Possibly relocating to Des Moines (Beaver: apartment, rentals, house)

[NJDevils]

I have been going through the interview process for a relocation opportunity and am at the final round and wanted to do some research regarding housing. I am in my mid-30s and single and was looking for neighborhoods to live in that are both safe, but also cater to the younger crowd - with an abundance of nightlife - bars, restaurants, concerts, things in walking distance.

In particular, I wanted to see if there is a company that is local that does apartment/housing finding services besides the national websites? Where I live currently, we have a company where you share specifically what you are looking for in terms of number of bedrooms, square footage, pets, budget, amenities etc, and then they give you a list of 5-10 places to check out that matches your criteria. When you end up signing, you put them down as a referral and they get paid through the apartment.

So two questions:

1) Neighborhoods that are safe and also for the young crowd with a night life
2) Any housing service finder locally in Des Moines that helps with finding a place to live.

Thanks!

NJDevils

[Rico Portugal]

You'll either want to live downtown, near Ingersoll Avenue west of downtown, or in Sherman Hill. Those are by far your best options for walkable neighborhoods for young people.

[capitalcityguy]

^ Would agree with the above that those would be first areas that would come to mind for your requirements. Sorry, I don't have any information on local companies that help with rental locating.

[BetterCallPaul]

I would concur with those all being good neighborhoods for walkability in the downtown area. Beaverdale and Valley Junction aren't really downtown, but both have lots of shops and things to do on a fairly regular basis, and might be worth considering as well.

[capitalcityguy]

On tonight's (Thursday, Sept 15) episode of House Hunters on HGTV, they are featuring a family that is looking for a house in the same general area as is being recommended to the OP.

The “House Hunters” episode features homes in three Des Moines areas, Hopkins said: South of Grand, Ingersoll Avenue and Grand Avenue.The episode was shot in January.

While they are looking for a single family home in the $300+K range, (as opposed to rentals), I'm guessing the show will highlight why the family is so particular about living in a neighborhoods just west of downtown and thus will probably give you a good idea of all the amenities offered nearby.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/sto...week/90308214/

[soldbyshonna]

I would agree with the above, my favorites are Downtown and Beaverdale.

I don't know of any companies that do apartment finding. do you know if you are coming or not?