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Thinking about moving to Providence?


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We've had some people post and inquire about moving to Providence (lot's of Boston refugees out there :P ).

If you're a lurker and want to ask us locals some questions, here's a place to do so.

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I am looking to move to Providence May 1st or June 1st and was wondering where to live. I am looking for a one or two bedroom for around $1000 - $1500 that is newly renovated, has heat / AC, washer / dryer, dishwasher, possibly a balcony, parking, and is within walking distance of my downtown office right across the street from Brown. I would like to live in an extremely nice neighborhood where I can walk around at any hour and feel safe. It would be nice if there are quaint shops and restaurants in the area. I have heard that the Eastside and College Hill are supposed to be nice. I have checked out Craig's List, but that has not been very helpful. Should I try to use a broker and if so does anyone have any recommendations for a broker? Also, what is the best time to find a place? May 1st or June 1st? Any thoughts on where to live, when is the best time to move, and how to find a place would be greatly appreciated.

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I am looking to move to Providence May 1st or June 1st and was wondering where to live. I am looking for a one or two bedroom for around $1000 - $1500 that is newly renovated, has heat / AC, washer / dryer, dishwasher, possibly a balcony, parking, and is within walking distance of my downtown office right across the street from Brown. I would like to live in an extremely nice neighborhood where I can walk around at any hour and feel safe. It would be nice if there are quaint shops and restaurants in the area. I have heard that the Eastside and College Hill are supposed to be nice. I have checked out Craig's List, but that has not been very helpful. Should I try to use a broker and if so does anyone have any recommendations for a broker? Also, what is the best time to find a place? May 1st or June 1st? Any thoughts on where to live, when is the best time to move, and how to find a place would be greatly appreciated.

i live in elmhurst, west of providence college. it's a quieter neighborhood with fewer apartments, but they are to be found. i feel safe all the time because it's mostly older people or families with children. there's some bars and bakeries within walking distance. elmhurst is not within walking distance of downtown, unless you don't mind walking about 2-3 miles one way, but there are several bus lines that go by here.

i suggest you come to providence and drive around. people can recommend places, but you won't find what works for you until you see it.

you also might want to narrow down what exactly you're looking for. all that might be harder to find. federal hill and college hill/east side are near downtown. college hill would be more expensive than federal hill, but it's less "sketchy" (unless you're on either broadway or atwells on federal hill).

try craigslist, there's a bunch of listings there. brown also has a site with off-campus living info that you can access. there's also the providence journal which has listings online. also look at brown's daily jolt page.

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I finally found an apartment -- I'm thrilled with it. I agree that it's important to drive around Providence to figure out what's important to you. I'm the kind of person that needs to live near some shops/places that people hang out so that I don't feel too isolated. I personally decided I wanted to live in Wayland Square because Fox Point felt a little too post-collegiate to me, and the area near Hope and Rochambeau was a close second, but I though I might end up hanging out more in Wayland Sq. I also like the proximity to Wickendon and to the Brown campus, etc.

I don't know about realtors -- I think that oftentimes rents are slightly higher if you find an apartment through a realtor (even if you aren't paying some "finder's fee"). The best thing to do is to look through craigslist a lot and look at the pictures and drive around to look at places, at least from the outside. I think you'll get a sense of what the prices generally are for the different setups (one BR, two BR) and different areas and when the rent is crazy, and when it's a steal. I still shake my head at some people trying to rent out a 1-2 BR for >$2000/month. That's just doesn't make any sense!

Anyway, if you have time to get a feel for PVD, that'd be a great way to go. I don't know much about Federal Hill and places that some people here live and love -- I do want to check out those areas soon to hang out in -- but I decided that I wanted to live close to a Whole Foods! :) (At least while it's still open!!)

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I am looking to move to Providence May 1st or June 1st and was wondering where to live. I am looking for a one or two bedroom for around $1000 - $1500 that is newly renovated, has heat / AC, washer / dryer, dishwasher, possibly a balcony, parking, and is within walking distance of my downtown office right across the street from Brown. I would like to live in an extremely nice neighborhood where I can walk around at any hour and feel safe. It would be nice if there are quaint shops and restaurants in the area. I have heard that the Eastside and College Hill are supposed to be nice. I have checked out Craig's List, but that has not been very helpful. Should I try to use a broker and if so does anyone have any recommendations for a broker? Also, what is the best time to find a place? May 1st or June 1st? Any thoughts on where to live, when is the best time to move, and how to find a place would be greatly appreciated.

You have a fairly well defined list of criteria here. The main one being that you want to be within walking distance from your office. That effectively defines your search area to a circle centered on your office having a radius determined by your definition of "walking distance". That circle might intersect several neighborhoods. We could discuss each of them if we knew where the circle was and how big it is. Saying your office is downtown across from Brown is a little confusing since Brown is largely on College Hill but does have some downtown property.

Can you give us a little more information without exposing too much personal information?

That said, and referencing the map you attached to your post...

Since your office is downtown, and close to Brown then it could be on/near North Main St. If this is the case you should probably be looking either downtown or at College Hill. Those areas will take most if not all of your budget to get what you are asking for. They are very different neighborhoods. How urban do you want to be?

Craig's list can be good but it helps to know the city to help youfilter out the areas that don't work for you.

Saw this one you might want to look at. listing and map

DISCLAIMER: I don't know this apt or anything other than what is in the Craig's list listing. The location might work for you though.

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Well done, Priscilla! Hopefully, we'll be following in your footsteps before too long. But what's this about Whole Foods? Is there a doubt that it will remain open?

Last I heard from a neighbor who works at the WF on Waterman, that's just a rumor and there are no plans to close it. In fact, they recently renovated several parts of the store.

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You have a fairly well defined list of criteria here. The main one being that you want to be within walking distance from your office. That effectively defines your search area to a circle centered on your office having a radius determined by your definition of "walking distance". That circle might intersect several neighborhoods. We could discuss each of them if we knew where the circle was and how big it is. Saying your office is downtown across from Brown is a little confusing since Brown is largely on College Hill but does have some downtown property.

Can you give us a little more information without exposing too much personal information?

That said, and referencing the map you attached to your post...

Since your office is downtown, and close to Brown then it could be on/near North Main St. If this is the case you should probably be looking either downtown or at College Hill. Those areas will take most if not all of your budget to get what you are asking for. They are very different neighborhoods. How urban do you want to be?

Craig's list can be good but it helps to know the city to help youfilter out the areas that don't work for you.

Saw this one you might want to look at. listing and map

DISCLAIMER: I don't know this apt or anything other than what is in the Craig's list listing. The location might work for you though.

i should add to this one that you should check out the housing maps site. basically, it combines craigslist with google maps so that you can see the listings and see where the apartments are as well.

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Nice link. It doesn't have the listing I linked to but it is a very cool tool.

Thanks for all the words of wisdom. Based on my limited knowledge, I am leaning towards finding a place in College Hill. I work in the Turks Head Building in the Financial District and living in College Hill would be a nice easy walk. I realize that College Hill is pretty expensive, but willing to spend a good amount for the convenience and the nice neighborhood. I am planning to walk around the city this weekend to get a better idea of the what's around and where I think I might like to be. A buddy from work lives on benefit street and he's a fan. He also recommended Wickendon.

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Thanks for all the words of wisdom. Based on my limited knowledge, I am leaning towards finding a place in College Hill. I work in the Turks Head Building in the Financial District and living in College Hill would be a nice easy walk. I realize that College Hill is pretty expensive, but willing to spend a good amount for the convenience and the nice neighborhood. I am planning to walk around the city this weekend to get a better idea of the what's around and where I think I might like to be. A buddy from work lives on benefit street and he's a fan. He also recommended Wickendon.

Good choice. The only thing I can find wrong with the East Side (besides maybe price) is the fact that much of it's on a hill, and walking or driving during the winter might get tricky. It's a beautiful (and safe) neighborhood. I love Thayer.

Also, parts of Federal Hill may be seedy, but so long as you're a guy and (I'm sorry, but assholes exist) not flamboyantly gay I don't think you'd have much of a problem walking around at any hour. One of my college classmates got beat up in broad daylight by a gang of angry black schoolchildren right off Thayer, so weird crap can and does happen anywhere. I think both areas are definately safe enough to live in, though if you could afford it the East Side does have very low crime and it's more aesthetically pleasing.

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Good choice. The only thing I can find wrong with the East Side (besides maybe price) is the fact that much of it's on a hill, and walking or driving during the winter might get tricky.

RISDs groundskeepers do an amazing job clearing snow. If there is snow on the ground, or falling, use Waterman Street to go up and down the hill if on foot.

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Sorry for the terribly boring question, but I couldn't find what I was looking for using the "search" option. What are the utility companies in Providence that I'll need to contact? Are there choices? Is one better than the other in the categories? I know that, for example, there is cox v. verizon. In terms of communications, I need high-speed internet +/-- phone service. (Better for me NOT to have cable!! :rolleyes: )

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Sorry for the terribly boring question, but I couldn't find what I was looking for using the "search" option. What are the utility companies in Providence that I'll need to contact? Are there choices? Is one better than the other in the categories? I know that, for example, there is cox v. verizon. In terms of communications, I need high-speed internet +/-- phone service. (Better for me NOT to have cable!! :rolleyes: )

Well if you don't want cable, then just get Verizon DSL, and a Verizon home phone.

Personally, I use Cox Cable internet and television and no local phone (I use cell phone + VoIP)

The electric company is Narragansett Electric, which is part of National Grid. As for heat/hot water that's part of my lease so I can't help you there.

Edited by JJK5
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Yes, if you don't want cable, then Verizon DSL might not be bad, but I don't have any experience with it. I have Cox's full digital package (home phone, internet, TV) and have liked it quite a bit so far. The heat/water goes through my condo, so I can't provide info about that either...

- Garris

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I just went through the big switch at my house, so I'll throw in my 2 cents.

I now have cable internet with Cox, and I'm on the all-National Grid package for heat, hot water and everything else. :( IMO cable rather than DSL is worth the extra 10 bucks.

When I ditched the dial-up, I no longer had any use for the Cox home phone. Then I happened to notice what I was paying for basic cable TV, and I ended up canceling that. I have Dish Network, and I'm getting 120 channels for the price of Cox's 88 including Starz movie package free for 6 months. It's great... I love it!

If you don't have a cell phone and you need a landline, Cox is less costly than Verizon. But Cox has taken the cable TV monopoly ripoff to a new level, and other options should be considered.

DirecTV said NESN was only offered with the add-on $12.99 per month sports package - so I went with Dish. I gotta have my RED SOX!!!

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I just went through the big switch at my house, so I'll throw in my 2 cents.

I now have cable internet with Cox, and I'm on the all-National Grid package for heat, hot water and everything else. :( IMO cable rather than DSL is worth the extra 10 bucks.

When I ditched the dial-up, I no longer had any use for the Cox home phone. Then I happened to notice what I was paying for basic cable TV, and I ended up canceling that. I have Dish Network, and I'm getting 120 channels for the price of Cox's 88 including Starz movie package free for 6 months. It's great... I love it!

If you don't have a cell phone and you need a landline, Cox is less costly than Verizon. But Cox has taken the cable TV monopoly ripoff to a new level, and other options should be considered.

DirecTV said NESN was only offered with the add-on $12.99 per month sports package - so I went with Dish. I gotta have my RED SOX!!!

when i first moved to providence, i got verizon phone and cox cable tv and internet. i got no cell service in my apartment because it was a basement (or "garden") apartment. so it was spotty at best. if i got it, i couldn't move or i'd lose the call. so i went with an unlimited long distance package because i knew no one in the state and my girlfriend and family were all out of state. one of my co-workers told me that cox offered phone service and you got a $10 discount off their internet if you had all 3. so i switched from verizon and realized that cox's phone service was a lot cheaper than verizon. i have no intention of ever getting satellite tv, i haven't heard the best things about it.

i've had some trouble with my cox internet connection. i used to be able to run servers in my apartment, but they have since secretly blocked some ports (they don't advertise that they block those ports, but it's against their TOS to run a web server, FTP server, or VNC server). and i've had some trouble on occasion with the connection dropping, but all in all, it's not bad. their support is pretty good, they've gotten people out here the next day when my connection completely dropped. they replaced my modem when they determined it was being affected by my wireless router. i will switch, however, the minute verizon offers their FIOS (fiber to the home) service in providence.

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Just as a heads up, Cox phone service is not available throughout the city. When we were on the East Side, we had all of our services (phone, internet, cable TV) bundled. Not only was it cheaper, but it was so much more convenient to only keep track of one bill.

Unfortunately, when we moved to the West Side, the Cox phone service was not wired for our block. As such, we had to go to Verizon for phone - ugh. No joke, on the very day I called to set up the service, I was already receiving rude customer service (the Verizon person argued with me and told me that Working Assets was not a long distance carrier). Needless to say, we miss the days of Cox telephone.

I'm fairly certain that Cox offers HD service (our digital cable has HD channels which we cannot receive - no HD TV), but don't know about the terrestrial signals.

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Just as a heads up, Cox phone service is not available throughout the city. When we were on the East Side, we had all of our services (phone, internet, cable TV) bundled. Not only was it cheaper, but it was so much more convenient to only keep track of one bill.

Unfortunately, when we moved to the West Side, the Cox phone service was not wired for our block. As such, we had to go to Verizon for phone - ugh. No joke, on the very day I called to set up the service, I was already receiving rude customer service (the Verizon person argued with me and told me that Working Assets was not a long distance carrier). Needless to say, we miss the days of Cox telephone.

I'm fairly certain that Cox offers HD service (our digital cable has HD channels which we cannot receive - no HD TV), but don't know about the terrestrial signals.

that's interesting... i imagine they'll be workign to get it everywhere. you should check back with them since they do so much advertising for it.

cox does offer HD service.

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