Thank you so much, u/helium_hydrogen!! :-)

It’s so freaking cool to meet people on here and then help them find an apartment or home. What a joy. Y’all seriously rule.

Fellow DCF fan!! I bought my house through him, he's so fantastic!

A tip for not sounding like a noob: Philly does not have "sides," this isn't Chicago, there isn't a "south side of Philadelphia" or a "west side of town." It's West Philly, South Philly, Northeast Philly, etc.

Also, the blue line is the el, the orange line is the subway, there is no Metro.

Seconding comment that says East Falls/Manayunk.

A lot of my buyers like the space, trees, and park access that this side of the city provides. We have some good local stuff (restaurants, bars) to walk to - and the home prices are great. Mt. Airy is a good choice, too. East Falls specifically is a progressive and inclusive neighborhood.

$425K is going to get you much more in the Northwest than in Fishtown, frankly. Especially if you're interested in a driveway/parking spot or easier parking in general. Close to downtown Manayunk being the exception here.

The access to Kelly Dr./Schuylkill River Trail is undeniably convenient up here. Plus, the train stations run throughout Northwest Philly to get you to Center City in 15 minutes for the upscale dining and drink spots.

I would not recommend Port Richmond if you want to easy access to the SRT. 676 traffic and/or side streets to cross the city won't be fun - and all just to enjoy the trail.

I realized I stated "my buyers", but also "we". Yes..I am a realtor, but I myself bought in East Falls in 2021 after 10 years in Fishtown. We love it for all the reasons listed above. :)

Have you looked at East Falls or Manayunk? Both of these neighborhoods offer pretty easy access to the river trail, and the stretches of the trail passing through them are very popular with runners and cyclists without being too crowded (compared to the parts closer to Center City). Both would we within your price range, and they're pretty safe neighborhoods. East Falls has a little more of a suburban feel, and has fewer shops/restaurants, while Manayunk has a pretty thriving main street. Manayunk also has a reputation for having a lot of recently graduated college students living/partying there, but that probably varies block by block.

Don't know if you have a car, but parking in both neighborhoods can be a challenge, especially Manayunk. Based on your comments on safety, you may also want to consider that little pocket of a neighborhood where the old Pep Boys headquarters is (it's just southeast of East Falls, along Allegheny Ave). There's some new construction going up, so if you're looking for value you could probably get it there. That said, the neighborhood is in the very early stages of developing, so you'd be looking at 5 or so years minimum before meaningful improvement. Still provides easy access to the river trail, though.

I lived in NYC for a long time in many neighborhoods in many Burroughs.

Please remember that Philly‘a crime and homicide rates are much higher than NYC and, and I hope this doesn’t come off the wrong way, but living in Flatbush may not carry as much weight as you think.

That being said…

East Passyunk is popular. People like South Philly. There’s also the Gayborhood. I don’t know how those areaa are for your price point.

There’s a pretty good LGTBQ+ scene in West Philly, esp. around Clark Park.

In the more Fishtown adjacent areas, Port Richmond and Olde Kensington maybe places to consider.

But, even with your high threshold comment, know that if looking over there, as you get further away from Pt Richmond / Fishtown and move closer towards Kensington & Allegheny, you will experience more of the spillover effects of the opioid epidemic. More package thefts, car break-ins, encampments, squatters, dirty needles, calling 911 on someone suffering an overdose. Similarly, the experience on the El gets worse as you go up. I think generally, stay south of Lehigh, or, if north of Lehigh, east of Aramingo.

I would recommend the Melrose/Girard estates or passyunk areas. Very deep in south Philly and old school but still nice and clean and safe feeling. Lots of families and dogs. We have a couple (M/M) across the street that moved from Asbury park and like it here. Not close to the trail but running at FDR/ the navy yard is a possibility. You would definitely be able to get a house for under 425k. I bought a 3 bed 1 bath rowhome in 2021 in Melrose for 260k. Good luck!

Oh, also our rental budget is around $1800-$2000. We’ve already been looking at Trulia and Zillow in anticipation and know we can get a decent place with that. If there’s any other sites or realtors that you all recommend I’m all ears.

Pretty hard to square walkability with low density, but East Falls/Manayunk sounds about right.

While you can survive in Northeast Philly without a car (I didn't learn to drive until I moved to the burbs at 25), it's not ideal. I'd probably strike it from your list.

Will your wife have a car, even if you don't drive?

Check out Passyunk Square/East Passyunk while you're here. Typical demographic seems to be early 30s. Lots of restaurants, some bars, grocery stores, and it is right on one of the main subway lines. I just moved here a few months ago and love it. We rent a 2bed/2 bath for 1750 a month. Also, I have a car but it is more of a nuisance to have than convenience. I can get just about anywhere in the city by train or bus, and that includes the many excellent parks that are here.

Edit to add: detached homes are not common in this part of the city, but some townhouses may have backyards or at least patios. It's a good place to live short term and get a feel for the city before deciding on a more permanent solution.

You named a few areas, and the vibes / attitude / politics of those areas can vary by quite a bit. Without knowing you, it’s hard to recommend which is best, but it’s hard to imagine how some of these places end up on the same list.

Your price points will make buying into places like Chestnut Hill or the nicer parts of Mt. Airy hard, unless you take on a project or get lucky. Both are also much less urban than the others, but each have their little commercial areas that are walkable. But, to get to downtown by transit, you’d need to take regional rail. It’s nicer than subway/El, but less frequent and costs more. Wissahickon is an absolutely gorgeous piece of nature though. There also actually a small neighborhood called Wissahickon up by Manayunk that maybe you’d want to add.

One issue with the Northeast is that if your plan is to take the El as your transit option to downtown, you’ll pass through the part of the city most ravaged by opioids on your way between the the NE and center city. you’ll definitely see some shit during those stretch of stops.

I saw no mention of West Philly. Some parts are rough, but parts closer to the universities are popular, and it’ll definitely have more trees than, say South Philly.

Definitely visit. There’s some neighborhoods that have great walkability, restaurants, relatively low crime, etc. that lots of people love but can be a lot of concrete and brick with not much trees or much in the way of nature.

It kinda depends on how much nature you need.

Like will street trees, a city park, and the running path along the river cut it? Or do you need like legit Forrest / creek (like Wissahickon, pennypack park, etc.)

You can see population density by census tract here: https://mtgis-portal.geo.census.gov/arcgis/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=2566121a73de463995ed2b2fd7ff6eb7

Most of the nicer parts of South Philly are 30,000 to 45,000 per square mile (a few going above 45). Under 15,000 per square mile and close to nature and close to rail is going to be hard. I'd say Mt. Airy or Germantown, but you are dealing with Regional Rail which is relatively infrequent (not like living along the Broad Street Line or Market Frankford Line).

that's kind of tough because the detached house thing doesn't mix with the close to mass transit areas. Maybe like Fairmount close to city and close to the river and fairmount park but you won't find a detached house there. It looks like 21k/sqm.

Check out Manayunk!

There’s no Philly return if your employer takes it out which most do. If your employer hasn’t been taking it out (for example, you work out of state) or you’re self-employed, you are supposed to pay quarterly through a separate process.

I actually just had this done literally yesterday lol by a local company. They figured out all the paperwork for me, but I still have to file it through the Philadelphia Tax Center website (or I can mail it). I'm not sure if I can just upload the paperwork or if I have to fill it out line by line but I have to do it (not the tax preparer).

As others noted, you'll want to double check first that your employer wasn't taking the wage tax out. If they did, you don't need to do anything. If they didn't, then yes you need to file.

I've always used Turbo Tax. The Wage Tax is taken out of my paycheck so I think there was a somewhere to put that through Turbo Tax--local taxes. I never have done a separate return for the Wage tax. (And I have filed in PA/Philly since 2006).

If you have a business, you should have a business license, and can file your business taxes either on paper or online. I've always filed on paper, although once I think I filed online--that whole process has changed--before it was very antiquated.

If your wage tax is not taken out of your paycheck you can pay that (Earnings Tax) online:

https://www.phila.gov/services/payments-assistance-taxes/taxes/income-taxes/earnings-tax-employees/

It's in the Logan Square neighborhood, which is a nice and safe area near the Art Museum (caveat that it's in Center City so use common sense).

Depends where in South Philly. I live in Passyunk Square, and I feel very safe here (as a petite woman), and I'm planning on raising at least one kid here (expecting my first next month). There are tons of families here.

I haven't seen drugs around (besides the obvious alcohol/cigarettes/weed), but I haven't gone looking for them either. I'm sure they exist.

South Philly is fairly large. Do you have a particular neighborhood/cross streets in mind.

There are plenty of safe areas in South Phlly. Hawthorne, Whitman, Bella Vista, Grad Hospital, Passyunk Square, and East Passyunk Crossing are great options.

Frankly depends on your income level, what part of the city you can afford, your stage in life, etc.

real estate values are going up, if that is an indicator you think helps.

Much better. Half because the city is coming off a low (crime wave). The other half is because it seems to me that the city is allowing more residential construction in center city and decrepit industrial parks. Will a lot of it be luxury/for the middle class? Yes. But at least the better off aren’t competing with lower income households for the same housing. There’s also a chance that public transit improves but I’m not holding my breath there.

It will likely continue to improve.

in what sense?

I think a lot depends on the next Mayor. Kenney was focused on some... interesting things. The next Mayor's focus will decide a lot. But from a people standpoint, a lot of us are getting fed up with the status quo and demanding certain systemic changes. That's a positive.

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Worse. It's progressively getting worse since the pandemic. The opioid epidemic is insane. People are like zombies. There's trash, and heroin needles everywhere. And if you're a woman do yourself a favor and don't move here. The cat calling and harassment is daily.

Insulation! Distance to groceries. Coffee shops/parks for when you need to get out of the house. How much trash is on your block on any given day. But most importantly, insulation.

Visit the blocks around your apartments of interest during the day and at night (after 10pm if possible).

Done a lot of leasing. Like, a LOT.

My biggest tip: how an apartment looks when you're touring it is what you're going to get on move-in day.

Is it the perfect place, but the paint is chipping, the tub is moldy, and the door handle doesn't click properly? Then it's not the perfect place. Because if that's how the owner leaves the unit to be marketed, you can guarantee that when you show up, bright and happy to move into your new apartment, it's going to look like that.

Oh, and don't believe them when they promise they'll clean it all up / take care of it. Just find a difference place that will actually treat you like a tenant. There are lots of 'em!

Don't get me wrong, you are required to have working appliances, working heat, etc. That stuff will be in tact. It's those small updates/details that won't change between your showing and your move-in.

Whatever you do, don't get an apartment with electric baseboard heating, especially if it's an old building. They were built with large windows and before electricity in some cases. Your electric bill will be over $200 dollars per month in the winter with that type of heating. Or if you do, be aware that you may be paying over $200 per month for electricity in the winter and budget accordingly.

You also need to be ready to pay on the spot. Depending on your price point the competition is fierce for apartments. If you are going to pay $2000 plus for a studio or 1 bedroom, though, probably you don't need to worry, as there are lots of them and less competition at that price point. If you want anything under $2000, you can't wait. This happened to me in 2014, long before the pandemic and the apartment bidding. I looked at some 30 apartments and the ones I liked, I waited a day or two and they were gone. I finally got my current apartment by giving them a check for the security deposit when they showed it to me, to hold it.

Highly depends on where close to Girard and Broad. South of Girard and west of Broad is basically an extension of Francisville and pretty decent. North of Girard and west of Broad is very much transitional right now, with a lot of rehabs/new construction mixed in. West of Broad on Girard itself is maybe a bit iffy, mostly depending on how close to Broad you are.

If you're looking east of Broad, I can only imagine it'd be up along 12th or 13th, which are OK at best.

The good news is that at least one major project is going in at Broad and Girard (mixed-use at the southwest corner) with potentially more on the way, so that whole area could be in for a rapid shift in the next five years. There's also good childcare at the Columbia North Y at Broad and Master (our little dude did daycare/pre-K there).

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yes neighborhood bar culture is a thing here

It's very block by block, BUT graduate hospital is nothing to worry about. You'll be fine. This subreddit likes to fear monger. I am in that area pretty often and have never felt worried. It's also visually really nice looking.

If you have a simple return, just visit an H&R Block. If you have a complex return, ask your boss’s boss where they get their taxes done.

Well it depends. Is that 4K take home or gross? The toughest thing is rent. You’ll qualify for a studio in any part of the city but if you want something bigger, then you might need to limit certain neighborhoods or rent a condo or apt. from a private landlord who won’t strictly apply that you need to earn 3x the rent. Otherwise it’s enough. Where would you be working? In Center City? University City?

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