trying to move to philly in april but, know nothing about philly! (Philadelphia: affordable apartments, for rent)

[mali24]

Hey. I'm trying to move to philly in April from a small town in Maryland. I have a 5yr old boy and a cat! Looking for a nice area with near by parks, schools and nursing homes or hospitals .Anyone know of a specific area i should look? I would like to be able to get to malls in a good amount of time as well! Any suggestions?

[orrmobl]

Do you want city or suburbs?

I would def recommend suburbs to you, an area like Exton or Downingtown or at least Downingtown schools or West Chester would be a good fit...or maybe Bucks county - Central Bucks and Upper Dublin schools are great.

Also Media, Springfield Delaware County have most of what you are looking for, just depends how much you want to spend for rent or mortgage, how big a place you need and where...please let us know and we can better help you.

[reevesy]

I agree with orrmobl, please give a better description of what you NEED. If you live in the city, you can find nice areas but you have to send you kid to non-public schools. Outside the city, it is hit or miss. Like orrmobl said, southwest suburbs are nice, Drexel Hill is affordable with decent schools. central Bucks county is probably the best around in this area but you have to pay a lot to live out there.

[carolinajack]

chestnut hill, it has great apartments and the best elementary schools (public) in the city-Jenks. Also Mt Airy have some good affordable apartments, even a coop apartments with nice down to earth folk. Chestnut hill has walkable streets, a posh shopping district, great parks, affordable garden apartment rents, nice people too-they will actually talk to you, and its in the city.

go to chestnut hill local in google and check the apartments and availabilities.

they are good with dogs too

[kyle19125]

If you'd like a nice small town feel, yet still somewhat convenient to the city I'd recommend Narberth. It's very convenient to Philadelphia via the R5 train (about 20 minutes) and it's walkable so a car isn't necessary at all times, or even at all if you'd prefer. The schools are great, it's safe and very family-friendly. Good luck!

Narberth, Pennsylvania - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[lititzman2003]

If you want to live in the city I'd recommend the Parkwood and Academy Gardens section of Northeast Philly. It's near the Franklin Mills mall and the Street Road shopping district. Frankford-Torresdale hospital is close by as well as a Nursing Home whose name escapes me now but I believe it's on Knights Road. There's also a YMCA, several public and private schools and plenty of playgrounds and parks. Travel wise you're close to I-95, Woodhaven Road, the PA Turnpike and you have easy access to New Jersey. Good luck with your move.

[thesixth]

If you consider the Northeast Phila. area, you also have Nazareth Hosp. and Holy Redeemer Hosp. as nearby otpions for work.

[rmn728]

I've lived here for over 20 years and we also have small children. You couldn't pay me enough to move to Philly. We live in Bucks County. If you have small children, Philly schools have a lot to improve. Bucks County is much safer and there are many parks and malls are also close by. The car insurance is also much higher in the city limits of Philly. Crime, drug dealers, and gangs are a large problem in Philadelphia and the past few months all I hear on the news are about teenagers attacking innocent people simply walking down the street. Take my advice, think twice about moving to Philly. I advise the suburbs!!!!!!!!!!!

[bryson662001]

As long as you have access to the internet there is no reason why you can't become an expert with more knowledge than most natives. You have already made a good start.

[RightonWalnut]

Originally Posted by rmn728

I've lived here for over 20 years and we also have small children. You couldn't pay me enough to move to Philly. We live in Bucks County. If you have small children, Philly schools have a lot to improve. Bucks County is much safer and there are many parks and malls are also close by. The car insurance is also much higher in the city limits of Philly. Crime, drug dealers, and gangs are a large problem in Philadelphia and the past few months all I hear on the news are about teenagers attacking innocent people simply walking down the street. Take my advice, think twice about moving to Philly. I advise the suburbs!!!!!!!!!!!

There are not very many gangs in Philly... this is not one of the problems Philly deals with. There is crime and drugs of course... but most of this is in North and West Philly. There are plenty of safe areas of the city. This is typical suburban talk. Watching the news and terrifying yourself and not getting out and experience things for yourself