I'm moving.. (Philadelphia, Lansdale, Horsham: apartments, rentals, violent crime) - Pennsylvania (PA) - City-Data Forum

doglover0114 · 03-31-2011, 01:32 PM

I am moving alone, and for the first time, to Philly to look for a job- possible employers would be hospitals and pharmaceutical companies in Clinical research. I want to live in a neighborhood where I and my car are safe. My budget is $500/mth to rent a room in an apartment/house. Please advise.

Wisertime · 03-31-2011, 02:39 PM

You might want to look in the Abington/Montgomery county area. There are several hostpitals, it is very safe, nice people and you still have the option to use the Regional rail if you work in the city hospitals. There are a few Pharma cos. out in Ft. Wash/Upper Dublin/Horsham area as well.

Depends what you are looking for (age, demographics, living style, convenience) but there are some great areas to choose from.
Elkins Park/jenkintown/Glenside/Abington
Ambler
Roxboro/manayunk
to name a few in that vicinity.

Try craigslist for room listings. My next door neighbor rents rooms for $450ish. Also metroroommates.com, 4wallsphilly, roommateclick, roommates.com. Maybe even Phillypaper or phillymag.com

You wont find a studio even in that price range. You will have to share for sure. Where are you coming from?

Do you have a dog? It does limit your options. I know, because I am starting to look at rentals with dogs, but currently own a house.

otters21 · 03-31-2011, 09:24 PM

If you want to be in a more of an urban enviroment and be close to Center City I recommend the Newbold South/St. Monica's area ( boundaries are S. Broad St. to about S.18th St and Passyunk Ave. to Oregon Avenue. This area is quite safe and pretty much family friendly but is very walkable and very convenient to everything. There are buslines plus the Broad St. subway that can get you up to Center City. There are several hospitals in CC that may have the kind of work you are looking for. The only drawback of the neighborhood is if you have a car ,finding a place to park can be a PITA at times but otherwise you do not have to worry about your car. Good Luck.

Marius Pontmercy · 04-01-2011, 09:46 PM

I second otters' suggestions. Philadelphia has several great research hospitals as well as pharma companies and other bio companies, all mainly in Center City which you'll be within an easy commuting distance via the subway or buses. My advice would be to ditch the car and invest in a transpass if you go the urban route. It may give you an extra windfall in your budget to put towards rent.

doglover0114 · 04-06-2011, 02:22 PM

Thank you guys, for taking the time to reply.

I might consider moving into a more comfortable living condition after I find a job. For now, Safety and Reducing Expenses are my priorities. I have decided on renting a room for a week (I found some Craigslist ads for $100-175/wk.. I plan on calling before I drive down to ascertain if these are legitimate offers) and touring the few rooms (for monthly rental or short term lease -3m) I have lined up to see this weekend. Driving around, I might get a first hand idea which neighborhood and/ living conditions I prefer and until then have a place to live without staying at a hotel- which would most likely be more expensive. For now, my list includes rooms in single family homes in Manayunk, CCity, Mt. Airy. I will look into some of the suggested areas and websites.

I am moving from Upstate NY after 3 yrs of living here. Top three reasons for this move are Sociability, Weather, Job Opportunities. I think Rochester, NY has more older people and blue collar workers..very nice people but not many I can relate to/share common interests with. I am hoping Philly will have more to offer for me.

I have an Infiniti G35X (lease ends in Jun)- I might decide to get rid of it, if I take well to public transport in the city. Until then, though, I feel obliged to protect it safer than my precious pearls- I hear they charge an arm and a leg for repairs outside of 'normal wear n tear' on leased vehicles.

@ Wisertime: I don't have a dog anymore. Are Philly apartments not dog friendly? I had the same problem when I moved Upstate!

@ Otters21/@Marius: I know Astra Zeneca is in Wilmington. I wasn't aware that research hospitals are in CCity. Then again, Univ. City might be pretty close to CCity? Assuming again that hospitals attached to University get more research grants. Wikipedia has me freaked-out about violent crimes and has left me with over 200 neighborhoods to learn about!

Angus215 · 04-06-2011, 02:41 PM

there are pharma companies all over montgomery county. Merck has large facility in Lansdale. Teva's US headquarters is in North Wales. J&J has a research facility in Ambler. i don't work in the industry, but i see a ton of research facilities all over the place. as others said, the main research hospitals (penn, jefferson, hanneman) will be in center city/university city. if you want to live in more of a downtown area, then as some suggested, you may want to live somewhere like Manayunk, Conshocken, or ambler that is along a train line to the city but would allow you to drive to the suburbs if need be. the best place to live for someone who is younger/single is center city and immediately adjacent areas but owning a car and reverse-commuting out of city can be a challenge.

Wisertime · 04-06-2011, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doglover0114

I am moving from Upstate NY after 3 yrs of living here. Top three reasons for this move are Sociability, Weather, Job Opportunities. I think Rochester, NY has more older people and blue collar workers..very nice people but not many I can relate to/share common interests with. I am hoping Philly will have more to offer for me.

@ Wisertime: I don't have a dog anymore. Are Philly apartments not dog friendly? I had the same problem when I moved Upstate!
!

Hey, I lived in Rochester NY myself (twice). I couldn't tolerate the winters any longer and people are very generational I guess. Few people relocate there and we moved around a lot.

There are options if you have pets, but the most desirable places tend not to allow dogs and the others have restrictions and expensive deposits AND even charge you an extra $35-45/mo rent per pet (how ridiculous?).

I would wager my dogs are cleaner, quieter and more well behaved than a fair number of humans who rent.

doglover0114 · 04-07-2011, 05:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wisertime

There are options if you have pets, but the most desirable places tend not to allow dogs and the others have restrictions and expensive deposits AND even charge you an extra $35-45/mo rent per pet (how ridiculous?).

Yes, it is! When I lived in Raleigh, NC (extremely pet friendly city), I learned that these fees were mostly due to State laws requiring landlords to change carpets after a tenant with dogs had vacated the apartment. Some charged monthly fees; other just had non refundable deposits. Big dogs were not nearly as welcome as smaller ones.

Wisertime · 04-07-2011, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doglover0114

Yes, it is! When I lived in Raleigh, NC (extremely pet friendly city), I learned that these fees were mostly due to State laws requiring landlords to change carpets after a tenant with dogs had vacated the apartment. Some charged monthly fees; other just had non refundable deposits. Big dogs were not nearly as welcome as smaller ones.

Wow, I lived in Raleigh too. Are you following me?

doglover0114 · 04-14-2011, 01:33 PM

So, I've moved.. I am in Philly! I house share in Manayunk for 125$/wk with a 40y/o male teacher. After a week of pestering, I finally have heat (I must've been in suspended state of animation during sleep, the first few freezing nights) and wireless internet! Starbucks, Subway, Acme, Septa are a block away. Parking seems safe (driveway

) though scarce. Now, that my basic, urgent necessities of housing are fulfilled, let me explain why I am still looking:
My lease is on a temporary-weekly basis and soon needs to be assured as monthly.
I prefer boarding with younger professionals for a better social experience, not to mention- I prefer females.
Keeping in mind that my next goal is employment, hanging out with more resourceful and enthusiastic company might be helpful.
Apartment share might give me access to a non membership gym.

A house share in Port Richmond is cheaper by $100/mth, has female roommates but I am unsure if the location has added/similar amenities.

A promising(will tour this weekend) house share in Roxborough appears to have multiple younger working professionals and most likely similar amenities for $50 more/mth.

A promising(will tour this weekend) house share in Ardmore (this area came highly recommended by localites) appears to have multiple younger working professionals and is about $50 less/mth.

No luck with apartment shares in my price range (under $ 550/mth)

Any comments on how to leverage housing for better social and professional gains? Could you guys give me some tips on how to develop a network..besides talking to strangers at Starbucks and gearing the conversation to occupation!.. volunteering- where/how?

@wisertime- No, but if we have things in common, lets be friends.. do you guys live in Philly? I could use a new friendly family with dogs locally

Sincerely Thank you!