My sister read my post last week about her move and wanted to share a particular tip she’s learned in her apartment search – planning for a quick commute! Her story’s below:)
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Hi everyone, it’s true, I’m Alissa’s sister. And. . . I’m currently working in the suburbs and living at home. Recently, after 9 months, I decided it was about time to move out and find my first apartment!
Photo by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/the-o/}David Paul Ohmer{/link}
Since I’m working in the burbs, my commute is pretty much number one in terms of what’s important. Mostly for my sanity, I don’t think I could stand being stuck in traffic everyday for 2 hours. So, I compared different areas of the city to see which were the most public transit, car, and walking friendly. Google Transit Planner is actually really great for planning as it can give you an estimated time (not just distance) from one place to the next. Like, the time it takes to get from your bed to your desk.
While I wasn’t sure if it would work in terms of commute, the first neighborhood I thought would be great to live in was one of Chicago’s liveliest: Lakeview. Lakeview is full of young people, has a great bar scene, and happens to be the home of my favorite baseball team (go Cubs!). It’s off a good subway line (the red line), but it turns out to not be so convenient in terms of my commute (thanks Google Planner!)
But…the other neighborhood I was thinking of, Wicker Park, was perfect. It was near the train, subway, and only five minutes from the highway.
Count me excited!
This is a great idea. Another cool tool to research neighborhoods is Walk Score. It tells you how walkable a place is by the number and variety of amenities nearby.