Moving to Charlotte - Insight & Suggestions (apartment, for rent)

[Kenrod89]

I am moving to Charlotte is about 10 weeks and do not know much about the city. I am a 31 year old male that has lived in downtown Boston and Chicago for the past 8 years. I would like to be walking ditance to great restaurants and bars/lounges (not clubs). The one catch is that I have a one year old lab and need to be in a town house or would prefer something with a park nextdoor or a little yard. Is this even possible or am I better off going a bit outside of downtown but be close to mass transit? Are there lots of taxi's in Charlotte to get around? I pay 2800 a month here in Chicago, but in Charlotte am looking to spend between 1200-1600 a month.
Finally what are the best gyms in the area? Something with basketball, tennis courts, a pool, more of a country club feel but in a gym.
Any help would be greatly appreciated...
Cheers,
Ken

[charlygal]

Hi. It sounds like you would want to look in Uptown and the neighborhoods surrounding Uptown like Dilworth, NoDa, Elizabeth, Plaza Midwood or Myers Park. Maybe into South End. Most neighborhoods have small parks and there are the greenways. Some zip codes are 28202, 28203, 28204, 28205, 28209.

These areas are pretty urban, have bars & restaurants, and you can find townhouses and single family homes for rent in your price range.

You won't find a lot of taxis on the street like you would in NYC, Chicago or Boston, but you can always call a taxi for a pick up. There is a reasonably decent public transportation system. Be sure to go to CATS and do an address search from your job to the potential apartment to see the available routes and commute time.

FYI, I can empathize with you. I recently moved from NYC. I haven't owned a car in over 10 years (too hard in NYC) and I've been getting around okay so far via public transportation. I shop online and get my groceries delivered from the market (Harris Teeter) for a $4.95 delivery charge. I just put in an application for a 2 bd/2 ba townhouse with a small, fenced yard in the Uptown area and the rent is below $1500 a month.

I think you'll find what you want in Charlotte.

[Sean_CLT]

If you're not obsessive about the area and don't mind being about 7 miles out in suburbia, you can rent a small house in your price range. Then get a roommate (if you want) to work the rent down a little cheaper. Having more cash to spend on fun, might mean more in the end than being right next door to the "hip" neighborhoods.

[charlygal]

If the OP moved to suburbia, he would definitely need a car. Wasn't sure if that was a major concern or not since he asked about transit.