Memphis for Lifestyle Change? (Lafayette, Bluff City: extended stay, condos, hotels)

[highvoltagegirl]

My husband and I are considering Memphis for a move. We live in the suburbs of Orlando, Florida. We know NOTHING about Memphis - I haven't been since I was 6 and he has never been, but we are in the midst of a lifestyle change. (Minimalists, quit our jobs this year, etc.)

We are looking for around 700 sq ft, max 1500. We are looking for areas that would have some items walkable (brewery/bar, coffee house, restaurant), but it doesn't have to be a huge downtown area. We both work from home for ourselves. Our son is 21 and staying in Florida for school. We are 40 and aren't in to nightclubs every night, but like to go out here and there for drinks with friends. We travel, so being within 2 hours of an airport is ideal. Does anyone have any thoughts on specific neighborhoods/areas that would seem to suit us? Townhome/condo/house - we would consider up to $170 if it's right smack in the middle of things, but the further away the further down our spend will go.

Are there any extended stay hotels/homes that are well located in Memphis? Everything I have found so far is on the far outskirts of town.

Any help/advice is appreciated.

[JoeCartpath]

The Cooper-Young area seems like it has what you're looking for but, of course, you won't really know until you visit the area.

There are no extended stay hotels in the area that I'm aware of. Even those in the suburbs are no more than 20-30 minutes from Cooper-Young. Traffic is Memphis isn't like you find in most larger cities - except, of course, for rush hour....

[eastmemphisguy]

I'm not sure I understand what sort of lifestyle change you are looking to make. We're a smaller metro than Orlando, so we have fewer flights and traffic and all the rest. There is nightlife to be had here and there, but mostly Memphis has a leafy suburban feel. Only Downtown and Midtown are walkable and even there we have the typical MidAmerica car culture. We do have affordable housing and your budget is reasonable.

[irishcopper]

As JoeCarpath stated the Cooper-Young neighborhood may have a lot of what you're looking for. In the eleven years that I've resided in Memphis the independent restaurant scene has improved dramatically. There are dozens of cool, laid back bistros, cafes and pubs in Midtown which includes Cooper-Young and Overton Square. Between Cooper-Young and Overton Square there are establishments to meet a wide variety of culinary moods and tastes. There are several good book stores in Midtown as well as yoga studios, art galleries, tattoo studios and record* stores. I'm not a night owl anymore but I like to listen to a wide range of live music. Clubs like Lafayette's Music Room in Overton Square have live music on Saturday afternoons and during Sunday morning brunch. Nearly all the streets in Midtown have sidewalks making them quite walkable. It's not unusual to see Midtowners cycling or riding scooters. The Memphis Greenway is a paved trail for walking, cycling or running that connects downtown near the edge of the the Mississippi River with Midtown and extends east to Shelby Farms one of the largest urban parks in the U.S. The craft brewery scene has also blossomed in the Bluff City. If you like a well crafted ale or beer you will find many good options in Memphis. Midtown B&B's include Roulhac Mansion and there are many unique accommodations downtown which aren't far from Midtown. If you want to stay in Midtown during your visit there's always Airbnb. I've lived all over the U.S. including Boston, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Diego, Detroit, Charleston and New Orleans and find Memphis meets my lifestyle needs quite well. I came here in 2006 for my job and enjoy living in Memphis. It's quite affordable and there are always things to do.

There are several extend stay hotels on East Memphis on or right off of Poplar Avenue. East Memphis to Midtown is about a ten or fifteen minute drive depending on your location and traffic.

*Record as in vinyl albums (Goner Records and Shangri La Records)

[Mississippimarkus]

As mentioned already the Cooper-Young area is probably where you want to be. But that won't happen for $170000. More likely around $300k.

There are tons of cheap houses in Memphis under or around 100k. Look in the East Memphis Area, south and east of the Botanic Garden.

Check out this map for bike path and the great Greenline:
http://wikimapping.net/wikimap/memphis-bike.html

[AppalachianAngler]

Yeah, it's kind of unclear what kind of lifestyle change you're looking for. When I think of a lifestyle change from Orlando, I think of going somewhere to be more active like a mountain town, or maybe somewhere just more rural.

Memphis is not a pedestrian city at all so in that regard will be probably similar to Orlando. But you can get a condo or townhouse downtown for about your budget, which will give you walking access to what you want. Just my opinion, but downtown does not have all that much for a semi-major city. A lot of it is run-down with empty buildings. There are some decent restaurants and bars, just not a huge selection.

Midtown has a few cool things, but like downtown, doesn't have a huge selection. As someone else pointed out, you won't be able to get anything walkable in midtown for 170k. There are a lot of really great things in Cooper Young and Overton Square (Midtown), however, and CY in particular has a cool unique community.

The Memphis airport is easy to get in and out of, but the flights are expensive and there isn't a huge selection.

[mattec]

Originally Posted by Mississippimarkus

As mentioned already the Cooper-Young area is probably where you want to be. But that won't happen for $170000. More likely around $300k.

There are tons of cheap houses in Memphis under or around 100k. Look in the East Memphis Area, south and east of the Botanic Garden.

Check out this map for bike path and the great Greenline:
http://wikimapping.net/wikimap/memphis-bike.html

There are some redone shotguns in C-Y that should be around the $170 mark; the challenge is catching them on the market.

Another area to look into is the south main area, which is south of downtown and has easy access to good restaurants, art galleries, and downtown amenities. It’s also super walkable and will be even more so when the trolley starts up again. I’ve seen a handful of small condos going for $150-$170 in that area.

[Salmonista]

If you want to travel often by plane, I don't recommend making Memphis your home base. The airport is ok but doesn't have nonstops to very many places. What about the Atlanta or Charlotte areas, for better flight options?

Here's an extended stay that isn't too far out of the city, and it's a good-ish neighborhood https://www.extendedstayamerica.com/...his/germantown