Hello! I'm starting law school at FCSL in August. In mid June I will be driving there from Dallas, Texas to look at housing options, and am excited about being close to a beach. I'm moving with my significant other and hope to find a nice community to live in that is near either near FL Coastal or near the beach. However, I'm not familiar with the area at all, and my "First Coast Rental Finder" seems to be more interested in my signing a contract ASAP than actually getting to tour each place or get to know what parts of town they are in. We are willing to pay a little bit higher for a one bedroom to find something comfortable. Any pointers would be great; if you love or loathe where you live, let me know!
Riverside/Avondale
If you want to be near the school/near the beach, and you can pay a little more I would suggest some of the nicer apartments on Hodges Boulevard south of Beach Boulevard. Everyone on this forum loves urban living, etc so I many will likely disagree with my advice. You would be smack in the middle of suburban strip-mall world in that location. You would also be about 10 minutes from sand and near the routes you'd need to take to make a rather quick commute to school. It's essentially right in the middle of the two and not very far from either. I know there were formerly some pretty nice apartments available there, but my knowledge is several years old on that aspect.
Ugh, most of those apartment finder places SUCK! There's a few good real estate agencies in the area. Riverside really is the nicest place to be. It's not suburban hell and is in the center of town.
Everyone says Traditions is great. http://www.traditionsjax.com/wp/
I use RES (www.chooseres.com, but their site is apparently down right this second. and haven't had problems with them.
The smaller real estate agencies around here are friendly and really looking to help people.
Avoid the big box apartment complexes like the PLAGUE. You'd be surprised to learn that you can probably rent a 3 bedroom house in Riverside for the same price as you can rent a one bedroom in the Tinseltown (southside) area!
Most of the neighborhoods surrounding downtown are the most popular with young people and honestly craigslist would probably have the most listings.
Another option for searching rentals: http://atkinsonrealtygroup.com/ (http://atkinsonrealtygroup.com/)
The Beach has it's advantages... but it is a shitty commute back & forth to town... and for stretching a dollar you'd do much better in the urban core.
If you do choose Riverside, stay closer to the river than I-10, it is the poverty/crime dividing line. Also don't be fooled by how a Realtor may label a neighborhood, Edison Ave is not Riverside.
p.s
Does anyone know of an accurate neighborhood map?
Queens Harbor is nice. Not far from the beach.
http://www.queensharbour-homes.com/?gclid=CKyYtruVqqECFQRinAod629RDw
I'm partial to Riverside/Avondale, but if being close to the beach is important to you, there are some nice single family home neighborhoods off of San Pablo (Villages of pablo for one), Atlantic Blvd (Indian Springs, Kensington) or Girvin Rd. Just depends on how much you want your monthly rent to be. Also depends if you like character, walkability/bikability, etc in your n'hood (historic districts near DT) or just want to be close to the beach (mostly suburbs built after 1980).
Have you tried Broadstone Beach House?
New apartments at 1300 Shetter, Jacksonville Beach 32250.
Great, I appreciate the help. I will check out both places, I'm sure it'll be a little bit easier to understand when I can see it. Of course I want to go to the beach! I live in the upper middle part of Texas, so it's hard to resist the appeal, but suburbanites? Blegh. I'm sure I'll get enough of that just being part of the legal community to start with. It sounds like Riverside/Avondale might be more LGBT friendly but I hate to make assumptions...??
Quote from: kaseyk428 on April 28, 2010, 04:15:43 PM
Great, I appreciate the help. I will check out both places, I'm sure it'll be a little bit easier to understand when I can see it. Of course I want to go to the beach! I live in the upper middle part of Texas, so it's hard to resist the appeal, but suburbanites? Blegh. I'm sure I'll get enough of that just being part of the legal community to start with. It sounds like Riverside/Avondale might be more LGBT friendly but I hate to make assumptions...??
In a word yes, but this is still the bible belt :)
The Southside is nice
St. Johns is far nicer but might cost a bit more.
Quote from: Sportmotor on April 28, 2010, 04:29:27 PM
The Southside is nice
St. Johns is far nicer but might cost a bit more.
Sport it might help to offer a neighborhood suggestion or heads up that St. Johns is a county... and not part of Jax.
Riverside-Avondale probably offers more rental choices in terms of price range and ammenities than any other neighborhood in Jax. Also very GLBT friendly, if that is important to you. It is one of those areas of cool historic homes, excellent infrastructure, and lots of parks. I am a professional musician and also a Realtor, so I might be able to help you. E-mail me at drjml@hotmail.com if you want some ideas.
Quote from: Shwaz on April 28, 2010, 04:50:08 PM
Quote from: Sportmotor on April 28, 2010, 04:29:27 PM
The Southside is nice
St. Johns is far nicer but might cost a bit more.
Sport it might help to offer a neighborhood suggestion or heads up that St. Johns is a county... and not part of Jax.
At work, will when I get home.
St. Johns is still really nice tho 8)
There are small apartments in small older buildings in both Neptune and Atlantic Beach.
Riverside/ Avondale---
Tell me where you like in Dallas, and I'll give you the JAX substitutes:
Bishop Arts (with a little Colorado Blvd. area of Oak Cliff and McKinney Ave. mixed in)? Riverside , Neptune Beach
Winetka Heights? Springfield
M streets? Miramar / San Marco
Lake Highlands? Mandarin
Highland and University Parks? Avondale
Deep Elum and West End? Our downtown isn't nearly as cool.
Plano? Queens Harbor
Rest of the 'burbs? Southside, 85% percent of Jax
*From the 75205 to the 32206 (with stops inbetween), I'm a former University and Highland Park-er now in Springfield. :)
Edit: Thanks, OcK, 5pts is a little like McKinney Ave HD, too.
Toss in the McKinney Avenue Historic District and Streetcar Line and we have Park and King Streets/5-Points areas of North Riverside - soon to have it's own REAL historic streetcar line.
OCKLAWAHA
Hey Kasey. I'm a 3L at FCSL and I live in Springfield. It's farther away then living on the Southside by school, but totally worth it. Most students live over by school their first year and hate it. I recommend Springfield, Riverside or Downtown. It'll take about 20 minutes to get to school, which isn't bad.
Word of warning from the ancient one here... Remember with each block closer to the beach you choose to live, the odd's of NOT keeping your household belongings, grows exponentially. Hurricanes are rare as chicken's teeth here, but those of us who remember Dora, Donna, and a handful of others will recall that our beaches looked like a atomic bomb test range after they struck.
OCKLAWAHA
Ive lived in Jax Beach, Ponte Vedra and Neptune Beach in my early 20's. Night and day difference in rent b/w the beaches and a nice 1 or 2 br in riverside/avondale area. I still make it to the beach most weekends b/c our beaches are indeed beautiful, but it would take a lot for me to move back out to the beaches from the riverside/avondale area. So take that for what you will. You really cant go wrong though with the beaches(the beach side of the ditch, dont bother with anything labeled 'intracoastal west'), Riverside/Avondale or San Marco.
Like Konstant said, I would avoid living close to Florida Coastal(I have a rental about to be available there if you really want to live close campus, so I kinda know the area, lol)
Friend of mine has a lot of rentals in Atlantic Beach depending on your price range if you're not having luck with those apartment finder places(like Loki mentioned, they suck!).
As has been said, Riverside/Avondale is pretty LGBT friendly
Quote from: JaxByDefault on April 28, 2010, 07:46:47 PM
Tell me where you like in Dallas, and I'll give you the JAX substitutes:
Bishop Arts (with a little Colorado Blvd. area of Oak Cliff and McKinney Ave. mixed in)? Riverside , Neptune Beach
Winetka Heights? Springfield
M streets? Miramar / San Marco
Lake Highlands? Mandarin
Highland and University Parks? Avondale
Deep Elum and West End? Our downtown isn't nearly as cool.
Plano? Queens Harbor
Rest of the 'burbs? Southside, 85% percent of Jax
*From the 75205 to the 32206 (with stops inbetween), I'm a former University and Highland Park-er now in Springfield. :)
Edit: Thanks, OcK, 5pts is a little like McKinney Ave HD, too.
Thats probley the best you are going to get
Riverside/Avondale is great! Older homes/apts. for reasonable rent. I live cheaper than most in the area due to a great landlady.
Jaxbydefault - Thanks! Awesome! I love bishop arts; went there last night for my birthday, live in Oak Cliff but the Kessler Park area, an old house remodeled and split in to 4. I love it here, but I don't like how it is so close to South Oak Cliff. 2 blocks the wrong direction at 2 am and you're SOL. It's fine here because I know which direction that is, but in JAX I don't want to risk it.
Constant Consumer - Good to know; I definitely miss being an undergrad and only having to walk to school; tired of sitting in 2 hours of traffic to get to and from work, but you're right, 20 minutes isn't bad.
Is there any chance you guys could send me names a few complexes in the areas that you've seen and liked, that perhaps either you or a friend have lived in (so far sounds like downtown, avondale, riverside ish)? Just looking for a starting point, or a list of places we like where we can start when we get there that are in a good part of town!
Also, constant consumer, how do you like the schoo, programs, etc?
Riverside doesn't border any neighborhoods as dicey as South Oak Cliff, and I should have said Kessler Park, as that is technically the neighborhood with the lovely, big old houses on Colorado Blvd.
As far as Jax goes, if you're OK with the urbanness of M Streets, Bishop Arts, or Northwest Highway edge of University Park, then you'll be fine in Riverside. The neighborhood runs into Avondale which is the closest thing Jax has to Highland Park (sans billionaires or The Village). It's safe and not suburban.
Springfield is a bit more like Winetka Heights, and borders some rougher areas. I live here, so I obviously find it safe enough. The houses are lovely, but there is more commercial development in Riverside.
Both Springfield and Riverside are LGBT friendly. My guess is that living alone, you'll prefer Riverside. There's more to do over there and it's far more bikable (which I envy).
Best way to find a place here is by hitting the pavement. I'd suggest a visit if at all possible [Tip: there are cheaper flights than Southwest out of Lovefield on Delta (usually less than $200 RT if you plan ahead.]
A rental agent could also help. Try Sacha Higham at Traditions in Riverside 904.683.5230.
Good luck your move and with law school! (It's miserable, but survivable.) :) Feel free to PM me if you need anything else. Welcome to Jax.
In these areas, there aren't really that many apartment complexes. it's more houses for rent or apartments in smaller buildings with about 4-8 residences in each. The Villas of St Johns is a pretty nice place right across the street from the Riverside Publix. I think they are over-priced, but you might be down for them. I'd check craigslist and look for key words like riverside, post street, 5 points, avondale, or park street. it'll be more units like i described.