Moving Here? Need Advice? Help Us Help You. (Birmingham, Tuscaloosa: rent, condos)

[innocentbystander]

Hi!

Thanks for the welcoming message to this site.

I'm a college student who is getting a degree through online classes. I just moved to the Birmingham area this month to stay with a friend who offered to feed me and give me a place to stay until I could find work and an apartment. I found a full time job in Mountain Brook, but I'm still working on the apartment. Unfortunately, my friend has only been living in the area for a few years and doesn't know the area well enough to advise me on a good place to live. Need advice on affordable (near 600/mo.), safe apartment neighborhoods, preferably within 20 minutes of the Mountain Brook Country Club- the safe part is my biggest concern since I'm a girl and I would be living alone. I've been looking into several apartment rentals in Vestavia Hills and in Cahaba Heights. Any tips on where the best apartment communities are for me to live at or near those areas? Or maybe there's a better area that I'm overlooking?

**edit**

oops, I forgot.

In my free time, I like hanging out at Starbucks or the library both alone and with friends, or going for walks around the neighborhood. So it would be nice to have neighbors that knew me (both for safety and for community/making friends), and a nearby shopping area with a coffee shop or a panera/barnes&noble/other nice place to do homework.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by innocentbystander

Hi!

Thanks for the welcoming message to this site.

I'm a college student who is getting a degree through online classes. I just moved to the Birmingham area this month to stay with a friend who offered to feed me and give me a place to stay until I could find work and an apartment. I found a full time job in Mountain Brook, but I'm still working on the apartment. Unfortunately, my friend has only been living in the area for a few years and doesn't know the area well enough to advise me on a good place to live. Need advice on affordable (near 600/mo.), safe apartment neighborhoods, preferably within 20 minutes of the Mountain Brook Country Club- the safe part is my biggest concern since I'm a girl and I would be living alone. I've been looking into several apartment rentals in Vestavia Hills and in Cahaba Heights. Any tips on where the best apartment communities are for me to live at or near those areas? Or maybe there's a better area that I'm overlooking?

**edit**

oops, I forgot.

In my free time, I like hanging out at Starbucks or the library both alone and with friends, or going for walks around the neighborhood. So it would be nice to have neighbors that knew me (both for safety and for community/making friends), and a nearby shopping area with a coffee shop or a panera/barnes&noble/other nice place to do homework.

Hiya. If I'm young and staring out, my inclination would be to be on Southside, particularly in the Highland Park area. Lots of parks, good for walking, plenty of nightclubs, etc. etc. It's an eminently livable part of town with plenty of people your age of all descriptions. You're five minutes from your job and it's pretty safe, as long as you exercise the usual caution that you would in an urban setting.

Vestavia and Cahaba Heights are both nice areas, don't get me wrong. But I think you'd be a bit removed from where most of the fun is for people your age.

[innocentbystander]

Thanks so much!

[Brebri]

hi my name is bria and i need someone to tell me everything about life in Alabama before i move there. My family and i are moving with my dad and he is from there and a little bit older so he loves it from an older persons stand point. But i need to know what is there to do for younger adults,especially since im coming from a city that real fast,always on the go and has a tough exterior
so 1. Im looking to work in any type of field. Im a hairstylist here but i want to do something in the medical or retail field. and i want a 20 min or less commute.
2. My dad already has our house in ensley ready and set for us,
3. I dont have kids but i have a brother and a sister who r 14 and 16 and i want to find a trade school for dental assisting.
4. What i do in my spare time is play laser tag,go to the river front,go dancing,movies,carnivals,to the mall,go cart racing and so on
5. I have no medical needs but my mom has severe rheumatoid arthritis.
6.And i don't care about the neighborhood
My family are Jehovah witnesses and we say yes and no maam regardless. And i just need my beloved forever 21 and a beauty supply store and ill be cool

[messedesign]

I’m glad that after surfing the web for much a long time I have found out this information. I’m really lucky.

[messedesign]

I’m glad that after surfing the web for much a long time I have found out this information. I’m really lucky.

[tashaxox]

My husband has gotten a job in the mines somewhere near Alabaster, he's already been down there for a week. I'm still back home in eastern kentucky and scared pretty much crapless about moving. I'm suppose to be going down next saturday to try and find a place to rent. I can't seem to find anything around Alabaster, most everything I've found online is in Hoover. I need someone to ease my mind and tell me that it's not going to be a total culture shock and that I'm going to survive and my kid is going to be safe. lol How is hoover? I'm so scared.

[clm0001]

Hey there. I'm a male, recent college grad, single, early 20s starting a job in Birmingham in early October. I'm from north Alabama and grew up going to Bham for day trips and football games so the overall culture of Bham isn't foreign to me. However, there's still a lot about Bham that I don't know. Right now I'm considering the Hoover area, mostly the apartments right off of Riverchase Parkway near Valleydale.

1) I'll be working at Brookwood Med. Center and as long as my commute isn't more than 15-20mins I'm fine.
2) $600-$700/month for a 1bed/1bath would be optimal
3) No kids
4) Really like hanging out and watching sports both live and on TV, also played some intramural sports in college so any young adult sport leagues would be cool. Like meeting people and went to a pretty diverse church in college so that's something I'd like to keep up as well.
5) No special medical needs.
6) Would prefer a friendly neighborhood with mostly young adults, but it's not a deal-breaker

Any feedback ya'll have will be more than helpful. Thanks.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by clm0001

Hey there. I'm a male, recent college grad, single, early 20s starting a job in Birmingham in early October. I'm from north Alabama and grew up going to Bham for day trips and football games so the overall culture of Bham isn't foreign to me. However, there's still a lot about Bham that I don't know. Right now I'm considering the Hoover area, mostly the apartments right off of Riverchase Parkway near Valleydale.

1) I'll be working at Brookwood Med. Center and as long as my commute isn't more than 15-20mins I'm fine.
2) $600-$700/month for a 1bed/1bath would be optimal
3) No kids
4) Really like hanging out and watching sports both live and on TV, also played some intramural sports in college so any young adult sport leagues would be cool. Like meeting people and went to a pretty diverse church in college so that's something I'd like to keep up as well.
5) No special medical needs.
6) Would prefer a friendly neighborhood with mostly young adults, but it's not a deal-breaker

Any feedback ya'll have will be more than helpful. Thanks.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but I think Homewood and Southside works best for someone your age. By Homewood, I DON'T mean Valley Avenue.

[birminghamster]

Originally Posted by tashaxox

My husband has gotten a job in the mines somewhere near Alabaster, he's already been down there for a week. I'm still back home in eastern kentucky and scared pretty much crapless about moving. I'm suppose to be going down next saturday to try and find a place to rent. I can't seem to find anything around Alabaster, most everything I've found online is in Hoover. I need someone to ease my mind and tell me that it's not going to be a total culture shock and that I'm going to survive and my kid is going to be safe. lol How is hoover? I'm so scared.

Hoover is a great place, but it is really a conglomeration of small communities. As far as rentals/apartments, the safest area would probably be Barrington on the Green or Waterford apartments on Old Montgomery Highway (a back route along US 31), or Lake Heather Reserve apartments in the Inverness area. The first would be much more convenient to Alabaster.
As far as the culture, from what I understand it isn't that much different from Eastern Kentucky. And Hoover has a very low crime rate and an excellent school system, along with all of the surrounding areas.