Thread: Moving to Baltimore and Need Advice

I'm not happy about it, but I'm not a fan of being unemployed, so I'm going to be taking a job in Baltimore. My wife will be staying in Iowa for a while until we figure out what to do with all of our stuff, sell our house, and find her a job. I'll be starting at my new job on November 15. After the Iowa Meet-Up I'll be packing up my toys and heading east.

I don't know the area and I would like to know if there is anyone from there who has any advice about the area. I'm looking for a temporary place to live where I can sleep and work on razors. Other than being in the lab, that's pretty much all I'll be doing so I'm looking for a cheap sh*t-hole as close as practical (within a few miles) to Johns Hopkins on the 700 block of N. Broadway.

Any advice for finding something would be appreciated.

On the West side of down town? Live in that area and you will need your razors for self defense, not shaving.

While I've not been in Baltimore for several years, at one time I worked for a company headquartered there. Talk about culture shock, moving from Iowa City to Baltimore is going to be a big one. Enjoy the crab.

I'll send a PM.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye5

On the West side of down town? Live in that area and you will need your razors for self defense, not shaving.

While I've not been in Baltimore for several years, at one time I worked for a company headquartered there. Talk about culture shock, moving from Iowa City to Baltimore is going to be a big one. Enjoy the crab.

Given the number of hours I'll be working, it will make more sense for me to live close enough to ride a bike back and forth. Also, because our expenses will not be diminished in Iowa, I will need to find as cheap of a place as possible so it'll be beans and rice for me. The only crab I'll be seeing will be the one in the mirror that I'll be trying to shave.

Most of the people I knew that transfered to Baltimore ended up in Columbia. Way to far for a bike.

Originally Posted by Hawkeye5

Most of the people I knew that transfered to Baltimore ended up in Columbia. Way to far for a bike.

Yeah, I don't know where I'll end up, if the job will work out, or if my wife will find a job nearby. (Since I happen to like her, I'd rather we ended up in the same state.) I just want a temporary and really cheap place that I can find before I get there.

Hey Ro..... I mean Utopian .... best of luck with the move .....sincerely.

The downtown area near Johns Hopkins hospital is an area that's run-down and has a lot of crime. (The area around John Hopkins University is better, but still a little scary once you get far enough away from the campus housing areas).

I'd recommend any of the following:
1. renting an efficiency appartment North of Baltimore (Towson, Hunt Valley, etc) and riding the light-rail to JH,
2. renting something West-North-West of Baltimore (Reisterstown, etc) and riding the Metro to JH,
3. renting something South-South-West of Baltimore (Laruel, etc) and riding the MARC train into downtown and transfering to the bus to get the JH).
4. Checking with JH to see of they have a commuter ride-sharing list. Many people that work downtown live in the surrounding suburbs, so carpools are often easy to find.

Travel times for any of the options are probably around 20-30 minutes.

Here's a link that includes the Baltimore mass transit route maps and schedules:
Maryland Transit Administration

ps: Baltimore is a very nice metro area to live near, with lots of stuff to do. But some areas of downtown are not so safe... I don't hear anything about nationally famous gangs, but there are plenty of desperate folks in the some of the poorer downtown areas. I'd check the murder rates for any area that you are considering renting in (some are near the national highs).

Yes please be careful in Baltimore city outside the city its not to bad Maryland is a beautiful state but Baltimore has been listed as one of the most dangerous cities in U.S. We don't want to lose a fellow shaver.

There goes my Iowa Beef connection..........

Congrats Ron and best of luck.

Lynn