Where to live it St Louis

[thebigdude]

I may be getting a job in St Louis soon and am looking for some good areas to live. I am from the east coast and have never been to the area so any help would be greatly appreciated. The job would be located near Charles Shaw Park. I am looking for housing in the roughly $100,000 to $150,000 range since I am just starting out. Thanks again for your help.

 

[rivan]

You'll be somewhat limited in that area for that price range - Shaw park's in Clayton, near Richmond Heights and University City. It's quite close to Washington University and Forest Park. It's a very nice area.

The more affordable areas with an easy commute would be Maplewood and Rock Hill. There are parts of University City that are more affordable, and parts of St. Louis City (the Hill/Southwest/Dogtown, etc) are perfectly good to live in. If you look at the City (as opposed to the County, where the other communities I've mentioned are) be sure to stay south of I-40 (slightly north is ok in some areas). A slightly longer commute (but still not bad - 20-25 minutes perhaps) would get you to places like Shrewsbury, Crestwood, Kirkwood and Webster Groves. It may be difficult to find pricing like that in Kirkwood/Webster but shouldn't be a problem in Crestwood. I live in Webster Groves and work within about a mile of Shaw Park.

FYI, there's major construction on I-40 right now and is an inconvenience for commuting south (most of the places I've recommended) from the area you'll be in. However, the construction's slated to be complete at the end of this year.

 

[thebigdude]

Originally posted by: rivan
You'll be somewhat limited in that area for that price range - Shaw park's in Clayton, near Richmond Heights and University City. It's quite close to Washington University and Forest Park. It's a very nice area.

The more affordable areas with an easy commute would be Maplewood and Rock Hill. There are parts of University City that are more affordable, and parts of St. Louis City (the Hill/Southwest/Dogtown, etc) are perfectly good to live in. If you look at the City (as opposed to the County, where the other communities I've mentioned are) be sure to stay south of I-40 (slightly north is ok in some areas). A slightly longer commute (but still not bad - 20-25 minutes perhaps) would get you to places like Shrewsbury, Crestwood, Kirkwood and Webster Groves. It may be difficult to find pricing like that in Kirkwood/Webster but shouldn't be a problem in Crestwood. I live in Webster Groves and work within about a mile of Shaw Park.

FYI, there's major construction on I-40 right now and is an inconvenience for commuting south (most of the places I've recommended) from the area you'll be in. However, the construction's slated to be complete at the end of this year.

Thanks for the detailed answer. I heard that OFallon, Ill might be something to consider as well. Do you know anything about that area?

 

[rivan]

Originally posted by: thebigdude

Originally posted by: rivan
You'll be somewhat limited in that area for that price range - Shaw park's in Clayton, near Richmond Heights and University City. It's quite close to Washington University and Forest Park. It's a very nice area.

The more affordable areas with an easy commute would be Maplewood and Rock Hill. There are parts of University City that are more affordable, and parts of St. Louis City (the Hill/Southwest/Dogtown, etc) are perfectly good to live in. If you look at the City (as opposed to the County, where the other communities I've mentioned are) be sure to stay south of I-40 (slightly north is ok in some areas). A slightly longer commute (but still not bad - 20-25 minutes perhaps) would get you to places like Shrewsbury, Crestwood, Kirkwood and Webster Groves. It may be difficult to find pricing like that in Kirkwood/Webster but shouldn't be a problem in Crestwood. I live in Webster Groves and work within about a mile of Shaw Park.

FYI, there's major construction on I-40 (I-64, oops... it's US40) right now and is an inconvenience for commuting south (most of the places I've recommended) from the area you'll be in. However, the construction's slated to be complete at the end of this year.

Thanks for the detailed answer. I heard that OFallon, Ill might be something to consider as well. Do you know anything about that area?

I can't really comment on the livability of any of the cities on the other side of the river, except that they're in general less expensive to live in and are mostly small/smallish towns (the city names I mentioned above are actually all just part of the St. Louis metro area - St. Louis county's a little funny about that), but that crossing the river will add I'd guess a minimum of 20-30 minutes to your commute. The construction I mentioned will further complicate the matter - see this PDF map of the construction. Shaw Park is just north of Big Bend on that map; the commute to/from the east is a tough one.

What sort of things are you looking for out of an area to live? Nightlife/restaurants nearby? Quiet neighborhoods of homes on larger lots? More urban, less urban?

 

[thebigdude]

The maximum commute I am comfortable with is about 30 min so that would eliminate anything east of the river it seems. I checked out some real estate at Crestwood that you recommended and that really looked like a solid suggestion. I would say that we are looking for a quiet neighborhood with solid restaurants within a 20 minute drive or so.Thanks again for all your help.