Best area for young professional, working 15 minutes from WW bridge in jersey, $900 month rent (apartments)

[SharpieMarker]

Hey everyone,

I'm a 26 year old student just graduating, I landed a job in New jersey close to my house, about 15 minutes from WW bridge.

Living in jersey my whole life has been pretty dull, I'm looking for a more active area. I need a drastic lifestyle change from the suburbs of Jersey. So please make suggestions!

What I'm looking for:
- Safety and great community are my top priorities

-Young professionals in there 20's and 30's, or younger families in the area. Nothing too crazy, I don't want to live next to houses of college students.

- Active downtown or area within walking distace, Basically I need to be able to get out and not drive all the time to a bar/restaruant/store.

- I have currently $900 a month on rent, I'm a single guy with almost nothing so honestly I want to live in a studio or small 1 bedroom, space isn't a big deal.

I don't know much about the area. The only play like that I've been is Manyunak and that's about 30 minutes and 25ish miles from my job, so a doable drive.

Also how is the traffic going the oppossite, from Philly to Jersey in morning, and Jersey to Philly in afternoon? I'd imagine it would be much better!

[frankgn87]

Manyunak would definitely fit your bill. Cool little town. The commute with rush hour traffic may be a bit tough though.. That may be a 45-60 minute commute each way

[SharpieMarker]

Well my previous job was about 50 minutes all traffic, so if I find someplace I really like that could work.

Is it possible to get a safe apartment for $900 there?

[newmarlig]

I would say Passyunk Square in South Philly. Not far from the bridge or from center city. Check Craigslist for apartments. There are several in your price range.

[Marius Pontmercy]

East Passyunk Square or maybe Bella Vista. Most places in Philly are convenient to an expressway, but you don't want to have to deal with some of the interchanges during rush hour that will back up.

[phillies2011]

Originally Posted by Marius Pontmercy

East Passyunk Square or maybe Bella Vista. Most places in Philly are convenient to an expressway, but you don't want to have to deal with some of the interchanges during rush hour that will back up.

if you want to be in philly i would def say south philly. you're right by the bridge, rent is pretty cheap.

just 2 years ago i was renting an entire house allong with my gf and another couple down below oregon by 9th. it's really nice around there and the entire house only was 850 a month. great prices down there. there's bars and restaurants nearby and super markets and stuff. and then of course you're just a short subway ride away from old city or cc.

honestly though considering what you're looking for is there any chance you'd move to nj? if you go north of the ww into like the palmeyra area it's pretty decent from what i've seen and you'd probably get cheaper prices, not really sure though, i'm not that familiar with nj.

might be something to look at though if your main concerns are safety and affordability and considering you're working in nj anyway.

too me though, i'd much rather be in philly.

[SharpieMarker]

Originally Posted by phillies2011

if you want to be in philly i would def say south philly. you're right by the bridge, rent is pretty cheap.

just 2 years ago i was renting an entire house allong with my gf and another couple down below oregon by 9th. it's really nice around there and the entire house only was 850 a month. great prices down there. there's bars and restaurants nearby and super markets and stuff. and then of course you're just a short subway ride away from old city or cc.

honestly though considering what you're looking for is there any chance you'd move to nj? if you go north of the ww into like the palmeyra area it's pretty decent from what i've seen and you'd probably get cheaper prices, not really sure though, i'm not that familiar with nj.

might be something to look at though if your main concerns are safety and affordability and considering you're working in nj anyway.

too me though, i'd much rather be in philly.

I've lived in Jersey my whole life... I want a very drastic change. An apartment where I can walk to places, I'm around lots of people, busy area is so much different than Jersey. Just staying at a friends place in Philly the vibe and feel is like another world. So while I could save money I rather be happy and live where I feel will work best.

I'm actually considering holding off moving till Jan 2012. This will allow me to get a nice savings (Basically living home with little expense = lots of savings). I might leverage that to up my afforadable rent closer to $1200 and get into some of the places I've been looking at.

Thanks for the help!