Moving to Memphis (Bartlett, Germantown, Walnut Grove: apartment, rentals, condo)

[okcguy]

I'm a young professional from OKC going for a job interview in Memphis. If I get the job I will be working just south of the Bartlett area. I've read some of the reviews of Memphis and am unsure about which districts or suburbs of the city would best. I was hoping to get some feed back from the awesome community of this site. Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

[Pearlbob]

I take it to mean, where you want to live? Bartlett is a good city, if you are already going to be working there, it would make sense to live there. Are you buying, renting? Kids, spouse? House, condo? There are so many factors to take into consideration.

[okcguy]

It's just me and I will be renting. House would be preferable but apartment is fine too.

[Pearlbob]

Plenty of places to rent in Bartlett and the Cordova/Wolfchase area that would probably be close to your work. It's a safe area overall.

[okcguy]

Thanks Pearlbob, I appreciate the advice.

[charper1]

All things considered I would recommend looking just outside the Memphis city limits, including Cordova which is REALLY Memphis city. This is my 2nd stint in Memphis; having lived in DFW, STL, and PHX, so post if you want some additional details. So when you say "just South of Bartlett, are you talking the Raleigh, Trafalgar or Meadow Brook neighborhoods/areas?

[009811]

Originally Posted by okcguy

It's just me and I will be renting. House would be preferable but apartment is fine too.

Norman, OK is a nice town with U of Oklahoma. That is a great, charming and safe town. Memphis does not has a town a great University, Bartlett is not bad, but if go a little west, Raleigh (Egypt) get a little worse. If south bartlett, Wolfchase is the best area to go. If you have enough budget, recommend you buy house in Germantown.

[okcguy]

The job is going to a mile or two south of Bass Pro off I40 and and Macon. I was looking into renting in either Germantown or Cordova. Is there much of a difference between the two areas?

[Pearlbob]

Very big difference. Gtown is an upscale, well establish, wealthy suburb. Cordova for the most part isn't it's own city anymore; most of it has been annexed by Memphis and is now Memphis City. IE Memphis taxes, schools, car tags, address, etc. While Cordova has some nice homes, a lot of it is new and the main road, Germantown Rd, looks like a giant line of strip malls. Not all of it is like that of course, but you have to travel along that road to get almost anywhere. Germantown has more laws about zoning so their city looks nicer, in my opinion. No big neon signs looming over the streets Housing prices are going to be much more expensive in Germantown because everyone wants to live there for the schools and safety. Same with rental prices, they will be higher in Germantown. Of course if you are renting, you won't have to worry about property taxes and resale value.

Originally Posted by okcguy

The job is going to a mile or two south of Bass Pro off I40 and and Macon. I was looking into renting in either Germantown or Cordova. Is there much of a difference between the two areas?

[Ginsaw]

Where you're talking about is almost equal distance from a lot of places. So I think I'd make convenience in getting to work the main thing. I've said this before here, but going forward in this country I believe being close to your work will be more and more important.

There are probably rentals in the Sycamore View/Macon area that would be close by. You can of course take Macon east to Germantown Rd (it's somewhat winding but it gets there and isn't that heavily travelled) and from there find all sorts of places. Or, it sounds like your job won't be far from Shelby Farms, so you cut south to Walnut Grove through the Farms and on out to Germantown, or back track west on Walnut Grove to Humphreys Blvd and then to Germantown. That's a good bit longer drive to make each day. Rentals in Germantown may also be more expensive than some alternatives.

Or, another option would be north up Sycamore View into the Bartlett area. Lots of places there.

An additional option is to use Summer or I-40/Sam Cooper to get to the following residential areas of East Memphis: Avon, Berclair, Grahamwood and High Point Terrace. All of those are good places to live, they are minutes from shopping and restaurants and have almost instant access to Sam Cooper Blvd, which is a 15 minute ride to your employment with more or less light traffic. For a change of pace you could take Summer once in a while instead. Good luck.