have to settle for something on the older and smaller end. Balcony and cat friendly should not be a problem.

If you like exercise/outdoors, joining one of the various running, biking, hiking, paddling, etc clubs is a good way to meet people. You can go to the Ladybird Lake trail, or go to the festivals. There are obviously the live music clubs and bars to meet people to. And meetup.com has all sorts of things. All of this will be close by if you live in one of the neighborhoods above.

Also, it's Hook 'em Horns. Pre-newbie mistake, I understand.

[buckyjonespecos]

hey, i'm 38 here in the a-town, female too, what do you consider fun? oh, i've lived here all my life.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by tick-tack

I have a job and will be moving from Philadelphia to Austin July 10th.

1. I have a small 125cc scooter here, which I love. Are there many scooters scooting around Austin? Is parking an issue downtown? Would it be practical to have one in the SOCO or Arboretum areas?

2. I will be working on SW Parkway. Any recommendations for apartments or areas? I would like to limit my commute to 30 min one way. I like to be able to walk to coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc.

3. I would like a 2 bed / 2 bath apart for around $1000 ish a month. I want a garage or covered parking. It must be cat friendly. I would like a balcony/porch. I don't care if it is new or old as long as they are well maintained.

4. Any good thoughts on where a 33 yr old female can meet fun people?

Hook Um Horns.......Can't wait to be there!

Hello tick-tack, and welcome to Austin.

I am sorry it will be so hot when you arrive here, but the cooler fall/mild winter/spring seasons will make up for it, I promise you. You will probably need to buy some more shorts when you get here.

I live not far from the SW parkway area you mentioned. Scooters are becoming more common and are definitely a viable option for commuting around the residential areas out here. I see more of them every day. They are probably not a great alternative to commuting into downtown Austin from OakHill, as traffic is pretty bad, unless you stick mostly to residential streets. There are however two express bus service from the area into downtown, if they work for you. I believe the bus services allow you to take a bicycle aboard with you and maybe a small HP electric or other vehicle if that is helpful. I would need to verify the limits on that.

http://www.capmetro.org/riding/current_schedules/MAPS/park&ridelocations.pdf (broken link)
http://www.capmetro.org/riding/current_schedules/maps/rt171_sb.pdf (broken link)
http://www.capmetro.org/riding/current_schedules/maps/rt970_sb.pdf (broken link)

Most Austinites would agree, that unless you plan your work and home locations carefully, mass transit is sorely lacking in Austin. But, it is still possible to do!

Capital Metro Transit - Austin, Texas

A small scooter would be very practical to have for shorter trips anywhere, but far less practical for long distance commuting.

2. I will be working on SW Parkway. Any recommendations for apartments or areas? I would like to limit my commute to 30 min one way. I like to be able to walk to coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc.

It makes a huge differences if you want to
walk to work and drive for short distances for recreation, versus
commute short distance to work and drive short distances for recreation.

Your best choice is to live close to where you work, as you make that commute EVERY day. Along those lines... apartment complexes close to SW Parkway that I'd recommend are:

Preserve At Travis Creek‎
4 star 145 reviews
5604 Southwest Parkway
Austin, TX 78735-6222
(512) 899-2322thepreserveattraviscreek.com‎

Hudson Miramont‎
3.5 stars, 35 reviews
8818 Travis Hills Drive
Austin, TX 78735-1766
(512) 301-5200 hudson-miramont.com‎

AMLI at Lantana Ridge‎
3 star - 37 reviews
6636 W William Cannon Dr
Austin, TX 78735-8529
(512) 891-5500

Southwest Trails‎
7 reviews
8405 Old Bee Caves Road
Austin, TX 78735-8112
(512) 301-2442 Google Maps

Austin Trails Apartments‎
4 star, 32 reviews
5417 South Mo-Pac Expressway
Austin, TX 78749-1103
(512) 891-9499austintrailapt.com‎

Camden Stoneleigh‎ In the middle of a safe residential area.
3 star, 53 reviews
4825 Davis Lane
Austin, TX 78749-4540
(512) 292-8423camdenliving.com‎

River Stone Ranch‎
58 reviews
5701 South Mo-Pac Expressway
Austin, TX 78749-1464
(512) 899-1600equityapartments.com‎

Park At Monterey Oaks‎
3.5 Stars 54 reviews
4701 Monterey Oaks Boulevard
Austin, TX 78749-1073
(512) 899-9300lincolnaps.com‎

I will try to find more information.

There is a new apartment complex going in at WolfCreek Pass and Hwy 290, right across the Hwy from several shopping centers, grocery stores, with some dining, bars, etc. There is excellent scooter access from there, down Escarpment Blvd. to more restarants at Escarpment and Slaugther Lane. Or East along William Cannon Blvd. I will try to find out the completion date for that one and what it is called.

If you like the outdoors this area will give you excellent access to Lake Travis, the TX hill country and more.

I have own two properties in the area, my home and a rental. The 3-Bdrm 2-B rental rents easily for $1200.
It should not be hard to find what you are looking for.

Last time I checked 30+ Single's are the largest demographics group in Austin, it should not be hard to make friends here.

Best wishes, R

[eichlerfan]

We live at the Preserve at Travis Creek on Southwest Pkwy and we really like it. It's an easy drive and pretty quick to downtown. It's a nice complex with lots of younger people here.

[tick-tack]

Thank you for the all the feedback.

Hmmm...in terms of fun. Philly has some intramural type sports leagues ranging from basketball to bowling. I was also involved in a outdoor sports type organization: hiking, volunteering, sky diving, etc.

CptnRn - Thank you for the apartment recommendations! I had a couple of them on the list but there were some that you mentioned that I had not come across.

Eichlerfan - Is there anything you can walk to in terms of cafes, stores, bars, etc? I looked at it online it seems like there isn't much around it.

Thanks again for all the input. I HATE packing and I am so ready to be there already.....