Best options for Baltimore job? (Towson, Middle River: 2014, apartments, rentals)

[nalghanim]

Hello everyone. I recently got a job offer in the Baltimore area (Middle River to be exact) and will be relocating there from Philadelphia before April.

I have some questions as to where to even begin to look given my specific situation

-I am a single 23 year old woman and I understand baltimore is pretty crime riddled.
-I want to basically live in an area with a lot of young professionals such as myself and deal with the least -amount of poverty/crime as possible.
-At most I would like to be 25-30 minutes away from my work in Middle River. I would like to spend at most $1200 a month on rent and utilities.

What are some good places to start looking? How is Towson?

[MrRational]

That call it Lauraville.
Lauraville, Baltimore - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://goo.gl/maps/y7YPI

[rudy_d]

Towson wouldn't be a great commute -- the northeast side of the Beltway can be a mess at rush hour.

If you like a suburban lifestyle and a lot of chain restaurants, White Marsh is a nearby option to Middle River. You would have a pretty easy commute from Canton or Highlandtown if you want a more happening neighborhood in the city. There are plenty of young professionals in southeast Baltimore. Lauraville is nice, but I'm not sure that a 23 year old would find it that interesting.

[pwduvall]

As much as I begrudge recommending Canton to anybody, it will meet all of your needs. There is really nowhere outside of Southeast to recommend given your specific desires. Rentals there are relatively expensive, so you may have to compromise a little bit on the apartment. Sometimes I think that Catonites don't realize there is a lot more to Baltimore City outside of Southeast. Once you get settled, you should explore the rest of the city.

By the way, even though Baltimore has unusually high crime rate, the difference from Philadelphia is a matter of degree and not night and day. I meet young transfers from Philly on a pretty regular basis. They all tell me the cities aren't as different as they thought they would be. They also tell me that Baltimore is a little more expensive than they thought it would be.

[sobo16]

Canton is definitely the way to go for someone your age looking to be around other young professionals. You can easily find a house share/roommate situation that fits your budget, and your commute won't be bad at all because it's a reverse commute.

[nalghanim]

Originally Posted by pwduvall

As much as I begrudge recommending Canton to anybody, it will meet all of your needs. There is really nowhere outside of Southeast to recommend given your specific desires. Rentals there are relatively expensive, so you may have to compromise a little bit on the apartment. Sometimes I think that Catonites don't realize there is a lot more to Baltimore City outside of Southeast. Once you get settled, you should explore the rest of the city.

By the way, even though Baltimore has unusually high crime rate, the difference from Philadelphia is a matter of degree and not night and day. I meet young transfers from Philly on a pretty regular basis. They all tell me the cities aren't as different as they thought they would be. They also tell me that Baltimore is a little more expensive than they thought it would be.

Thank you. I will check out Canton.

Can you explain a little bit more about the safety situation? I've lived in Philly for the past 6 years, 4 of them in University city as a college student and 2 in center city, I've never really experienced much crime in these areas. Sometimes taking public transportation late at night was a little uncomfortable but other than that I felt safe most of the time, but these areas are obviously not indicative of Philly as a whole. Baltimore has a much smaller physical footprint than philly which is something I am nervous about. In Philly it is very easy to simply avoid the more dilapidated areas, but it seems like the "safe" portions of Bmore are smaller and there isn't as much of a "buffer" so to speak between the nicer/more affluent areas and the crime infested ghettos, right?

And yeah, why is Bmore so expensive? Currently in Philly I'm paying $1800/mo for my own 1 BR in Center City..I figured I can get a similar set up in Baltimore for $1200. Quite the opposite- seems like comparable apartments are 200-300 more per month.

[SirGreenDown]

Originally Posted by pwduvall

As much as I begrudge recommending Canton to anybody, it will meet all of your needs. There is really nowhere outside of Southeast to recommend given your specific desires. Rentals there are relatively expensive, so you may have to compromise a little bit on the apartment. Sometimes I think that Catonites don't realize there is a lot more to Baltimore City outside of Southeast. Once you get settled, you should explore the rest of the city.

By the way, even though Baltimore has unusually high crime rate, the difference from Philadelphia is a matter of degree and not night and day. I meet young transfers from Philly on a pretty regular basis. They all tell me the cities aren't as different as they thought they would be. They also tell me that Baltimore is a little more expensive than they thought it would be.

Baltimore - 80.9 sq miles
Population - 620,000
2014 murders - 217
Murder rate - 34.94

Philadelphia - 134.1 sq miles
Population - 1.55 million
2014 murders - 248
Murder rate - 15.96

*The fact that Baltimore has almost an identical number of homicides as Philly, a city twice as large area wise, with over 1 million more people living in it, might indicate that they are in fact night and day.*

As noted by the OP Baltimore is a much smaller city, so the chances of being affected by crime are much higher (as indicated by the crime rate above). It's also my understanding that murders happen pretty much anywhere in the city (Baltimore), where in Philly most of the nonsense takes place in North Philly (upper North Philly at that).

But in terms of the actual question of the thread, I'd say somewhere out of the city limits, but in the county obviously. I see someone mentioned Towson, what about that area near Arundel mills mall?

[james777]

Originally Posted by nalghanim

Thank you. I will check out Canton.

Can you explain a little bit more about the safety situation? I've lived in Philly for the past 6 years, 4 of them in University city as a college student and 2 in center city, I've never really experienced much crime in these areas. Sometimes taking public transportation late at night was a little uncomfortable but other than that I felt safe most of the time, but these areas are obviously not indicative of Philly as a whole. Baltimore has a much smaller physical footprint than philly which is something I am nervous about. In Philly it is very easy to simply avoid the more dilapidated areas, but it seems like the "safe" portions of Bmore are smaller and there isn't as much of a "buffer" so to speak between the nicer/more affluent areas and the crime infested ghettos, right?

And yeah, why is Bmore so expensive? Currently in Philly I'm paying $1800/mo for my own 1 BR in Center City..I figured I can get a similar set up in Baltimore for $1200. Quite the opposite- seems like comparable apartments are 200-300 more per month.

Right. You don't need any more explanation about the safety situation in Baltimore because you explained it exactly as it is, in the middle paragraph above.

I have found that Center City and University City are indicative of Philly as a whole. Policing is a lot better in Philadelphia, and the police are much more visible there.

Of the five east coast cities, Baltimore and Philly have always been the two with the lower cost of living, and for many, many years they have always been neck and neck in both home prices and rents. I don't know why you would be expecting to pay one third less in Baltimore. Baltimore is commuting distance to DC, which kind of puts a floor to housing prices here.

If you have been living alone in Philly and want to stay without a roommate, as your post sounds that way, I suggest you check out some areas of Baltimore away from the waterfront which give better value for your housing dollar. In addition to Lauraville, which was recommended twice above, look at Belvedere Square, and the York Road corridor between there and Towson. You also might want to look at Charles Village and Hampden, for an environment similar to University City. As others have said, White Marsh is a good option close to Middle River, if you don't mind living in suburbia.

[mattybz]

Over the last 10 years I have lived in both cities and frequented all of the various neighborhoods a young professional would enjoy. Philly is definitely more "insulated" in terms of its nice neighborhoods seem to flow in a continuum of sorts. Baltimore's nice yuppie neighborhoods (Canton, Fed, Fells) don't have quite the same continuum, but they are big and stable enough to feel comfortable living your everyday life without becoming a victim. Said neighborhoods are also continuing to grow and extend further.