Good Neighborhoods for Musicians? (Lincoln, Bridgeport: renting, felons, subsidized)

[chirack]

Originally Posted by NeedFreedom

I'm going to try to make this as short as possible. Please PLEASE send your suggestions/advice. You never know how much you're really helping somebody!!

With that said, I plan on moving to Chicago in March. Unfortunately, I have to move there alone and I'll have to find a roommate (a stranger!!) to help with paying the rent. I'm only 20 years old and I have to drop out of college because I can't get Financial Aid anymore. I'M BROKE AS HELL and when I say broke, I mean I have to "stretch" everything from shampoo to my food stamps.

To tell you the truth, I'm very scared about my whole situation, but I play music on the side right now just to keep my mind off of things so much. I'll be coming from Detroit, on a 4 hour drive by myself because I just don't have good friends. Not trying to feel sorry for myself, but it's the truth

Before anybody goes off telling me that I'm not in the position to move anywhere, just don't even waste your time. I've been contemplating moving for 3 years now and now I'm finally in MORE of a position to do it. So, I am.

Some questions I have...

1) Where is a community that I can live in with cheap rent? I don't care if it's the ghetto.

2) Are there any communities with a lot of artistic people (with cheap housing rent)

3)Is parking hard to find?

4)Jobs. Jobs. Jobs......Is it hard to find one in Chicago?

5) Any advice that you have at all, I will gladly listen, just don't preach! lol

1. Ghettos have cheap rent but might not be safe. You will need a roommate. How cheap does it have to be?

2. Yeap but they are not that cheap.

3. Depends on where you live or need to be. Some areas like downtown, buck town, Lincoln Park, parts of Lakeview are so bad that it is madness to own a car here (or drive one daily). Other area it may be just bad enough that a little preplanning is needed and in still others you could park a bus on the street. Another thing is you can, not have a car in Chicago as a monthly cta pass is $86. This can be a big money saver. The cta is slow and standing out in the cold isn’t much fun but it can get you where you need to be.

4. At the moment the job market suck here better than Michigan, but still far from hot.

5. Don't worry we don't preach around here. The other post you saw was someone trying to do something quite dangerous(i.e. more dangerous than just live in the cities worst ghetto or move with little support). The folks here welcome new young artists to Chicago even broke ones but please don't do anything like the OP in the other thread (i.e. something that needlessly puts your life at risk). We like to welcome future artists to town, not future corpses.

[NeedFreedom]

Thanks Chirack, good info Now, what are those artist communities that you're talking about?

And a bus pass?! Is that mandatory?

To answer your first question, as cheap as $300. And like I said, I don't mind living in the ghetto for a while. I've lived there all my life so, I have an idea of what to expect. I'm a strong believer that if you let your presence known, then people with f*** with you a lot less. At least, from my experience.

Originally Posted by chirack

1. Ghettos have cheap rent but might not be safe. You will need a roommate. How cheap does it have to be?

2. Yeap but they are not that cheap.

3. Depends on where you live or need to be. Some areas like downtown, buck town, Lincoln Park, parts of Lakeview are so bad that it is madness to own a car here (or drive one daily). Other area it may be just bad enough that a little preplanning is needed and in still others you could park a bus on the street. Another thing is you can, not have a car in Chicago as a monthly cta pass is $86. This can be a big money saver. The cta is slow and standing out in the cold isn’t much fun but it can get you where you need to be.

4. At the moment the job market suck here better than Michigan, but still far from hot.

5. Don't worry we don't preach around here. The other post you saw was someone trying to do something quite dangerous(i.e. more dangerous than just live in the cities worst ghetto). The folks here welcome new young artists to Chicago even broke ones but please don't do anything like the OP in the other thread (i.e. something that needlessly puts your life at risk). We like to welcome future artists to town, not future corpses.

[chirack]

Wickerpark and bucktown. Parts of Oak park and evanston(near burbs.). However they are out of your price range. $300 a month can't buy you a room by yourself in a ghetto you are going to need roomates period.

The bus pass is not madatory but depending on where you live and work it can be. Here is the problem with cars in chicago(and I love my car by the way). The hot hipster areas tend to have bad parking and meters can run a $1 an hour! The city tickets like crazy in thoose areas and even in a ghetto which do have good parking you may wind up parked at the end of the block as opposed to in front of your place.

The car can be heaven or it can be hell. You will need a city sticker, state license plate sticker and insurance at a minimum. This stuff is expensive and gas currently runs about $2.80 a gallon here.

I wouldn't immediately dump the car esp. if it is paid for but here is a place where you could economize if you have to and depending on where you work (you may or may not need the car at all). Basically if you work downtown you will not be driving there. If you work elsewhere in the city you may or may not be driving there. If you work in the burbs (or live in the burbs) you may have no choice but to drive there.

Forgot to add check out roomates.com or craig's list for a roomate.

[eevee]

you can find rooms for rent for $300 in areas like Little Village, West Humboldt Park, and maybe even sections of Pilsen. WARNING: the first 2 areas mentioned are very rough around the edges and I don't even the idea of recommending them, but you said you'd be okay w/ a "ghetto" and at that price range, you don't have many options. you may luck out and find a room that cheap in East Humboldt Park, which is a bit safer than the western portion and borders a couple of artsy areas like Wicker Park. Logan Sq may be another option, though I'm not sure about the rents there

[chirack]

Also hate to bring race into the discussion but what race are you? Ghettos in chicago are very segergated by race.

[nidex]

So you have a 2000 dollar check... and you are spending $1000 on a used molester van, and then "3 or 400" to fix it up...? Do you know anything about vehicles? I hope so if you plan on buying an old van and think that it's not going to break on you.

...if I were you, I'd find a room mate off Craigslist for $250 a month, then that will give you some time to get yourself on your feet. You have PLENTY of options, spending all of your money on a van and living in it is well... not the brightest idea.

[surlycue]

^^Didn't you listen??!! She has absolutely no other options and clearly you guys have never experienced the plight of being an overly idealistic 21 year old!

[WhaThe]

Ya, cars/vans are money sinks. I'd get a CTA pass and a storage shed if needed plus hit Craigslist. People have the hardest time letting go of vehicles. You don't need one here.

That's kind of how I did it when I moved back. Threw my stuff in a storage shed and camped out in a friends basement for six months till I could get on my feet.

I knew I had arrived when I could pull everything out of storage.

[Marc2]

Hey buddy, moved from the D to Chicago myself about five years ago. You sound like you would do really well in Lincoln Square. That is where most of the struggling artists I know live. Wicker Park and Bucktown can be a lot more pricey, though they are certainly the most trendy/hipster neighborhoods.

The truth is you can find reasonable rent anywhere in the city, you just have to look. I have very reasonable rent and live in a neighborhood people think you have to be a millionaire to live in.

I would look, though, in Lincoln Square, Lakeview, Andersonville, Ravenswood and, yeah, poke around W. Park and Bucktown on Craigslist. One note: Avoid Uptown, it's a hellhole!

You'll love it here. Re: the job market, I mean, worst case scenario, it's 1,000 times better than Detroit.

Good luck!

[Marc2]

Also, Humboldt Park can be dangerous.

Ditto Pilsen.

But a lot of artists move to those places and will turn their nose up at you if you say it's dangerous : ) But it is.