Moving from NJ to St. Louis - requesting advice (University City: transplants, lofts)

[stlma]

Maybe consider University City (right next to Clayton) -- lots of young couples without children who like the outdoors.

[Robert Espenschied]

Clayton is a great area - so you can't lose getting a place nearby. It has some urban feel, and a good suburban feel as well. In addition, without traffic, you're only 10-15 minutes from downtown. We live in a neighboring suburb, but Clayton is a favorite area for many in this area. This is also a good time to rent, and you should be able to find a town home in that area. My wife happens to be a real estate agent/broker and she just rented a townhome in that area to a professional athlete that just moved into town.

[Robert Espenschied]

My wife is a great agent for Prudential. We live in an adjacent community to Clayton so my wife is very familiar with the area. If you want some free, professional advice, she can tell you where to rent considering your lifestyle, where you'll be working and what your long-term plans might be. You can look her up on Facebook or LinkedIn, or her website annespenschied@prudentilalliance.com

I have accepted a new job in St. Louis. The office is located in the Clayton area. I will be starting in November.

I know very little about the St. Louis area. I am hoping the good people of this board can point me in the right direction. First a little about us and then what we'd love to find.

We're a young couple in the 26-31 age band. He's originally from Seattle and I'm originally from NYC but we've been living in New Jersey for a few years now and don't care for it. We don't have children nor do we plan on having any. I work in corporate america and he trains horses.
We enjoy various things - from hiking/camping to lounging at a cool bar/restaurant.

We would be looking to rent a place at first. Preferably a townhome with a bit of green space because we have two dogs. Our budget is flexible because I'm not sure what the rental market is like out there - my experience is limited to NY and that's usually not the greatest point of referene.

We'd love to live in an area that has a bit more of a suburban feel but isn't so far out there that we can't enjoy what the city has to offer. We'd also really like to find an area with other youngish couples without children.

Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you![/quote]

[BoomBoxing]

I think the Maryland Heights/Creve Coeur area is a good starting point. It's fairly new, a good amount of restaurants and things to do and you're still close to Clayton and the city.

Other good options are Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Glendale, Brentwood, and Richmond Heights. Basically if you look at a map of the area look in the area west of Forest Park, east of I-270, north of I-44 (or a mile or two south as well) and south of Dorsett.

[VideoEngineerAJS]

I agree with Creve Coeur if you want more of a suburban feel. Anything in Mid County (just outside the city) is going to be more urban than suburban (especially around the 64/170 interchange).

[gotigers123]

Originally Posted by Ellie7597

I have accepted a new job in St. Louis. The office is located in the Clayton area. I will be starting in November.

I know very little about the St. Louis area. I am hoping the good people of this board can point me in the right direction. First a little about us and then what we'd love to find.

We're a young couple in the 26-31 age band. He's originally from Seattle and I'm originally from NYC but we've been living in New Jersey for a few years now and don't care for it. We don't have children nor do we plan on having any. I work in corporate america and he trains horses.
We enjoy various things - from hiking/camping to lounging at a cool bar/restaurant.

We would be looking to rent a place at first. Preferably a townhome with a bit of green space because we have two dogs. Our budget is flexible because I'm not sure what the rental market is like out there - my experience is limited to NY and that's usually not the greatest point of referene.

We'd love to live in an area that has a bit more of a suburban feel but isn't so far out there that we can't enjoy what the city has to offer. We'd also really like to find an area with other youngish couples without children.

Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

You mention wanting a suburban feel but also mention your interest in townhomes. When I think of suburban feel in the St. Louis area, I think of McMansions in West County. If you're really looking for a suburban feel, go for Chesterfield, Ballwin, places like that.

If you're looking for a place with a bit of space but still close to the amenities of the city, look at Webster, Kirkwood, Clayton, or U City. The houses are a bit smaller and you won't have as much space, but these neighborhoods offer a lot more than a Chesterfield in my opinion.

Youngish couples without children can be found throughout the metro area. The couples out in the suburbs (generalizing here) are typically going to get married relatively early and have kids. If you're looking for young couples that are childless and intend to stay that way, you'd do best in the city. Tower Grove South or Central West End would be my recommendations.

[Alicia Bradley]

Originally Posted by DinsdalePirahna

The National Equestrian Center is located in Wentzville. And there is a lot of green space in the area including a lot of dog parks

I would seriously rent first. St. Louis is not for everyone. You may love it or you may hate it.

Hee hee... I knew I'd find Dinsy on a thread titled 'NJ to St. Louis - requesting advice.' Dins sort of reminds me of a left-wing Archie Bunker (I mean, his left-wingedness is not as relevant/obvious as his Archie Bunker-ness; it's just that AB was famously conservative, while I've seen DP declare himself a progressive at least once). At this point I associate DinsdalePiranha with St. Louis as much as I do the Gateway Arch. And the idea of C-D's DP having an English accent (like the original, Monty Python DP) is oddly incongruous, somehow. But anyway, he's so notorious at this point that he's gotta stay (if he's still there, that is - I honestly have no idea if he is). I'm thinking radio show or something like that. I dunno if C-D reputation/vibe translates very well to radio, but it's worth a shot.

[brownhound]

To keep thread count down, I am adding on to this thread rather than starting a new one (which I'll do if it doesn't stimulate interest).

My wife and I are also looking at moving to St. Louis from NJ. We are 40 years old and have one very young son (2 weeks old), so we aren't into schools yet, but will be in a few years.

We would like to live somewhere relatively urban (i.e., close to downtown, where I'd work). Our budget for a house would be between $300k - $500k, so fairly flexible about area.

For housing, these areas catch our eye: Lafayette Park, CWE, Tower Grove South, Compton Heights, University City, Clayton and similarly-situated places. We'd like somewhere that's safe, but has some amenities we could walk to -- a few restaurants, shops, etc. -- and that might have street life.

For schooling, we'd prefer public, be it somewhere with tony public schools (i.e., Clayton) or somewhere we have to navigate the charter or magnet system.

For life, we don't know a soul in St. Louis, so wouldn't mind an area that we could meet similarly situated folks, be it through mommy groups or extra-curricular activities.

Any thoughts on the above, including the areas I've highlighted?

[billiken]

Every place you listed above would be fantastic, although I'm unfamiliar with the school systems. Clayton is likely the only area where budget would be an issue.

[Brickmama]

Why don't you try downtown? Safe with plenty of things going on. There are a lot of lofts on Washington and some other in the downtown area worth looking at. There is also a growing number of families that live down here. I can post a few links if you are interested.