Moving to Austin for work soon and trying to figure out the best area/apartment to live in.
I’m a 25M moving to Austin and will be working near Del Valle. Budget is around $1200–1400 for a studio or 1B1B. I don’t mind a ~30 min commute if it means living in a safer area with a better overall vibe.
Originally I looked a lot at East Austin, East Riverside, Govalle, etc. because of the proximity and prices, but after reading tons of Reddit posts/reviews about the homeless issue, break-ins, car thefts, and general safety concerns, I started looking more toward South Austin instead.
Right now I’ve mainly been considering South Lamar, South Congress, and Onion Creek areas. I still want to feel like I actually live in Austin and not way out in the suburbs since I like going out to restaurants/bars on weekends, which is why South Lamar feels appealing to me.
The 3 apartments I’ve narrowed it down to are:
- The 704
- Bell Southpark
- The Groves South Lamar
All 3 fit my budget pretty well, but I keep seeing reviews mentioning car break-ins/theft at basically every apartment complex in Austin, so now I’m not sure how much of that is just “normal Austin apartment living” vs genuinely bad areas.
Would you guys recommend any of these?
Also open to other neighborhood/apartment suggestions that balance:
- relative safety
- decent commute to Del Valle
- still having access to Austin nightlife/restaurants/social scene
Appreciate any advice.