How well will $60,000/Year fare (Live in PA or DE) (Philadelphia: lease, buying)

[briantroutman]

Originally Posted by briantroutman

You mentioned that it didn’t look like there was “much in Media itself”.

Sorry—the above is how that line should have read. I typed the message on my phone and now can’t go back and edit it.

[rowhomecity]

I will be frank and will not recommend Wilmington. Your commute is still long, and Wilmington has a more underwhelming nightlife than both Media and West Chester.

Delaware has more strict regulations in regards to bars than Pennsylvania, and its culture scene unfortunately suffers. Last call in Delaware is 12:45 AM. In Pennsylvania it is 2 AM. This means places of entertainment just do not stay open late in Delaware and most establishments close early and live entertainment is very nonexistent in Wilmington. I lived in Wilmington for 3 months and found it to be very boring beyond words. West Chester and Media are far more interesting.

I would recommend Media if you have an explorer mindset. You are going to find far more opportunities to have access to the city in Media and that means opportunities for networking etc. which is what is truly valuable about urban living.

West Chester would be my number two. If you enjoy homelife, there are definitely alot of young people in West Chester and it has a stronger core than Wilmington's strongest neighborhood Trolley Square, which is quite small, and not really that interesting.

I would say you narrow it down to Media or West Chester.

Philadelphia. If you REALLY crave that city vibe.

[jaxtigers]

Originally Posted by rowhomecity

I will be frank and will not recommend Wilmington. Your commute is still long, and Wilmington has a more underwhelming nightlife than both Media and West Chester.

Delaware has more strict regulations in regards to bars than Pennsylvania, and its culture scene unfortunately suffers. Last call in Delaware is 12:45 AM. In Pennsylvania it is 2 AM. This means places of entertainment just do not stay open late in Delaware and most establishments close early and live entertainment is very nonexistent in Wilmington. I lived in Wilmington for 3 months and found it to be very boring beyond words. West Chester and Media are far more interesting.

I would recommend Media if you have an explorer mindset. You are going to find far more opportunities to have access to the city in Media and that means opportunities for networking etc. which is what is truly valuable about urban living.

West Chester would be my number two. If you enjoy homelife, there are definitely alot of young people in West Chester and it has a stronger core than Wilmington's strongest neighborhood Trolley Square, which is quite small, and not really that interesting.

I would say you narrow it down to Media or West Chester.

Philadelphia. If you REALLY crave that city vibe.

What are the rentals like in Media? Seems like there are only a few actual rental companies for apartments. Do the majority of people find apartments through places like CL?

Also, I haven't been to Philadelphia yet but like every major city I'm sure there are a variety of areas and scenes depending on what part you are in. I've seen a couple people mention it, but I'm wondering what the best neighborhoods in Philly itself would be for me considering where I work and budget haha.

[Patmcpsu]

West Chester is the obvious answer. It's a college town with lots of bars and reasonable rents. It's not a bad commute to Chadds Ford either. I recommend living somewhere in the borough, close to Market Street or Gay Street (where the bars are).

[Pennsport]

Originally Posted by jaxtigers

What are the rentals like in Media? Seems like there are only a few actual rental companies for apartments. Do the majority of people find apartments through places like CL?

Also, I haven't been to Philadelphia yet but like every major city I'm sure there are a variety of areas and scenes depending on what part you are in. I've seen a couple people mention it, but I'm wondering what the best neighborhoods in Philly itself would be for me considering where I work and budget haha.

I'm glad to see you haven't discounted the city-proper. Many posters on this board seem to be quite put off by any length of driving more than 30 minutes, but as I mentioned in my previous post, living in a major city like Philadelphia (especially during this era of city growth), is a rare opportunity and one-of-a-kind experience. The best parts of city living for me were the weekends - parking the car on Friday afternoon and not moving it again until Monday morning. Trust me, although it sounds similar, there is a big difference between taking the train from the suburbs into the city for a day trip and walking out of your city apt. into "your neighborhood" and interacting with your neighbors and festivals/events on a regular basis.

Also, it's not difficult to work around rush hour to Chadds Ford. I used to get up early and go a gym near work in the morning. Some evenings you could probably leave early and others you can use to explore the general area, take guitar lessons, etc..., anything really. I always looked at avoiding rush hour as opportunities to do things as opposed to rushing home to watch Seinfeld re-runs. Ok, I digress...

Regarding Philadelphia neighborhoods, I would keep it east of Broad Street as being in close proximity to 95 S. will be extremely helpful for you with your commute. When I worked in Chadds Ford, I lived first in Northern Liberties and then in Queen Village/Pennsport section of city. Both of these would be worth a look for you IMO. Depending on your style and interests, I would throw Old City and Passyunk Square into the mix as well. Those four neighborhoods should be a nice start for you to get a feel as they are all quite a bit different.

A good site to check out is philly.curbed.com. They run a "what would $XXXX rent you" section on a regular basis which you might find insightful. Also, just do some general googling. There is a lot of info out there on the different Philly neighborhoods...

[ElijahAstin]

While Media does have a decent bar and restaurant scene (and more young professionals than your typical Philadelphia suburb), West Chester is even more active and, as a college town, has tons of young people. Since you’re 23, you’re probably not sick of or annoyed by undergrads yet. WCU also has graduate programs, so there will be some people in their mid to late twenties.

Media does have the advantage of direct train access to the City. However, West Chester isn’t far from the Exton station on the Paoli Thorndale Line, which runs much later and has more frequent service. If you plan on drinking in Town, you can take a Lyft or use a personal ride service like Dryver.

[Flyers Girl]

IMO, West Chester is your best option.

[TLC1957]

West Chester does have train service via SPETA service in Exton about 10~15 drive from the Borough,another 50 mins into Philadelphia via SPETA. With 12K students living on campus and in apartments around the university a lot is going on. Some streets parking can be a problem so look for rentals with off street parking or where parking is not restricted. They love to give out $25 parking tickets! Here is a map http://www.west-chester.com/DocumentCenter/View/764 of where parking is controlled. If you want to know where students live ie parties this website from the borough lists all student housing
http://www.west-chester.com/DocumentCenter/View/34

[TLC1957]

Oops SEPTA not SPETA ....

[jaxtigers]

Bump, looking for more responses as time draws close.