A few questions about Detroit... (Royal Oak, Madison Heights: cheaper, good)

[and the]

If you can avoid it, I wouldn't even think about using the the SMART bus for reliable transportation to work....especially in the WINTER. You said you wanted something between Detroit and Troy, but Hamtramck is right in the middle of Detroit. I'll probably be going to the Port Bar in Hamramck next week. Hamtramck is a great party town. If you're going to rent, you may as well try it for a while. You can always move without too much hassle. There are a lot of older houses in good shape there if you can find one that hasn't been a rental house for 20 years.

Check out Srodek's market, Under the Eagle for the fish and also cabbage soup and Polonia restaurant too. And don't forget "The Polish Muslims".

If not Hamtramck, you may be able to get someting affordable in Ferndale.

Also check out Detroit's, I don't know if you'd call it an "alternative" newspaper, Metro Times Detroit

Lots of cool places in Hamtramck. Check here:
Metro Times Detroit - Nightspots
I used to go to Paycheck's quite a bit to see local bands.

[musicale]

I would also avoid using the bus system at all costs, unless you want to leave in the morning 2 1/2 hours earlier than you need to be at work (and that's if the buses aren't late, or arrive at all). They're especially bad in the winter, you're better off braving the icy roads. Ferndale is pretty reasonable, also consider the Berkley area. As others have stated, Royal Oak is pretty pricey, but Warren has some cheap areas if you're willing to go out that far. Livonia and Farmington areas are way out west, but worth checking out as well.

[Jake1256]

corktown and downtown are nice loft areas. alot going on, get a place there.

[strammy]

To add a little to what's been discussed here already

Howard St in the D: I work for MDOT and we have an office down there that I'm down at regularly. Area is pretty safe generally, but you do need to be a little careful with the usual big city crime deterrent stuff (not flashing cash, no excessive bling, etc.) You're also within a half mile of Mexicantown and their culinary flair

Macomb County: Grew up in Warren (where are you from, BurtsBees?). Nice areas for the most part, but a little grungy in Warren between 8 Mile and 10 Mile. Center Line is good, but very few apartments.

Hamtramck/Ferndale: Concur with what's been said already.

Royal Oak is a definite option for you. Lots of apartments, nice safe city, pretty walkable, services all over the place. This also covers the smaller communities in the area (Pleasant Ridge, Berkley, Clawson, Madison Heights, Hazel Park), but most of these are predominantly houses. Madison Heights has a lot of apartments along I-75, but they've always been a bit dodgy.

I would recommend against Southfield. Traffic is bad, and there's not much to do in town. It does have a good selection of apartments, but the town clears out after 5 PM for the most part. With Royal Oak, you have a lot of dining and nightlife options.

Birmingham and Troy are nice, but a little outside the budget you provided. Your drive would be fairly hairy too.

I-75: Normally backed up going downtown in the morning and outbound in the afternoon. Woodward downtown normally works pretty well to avoid backups. The surface streets normally work better to get downtown in rush hours in general anyway. You have a good bit of routes to choose from, but get a good map of Detroit. Our street system is a wee bit confusing at times

I also echo the SMART comments.

[Jake1256]

the bus probably wouldn't be the best option going down. but Downtown is a great spot to do stuff, like go to a theatre at the fox or any other of the thetares in the theatre district, the lofts and condos are affordable, alot of nice resturaunts and party places. the greektown casino is underway on their thirty story tower so mor casino stuff is coming. alot of nice hotels are coming in, there are two coming in 2008 right now, Westin Book-Cadillac, and the double tree Pick-Fort shelby hotel. there are also alot of other nice hotels in the downtown area.

[jonsande]

I agree with most of what's been said here. DEFINITELY don't rely on a bus...lol. Next to useless. If you're going to be working out of Detroit and regularly going to Troy, I would look into Ferndale in particular, just to echo some of the others here. That will put you almost in the middle of the two (depending on where in Detroit you have to go, and where in Troy you'll be).

Rent is going up from what I understand, but it's still reasonable. House rentals are very affordable also, but generally only if you're renting in collaboration with friends. Otherwise, a better bet would be an apartment, which there's certainly no shortage of there.

Royal Oak I would put in a close second place, just because IMHO, it's over priced. But, it's definitely a cool place to live; there's plenty to do, just like in Ferndale. I spend just about every weekend in one or the other, even though I live in Southfield.

Generally both of those places are considered the 'coolest' places in the Detroit Suburbs, by insiders and outsiders alike. Birmingham is great also, but like someone already said, Bham is very pricey and has the rich, but young feel to it. Bham reminds me of the LA-Beverly Hills border out in that region, if you're familiar with it.

[HeleenieWeenie]

Originally Posted by K12144

I've been offered a job in Detroit rather suddenly but have a lot of questions!

Detroit is not exactly the first place in the area I'd pick to have a job in, but beggars can't be choosers.

I'm looking to live somewhere about halfway between Detroit and Troy (where my boyfriend works). Maybe Southfield, Royal Oak, Hamtramck (or if somehow I'm missing some little suburb in between with not too far of a commute to either place, let me know! I don't have a hard-copy Detroit map on me, unable to get one before I'd have to make a decision about the job, and anything I find online doesn't seem to be too inclusive).

Hamtramck is looking attractive simply because it seems relatively cheap for living (neither of us is exactly rich). But it also seems to be an itsy bitsy little town where there isn't much of anything (which is sort of the environment I'm trying to get away from!)?

Any recommendations? No concerns about "family friendly" as I'm staunchly childfree; while I appreciate culture and diversity (where I live right now, "diversity" means the "international" aisle at Meijer's), cost is the main issue right now and living somewhere I absolutely love can come later along with a bit more financial stability, and there's always the drive into another area. As long as it's relatively safe (don't need family and friends convinced I'm going to die every day) and not too expensive, I'm all about it. Race, religion, age, and such of the area are not a concern to me as long as it is safe.

One of my big concerns about the area is the commute, since I know nothing about the area; is the traffic awful on I-75? I know it was a bit congested as I was on my way to my interview but it wasn't too bad; however, that wasn't at rush hour. Am I going to be stuck in standstill traffic jams every morning and night or anything? Leaving an hour early to get to work on what should be a 15-minute drive (which sounds like it'd be the case from what I've read here)? I'd go crazy if that were the case. And, I trust my driving, I just don't trust anyone else's, especially if they're all running late in the morning and speeding and in the winter when the roads are horrid!

Also am wondering about the safety of the area I'd be working in--zip is 48226, address is Howard St., I believe (not knowing the area or having a map, all this talk of "stay away from the corner of St. X and St. Y" and "don't go north of St. Z" isn't too helpful to me).

Ferndale is the most fun, fashionable, funky, bohemian mix of people cultures, religions. Small town attraction; right near Woodward Ave. home of the "Dream Cruise" classic cars; lots of shopping withiin walking distance. I just moved here after 30 yrs. of endurance in the east side of detroit. Horrific conditions there; Never had a crime committed on our home/property; but the filth, lack of city services is disgustingly enough to make property owners RUN OUTTA THAT CITY of URBAN DECAY.
48220 is a fabulous zip code; full of cute little cottage-started homes. OR wonderfully clean, well priced apts./condos. Near the Nine Mile Rd. area. GoOD LUCK.

[HeleenieWeenie]

Originally Posted by and the

If you can avoid it, I wouldn't even think about using the the SMART bus for reliable transportation to work....especially in the WINTER. You said you wanted something between Detroit and Troy, but Hamtramck is right in the middle of Detroit. I'll probably be going to the Port Bar in Hamramck next week. Hamtramck is a great party town. If you're going to rent, you may as well try it for a while. You can always move without too much hassle. There are a lot of older houses in good shape there if you can find one that hasn't been a rental house for 20 years.

Check out Srodek's market, Under the Eagle for the fish and also cabbage soup and Polonia restaurant too. And don't forget "The Polish Muslims".

If not Hamtramck, you may be able to get someting affordable in Ferndale.

Also check out Detroit's, I don't know if you'd call it an "alternative" newspaper, Metro Times Detroit

Lots of cool places in Hamtramck. Check here:
Metro Times Detroit - Nightspots
I used to go to Paycheck's quite a bit to see local bands.

Hamtramck USED TO BE NICE. But I've watched it go downhill in the past 15 yrs. It's nothing but a Little Beirut now. Baghdad city with drunks begging for spare change outside the once lovely Polish Butcher shops; decay, bumpy streets of Conant & Jos. Campau are ridiculous. the only new thing in that area, THE JAIL with a nice wide smooth street (Hamtramck Drive, including the speed trap cop car) that is widely known by the locals. THEY GET THEIR City revenue that way; hiding around the bend by the GTRailroad Yard, not a nice place to live...but a good place to visit.

[and the]

Yep, it's definately on its way down. I wouldn't want to live there if I had kids. Kidless wouldn't be a problem though. Especially if I was renting.

[Jake1256]

hamtramck, I don't think it's that bad. you guys make it sound like it's this hellhole. okay, so some people get drunk and beg for money. it's not like there shoot outs 24-7 or poeple getting mugged and beaten. just some drunk people, and alot of bars. that's not that bad. you guys are too harsh on the city.