Tallahassee, FL

[allinthefoam]

I'm also moving from the across the country, but i was lucky enough to be able to visit Tallahassee to apartment hunt and sign a lease. If you're looking for somewhere within walking distance, i would recommend Phoenix South Management. They own several apartment buildings within 3-5 minutes of the Diffenbough building. They offer several different floor plans, though they're a bit small. They're also still fairly affordable (considering proximity to campus) and I know of two grad students in my department who have lived there for years and really like it. I myself just signed a lease there last week. You can apply/sign your lease online ahead of time which might save you the worry/headache of waiting until last minute. Many places I saw were filling up quickly even this early in the summer. Hope this helps!

Edited June 9, 2014 by allinthefoam

[sbish]

Thanks so much for the info! I'll look into the company. Do you know what the noise level is in their communities? I've been hoping to find a quiet setting so I can focus on my studies, but, of course, I don't know how realistic that is if I also want to within a mile or two of campus.

[allinthefoam]

I'm not entirely sure about the noise level, but the two girls I know who live there said that they never had any problem with noise in the area. I know there are some sororities and fraternities in the area, so maybe it depends on the exact building, but I think Jefferson Towers and College Plaza are pretty quiet at least.

[HNV721]

I am not sure if anyone here even checks this, but I figured I would give it a shot. My wife and I are moving to Tally for school this fall. our budget per month, for context, is around $700. can anyone suggest an area/apartment complex that wouldn't be a death trap? Having a tough time finding decent, affordable housing there.

[atlremix]

Hi HNV721, I'm moving to Tallahassee from Atlanta with my husband in the Fall as well. We are looking at apartments that are a little more pricey (~$900 a month) range and are really pleased with Alexan Southwood and Verandas at Southwood on a first impression. I'm also searching craigslist for a rental house, as I'd prefer more space than an apartment, but it seems that even the older rental homes are pretty pricey. Let me know if you've heard of anywhere else I should check out! Thanks!

[BioBum]

Hi all!

My boyfriend is seriously considering FSU for grad school. I'm the overly prepared one of this outfit. Since we plan on getting married in the next couple of years we have agreed to make this decision together and living conditions are pretty high on my list. We would like some information on what neighborhoods are affordable on a grad student salary (he will be a first year PhD student and I'll be finishing up my masters, but can do that remotely from Tallahassee). We do have two dogs that love to run so we'd like a neighborhood with decent size yards. We're looking for a nice family friendly neighborhood with a minimal number of undergraduates. We love nature and would love a park or walking trails within walking distance. Bonus points for a neighborhood with lots of large trees.

Where we currently are, students that stay for PhDs end up buying as it is more affordable in the long run. Is Tallahassee the same? We will likely start trying for a family white there as well so information on schools/school districts would also be helpful.

Thank you in advance!

[MonstersU-Terp]

Hi all!

 

My boyfriend is seriously considering FSU for grad school. I'm the overly prepared one of this outfit. Since we plan on getting married in the next couple of years we have agreed to make this decision together and living conditions are pretty high on my list. We would like some information on what neighborhoods are affordable on a grad student salary (he will be a first year PhD student and I'll be finishing up my masters, but can do that remotely from Tallahassee). We do have two dogs that love to run so we'd like a neighborhood with decent size yards. We're looking for a nice family friendly neighborhood with a minimal number of undergraduates. We love nature and would love a park or walking trails within walking distance. Bonus points for a neighborhood with lots of large trees.

 

Where we currently are, students that stay for PhDs end up buying as it is more affordable in the long run. Is Tallahassee the same? We will likely start trying for a family white there as well so information on schools/school districts would also be helpful.

 

Thank you in advance!

Hi BioBum,

 

As you stated, many folks who move to Tallahassee with long-term plans end up buying. Housing in Tallahassee is quite affordable. In the neighborhood I lived, renting a 3 to 4 bedroom house cost about $1200-$1500/month. This was for houses close to campus. The further you go away from campus, you get nicer homes and more family-oriented neighborhoods and even better prices. 

[Limitless]

Hi, everyone!

This thread is really outdated so; I was hoping someone could chime in and let me know some current information about living in Tallahassee and attending Florida State University. 

Here is some information about me:

I've been offered admittance to the School Psychology Ed.S/M.S program at Florida State University in Fall 2016. I am married with two small children so; I am looking for somewhere to live that is child-friendly and has an excellent school system rating. I'm coming from the East, so I am not very familiar with Florida. 

 

Thanks!

[ajayghale]

On 2/12/2016 at 11:42 AM, Limitless said:

Hi, everyone!

This thread is really outdated so; I was hoping someone could chime in and let me know some current information about living in Tallahassee and attending Florida State University. 

Here is some information about me:

I've been offered admittance to the School Psychology Ed.S/M.S program at Florida State University in Fall 2016. I am married with two small children so; I am looking for somewhere to live that is child-friendly and has an excellent school system rating. I'm coming from the East, so I am not very familiar with Florida. 

 

Thanks!

A lot of people who live in Tallahassee with a family and/or kids tend to reside somewhat outside of the city proper. The east side of town and Killearn are popular, if you want to avoid the student-heavy areas. 

[MChemist]

On 2/12/2016 at 11:42 AM, Limitless said:

Hi, everyone!

This thread is really outdated so; I was hoping someone could chime in and let me know some current information about living in Tallahassee and attending Florida State University. 

Here is some information about me:

I've been offered admittance to the School Psychology Ed.S/M.S program at Florida State University in Fall 2016. I am married with two small children so; I am looking for somewhere to live that is child-friendly and has an excellent school system rating. I'm coming from the East, so I am not very familiar with Florida. 

 

Thanks!

I am in a similar situation.  Accepted to their chemistry Ph.D. program, my wife is a stay at home mom for our 2 kids.  We actually started looking both at houses for rent within a few miles of campus as well as homes for sale.  VERY inexpensive place to live, coming from Upstate NY.  Can find a lot of rentals for under $1,000/month and houses for sale a little over $100,000.

[Cat_Robutt]

My advice would be to live off-campus, preferable not along Tennessee or Adams street close to campuses...there are many, many drunken, loud undergraduates and several accidental shootings have happened over the past few years.

Pegasus Properties has some really nice apartment buildings a few miles away from campus; I lived there during grad school. There were several families there, and it was really safe. Tallahassee is not the most walkable town, so make sure you find somewhere your kids will have room to run around.

[Limitless]

On February 19, 2016 at 4:06 PM, Cat_Robutt said:

My advice would be to live off-campus, preferable not along Tennessee or Adams street close to campuses...there are many, many drunken, loud undergraduates and several accidental shootings have happened over the past few years.

Pegasus Properties has some really nice apartment buildings a few miles away from campus; I lived there during grad school. There were several families there, and it was really safe. Tallahassee is not the most walkable town, so make sure you find somewhere your kids will have room to run around.

Could you please elaborate on the part about "several accidental shootings"..? I'm really shocked and would like to know more of what you are talking about! 

[Cat_Robutt]

@Limitless Well, there was a purposeful shooting last year: http://www.usatoday.com/news/ And a fraternity shooting that happened when I was a student there: http://knightnews.com/2011/01/2-shot-in-fraternity-house-at-fsu-student-ashley-cowie-dies/ Tallahassee is part of a southern region known by locals as "Lower Alabama," and gun rights are a pretty big deal; there's even a "campus carry" bill right now: http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2016-02-03/story/florida-house-approves-campus-carry-open-carry-bills

So, if you are wary of guns, then just know Tallahassee and the South in general are into guns in a major way. There are many parts of Tallahassee that are safe, but around FSU and FAMU, shootings are fairly common, as are armed robberies. I got used to it, so didn't think it was a big deal––it is something that happens in many cities, although Tallahassee isn't one of the safest places on earth, although it is getting safer: http://www.city-data.com/crime/crime-Tallahassee-Florida.html

If you have any questions about Tallahassee, feel free to ask. It's a weird place, but it's also beautiful and has a thriving arts district and is a huge hub of civil rights history and scholarship as well.

[Limitless]

@Cat_Robutt Wow. Thank you for the information. Both of those incidents are indeed sad to read about. Being that I have two small children, I will definitely need to be careful of the area I live in since I will be new to the area. But, honestly, stuff like this could happen anywhere at any time, so I won't judge Tallahassee based on just these incidents. I have heard about the historical civil rights history it holds and the art scene. It does sound like there would be a ton to do if you seek it out!

[aberrant]

4 hours ago, Cat_Robutt said:

Tallahassee that are safe, but around FSU and FAMU, shootings are fairly common, as are armed robberies.

That would be a biased and outdated statement. I'm in my 4th year in Tally, living close to FSU main campus, and shootings are NOT common. Armed robberies happen, but the numbers that are reported decreases in recent year or two (this, however, could possibly related to how TPD "covers up" some of the incidents, hence not reported to the public/news). In general, one should avoid walking on the street alone late at night, which applies to a lot of other cities in the U.S. regardless (such as L.A., where I lived for almost 2 years at one point).

Bottom line is that the city has make major improvements and development in the South side of the FSU main campus, creating "College Town", a district that has new (and expensive) housing for undergraduates to live in luxurious apartments with nearby bars and restaurants. In other words, these improvements in theory make areas near campus safer than the past. If you have been to Nashville, TN before, then consider the Capital of Florida is chasing the status, development, and establishment of the Capital of Tennessee.

ps. Despite the location is still consider "the South", gun rights on campus is a huge debate and generally speaking, many people who work on FSU campus opposed the idea of open carries on campus, while some people who don't actually work at FSU main campus have different opinion. Lastly, Tallahassee is moderately democratic imho, FSU is definitely democratic, but features undergraduates who are from other parts of the States and different political views.

[Cat_Robutt]

@aberrant Yes, I mentioned the decrease in crime with the city data report, and I know most of the professors with whom I worked are against open carry...it's a complex issue. I love Tallahassee, and am not meaning to disparage it––violence occurs everywhere, in any city. Being from Tallahassee has perhaps given me a different perspective on the town now that I've lived elsewhere.

@Limitless as @aberrant mentioned, there is much...gentrification going on along Gaines street, near Railroad Square, and on Tennessee and Adams. It has both positive and negative, but also means there are smaller businesses like the Railroad Square Art Park, All Saints Cafe, and the new Cascades Park are getting much attention. Speaking of, there are so many beautiful parks to take your kids to! Cascades Park (it's free and you can walk to the Capitol building, Soul Veg restaurant, the Capitol complex), Maclay Gardens, Lake Ella, the Park Street chain of Parks. There are farmer's markets throughout the week, festivals of all shapes and sizes, and many opportunities for free or cheap that families can enjoy. And, as FSU and FAMU are large schools, there are always talks, concerts, operas, plays, and events that are free or cheap for students.

If you want a detailed list of recommendations, feel free to pm me! There are all sorts of hidden gems in and around that area of Florida if you know where to look.

[SMB123]

I was wondering if anyone could give me some insight on the transportation situation in Tallahassee. A couple people on this thread have said that owning a car is a necessity, but that is simply not going to happen for me. I've gotten around fine on a bicycle/on foot in the past 2 places I've lived in (Burlington VT and Tucson AZ), so I'm pretty skeptical of people telling me I absolutely need a car. My question is: why do people seem to insist that I need a car in Tallahassee? Does anyone paying attention to this thread currently live there without a car? I'm visiting the campus later this month, but any additional information you folks have would be great. Thank you!

[Cat_Robutt]

@SMB123 Tallahassee is a fairly spread out city, and sometimes bus transit can be untimely––However, Tally is increasing their bus fleet, adding several electric busses as well to service the city, so that is a positive. Several of my classmates didn't have vehicles and also preferred to bike. In the summer, it can get quite hot and humid, but as long as you are prepared for that, it is doable. Slowly, the city is becoming more bike-friendly especially around downtown. The walkscore is not super, but again, that's changing near FSU/FAMU campuses: https://www.walkscore.com/FL/Tallahassee

One of the reasons it is recommended to have a vehicle is for going to the far-reaching places in town, such as Killearn in the north, the airport/Tallahassee Museum, or away from campus for places like the beach, St. Augustine, etc. Not having a car can be unhandy, but it is definitely a possibility. You may have to live closer to campus, but there are plenty of housing options. 

[SMB123]

@Cat_Robutt Thank you! That's really helpful!

[cloud420strife]

Been in Tallahassee (Tally) for 4 years now, went to FSU for 2. This is my thought about the place.

For starters the FSU area is pretty run down. Theres parts of Pensacola and Tennessee St. that are miserable to be on. I remember riding my bike for a bit and I ended up with flat tires since theres so much glass on the sidewalks that never gets cleaned up from broken beer bottles. The Strip area blows for grad students except for maybe Poor Pauls since I heard its ok for older people but the Strip sucks its just filled with durdly standoffish undergrads. Traffic is also pretty awful near FSU except during the summer when half the campus is goneNorth Monroe and Kilearn are the nice parts of Tally but both are kind of far from FSU. I lived by North Monroe when I first moved there and it was pretty nice and quiet and the neighborhood was good quality. Its pricy for a 1/1 but if you have roommates its not awful.

Job market here is abysmal here lol. Not only is there not many jobs outside of the government and FSU, but the pay is way below market rate.  Also very hard to get any of these jobs since it feels very based on already knowing someone who works here. This is probably why there is lots of poor people in Tally, even though the town has lots of education. Also this town has alot of crime per capita in that theres lots of pockets of it. Since I been here I had some people steal change out of my car and stole money from me (not a terrible amount) but still very annoying.

Food is good/cheap and some parts of the town are pretty. Everything is so far away though and the suburbs of Tally kind of blow since they don't offer much. Town has a reasonable amount of stuff to do but there is just so much having to drive to everywhere. Football is really the big to do here. I dont really like the college games compared to the pros since it feels like the focus is more on the partying than the football game, but thats just my opinion. FSU is still better than UF and UM at football so at least theres that to enjoy. Parks are nice to visit and so is downtown. Hard to really get to any metropolitian areas from here since Jacksonville is 3 hours, Orlando is 4 and Atlanta is 5. I only mention this since flying anywhere is expensive since Tally's airport doesnt have too many direct flights. 

Overall I think Tally is probably fun if your an undergrad since the university caters more to that demographic but its pretty sucky as a grad student since the school doesn't really do very much for grad students. Unless the school is giving you a ton of money or you have some other business on the side, its very hard to live here since good paying work is extremely hard to find. Plus you really need a very supporting grad program since its pretty hard mentally to be living in a town like this post undergrad. Between the crappy job market, crime/very crappy police department, a somewhat unsupporting university, lack of opportunities for advancement outside of the school, I really had a hard time living here.

Some may like it but it was without a doubt not for me. Being 24, trying to make a living while both intellectually trying to advance/exchange ideas and gain new skills, I did not feel that this town had much for me to offer. YMMV

[PotenGrad]

Some advice to those considering moving to Tallahassee:

The advice you receive here will vary based on the perspectives and particular biases of the people giving the advice, so as a warning, my advice/experience will be slightly cynical. I am not in love with this city and so my tone will reflect that, but everything I am stating is true. 

I moved to Tally for undergrad from a large city, and the day I moved into my first apartment in Tallahassee, I was robbed. I never personally experienced crime until I came to Tally. Mind you, the city I grew up in wasn't crime-free. Tallahassee's crime rates are HIGH. Leon county, where Tallahassee is located, has the HIGHEST crime rates in the entire state of Florida for 2015 and 2016. News report and stats are here: http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/06/07/leon-county-crime-rate-tops-state-again/85548712/

This doesn't mean you won't love it here, a lot of people certainly do, but I am not a huge fan. Unless you like walking in the woods and are an avid fan of having trees absolutely everywhere, you probably won't have a lot of fun here. Restaurants of all types, from BBQ to Mexican, close down frequently. We also lack a lot of department stores. For example, we only have one mall (there's actually another one but it's pathetic) and if you can't find what you need there you'll have to order online.  Utilities are also expensive. A 500 sq ft apartment will run you about $130 a month in utilities. I once wasn't home for about a month due to winter break, and only left my fridge on, and my bill was the lowest ever: $100. Additionally, a lot of the "luxurious" student housing here are rip-offs and not worth a dollar. Beware of the student housing giants, like Student Housing Solutions (abbreviated as "STU" for some reason), because they are only interested in getting you to sign a lease no matter what.

If you like college football, FSU is for you. We are noles and we bleed garnet and gold. We will follow and support our football team no matter what. Even if some of the major players have been accused of committing atrocious crimes, we will bash and threaten the accusers and stand by our players no matter what. Football is more important than humanity. 

[junglemath]

Where do the graduate students live in Tallahassee?

[brighteyedathena]

Is Tallahassee LGBT-friendly? Is there anything an LGBT person should know (positive or negative) about moving there?

[CulturalCriminal]

On 3/28/2018 at 3:49 PM, brighteyedathena said:

Is Tallahassee LGBT-friendly? Is there anything an LGBT person should know (positive or negative) about moving there?

Same question, but specifically: is Tallahassee Trans friendly? Butch girl friendly? PoC friendly?

[strawberrykat]

@CulturalCriminal I can't speak to the Trans-friendliness of Tallahassee but as far as Poc friendly it's like 3/5. It's better on campus at FSU and FAMU than off campus imo. And even then, there are exceptions at FSU. FAMU is largely Poc so there's that