Apartment search stress- please help (Bloomington, Plymouth: apartments, rent, how much) - Minneapolis - St. Paul - Minnesota (MN) -Twin Cities - City-Data Forum

new_in_mn · 03-19-2012, 03:03 AM

I am living in saint Paul right now and I want to move to minneapolis. I have been looking for apartments for a while now with no success. The two main things I am looking for are: In unit washer/dryer and a nice happening neighborhood ( I am single in my late 20's.). Some of the places I checked out closer to the downtown area are way overpriced. Any neighborhoods in minneapolis that I can rent for a reasonable price (around $1000-$1100 for a 1 bedroom?). As I am a gay man, a gay freindly neighborhood will be cool.. I have checked out loring park.. but any other neighborhood I should be looking?

uptown_urbanist · 03-19-2012, 06:54 AM

I think all local neighborhoods are going to be gay-friendly. I wouldn't worry about that. As for the rest, could be that you simply have to readjust your expectations -- in-unit w/d in a happening neighborhood comes at a higher price. You may find that you have to either increase your budget, consider a less exciting neighborhood, or be willing to consider a building with a laundry room, but not in-unit, as the in-unit w/ds are a bit on the unusual side unless you want a "luxury" building, at least if you want to live in a nice, happening neighborhood near downtown. But almost all local buildings DO come with laundry in the building.

west336 · 03-19-2012, 07:45 AM

A 1BR in the nicer places in Uptown/Downtown costs OVER $1100/mo??? Even if it's just a studio or maybe 700 sf?? I would think you could get quite a lot for $1100/mo for just one person. I realize a W/D in-house in a nice amenity, but do you have any idea how much energy (i.e. energy cost) a W/D uses? It's huge! A lot of places have a W/D facility by floor or at least within the building. I lived at Calhoun Towers (a place I'd definitely suggest if you can find a unit AND one above the 6th floor) and found the floor W/D to be pretty easy to work with (and I think it was free!). Calhoun Towers is on the West end of Lake Calhoun near where Excelsior Blvd. and Lake St. merge.

uptown_urbanist · 03-19-2012, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by west336

A 1BR in the nicer places in Uptown/Downtown costs OVER $1100/mo??? Even if it's just a studio or maybe 700 sf?? I would think you could get quite a lot for $1100/mo for just one person. I realize a W/D in-house in a nice amenity, but do you have any idea how much energy (i.e. energy cost) a W/D uses? It's huge! A lot of places have a W/D facility by floor or at least within the building. I lived at Calhoun Towers (a place I'd definitely suggest if you can find a unit AND one above the 6th floor) and found the floor W/D to be pretty easy to work with (and I think it was free!). Calhoun Towers is on the West end of Lake Calhoun near where Excelsior Blvd. and Lake St. merge.

My guess is that it's only the in-unit w/d that's causing the problems here, as I don't think you typically find those until you get to brand-new luxury buildings. They're just not that efficient, and they don't seem to be the norm around here. He should be able to find a very nice apartment in a very nice building at that price point, though, just might have to walk down the hall to a shared room.

When we toured Calhoun Terrace the laundry room was pretty nice, had new (I think) machines, and was right next to the exercise and community rooms (on the 7th floor, so great views of the lake!). Not sure what the 1-BRs were like, price-wise, but would assume they were well within his budget, and probably equivalent to a bunch of those other apartment buildings (including Calhoun Towers) stretching out towards SLP -- all very nice places loaded with amenities and adjacent to the lake, and more affordable than the fancy new luxury buildings like Murals, Flux, etc.

And for the OP, the other benefit of laundry rooms is that you can do two loads at once!

west336 · 03-19-2012, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

And for the OP, the other benefit of laundry rooms is that you can do two loads at once!

Or be a total jerkoff and do 3 or 4 loads at once and then leave for the day and leave your clothes in the washer!

rcsteiner · 03-19-2012, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by west336

Or be a total jerkoff and do 3 or 4 loads at once and then leave for the day and leave your clothes in the washer!

In some complexes, that'll result in your clothing being tossed onto the floor ... or into a dumpster.

new_in_mn · 03-19-2012, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

My guess is that it's only the in-unit w/d that's causing the problems here, as I don't think you typically find those until you get to brand-new luxury buildings. They're just not that efficient, and they don't seem to be the norm around here. He should be able to find a very nice apartment in a very nice building at that price point, though, just might have to walk down the hall to a shared room.

When we toured Calhoun Terrace the laundry room was pretty nice, had new (I think) machines, and was right next to the exercise and community rooms (on the 7th floor, so great views of the lake!). Not sure what the 1-BRs were like, price-wise, but would assume they were well within his budget, and probably equivalent to a bunch of those other apartment buildings (including Calhoun Towers) stretching out towards SLP -- all very nice places loaded with amenities and adjacent to the lake, and more affordable than the fancy new luxury buildings like Murals, Flux, etc.

And for the OP, the other benefit of laundry rooms is that you can do two loads at once!

Thanks for your reply. I guess I should probably be ok with a building that has an elevator and a common laundry room. At my current place, I will have to walk down the stairs and out in the cold winter to get to the laundry room. I have also noticed that apartments that do have in unit W/D need us to do several loads due to the small size. Is this the norm for any apt that has in unit W/D?

Another question: Other than apartmentfinder.com, are there any other reliable websites I could look into to get a list of the apartments? Are St. Louis park and uptown good neighborhoods to consider? Any thoughts about Bloomington or Nokomis areas?

Cleverbeetle98 · 03-19-2012, 04:00 PM

Hey OP - I'm with you - kind of picky (pickier than you) with amenities and looking to stay out of the suburbs. They are out there, but you have to search. I was in a place in Plymouth (barely Plymouth, just off 394/169) that had a full size W/D in unit and would fit your budget. (PM me if you want to know where).

Many places are listed on multiple apartment sites, but some are listed on just one - so check them all out. In addition to apartmentfinder.com, there is: apartments.com, forrent.com, rent.com, hotpads.com, ect. I also just do a google search and see what sites it leads me to.

Uptown Urbanist is right, though. If you want to be right in the action, you probably will have to give up the in unit WD. So it just depends on what is more important to you - distance to the happening places? Amenities? Or maybe your budget is more flexible (often a 2 BR with a roommate will go much further in the swanky places of uptown/downtown than a 1BR).

Good luck!

silverjet · 03-19-2012, 05:31 PM

Another website suggestion - try padmapper.com.

ManBearPig1 · 03-19-2012, 05:31 PM

Padmapper is my favorite site. Uptown and Loring Park are your best bets. You'll be able to find some great places in your price range if you decide you can deal with a common laundry room. Otherwise, your search will be more difficult and you'll have a lot fewer options, but should be able to find something.