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Old 01-06-2014, 08:33 AM
 
16 posts, read 23,795 times
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Situation:
I have an interview for a position out of Clayton. I've never been to St. Louis and have been out of work for a year. I currently live on Long Island, NY and and very open to moving out of this crazy crazy place and have had interviews all around the country.

The job would pay me in the 40's, grr which is a lot lower than I was making here. My current rent is $1,200/month for a small 2 bedroom apartment on the 2nd floor of a house, probably 800 square feet or so. Street parking, shopping nearby, parks, mostly safe, etc. I am married and my wife doesn't currently make much, she's currently making around $20K/year. Assuming she continues that pattern, we'll be grossing in the mid 60K range together.

What are some comparable areas/apartments around Clayton that fit this situation? I'm just looking for something quiet but not rural, blue collar but not so gritty tough as nails, some place with a Main Street (a.k.a. center of town), a park here and there, safe enough, you know typical crap.

I know I know, I have to visit first to make sure I like it...if the interview goes well I'll work on that Thanks for your input!
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Old 01-06-2014, 09:15 AM
 
Location: Saint Louis, MO
1,912 posts, read 4,689,514 times
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Webster Groves. I think you'd be able to find something at around the same price point or lower. Easy drive to Clayton.
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Old 01-06-2014, 09:32 AM
 
Location: St Louis, MO
4,677 posts, read 5,769,111 times
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Clayton is very expensive, but most of St Louis County and pretty much all of the city of St Louis (not part of the county) is a pretty easy commute to Clayton.
You can find lots of apartments in University City that fit this range. Western U-City is walking distance to Clayton (I used to walk to Clayton for work from U-City when I first moved here). Most have off street parking too. I don't U-City fits the rest of your preferred area as well, but....
it would give you an easy base to start from for a year or so while you figure out your ideal city to live in. We have 90 cities in St Louis County alone, and really well over 100 definable regions. I found it easier to have a couple of years here before finding where to settle down (in our case, Parkway North area, where I can still get to Clayton in under 25 minutes during rush hour).
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Old 01-06-2014, 09:40 AM
 
Location: St. Louis, MO
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Webster Groves or Kirkwood are the first places that spring to mind
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Old 01-06-2014, 09:43 AM
 
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Thank you all. A quick search has brought me here...does anyone know anything about this area/complex?

Southwoods Apartments - Saint Louis, MO 63126 | Apartments for Rent
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Old 01-06-2014, 11:43 AM
 
787 posts, read 1,415,172 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maideneer View Post
Thank you all. A quick search has brought me here...does anyone know anything about this area/complex?

Southwoods Apartments - Saint Louis, MO 63126 | Apartments for Rent
That location is really far away from Clayton. I don't know what your architectural preferences are but St. Louis City and the inner ring suburbs of University City and Clayton are known for beautiful brick single family and multifamily houses.

I live in the University City neighborhood of University Park - It's just north of Clayton. Here is a map of the neighborhood: Map

U Park is bordered by two parks and you can walk to Clayton (less than a mile) or The Loop which is a mile east: Visit The Loop

U Park is a combination of single family and two/four family apartment buildings. It is a gorgeous and safe area. Lots of professionals (MD's, lawyers, university profs) live in the single family houses. Grad students populate the rental properties. There are lots of young families, tons of kids and dog walkers. Here's an example of a U Park apartment:

Renovated Charming 5 Rm, 2 Br, 1 Bath 1st Flr Flat!

My daughter rents an apartment about a mile west of us at Hampton Park on Delmar Blvd. This is a very safe area as well and is close to Clayton. Here's an example of a Hampton Park apt:
Desirable location, affordable prices!

Hope this helps.
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Old 01-06-2014, 02:57 PM
 
16 posts, read 23,795 times
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Those apartments look pretty nice...another quick search showed me apartments in a complex called The District. BEAUTIFUL! Although something about it seems off, it looks way too cheap for what they are posting. Does this seem reasonable?

The District | Apartments for Rent in St. Louis, MO
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Old 01-06-2014, 04:48 PM
 
787 posts, read 1,415,172 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maideneer View Post
Those apartments look pretty nice...another quick search showed me apartments in a complex called The District. BEAUTIFUL! Although something about it seems off, it looks way too cheap for what they are posting. Does this seem reasonable?

The District | Apartments for Rent in St. Louis, MO
That's an apartment complex that's been newly renovated and (I guess) under new ownership. It does look very nice. The location is very central and safe. The prices are lower than you might expect most likely because of the school district it's in: University City schools don't have a great reputation. Gorgeous housing stock south and immediately north of Delmar. There isn't much of a middle class in U City, working class/poor kids go to U City public schools and the upper class kids are in private/parochial schools. We only moved to U City after our kids graduated from high school in 2011. That the reality. If that apartment complex were in the Clayton or Ladue school district the rents would easily be double. But if you don't have school age kids it would be a great place to try for your first year in STL.
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Old 01-06-2014, 05:21 PM
 
59 posts, read 80,269 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maideneer View Post
Those apartments look pretty nice...another quick search showed me apartments in a complex called The District. BEAUTIFUL! Although something about it seems off, it looks way too cheap for what they are posting. Does this seem reasonable?

The District | Apartments for Rent in St. Louis, MO
I ride the bus through there all the time and it looks like a nice place to live. That one and the complex across the highway are all owned by the same people, so it is a huge complex. The one thing I would take into consideration is that it is right on the highway, so depending on exactly which building you end up in, there might be a fair amount of highway noise. But it is a nice area with easy access to UCity and Clayton.
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Old 01-06-2014, 07:14 PM
 
3,618 posts, read 3,055,951 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maideneer View Post
Those apartments look pretty nice...another quick search showed me apartments in a complex called The District. BEAUTIFUL! Although something about it seems off, it looks way too cheap for what they are posting. Does this seem reasonable?

The District | Apartments for Rent in St. Louis, MO
That is mighty convenient to Clayton. Having driven by there a lot, the exterior looks kind of drab, like married-student housing-- plain brick box buildings with no patios or balconies, but it does appear mostly clean and well kept; I suspect it is mostly a young professional crowd. It's surrounded by some solid residential areas, some quite nice. They just finished a nice paved trail path that goes from there down to Ladue Rd, where you would find the Ladue Schnucks (my favorite local grocery store) and the Ladue Crossing shopping center. The location is pretty excellent.
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