New Orleans, LA

[Riotbeard]

I live in the Lower Garden, and I love it. I like it a lot more than any of the other uptown neighborhoods(but I am a loyalist). As for the Marigny, it's really not thaaat dangerous, at least about the same as the Lower garden district, and the crime rates pail in comparison to say central city, holly grove, irish channel, lower 9th, and parts of midcity. You just have to be smart in any neighborhood. Marigny is cool, although I agree about the crowds and lots of tourists. If I were going to live downtown, I would go with biwater just one neighborhood further past the marigny (so from canal it goes French quarter then Marigny then the Biwater), which is even closer to UNO (I think, I have only been there a hand full of times). Its very artsy also (and I would not say every neighborhood is artsy...), and a good quieter and more local than the marigny as far as bars go. I would not rent an apartment in any of these neighborhoods though without looking at them in person, because they are at least a little more spotty than uptown( but in my opinion way cooler...). I would also look at apartments in the lower garden district ( I have a friend in my building who commutes to UNO), it is only a 10-15 minutes bike ride to the quarter if thats your thing. You will find that NO neighborhood in New Orleans is immune from crime (including violent crime), but in general marigny, the bi-water, and the lower garden are pretty safe and really cool. I know a good number of grad students who have lived in all these neighborhoods, and as long as you are city-smart, you will be fine.

[Queen of Kale]

While I don't live in the Marigny exactly, I live nearby across St. Claude in what is called St. Roch. The Marigny is safe, as a middle class and upwardly mobile city neighborhood typically is (and I've lived on the outskirts of similar neighborhoods in many different cities). St Roch is just a little to the north and a little cheaper. Still safe but a little louder at night and more traveling kids. And then the Bywater is maybe the artsy-est in the area but with a slightly longer commute if you get stuck behind the train which will stand between you and your school. Rents north of the St. Claude line drop but with a slight uptick in crime. Still, I feel safer in my area where everyone is on the steps at night then some areas of uptown. Commute to UNO from that area is bike-able and a 15 min drive going 30 mph the whole way. Feel free to PM me with questions.

[Reg1369]

I'm starting grad school at UNO in August. I need a place with a decent yard for my dog and two bedrooms. I don't mind a reasonable commute. Where would be the best area for me to look in? 

[muana]

Anyone else headed to Tulane and looking for roommates?

[fredred]

Hello all!

I am heading to Tulane in Fall 2013, and I was curious about their graduate housing.

Anyone here live at either Papillon or Deming Pavilion? Or know anybody who did? What are they like? Especially Deming Pavilion?

[Eigen]

From what I've heard, don't do it. I haven't heard anything good about the graduate housing, and plenty of bad. 

 

Also, keep in mind that Deming is quite a long way from uptown, where Classics would be, primarily. 

[fredred]

Thanks for the reply.

Where do you guys recommend that I start looking? What are some good places to live in New Orleans? I've visited twice before, but I never stayed for more then a week so I don't know the city that well

[tspier2]

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone could provide some additional information about the New Orleans area in general and surrounding Tulane University. I noticed that there was already a thread but it hasn't been updated regularly. I'm looking mostly for information about the cost of life, housing, and parking. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. 

[fuzzylogician]

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone could provide some additional information about the New Orleans area in general and surrounding Tulane University. I noticed that there was already a thread but it hasn't been updated regularly. I'm looking mostly for information about the cost of life, housing, and parking. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. 

 

This post has been merged with the existing thread. Please reply here so we collect all the relevant information in one place. 

[thenewgirl10]

Greetings,

Does anyone know anything about the commute from Metairie to Tulane? Is it reasonable? I noticed the rent is cheaper there in comparison to the areas surronding Tulane.

This commute is only 20 minutes, and everything you'd need is in Metairie. I've lived in New Orleans since I was 3, y'all, and I can tell y'all metairie is the best place to be.

The mall is there, plenty of restaurants if you ever have free time, traffic is not as bad as the city, and it is SO MUCH SAFER.

[Eigen]

Being as that question was asked almost 3 years ago, I doubt they're still looking for an answer. 

[md152]

I'll be attending Tulane in the fall for grad school. Any advice on finding housing? Would like to keep it at @$800/mo

[darwingirl]

I'll be attending Tulane in the fall for grad school. Any advice on finding housing? Would like to keep it at @$800/mo

 

There are a lot of apartments in the uptown area near Tulane. The riverbend area is also decent, as is Mid City (though this is further from campus). Avoid Central City. Rent in New Orleans is unfortunately more expensive than it should be, even for crappy places, so if possible you should check out apartments (and the neighborhood) in person before you decide. $800 a month might get you a decent, small place without utilities included.

[Eigen]

Alternately, contact your new department and see if there are any current grad students looking for a roommate. I know we frequently have openings in apartments that have had graduate students in them for years- someone rotates out, someone else rotates in. 

 

If you want to PM me, I can give you more specific suggestions. 

[peopleonstreets]

Does anyone have any thoughts on the feasibility of living in New Orleans without a car? I'm strongly considering attending UNO next fall, but it is unlikely that I will have a car, at least not for the first few months of living there if at all. I'm not sure that I'd want to live very close to UNO, as I've visited the area and there doesn't seem to be much going on immediately by campus, so I'd probably consider neighborhoods further away. I'm used to relying on public transportation, but I don't know how dependable it is in NOLA. Is it generally possible to get around and do daily errands via walking/biking/public transportation? 

Edited March 6, 2014 by peopleonstreets

[darwingirl]

Does anyone have any thoughts on the feasibility of living in New Orleans without a car? I'm strongly considering attending UNO next fall, but it is unlikely that I will have a car, at least not for the first few months of living there if at all. I'm not sure that I'd want to live very close to UNO, as I've visited the area and there doesn't seem to be much going on immediately by campus, so I'd probably consider neighborhoods further away. I'm used to relying on public transportation, but I don't know how dependable it is in NOLA. Is it generally possible to get around and do daily errands via walking/biking/public transportation? 

New Orleans isn't the easiest city to live in without a car, but I think it can be done. If you don't like the area near UNO, you should try looking in Mid-City (near City Park and Bayou St. John) or in Lakeview. I have lived in both of these neighborhoods while attending UNO and road my bike to campus frequently. I do drive most of the time though because the weather here sucks. 

 

I don't know much about the bus system here but you could check that out as well. I have heard it's not very good so biking is probably a better option. 

 

Both the Mid-City and Lakeview neighborhoods have a lot of restaurants and groceries that would probably be easy enough to walk to and you can walk to the street car which will get you downtown. That's also fairly easy to get to by bike. 

 

If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.

[Eigen]

The bus system is pretty bad, but it's a relatively bike friendly system. That said, it rains. A lot. So take that into account if you're planning on being carless. 

 

I know a lot of people at Tulane that have gone without a car, but Tulane itself has a good shuttle system around town, and most of them lived uptown, which is a bit more bikeable and has closer housing/grocery stores/etc than UNO. 

[peopleonstreets]

Thanks for both of your replies! It's been a couple of weeks but it does look pretty certain that I will be going to UNO in the fall. It's good to hear that biking is at least somewhat possible! I've got one more question- what would be a rough estimate of how much I'd need to budget monthly for basic expenses? Rent/utilities/groceries/transportation + some disposable income? I'm used to NYC numbers which are pretty different compared to the rest of the county...

[Eigen]

Rent really depends on where you live, and how open you are to roomates (and how many). 

 

Utilities, anywhere from $100 (Water/Trash/Electric) on the really cheap end, to around $300 a month. 

 

Groceries, my wife and I did pretty consistently on a ~$70/week budget, and that was with lots of fruits and vegetables, and also including other necessary household items. 

[LAKingsMaverick]

Hey guys! I've been accepted to Tulane for grad school (social work) and am strongly considering attending! I know that the school of social work is actually located downtown right off Canal St, so it's not super near the main campus in uptown (which sucks because I really love crepes a la carte!!!!). That being said, where are places to live for grad students in the area and out as I expect to have my car down there.

 

One option I'm very seriously considering is living somewhere in the lower 9th. I've been down to NOLA multiple times during my undergrad years for service trips and have developed a very close connection to the community in the lower 9th. It's only about a 10 minute drive from the School of Social Work. I know plenty of homeowners down there, but I probably wouldn't rent an apartment in the lower 9th, so I'm curious as to what options are in places like Bayou St. John, Bywater, or near places like City Park. Any feedback would be great! Thanks guys!

[Eigen]

Just FYI, a large portion of social work is uptown. Most people I know live uptown, and most of the day-to-day classes and such are up there.

Public health is downtown, and some specific programs may be, but I'd soluble check before you decide where to live. The main department is definitely uptown, it's right across from my lab.

Relevant section from the programs website:

Tulane School of Social Work is located on Tulane University's Uptown Campus. Our building is on the section of campus between St. Charles Avenue and Freret Street. If you are walking from St. Charles Avenue toward Freret, our building is the fifth building on your left. For driving directions and parking information, please call the school at 800-631-8234.

[LAKingsMaverick]

The SSW is relocating August 2014 to the downtown campus. So by Fall 2014 semester that's where it will be. At least that is what the website says and my acceptance letter said it too.

Edited April 4, 2014 by LAKingsMaverick

[Eigen]

Strange, do they say where?

 

Either way, chances are you'd want to live uptown- most downtown grad students I know do, and prefer it. 

[LAKingsMaverick]

"

School of Social Work readies for move into state-of-the-art facility

The Tulane School of Social Work is proud to announce that the School is scheduled for an exciting move in August 2014. The School will be moving into a fully-renovated, state of the art facility located at 127 Elk Place, which is in the heart of Tulane’s Downtown Campus.

The current School of Social Work building contains 7,000 square feet over three floors, but this move will allow nearly triple the School's space to nearly 20,000 square feet on the 3rd and 4th floors of the Elk Place building. 127 Elk Place is one building off of Canal (next to the Joy Theater) and was built in the early 1900’s as the headquarters for the Elk’s lodge. Over the years, it has served as the headquarters for Gulf Oil and many other uses. Originally, there was a swimming pool and full gymnasium. Now, fully owned by Tulane University, the University is investing to bring this building back on line as a central presence in the very quickly developing downtown medical corridor. The third and fourth floors have already been gutted and construction is about to begin. The award winning architectural firm of Eskew, Dumez and Ripple (EDR) is overseeing this multi-million dollar renovation. Donahue Favret have been selected as the contractors.

The School has set up a web site, which will be updated as the project progresses with photos and messages from Dean Ron Marks.

To see the proposed floor plans along with some rendering of the spaces,please click here."

 

From the SSW website. What about places like Bayou St. John, Bywater, or Gentily? I'm assuming Uptown is where most of the grad students are going to be in general? On the social side of things it's pretty cool that the SSW is so close to Bourbon, Frenchmen's, and the French Quarter. 

Edited April 4, 2014 by LAKingsMaverick

[darwingirl]

Hey guys! I've been accepted to Tulane for grad school (social work) and am strongly considering attending! I know that the school of social work is actually located downtown right off Canal St, so it's not super near the main campus in uptown (which sucks because I really love crepes a la carte!!!!). That being said, where are places to live for grad students in the area and out as I expect to have my car down there.

 

One option I'm very seriously considering is living somewhere in the lower 9th. I've been down to NOLA multiple times during my undergrad years for service trips and have developed a very close connection to the community in the lower 9th. It's only about a 10 minute drive from the School of Social Work. I know plenty of homeowners down there, but I probably wouldn't rent an apartment in the lower 9th, so I'm curious as to what options are in places like Bayou St. John, Bywater, or near places like City Park. Any feedback would be great! Thanks guys!

 

I've lived in the Bayou St. John and City Park areas for quite a while (I'm from New Orleans) and I highly recommend them. Especially Bayou St. John since it's so central and you get anywhere in town fairly easy (with a car). Plus it's a great neighborhood and there are always fun things happening nearby. I love living by City Park since I walk/run with my dog there everyday. 

 

The Bywater is not a neighborhood I would choose to live in, but many college age people do. Some areas are great, some are very bad. I'd say take a drive around that neighborhood at night and on weekends, etc before you decide if you want to live there. It's also a bit out of the way of a lot of things, BUT there are some great restaurants in the Bywater (and all over New Orleans of course).