r/royaloak

Hi everyone I am looking at purchasing a condo in downtown Royal oak.
When I first checked out this complex there was a young lady who was the property manager/realtor on the property.
I really like this condo and am pretty close to pulling the trigger on it.
As I have talked more with family, a family friend reached out and started to help me with the purchase and has been very generous to do a reduced sales fee.
When I brought up to the property mgr that I was looking at bringing this family friend in, the manager mentioned that could cost me more money in realtor fees.
I genuinely believe that the property manager is great and has been a great help with me asking her a bunch of questions. She has also mentioned how she would be able to help lower the sales price due to representing the property and realtor as well.

This is my first time with this big of a purchase. Any impartial thoughts on this and this love triangle I am in?

Anyone have any experience with the pros there? Received a package for my birthday.

Hello,
I’m attending a concert tomorrow at Royal Oak music theater. I was just curious if there were any tips on parking and local spots to maybe grab a drink close by?

Hey everyone! I’m moving to Michigan in July for work and would love some advice on where to live.

My office is in Downtown Detroit, and I won’t have a car initially, so I’m looking for areas/buildings with decent public transportation, walkability, and overall safety.

Budget: ideally around $1200–1400 max for a studio or 1BR.

I’m also considering areas like Ferndale, Royal Oak, Southfield, and Midtown/Downtown.

Would really appreciate honest opinions on:

• safest areas without a car
• buildings to avoid
• commute experience
• whether downtown is worth it without a car
• any hidden gem apartments I should check out

Thanks in advance!

Looking for some recommendations in the area for someone to tuck point + replace a few rows of bricks on my chimney.

Would prefer someone relatively local to limit cost but any recommendation is appreciated!

Visiting for a family event during the World Cup, are there any recommendations for the late night US match? Anywhere within uber distance would be awesome

Royal Oak used to be THE spot for thrifting back in the ‘90s (and even earlier), but I’ve heard that’s no longer the case. I live in California but I’m coming “home” to visit soon and would love to do some thrifting in and around metro/Detroit. What are the best spots these days? I’m talking the best Goodwills in the area or even shops that carry a curated selection of thrifted items that aren’t ridiculously marked up. I’m mostly looking for clothes, but always love perusing houseware too. Thanks!

Spent the last couple months trying to solve a personal problem — I kept missing events I actually wanted to go to because I was checking Eventbrite, Ticketmaster, the Metro Times calendar, and a half dozen venue sites separately and still missing things. So I started pulling every event listing I could find across the area into one place. After 6 weeks of running this, a few things have genuinely surprised me:

1. There are way more free events than I realized. Like 100+ per week, year-round. The Riverfront, Campus Martius, every suburban downtown's summer concert series, the DSO's Civic Concerts at Orchestra Hall, library programming across Wayne / Oakland / Macomb. The "Detroit is expensive" thing is real for arena shows and sports but the free programming runs deep.

2. The suburbs have way more going on than I expected. Royal Oak and Ferndale obviously, but Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Mt. Clemens, Wyandotte — all running 30+ events a month that nobody outside their immediate area hears about. Farmers markets, food truck rally's, free music events...

3. Detroit Metro Times' event listings are actually comprehensive, but somewhat hard to navigate. Half the stuff worth seeing is buried 4 pages deep.

4. Ticketmaster's Detroit coverage is uneven. They have all the Olympia venues (Fox, Comerica, Ford Field, LCA) and Pine Knob. But they miss a lot of Freedom Hill bookings, smaller club shows at Magic Stick / Crofoot, and basically anything that uses Etix or AXS instead. If you only check Ticketmaster you're missing maybe a third of what's happening.

5. The comedy scene is bigger than I realized. Mark Ridley's in Royal Oak, Planet Ant in Hamtramck, the comedy nights at Magic Stick / Old Miami — there's a stand-up show somewhere most nights of the week.

6. Jazz is more active than the wider music conversation suggests. Cliff Bell's books real touring acts, Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre runs strong programming, and the Detroit International Jazz Festival's satellite shows extend beyond Labor Day weekend.

7. Eastern Market is more than Saturday. The Tuesday market June–October, Sunday Streets, Flower Day. Most people I know only know about Saturday.

That's what's stood out so far. I'm curious — what events do people here actually go to that wouldn't show up on any official calendar? Neighborhood VFW or dive-bar music nights, specific venue communities, word-of-mouth-only stuff. What's the off-the-grid Detroit scene I'm still missing?

My small breed dog is currently on antibiotics for a tooth infection and is scheduled for an extraction later this week. The quote for the tooth removal (no extraneous complications or conditions) is $1500. I know they have to put animals under for this type of procedure so I was expecting it to be expensive- like $800-1000 expensive, not $1500.

Is this normal? Posting in this sub because I am wondering if anyone in the area has experience with this, along with a clinic in this area that might be more reasonable. If price I was given is in the ball park cost-wise, then it is what it is...

FWIW, I am neutral on our veterinarian clinic- I don't have anything bad to say about them, but I am not particularly attached to them, either.

Hi everyone! I’m a 21 y/o, female professional working in Birmingham and am looking for a roommate or two to rent an apartment with in Royal Oak (other areas like Troy, Ferndale, etc. are also options, but would like a walkable city). My budget is $1,200, which I know is on the lower side, so I’m also open to renting a home which I’ve seen a few of on Zillow!

I work 9-5 and go into the office three days out of the week so I’ll be pretty busy during the weekdays, but I love staying active, being social, and trying new things! Looking for someone who I can actually be friends with and have a good living situation with. Only looking to live with other girls! Please feel free to reach out if you’re interested!

Hi there!

I am looking at homes in RO / Berkley area and will probably need the hardwood floors redone before moving in.

Any good recommendations out there and a general price per sq ft?

TIA!

Can we sign something or go to city hall to get rid of this train track. The trains constantly stop right in the middle of downtown cutting the city in half during peak rush hour. Some people can’t even get home.