Where to live between Temple and Arcadia (Philadelphia, York: apartments, rentals)

[holmester]

Me and my girlfriend are moving from Maryland to the Philly area for school. She will be attending Arcadia and I will be attending Temple. We are trying to find a place to live which will be pretty convenient for both of us but safety is my biggest concern because she will be coming home late at night occasionally and she will also probaly be home alone alot. I dont care if my commute is longer then hers either. I am also considering taking the metro but she will need to drive. We have visited places in Manayunk and around that area. Manayunk was awesome. Also a place called Lincoln Greene off of City Avenue which we really liked. If anybody has any advice on areas that are convenient and safe* I would really appreciate the help. Also if you guys know any fast ways of getting from the area you recommend to each school that would be awesome to know. Temple is on N. Broad Street and Arcadia is in Glenside.

[newmarlig]

Have you thought about living in Glenside? It's a cute town and you could probably find a place close enough to the campus so that your wife could actually walk to school. You could take the train from the Glenside station (we call it the train here, not the metro) to the Temple University stop. If your wife needs the car, maybe she could drop you off and pick you up at the train station.

[holmester]

Yea we thought about that but I think that train ride to temple would be like 45 minutes.

[newmarlig]

First, I meant your girlfriend (not your wife - although someday she may become your wife). Second, the ride is more like 20 minutes.

SEPTA

[akorosdc]

Decent areas that would be a compromise would be Cheltenham, Elkins Park, Melrose Park, Jenkintown, or East Oaklane (in Philadelphia). They're all about 15 minutes from Arcadia, and about a 15-20 minute drive to Temple (for train, maybe 30 minutes? I think a little less, since I remember getting to 30th Street from the Melrose Park station in not much more than 30 minutes).

Regarding the area, all of those are safe. East Oaklane is a little neighborhood near Olney between Broad Street and 5th Street (roughly). It's fairly in-between for both of you. For Cheltenham, certain areas are better than others, but if you're interested in a particular place there then people can give you more specific advice. Melrose Park/Elkins Park/Jenkintown are all about 5 minutes from each other, and about 10 minutes from Glenside. Very safe, quaint (more small town-ish). The train line down Broad runs straight up north in that order, as well, so it's pretty convenient.

Where in MD are you (just for comparison)?

[holmester]

I live in Odenton, Md. Its in between Crofton and Ft.Meade. About in the middle of D.C. and Baltimore. She is going to visit a place in Elkins Park on Saturday. Do you know how far of a drive/train ride from Manayunk to Temple?

[FindingZen]

A train ride from Manayunk would be awkward as the route would go down to Center City first before changing to another train or subway to Temple.

In reasonable traffic, it's probably not more than a 20 minute drive.

Originally Posted by holmester

I live in Odenton, Md. Its in between Crofton and Ft.Meade. About in the middle of D.C. and Baltimore. She is going to visit a place in Elkins Park on Saturday. Do you know how far of a drive/train ride from Manayunk to Temple?

[akorosdc]

For a train, I really think your best bet is with those stations going straight up rt. 611/Old York Road (Melrose Park, Elkins Park, Jenkintown-Wyncote). You can check SEPTA's website, but I think that most other trains will go downtown to 30th Street before heading back up north to Temple.

[PhillyHead]

You have several options that would be very good. Manayunk to the Temple Station is 12 minutes on the Regional Rail. Manayunk is on the R6. Here are the train schedules. SEPTA Lots of rentals available in Manayunk and nightlife. It's about a 20 minute drive to Arcadia, longer during rush hour.

Another great option is the Jenkintown area. It's a 16 to 20 minute train ride to Temple. If you board at the Jenkintown station, three trains (R2,R3,R5) pass through and you will probably not have to wait longer than 10 minutes for the next train. Other stations in that area (Elkins Park, Glenside, Noble, Rydal, etc.) have only one train and typically they run every half hour. About a 10 minute drive or less to Arcadia and she will only have to drive through safe, suburban neighborhoods. I'm sure there is less of a selection and are more expensive.

In terms of deciding between the two, it's really a matter of your comfortableness with city vs. suburban living and balancing that with availablity and cost of apartments. There are other areas (Roxborough, Mount Airy, Conshohocken) that would probably meet your needs, but none as convenient as both of those described.

[kelb]

Stick to Jenkintown or anywhere close to Arcadia...nice areas with lots of convenience.