Moving to St Louis - Never been there (St. Louis, St. Charles: apartment complexes, renting)

[StLouisTransplant]

I registered so that I could reply to the first poster. I would really urge you to visit first, to see how you like it. I moved here from Colorado last year and I live in the West County area. People here are friendly, but nearly everyone is from here originally. Also, I have not personally found it an easy area to get to know people in and that's partially because I am at home and don't work outside of the house. That provides a lot of challenges when relocating.

Now it's really beautiful here, but our first winter here was actually very cold, so make sure you've looked at recent weather trends in the area. It's also pretty humid.

There's one more thing, be careful about buying a house. Interest rates are really quite good, but lease-to-own is not a good option financially.

We personally love it here, because we love the area we bought a house in and neither my husband or I are particularly social. We're happy just to do things together (our son is at college), but if we weren't it really can be a challenging area to get to know anyone. Good luck, but do visit before you move your family, if you can.

[STLviaMSP]

If you're a transplant and you want high quality of life, access to amenities, etc, I'd strongly recommend Shaw, the neighborhoods around Tower Grove, Central West End and Downtown. You can also look at U-City west of the Loop, Webster Groves north of 44, or old town St Charles near Main/riverfront. Old North neighborhood could even be your thing, though it is early in a transitional from hard core ghetto to pretty nice. You could even look into the blocks surrounding Cherokee street. It's a dicey, but up and coming neighborhood with a lot of rehabable brick housing stock and increasingly good amenities in its developing business district. Keep in mind, the vast majority of crime in the city happens north of Page or Delmar, but has been steadily trending down (even though still well above the national average), so if you don't live there or a couple other selected neighborhoods, your odds of being a statistic are pretty much the same as anywhere else (read: low). A lot of other places will force you to spend a lot more time in your car and a lot less time meeting people. Check it out for yourself first, though. See what does it for you. STL loves transplants!

[westender]

Does the OP want urban or suburban? If urban, I'd also recommend Shaw.

But if the OP wants a suburban or semirural environment, I would start looking in West County -- meaning the western part of Saint Louis County, as opposed to within the city limits.

Some of the questions the OP should ask: where will work be?; how many cars will they have versus a highly walkable environment?; the kids will be homeschooled, but will they want other children nearby for social activities?; are they OK with an older home which will require some handyman elbow grease versus a recently constructed home in suburbia?

[sbapasto]

Do NOT do the rent to own thing with the ReMax office!! I know who you are talking about. Contact the BBB for a complaint record first!

[kylertexeira]

Is the crime there really that bad? I have been reading that it is not as bad as statistics show.

[Dawn10am]

Originally Posted by kylertexeira

Is the crime there really that bad? I have been reading that it is not as bad as statistics show.

It's really no different from any other city. It just depends on where you are and what time it is. As long as you use reasonable street smarts (don't leave valuables in plain sight in your car, don't walk alone in an unfamiliar area at night, etc.), you should be fine.

A lot of people who live in the suburbs have an inflated view of crime in the City that's not totally accurate. The North Side is significantly more dangerous than Downtown or the South Side, which are safer, but for some reason suburbanites don't understand that. They're quick to point out how most of the crime in the County happens in North County but that the other parts of the County are fine, yet they don't seem to realize that the same reasoning applies to the City.

[glamatomic]

It's definitely not as bad as the statistics show

As you've probably gathered from the other threads- the county (ie: the suburbs) aren't included in the statistical data due to the political separation of city and county (St. Louis is unique in this regard, most areas use the entire region but the political boundaries were put in place in St. Louis back in the 1800s and haven't shifted). For the greater metro area as a whole, crime is not bad.

As Dawn10am said- a lot of the crime is concentrated in the Northern region of the city.

When I worked, I worked downtown and although my car got broken into a couple of times, I never, ever felt 'unsafe' even when I worked late nights. With that said, I've had my car broken into and stolen in Australia as well, so it was really no big deal to me. It was the kind of thing that could happen anywhere.

Friends who have lived in the city proper have had varying degrees of experience as far as crime goes. For the most part, nobody I've known has ever had any serious issues. Car break ins seem to be the most major thing anyone encounters, and it's not like that is an overly frequent occurrence in most parts of the city!

Some parts of the city are safer than some suburbs, just as some suburbs are safer than parts of the city. It just depends where you choose to live

Overall, crime is NOT the big deal here that people make it out to be! St. Louis doesn't 'scare' me one iota!

[JuanHamez]

Originally Posted by kylertexeira

Is the crime there really that bad? I have been reading that it is not as bad as statistics show.

I've lived here for 4 years and the only crime I ever saw was when somebody asked to borrow another person's phone on the metrolink and the guy walked away with the phone. Don't give your phone to strangers and you'll be fine.

[kylertexeira]

We were thinking of staying here when we get there for the time we are looking for a home. Is this location okay? It's the most affordable place we have found. It's $189/week.
St. Louis Northwest (ZSM) Extended Stay | InTown Suites

[billiken]

I'm not familiar with every area of St Charles, but I have yet to come across a bad location there. I'd imagine this would be a good option.