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I was talking to a friend about the kind of place I want to live in and she suggested maybe less than 10 cities in the U.S. actually fit my criteria. What do you think? The main gist is I want to live in a metro city center and have a lot of convenience on foot.
Criteria for my new city:
Don't need a car or a bike for anything. Everything can be done via walking and public transit. Cabs don't have to be everywhere like in New York, but they should be driving around to catch one. I don't bike and I don't want to own a car or need to rent one.
Not oppressively hot in the summers.
Not astronomical prices. I'd say $3000 for a one-bedroom, like in San Francisco, is a bit ridiculous. A one bedroom for $1500 or less would be ideal.
Safe. Every city has bad parts, but I as a young woman, I want to walk in the main parts in broad daylight and not worry too much.
Great local food and great local coffee and good bars too. I want to try new places all the time and I want it to be good, local, non-chain quality stuff. I want wherever I am in the city center for great food or coffee to be only a block or two away.
Cities I know meet my criteria are Chicago, New York and Portland, Oregon. NYC can be expensive, but if I lived outside of Manhattan, it'd probably be somewhat more affordable. I think Washington D.C. almost fits, but summer in D.C. is very hot and very humid and quite unpleasant to walk around in for me. Boston and San Francisco probably also fit, but seem rather expensive so I'm looking for more possibilities.
What other cities would you add to this list?
Last edited by muffincake; 12-05-2014 at 02:59 PM..
I've been looking for a similar spot -- though one with warm weather too and it's TOUGH -- most walkable cities are in the North or Northeast, especially those with good mass transit. You won't get a 1-BR in any of them for $1500; New York City, Chicago, DC, Boston, San Francisco, or Seattle (all very livable downtowns with good walking or mass-transit options and amenities - but expensive). LA is also pricey and walkability is questionable.
I lived in Seattle for 13 years and also Philly, and traveled to all the rest or have friends there, so my information isn't unreliable.
Philadelphia might be a possibility, as well as Portland.
If you don't mind cold weather, Buffalo, NY might fit your criteria; there are some good historic and affordable walkable neighborhoods with amenities, and a nice 1-BR can be had for about $750 (and most walkable 'hoods are quite safe). I've lived here for 7 years now, and though I am leaving in 2015 (I hate the weather) for the South, it does meet a lot of your criteria.
Chicago is actually pretty affordable. I lived there recently. It's definitely cheaper than NYC, Boston, SF and DC. I am looking for advice from people who have lived in or been to the cities they are recommending, please!
Buffalo NY is not a city you can survive in 100% without a car. You will absolutely need a car for certain things. Please no ridiculous responses like this. Haha. Thanks!
Chicago is actually pretty affordable. I lived there recently. It's definitely cheaper than NYC, Boston, SF and DC. I am looking for advice from people who have lived in or been to the cities they are recommending, please!
Buffalo NY is not a city you can survive in 100% without a car. You will absolutely need a car for certain things. Please no ridiculous responses like this. Haha. Thanks!
Chicago is actually pretty affordable. I lived there recently. It's definitely cheaper than NYC, Boston, SF and DC. I am looking for advice from people who have lived in or been to the cities they are recommending, please!
Buffalo NY is not a city you can survive in 100% without a car. You will absolutely need a car for certain things. Please no ridiculous responses like this. Haha. Thanks!
So you must already know what cities to look at since you know which ones are ridiculous without even looking at them.
Why not check out the links and lose the attitude. Haha. Thanks!
Chicago is actually pretty affordable. I lived there recently. It's definitely cheaper than NYC, Boston, SF and DC. I am looking for advice from people who have lived in or been to the cities they are recommending, please!
In terms of truly robustly walkable cities that you're searching for, you're really not going to find a super long list. There are many cities that are making strides to improve their walkability, but in terms of a very convenient, day-to-day walkable lifestyle, unfortunately there are slim pickings.
The "Big 6" transit cities of the US include Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, DC, Chicago and San Francisco, which also happen to be among the most walkable. Seattle is also highly walkable, but public transit would be a tier below these cities.
When you factor in affordability (every one of these cities would meet your other criteria just fine [with the already noted exception of DC summers]), Chicago and Philadelphia are definitely the most budget-friendly in the walkable/public transit-friendly class of cities.
Last edited by Duderino; 12-05-2014 at 10:35 PM..
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