July 31-August 6, 2003

cover story

Rental Health

Your guide to finding the perfect crib in philly.

by Brian Hickey

Philadelphia is a renter’s city. It’s also a city of neighborhoods, around 200 to be somewhat exact. You’d think that’d make it easier to find the perfect two bedrooms, on the perfect tree-lined block, surrounded by the perfect neighbors, right? With so many places to choose from, how hard can it be? Well, if you’ve been a Philly renter long enough, you know the answer is "pretty damn hard sometimes."

We here at City Paper realize that as well, so over the course of the past few weeks, we set out to learn just what neighborhoods are best for people who prefer paying monthly rent to dealing with the pesky responsibilities that accompany home ownership. (Shovel your own sidewalk, Jack, and fix my sink while you're at it!)

In this week's cover package, we searched high and low -- well technically, north, south, east and west -- to find out what makes the city's renter-friendly neighborhoods tick. Cultural offerings and SEPTA access. Crime issues with a little neighborhood history. And, of course, how much it costs to rent in one neighborhood compared to others, broken down by location and apartment size on a nice big city map you can bring along on those open-house tours.

Along the way, we encountered renters with horror stories about everything from rats to perverted property owners. And, in true cat-versus-mouse fashion, we found landlords with unkind words in response. We learned that 72 percent of Center City's housing stock is filled with renters -- compared to 41 percent citywide -- and also looked into the age-old question: Why aren't there ever want ads for apartments in Chinatown? (Hint: The landlords don't need to advertise.) And finally, we've explained why you really, really need renter's insurance. (Trust us, you do.)

Consider this your all-encompassing guide to renting in Philadelphia, a real-estate agent that doesn't call with a new story every five minutes. We hope it's both useful and entertaining.