Hi all. I have a friend who will be moving from Akron to Cleveland in the next several months. He is pretty unfamiliar with Cleveland neighborhoods and would like some advice about where to locate. I've given him my standard advice but recognize that I definitely have "preferred" neighborhoods, so I thought I would get some perspectives from some other people on here, particularly those of you on the West Side. Here's some background:

 

- He's an attorney currently practicing in Rocky River. One of the major reasons for the move is to cut his commute time; therefore, he's primarily interested in neighborhoods that would afford him a relatively easy commute to both Rocky River and to the courtrooms, etc. downtown.

 

- He has a preference for an "urban" neighborhood. He wasn't too clear as to what he thinks "urban" is, but he does seem have a strong preference for the city proper or the inner-city suburbs. He currently lives in Akron's "gayborhood" (Highland Square, I think); I'm not too familiar with that area so can't really approximate housing stock, amenities, etc. for him, but I get the impression that density, access to arts and culture, environmental amenities, etc., rank much more importantly than schools, crime, etc.

 

- He prefers to buy over renting and has a price range of up to $150,000. He has no preference for new construction v. rehab. He does not, however, want to be doing any structural rehab himself (i.e. he's willing to sand floors or paint, but he doesn't want to be doing anything requiring drywalling or anything comparable or more complex). Meanwhile, he's pretty averse to anything that would require dealing with a homeowner's association and also pretty averse to condos (a higher preference for single-family, two-family, townhouse and rowhouse).

 

- He would welcome advice not only about neighborhoods but also about specific for-sale opportunities. To date, of all the things I've showed him, Battery Park has piqued his interest the most. Based on that, I recommended he also take a look at EcoVillage. I get the impression that he would be most favorable to Detroit Shoreway, Edgewater and Ohio City (in that order), but I would definitely welcome other perspectives.

 

Any additional thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edgewater sounds like a no-brainer, although home prices might be a little on the high end, depending on exactly where the house is.  I think Clifton, West Blvd. and the W. 100s to 110s north of Detroit would be good bets, since he'd be close enough to Clifton to either head west into River or east on the Shoreway to downtown. 

 

Detroit Shoreway and Ohio City would both be ok, but he wouldn't be as close to Rocky River.  He'd probably want to take 90 west if he lived in one of those neighborhoods, which is less scenic than Clifton, of course.  Still, those are the three neighborhoods that I'd recommend.  Nice job, 8Shades!

$150 won't buy you anything in Battery Park. I think that there are 1 bedroom loft units that cost around $175k.  But then again, the tax abatement might bring down the monthly payment so that he could afford it. I'm assuming that all units in BP are going to have monthly fees.

 

 

wait an attorney with a price range up to 150k? I know some people don't like to spend up to their pre-approved mortgage levels, but jeepers. Either that or he's the lowest paid attorney in the history of barristerdom.

wait an attorney with a price range up to 150k? I know some people don't like to spend up to their pre-approved mortgage levels, but jeepers. Either that or he's the lowest paid attorney in the history of barristerdom.

 

well, the *median* salary for attorneys is around 80,000, this would include attorneys at all levels.  public attorneys only make mid 30s to start, for example.

 

also, there could be law school debt.  add a 100k of loans in to the mix, and it changes things.

 

finally, akron has a lot of affordable and nice properties in the highland square area for 150k.  maybe he doesn't realize that everything in cleveland is a little more to get the same type of property.

there are a few scattered brick row houses in the oc / detroit shoreway area possibily in that price range. Not sure of interior condition. I believe I have seen them off franklin/bridge area and perhaps w65th area. Let me put by thinking cap on.  Tax abatements will lower costs in Battery Park...but then the condo fees  and associations would need to be endured.

http://progressiveurban.com/homepage_frameset.htm  maybe he can check this out.  It has a homeowners assoc though.

edit. link not direct. it is the chicle townhomes. check realtor.com in the 44102 zip as well

ok now this townhouse looks cool:  http://progressiveurban.com/homepage_frameset.htm  the direct links dont seem to work  on the progressveurban site...but this is the address if you go to the site and plug it in. : $129,900

6404 Bridge

Cleveland, OH, 44102

 

very close to downtown and easy to get to rocky river. Neighbors could be druggie, artist or professional-ya never know!

Neighbors could be druggie, artist or professional-ya never know!

 

Now that's what I call urban! :-D

 

One thing that I forgot to mention above is that most of the houses in the Edgewater area are duplexes, just for your friend's information.

Neighbors could be druggie, artist or professional-ya never know!

 

Now that's what I call urban! :-D

 

One thing that I forgot to mention above is that most of the houses in the Edgewater area are duplexes, just for your friend's information.

 

Most? Have you driven up W.103, 104, etc? The majority are single family homes.

Thanks for the correction.

From everything I've read (and I'm very familiar with Highland Square), I'd steer your friend toward Clifton/Edgewater. If he was only working downtown, then go for Ohio City/Detroit-Shoreway/etc. Getting to/from River from the inner hoods via 90 can be a pain in the arse - with Clifton/Edgewater, he can zip down Lake or Clifton. On the days he works downtown, he can take the 55. I'd also recommend it since he'd be moving from one gayborhood to another and it would be a little less jarring.

Thanks for all the input, guys. A couple final questions: If he did choose either Ohio City or Detroit-Shoreway, how much time would it add onto a morning commute to Rocky River, compared to if he locates in Edgewater? If he's in the North part of Detroit-Shoreway or the OC, wouldn't it make more sense to hop on the Shoreway (via Lake Ave. or W. 45th)? And finally, does anyone have any thoughts on Lakewood as an option? I'm not terribly familiar with the various neighborhoods of Lakewood, price points, etc. Thanks.

In either Ohio City or Detroit Shoreway, the Shoreway is just as accessible (perhaps more so) as I-90. You're right about access points in Detroit Shoreway, 8Shades, and in Ohio City you simply take W. 25th north to the entrance there. It would be perhaps another 5-10 minutes longer than the commute from Edgewater.

 

I will leave the Lakewood question to someone more knowledgeable, though of course we would prefer to have him in the city! :)

 

P.S. Peabody -- to get the direct link for a PURE listing, right-click on "View Details" and select "Open in a new window (or tab)." The direct link will then be displayed.

I think anywhere in Lakewood would be fine, but especially if he stays north of Detroit at the eastern end of the city. The southeast corner of Lakewood has gotten a little dicey, and that area is bordered by Detroit on the north and Cohassett/Madison Park on the west. Birdtown (south of Madison, east of Madison Park) is a neat little neighborhood, but does have its challenges. It is seeing some improvements thanks to an influx of Albanian immigrants who are striving to make a better life for themselves here.

 

Downtown Lakewood, Gold Coast and West End has some rental/purchase in both single-family and multi-family housing. The area along Madison between Bunts Road and Rocky River Drive is one of my favorite streets in all of Cleveland. Lots of restaurants, little bars, mom-and-pop shops -- what most of Cleveland used to be like. But I love the density of downtown Lakewood and the Gold Coast.

 

Any of those places has stuff in common with Highland Square (one of my old stomping grounds when I was in college in the late 1980s). Same is true with the Clifton-Edgewater neighborhood. If he looks at all these options, he will expand his range of choices and most likely find a house and a neighborhood he will fall in love with.