Arden vs. Greenhaven/pocket vs. Midtown (Sacramento, Woodlake: low income, rental, condos)

[slcgirl]

I am moving to Sacramento from Salt Lake City in a few weeks for graduate school and I am unsure what neighborhood will best fit my needs. It looks like the Arden area has the most options in my price range (under $725 for 1 bed) but as I have read through the other posts no one mentions this area as good or bad. I have heard good things about Midtown and mixed reviews on The Pocket but my rental options there are fewer. As I will mostly spend the next year with my nose in a book I am more concered with safety and less about the local "scene." Also, the more specific you can be (as in from street X to Y is ok) the better as I know NOTHING about this city.

Thanks!

[edwardius]

You said you were going to Grad school, but didn't really say where. I am assuming its CSUS, and if you are going somewhere else my advice might change.

If you are looking to minimise rent and maximise personal safety your best bet is probably to look at renting a spare room in someone else's house. You will lose some privacy probably probably save some money. You could probably find an arrangement like that in Campus Commons or Sierra Oaks which are very safe neighborhoods immediately north of CSUS. Depending on where you live, you might be able to walk or ride your bike to class which could save you more money. Other neighborhoods that are reasonably safe near campus but a little less posh might be College Greens, where again you could probably walk or ride your bike to class.

This is a map of educational attainment in the region. It will give you a general idea of which neighborhoods are low income and where the professional people live. If you play around with that link you can find some other maps that you might find useful too. It will help to give you a general idea of what neighborhoods to consider and what neighborhoods to screen out.

STI: ERsys - Sacramento, CA (Education)

Next this is a map of the craigslist housing ads, but presented in map form, it shows where these listings are. Between the two maps, that should give you a rough idea of what the neighborhood is like.

HousingMaps

But you probably will want more detailed information. If you find a place you are interested in, look up the address here. It will tell you the last 100 crimes that have occurred with in a given radius from that address in a given period. On the advanced features, you can specify which crimes most concern you like say prostitution or gang activity.

Online feature - Crimemapper - sacbee.com

Lastly when you get ready to your narrow your search down, come back here and ask about specific areas. The Arden Arcade area is a big place. There are parts of it that are very nice and others that are less nice.

Since you asked about midtown and greenhaven. If you are looking to live someplace that is quiet. I would probably avoid midtown. It has a lot of bars, drunks and noise. It doesn't sound like what you are looking for. There is nothing wrong with Greenhaven, but its further away from campus and I think College Greens or Campus Commons or even some of the condos off Fulton or Howe like Timberlake or Woodlake might be closer to campus and be equally as safe.

[slcgirl]

I am actually going to law school at Pacific McGeorge but I am not too concerned on being close since my (limited) understanding is that it is not in the best part of town. 15-20 minutes commute if what I am shooting for.

That education map is interesting and I will look at the crime page now, so thanks!

[CityGirl72]

That's the law school close to Oak Park - and yeah - BAD spot to be.

I'd still live in Midtown, as you wat to be close to something when you do get out of the house

[wburg]

Look at renting in Curtis Park, Midtown or East Sacramento--all three are convenient by bike or public transit, driving is possible but parking is limited. If you're in grad school you probably don't want to be too close to the myriad shiny distractions of Midtown.