Pursuing doctorate at U Penn, help identifying great neighborhoods greatly appreciated! (Philadelphia: renting, townhouses)

[rap3807]

Hi,

I've enjoyed reading through many of the very helpful posts and thought I'd ask a question - any help would be greatly appreciated!

My husband and I (and golden retriever) are considering moving to the Philadelphia area from the DC area (we currently live in Rockville, MD and before that Arlington, VA) for a doctoral program at U Penn.

We're more suburbs people than city people but like having conveniences -- shopping, restaurants, etc. close by. We prefer to walk or take public transportation as opposed to driving when possible! Although we'd like to be close to the university, we'd prefer to live in a more suburban area (we're hoping to buy a house after many years of renting) and commute as necessary. Preferably not more than 20-30 minute commute if possible!

Any suggestions about neighborhoods we should investigate would be GREAT!

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by rap3807

Any suggestions about neighborhoods we should investigate would be GREAT!

Hello there!

Congratulations on pursuing a doctorate at Penn. It's certainly an excellent school. I'm fairly familiar with the DC area, and if I had to equate a certain town or suburban community outside of Philly to Rockville -- given its convenient proximity to DC and with plenty of suburban amenities -- I would chose King of Prussia or Conshohocken. Both are accessible via SEPTA, the public transportation in Southeastern PA, and both are situated right by the Schuylkill Expressway (I-76), which will allow you to have a relatively easy drive to Penn (20-30 min). I'm not sure what your price range for where you plan to live, as both of these areas are increasingly expensive, but I'm sure they're still markedly less to live in compared to the DC area. Good luck!

[rainrock]

Chestnut HIll is a truly great historic neighborhood located in northwest Philadelphia. The residential is suburban in nature but the retail is old school with emphasis on small family owned businesses/restaurants. No chain restaurants or stores in Chestnut HIll but 10-20 minutes away is Plymouth Meeting/King of Prussia which has everything as far as shopping chains goes.

Media/Springfield Pa.area(20 minutes west of U.Penn) also sounds like a good fit. Cherry Hill NJ and as Duderino mentioned King of Prussia are all prototypical american suburbia.

The Mainline towns are also well worth looking into. Ardmore-Narberth-Bryn Mawr-Wayne-Paoli among others.

Good luck









Chestnut Hill came in at #3 as top urban enclaves in the usa behind Park Slope NY and Beverly Hills.


http://www.forbes.com/2007/08/02/hom...ealestate.html

#3- Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pa.



Just north of downtown and with easy access to the center city by public transit or the Schuylkill Expressway, this urban suburb is famous for its cobblestone streets, stately colonial-style townhouses and upscale restaurants and cafes. The populace is mostly comprised of affluent families who work in downtown Philadelphia. The large houses here often have five or six bedrooms and cost from $600,000 to $2 million and up, depending on the location.

[rap3807]

Thank you to you both for the great info! We're spending the weekend in the area and will surely check out these areas! Thanks again for your help.

[FindingZen]

I think it might be appropriate to plug my hometown area of Abington/Jenkintown/Cheltenham. There are three commuter train lines in the area that converge at the Jenkintown-Wyncote train station. Depending on which train station you use, you'd be about 35-40 minutes away from 30th Street Station or University City station, either of which are a short walk or subway commute from Penn.

I'd have to say that IMO Chestnut Hill and many of the Main Line towns are more pedestrian- and transit-friendly than King of Prussia, with all due respect to Duderino.