Moving to Philadelphia soon (York, Ellsworth: rentals, neighborhoods, salary)

[Glacier Azure]

Hello everyone. I'm a current graduate student in the northeast US who has recently accepted a job offer in Philadelphia. I haven't received final confirmation about when I'll start working but it's 80% likely my first day will be in July. The company is blocks away from Rittenhouse Square and I wouldn't mind living in that area, but my desires and realities are different things, so I have a few qualifications.


-starting salary will be just under $60,000/year before taxes
-do not want to exceed $1500/month rent for a 1 BR, maybe a studio
-supermarkets, restaurants, nightlife or amenities like gyms within the neighborhood
-presumably somewhere in Center City within walking distance of a subway line
-mid 20's


I'm from New York and lived there except for my years of undergraduate and graduate study, so large cities are neither foreign nor scary for me. What neighborhoods would you folks recommend and am I being realistic?

[kyb01]

Originally Posted by Glacier Azure

Hello everyone. I'm a current graduate student in the northeast US who has recently accepted a job offer in Philadelphia. I haven't received final confirmation about when I'll start working but it's 80% likely my first day will be in July. The company is blocks away from Rittenhouse Square and I wouldn't mind living in that area, but my desires and realities are different things, so I have a few qualifications.


-starting salary will be just under $60,000/year before taxes
-do not want to exceed $1500/month rent for a 1 BR, maybe a studio
-supermarkets, restaurants, nightlife or amenities like gyms within the neighborhood
-presumably somewhere in Center City within walking distance of a subway line
-mid 20's


I'm from New York and lived there except for my years of undergraduate and graduate study, so large cities are neither foreign nor scary for me. What neighborhoods would you folks recommend and am I being realistic?

There are plenty of rentals for $1500 or less in great neighborhoods( generally adjacent to CC)but not in Rittenhouse which is more expensive. The Philly Curbed site has a link concerning what you might be looking for: $1500 rentals.

[FrankInPhilly]

You could look in Queen Village or Bella Vista (closer to Center City) or South Philly (Passyunk Ave. area, and anywhere east of Broad St between Ellsworth, Tasker, Snyder subway stations).
Unless you rent a place with a garage or are willing to pay for an off-site place to park, car ownership in any of these areas can be "problematic."

[chessimprov]

You can find some studios at 1500/month in CC/Rittenhouse, but they might not be very big or not updated.