Neighborhood advice

[kyb01]

Originally Posted by Axl1156

My friend gave me a list of neighborhoods that I should consider:

Old City- Seems nice but apartments are a bit pricy.
Fishtown- Seems nice. Odd name but I do like the sign with the cats on it.
Point Breeze- I would need to walk around this one to get a feel for it. Since it’s more centered, I get the impression that it’s a block-by-block case unless I am mistaken.
Northern Liberties- No opinion, really. I haven’t seen enough apartments pop up on hotpads in this area to feel one way or another.
South Philly- Isn’t the mafia in this area?

Ones I’ve looked at:

Manayunk- Some of the buildings seem old but affordable.
Germantown- Again, old buildings but affordable. My friend said that this area should be avoided, though.

Point Breeze is still a 'work in progress' wrt to re-development. I would remove it from your list and replace it with the Graduate Hospital neighborhood which is just north of PB. The hospital has been renamed but the neighborhood name has remained.

South Phila. consists of multiple neighborhoods: Hawthorne, Bella Vista, Queen Village, East Passyunk, Pennsport which are east of Broad St. You want to consider one of them.

Manayunk should still be checked out. There is new housing there.

Fishtown, yes, check it out. NoLib has a ton of new housing.

Old City is probably out of your price range.

Add these which are in University City: Powelton Village, Spruce Hill, Clark Park, Cedar Park and parts of Walnut Hill. The anchors in University City are UPenn, Drexel, U. of the Sciences in Phila( USP), University City Science Ctr, Penn Medicine, CHOP(Children's Hospital of Phila.), Walnut Hill College/Restaurant School.

Being a newbie to big city living Germantown might not work for you. However W. Mt Airy or Chestnut Hill might. They're much nicer.

[KansastoSouthphilly]

How much are you looking to spend on rent? As a newcomer I would focus on Center City and its surrounding neighborhoods especially if you are looking to live without a car. So I would cross Manayunk and Germantown off of your list. Neighborhods I would look at if I were you are: Washington Square West (might be out of your price range), Bella Vista, Queen Village, Graduate Hospital, Passyunk Square, East Passyunk Crossing, Fishtown, and Northern Liberties.


I think point breeze might be a bit rough for a newcomer, I would cross it off your list. I am in the neighborhood frequently and enjoy it but I wouldn't recommend trying to live there until you know your way around and have a better sense of what to avoid.

[Axl1156]

Originally Posted by kyb01

OP, tell us how old you are. That will help narrow down choices you should look at.

I'm 26.

Originally Posted by kyb01

Point Breeze is still a 'work in progress' wrt to re-development. I would remove it from your list and replace it with the Graduate Hospital neighborhood which is just north of PB. The hospital has been renamed but the neighborhood name has remained.

South Phila. consists of multiple neighborhoods: Hawthorne, Bella Vista, Queen Village, East Passyunk, Pennsport which are east of Broad St. You want to consider one of them.

Manayunk should still be checked out. There is new housing there.

Fishtown, yes, check it out. NoLib has a ton of new housing.

Old City is probably out of your price range.

Add these which are in University City: Powelton Village, Spruce Hill, Clark Park, Cedar Park and parts of Walnut Hill. The anchors in University City are UPenn, Drexel, U. of the Sciences in Phila( USP), University City Science Ctr, Penn Medicine, CHOP(Children's Hospital of Phila.), Walnut Hill College/Restaurant School.

Being a newbie to big city living Germantown might not work for you. However W. Mt Airy or Chestnut Hill might. They're much nicer.

I've heard good things about Chestnut Hill. For some reason I thought that was a suburb until now. Thanks, I will check out all of these.

Originally Posted by KansastoSouthphilly

How much are you looking to spend on rent? As a newcomer I would focus on Center City and its surrounding neighborhoods especially if you are looking to live without a car. So I would cross Manayunk and Germantown off of your list. Neighborhods I would look at if I were you are: Washington Square West (might be out of your price range), Bella Vista, Queen Village, Graduate Hospital, Passyunk Square, East Passyunk Crossing, Fishtown, and Northern Liberties.


I think point breeze might be a bit rough for a newcomer, I would cross it off your list. I am in the neighborhood frequently and enjoy it but I wouldn't recommend trying to live there until you know your way around and have a better sense of what to avoid.

I'm only looking at apartments between $1,000 and $1,300, though I would consider lower if heat wasn't included. I'm sure there are nice apartments below $1,000 in some areas but quality housing is a must.

I did a google street view drive of Point Breeze earlier... that one was crossed off the list.

[chessimprov]

Gayborhood or Rail Park (if within your budget range) would be good starters if not places to live in.

[BK_PHL_DEL]

There is a lot of new construction in Fishtown and some of them are going straight to rentals although they might be outside of your price range. But they have high-end finishes with no one previously living in them. Still, as someone that lives there, I'd also recommend Fishtown. Very walkable, lots of restaurants and bars to go to, and easy access to the MFL. Search Zillow for 19125 and look along Frankford Ave.

[cpomp]

Philadelphia is a very open, diverse, gay friendly city. From my experience it is easier to make friends in the Philadelphia gay community vs DC or NYC.

That being said, if you can swing an apartment in the Gayborhood (right in Center City) that would great for enjoying all the city has to offer.

Manayunk is cool, but separated from the city. Point Breeze is okay, but I wouldn't recommend it for someone completely new to Philadelphia.

I recommend Queen Village, Bella Vista and Northern Liberties / Fishtown, and Spring Garden.

Most neighborhoods in Center City are pricey to live along with your current income, but you could definitely find a good deal with a roommate.

Also, there is a big gay sports league in Philadelphia. Teams play dodgeball, kickball, pool, etc. That is a good way to make friends.

[Axl1156]

I just want to thank all of you for your replies. All of your information has been very helpful, especially your corrections on my misperception of South Philly.

I moved to Manchester NH a little over a year ago and the locals here were anything but nice to me when I made similar posts on forums. Granite Staters will flat out tell out of staters to not move there unless they are libertarian. After I moved here, I posted on a Facebook forum asking for recommendations on cell phone carriers because Verizon doesn't have 4G coverage in most areas. The post received hundreds of comments- some were helpful but others were lambasting me for not being happy with Verizon. Some flat out told me to leave. What I find most interesting is that in both of those instances, I used the exact same tone and writing style as I have been on this forum. It's beens something that I struggle to understand about this area. People who move to your town/city will pay taxes and spend money here. As long as they are not committing crimes, there is no harm.

I have also had so many instances of people's demeanor changing when they find out that I'm from out of state, like a man at a tire shop last month whose face turned to a snarl when I gave him my phone number. The city also lacks a sense of community and I find the culture here to be very anti-intellectual, as in they discredit higher education.

So far, I have a good impression of Philly- I just need to visit to get a feel for the city.

[Wisertime]

I'd highly recommend visiting as long as possible before deciding on a neighborhood. Your experience and perception in Philly can vary wildly depending on what neighborhood you are in. You can't go by what you see online. You kinda have to experience it (for the most part), esp when it comes to places to live. Philly has both the nicest and the worst neighborhoods I've ever seen in person and they are often more intermixed/in proximity to one another than your typical E. coast city in my experience. Philly is a patchwork of very diverse neighborhoods, and divided along train tracks/highways/rivers/hills. Only you can really decide which one feels right.



West Germantown is ok, but it's not probably what you're looking for. Avoid E. Germantown Same for Chestnut Hill/Mt. Airy (I love it, but at 26, you will probably want to live in CC, Northern Liberties/Fishtown, Manayunk or other neighborhoods your friend mentioned). It is part of the city, but it's more like an affluent suburb/city hybrid, but does have 2 train lines servicing it and walkable streets with city amentities. You will be hard pressed to find a good apt for under $1200 in nicer areas. I can't speak as much for CC and surrounding areas though as I've not lived in them...so I'll leave that to the resident experts.


Good luck. An old friend of mind moved to NH (He's originally from RI w/Boston accent, met him in NC) and bought a house. He absolutely loves it. Says it's the best state in the nation. I guess he's kind of libertarian if it matters, but still and outsider.


You can't judge a whole state by a few interactions. I find Philly area people generally are friendly, helpful and down to earth, but there are extreme exceptions depending where/when you are somewhere. There are some rude people, but I find it more the exception than the rule, but that might be different in other neighborhoods, as I've heard people complain about.