I will be starting a new job at CWRU in a couple of months and am looking for a 1BR/1BA apartment to rent. I have done some research and have debated about whether to choose something close to CWRU such as Cleveland Heights/Shaker Heights, or something in suburbs such as Mayfield Heights, Rocky River, or Fairview Park. I will be commuting back and forth between Cleveland and Michigan every couple of weeks for the weekend, so I need someplace with parking (preferably a garage). My number one priority is safety. Next is ease of commute (my workdays will start around 6:30-7am). I have never rented an apartment before, so I don't know what the average cost of monthly utilities would be, but I'm looking in the range of $600-$950 (total for rent+utilities). Also if possible I'd like to be close to public transportation in case my car is out of commission. Any recommendations, especially specific apartment buildings would be really appreciated.

Check out the Cedar/Fairmount neighborhood in Cleveland Heights.  It is safe and very close to Case.  You will likely have to park in a city lot, but you could basically walk to work.  I lived on Lennox Road for many years and it is a great neighborhood.  I'm not sure about specific buildings but if you are in town, you can drive the streets and you will see for rent signs.  I moved out about 3 years ago, but at the time I was paying $650 for a 1 BR.   

Check out the Cedar/Fairmount neighborhood in Cleveland Heights.  It is safe and very close to Case.  You will likely have to park in a city lot, but you could basically walk to work.  I lived on Lennox Road for many years and it is a great neighborhood.  I'm not sure about specific buildings but if you are in town, you can drive the streets and you will see for rent signs.  I moved out about 3 years ago, but at the time I was paying $650 for a 1 BR. 

 

Thanks for your reply. :-)

 

A question about the parking. Is parking free in city lots? Can I leave my car there for long periods of time? If I have to pay, do you have any idea how much it would cost? Most importantly, would my car be safe? I don't want to risk having my car broken into, especially if it might be parked there for long periods of time.

You have to pay - when I last lived there it was $30 per month.  I'd say it is safe - as long as you don't leave things like ipods out in the open.  It's well lit.  I never had one issue and I parked there for about 5 years.  If you have a permit, you can leave your car there for as long as you want.

It is a long commute from Mayfield.  Probably not so much on your way in to work given the time of day, but the ride home wouldn't be easy.  It's not that far as the crow flies, but either you have to go in a big loop on 271 to 90, or you have to drive all the way down Mayfield Rd or Monticello Blvd.  And I suspect that the apartments you are seeing in Mayfield in that price range aren't as nice as they appear in pictures.  I agree with the Cedar Fairmount recommendation.  Coventry (an adjacent Cleveland Hts. neighborhood) would be an option as well.  I would also check out downtown and LIttle Italy, especially if you are only looking to park one car.  I am not a big fan of our fantastic west side neighborhoods for people that are new to the City and are going to be working in University Circle.  Tons of people commute from the west side to UC each day and the routes of automobile access aren't the easiest.... which means your commute can be either tolerable or an absolute nightmare.  The only caveats to that is their is a rail link and our traffic really isn't all that congested on a daily basis..... but that's nothing that a little fender bender on the shoreway can't change in an instant.

I agree with the Little Italy or Cedar Fairmount. Little Italy would be great because you would be able to easily walk to CWRU from their. Plus Little Italy is connected to the Red Line rail, and a short walk to the Healthline on Euclid Avenue.

 

Cedar Fairmount is another great neighborhood, but a little further away, so the walk can be tough, mainly because of the hill. Still the drive would only be a few minutes. Both safe areas with a lot happening.

I would definitely check out the apartments around Shaker Square.  A lot of them  have garages, you'd have a 10-minute commute to work (or a quick ride on the number 48 bus,) and RTA's blue and green rail lines pass right through the square for easy access downtown.

I agree with the recommendations for Cedar Fairmount area.

I think that the Little Italy recommendation is a good one.  Someone might be able to give more details, but I'm pretty sure that some of these neighborhoods in University Circle and western Cleveland Heights (Cedar-Fairmount and Coventry) have circulator shuttles I think provided for by the University.

Thanks everyone for the recs. I've been poking around in other threads and apartment rental sites and have a couple of more questions.

 

I know a lot of the apartments in Little Italy, Cedar/Fairmont and the other neighborhoods are in old buildings. Being from Michigan, I know the winters can be a bit rough in Cleveland. Does anyone have any idea how the heating is in these old buildings? I've read some negative online ratings/reviews for Montlack Realty, which owns many of the apartments near University Circle. Things like how the heat is never turned up enough during winter, poor, rude management, maintenance, etc. I'd really be interested if anyone has specific buildings they would recommend or on the other hand stay away from.

I know nothing about Montlack..... but, with the older buildings, I would be more concerned with the units being too hot in the summer as opposed to too cold in the winter.  Many, if not most, of the buildings still have boilers/radiators so central air conditioning is not even an option absent a massive investment by the owners to install air ducts.  That said, its usually not anything a window ac unit can't alleviate to some degree.  Space heaters are also an option for the winter if you are a 'freeze baby'

I rented from Property Investment Company http://propertyinvestmentcompany.com on Lennox for 3 years and always found that they were quick to respond to maintenance requests, etc.  Hallways and laundry room was always clean.  I also had a parking pass for the lot on Euclid Hts/Lennox and never had a problem with safety.  Cleveland Heights has no overnight street parking, so visitors will have to feed a meter to stay overnight.  And the police will be there every night to ticket anyone on the street after 2 or 3.

I've never lived in a montlack building - but I lived on the 3rd floor in a building on lennox and at times it would get so hot in the dead of winter I would crack windows.  I also never had a/c and just relied on box fans. 

I rented from Property Investment Company http://propertyinvestmentcompany.com on Lennox for 3 years and always found that they were quick to respond to maintenance requests, etc.  Hallways and laundry room was always clean.  I also had a parking pass for the lot on Euclid Hts/Lennox and never had a problem with safety.  Cleveland Heights has no overnight street parking, so visitors will have to feed a meter to stay overnight.  And the police will be there every night to ticket anyone on the street after 2 or 3.

 

The parking ban on residential streets begins at 2am.  You are allowed to park on most non-residential streets in the City, but the tricky part is accounting for bans on one side of the street or the other during rush hour.  You can park on Mayfield Rd. for instance right near Coventry.  There is no overnight restriction.  The problem is when you get home from work, you can't park on the eastbound side of the street...... but then you will have to be up early enough (6:30am, I believe) to beat the ban on parking on the westbound side.  It can be a pain.

I rented from Property Investment Company http://propertyinvestmentcompany.com on Lennox for 3 years and always found that they were quick to respond to maintenance requests, etc.  Hallways and laundry room was always clean.  I also had a parking pass for the lot on Euclid Hts/Lennox and never had a problem with safety.  Cleveland Heights has no overnight street parking, so visitors will have to feed a meter to stay overnight.  And the police will be there every night to ticket anyone on the street after 2 or 3.

 

 

The parking ban on residential streets begins at 2am.  You are allowed to park on most non-residential streets in the City, but the tricky part is accounting for bans on one side of the street or the other during rush hour.  You can park on Mayfield Rd. for instance right near Coventry.  There is no overnight restriction.  The problem is when you get home from work, you can't park on the eastbound side of the street...... but then you will have to be up early enough (6:30am, I believe) to beat the ban on parking on the westbound side.  It can be a pain.

 

It can be a pain, but it's even worse trying to drive through the area during rush hour when one or two parked cars (despite the ban) are clogging up traffic.  Luckily the CHPD doesn't mess around and they bring out the tow trucks with the quickness when they catch such a situation.

 

I didn't know about there not being an overnight parking ban on the non-residential streets.  That's interesting...I do know that even on residential streets if you call the CHPD and  let them know about your car being on the street overnight that they usually will leave you alone.  I don't know if that applies to the areas with heavy concentrations of apartment buildings, though.

Hi, everyone!

 

My move has been delayed, but I am still searching for an apartment near CWRU. I have inquired about some of the rentals in the Coventry, Little Italy and Cedar-Fairmont areas, but have not gotten responses.  :-(

 

I did get a response from The Concord, which is located here http://goo.gl/maps/Tq32j . It's a bit further than the above neighborhoods, but still close to CWRU. Is this area of Cleveland Heights a safe one? I would think it would be since the police station is located next to it, but I wanted to get your opinions. Has anyone heard anything about this particular apartment complex?

 

I've also looked at Shaker Heights. Has anyone heard about Shaker Park East apartments located here: http://goo.gl/maps/WmWVj

or Shaker House apartments located here? http://goo.gl/maps/bu5FS

 

Again my biggest concern is finding an apartment in a safe area and any specific comments you may have on these particular apartments. Also if you have any other recommendations for the Cleveland Heights/Shaker Heights area, I would really appreciate it.  :-)

Hi, everyone!

 

My move has been delayed, but I am still searching for an apartment near CWRU. I have inquired about some of the rentals in the Coventry, Little Italy and Cedar-Fairmont areas, but have not gotten responses.  :(

 

I did get a response from The Concord, which is located here http://goo.gl/maps/Tq32j . It's a bit further than the above neighborhoods, but still close to CWRU. Is this area of Cleveland Heights a safe one? I would think it would be since the police station is located next to it, but I wanted to get your opinions. Has anyone heard anything about this particular apartment complex?

 

I've also looked at Shaker Heights. Has anyone heard about Shaker Park East apartments located here: http://goo.gl/maps/WmWVj

or Shaker House apartments located here? http://goo.gl/maps/bu5FS

 

Again my biggest concern is finding an apartment in a safe area and any specific comments you may have on these particular apartments. Also if you have any other recommendations for the Cleveland Heights/Shaker Heights area, I would really appreciate it.  :)

 

I seemed to have missed this thread.  I live on Shaker Square (Shaker Square is a neighborhood in Cleveland, not Shaker Hts.)  Both Shaker Park and Shaker House are solid buildings.  Older buildings, but solid.  You wont find luxury baths & modern kitchens, but the spaces are large. The Square is a safe and happening area that provides lots every day needs, restaurants and entertainment and is close to nature.  Both buildings have roof top decks and the transportation access cannot be any easier for someone commuting to Case, the 48 bus runs right thru the campus.

The Concord has come off as kind of dumpy to me from what I've seen in my few visits.  I mean it's not terrible, but I do think you can do better location-wise and quality-wise.

I suppose the Concord would be OK as a temporary location while you take time to look for a place/neighborhood you can fall in love with. Problem is you might have to do a one-year lease. The rental market is pretty strong right now, so you may not be able to get a 6-month lease. But it's worth a shot.