Temple Class of 2010 (entering in Fall 2007)

[savage_fred]

Hi everyone!  Just mailed my Temple deposit so I just wanted to say hi.  My name is Danielle, I did my undergrad in psychology at Carnegie Mellon University and have been working in Albuquerque, NM in mental health for the past two years while getting a masters degree in professional counseling.  I am so looking forward to Temple!  I am originally from NY, so no instate tuition as of now but I am engaged and will be married in August.  Since my fiance will be working full time and we are planning on buying a home, I am hoping for in-state tuition as well.  I am planning on studying health law but I am very interested in trial advocacy and international law as well.  Looking forward to meeting everyone!

Another New Mexican going to Temple and on this board no-less...that's pretty strange. I'm currently outside of Sana Fe and I can't wait to get the hell out of here and into the city. I will miss the food and the views.

[PhilaGirl]

If anyone has questions about housing, feel free to PM me.  I don't know the entire city like the back of my hand, but I could tell you generally whether it's a place you'd want to be living or not.  I also posted a giant rundown of Philly neighborhoods on the "Tell Me Everything About Temple" thread over on one of the pre-law boards awhile ago (it might be the Reviews/Rankings one but I don't remember offhand).  I think it's a few pages back now, though.

[Barbie22]

Im about 90% sure now...i feel bad about pitt though.  I feel like im betraying them (sent them a deposit too).

[kelley123]

Is anyone planning to use that roommate list? I'm thinking that I can prob afford a studio but it might be more fun to live in a 2br with someone else. I was just wondering if anyone actually uses the referral thing through Temple or not...

Also my friend thats going to Cornell joined a facebook group for the 2010 class...has someone made one for temple or am I the only tool that plays on facebook?

[Barbie22]

i signed up for the refferal thing.  It would be nice to find someone who knows the philly area.

[danielle83]

hey - question for those of you who know Philly well.  My fiance and I are planning on buying a house and we were looking for something 1000+ sq ft and in a nice area.  Since we can't afford that in center city, the house we have our eye on is in Mt. Airy, just off Main Street in Manayunk.  It's a 5 minute walk to the train and then a 10 minute commute to Temple.  Does this sound like a good location?  We thought it might be nice to be a bit outside the city to make it quieter as long as we can commute easily.  Also, if this appeals to anyone, we will be buying a multi-unit house and renting out the other units so if you want an awesome landlord let me know if you're interested! 

[Barbie22]

I may be interested, depending on where this house is eventually.  Parking would be nice.

[savage_fred]

Is anyone planning to use that roommate list? I'm thinking that I can prob afford a studio but it might be more fun to live in a 2br with someone else. I was just wondering if anyone actually uses the referral thing through Temple or not...

Also my friend thats going to Cornell joined a facebook group for the 2010 class...has someone made one for temple or am I the only tool that plays on facebook?

Facebook eh...I can only handle one social networking site and since I'm a bit older I've gone with Myspace. Facebook wasn't around back in my University days. Back in those days we used a rudimentary internet site called Friendster. Friendster eventually eroded into the fringe following the outbreak of the Great Social Newtorking War of 2004. At this time many of us Friendsters became wandering gypsies void of an Internet home. We roamed aimlessly about the Internets searching for our lost Friendster refugees. Eventually, many of us found sanctuary within the dominant site of the time: Myspace. However, in the time since the end of the First Great Social Networking War things have changed. Myspace has transformed into an oligarchy owned by Rupert Murdoch and many of its' members have become alienated by the shift. Competition from Facebook has left many analysts fearful of another great Social Networking War and new social networking sites join the frenzy every day. It is a tense time for us social networking site people. Tense times indeed. To commit to another site and develop a new online persona now is too risky.           

[danielle83]

Cool... it will be weeks before we know for sure about the house so I'll keep everyone updated.

I have a facebook acccount but I haven't used it in like, a year and I am dressed like a clown in my picture.

Savage Fred - hello to a fellow new mexican!  I am from the Nob Hill area in Albuquerque but I'm originally from New York and am really looking forward to the east coast.  New Mexico is alright, but I miss big city life.

[PhilaGirl]

Danielle, the house you have your eye on could be in a nice area or it might not.  Do you know the actual address?  That would help.  Part of Mt. Airy is lovely -- it's more affordable and quieter than Center City, there are more detached houses, and a lot of young professionals and families are moving there.  But the section near Germantown is still kind of sketchy.  I'm guessing that if it's closer to Manayunk, it would be pretty decent, though it could go either way.

Manayunk used to be really cool and funky but it's gotten too popular for its own good, IMO.  Parking is generally a nightmare, there are more big-box stores than boutiques now, and the scene feels very "undergrad" to me.  Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with this, but I liked the area better five years ago.  It still has a fun vibe though.

There is a train line as well as a bus or two that go through Manayunk, so getting into Center City or to Temple is do-able but driving to campus might actually be easier/quicker if you have a car and a parking space.

One thing about Manayunk you might want to take into consideration, though, is that it takes as long to get into Center City from there as it does from some of the suburban areas, but since it's technically part of Philadelphia, your fiance (and you, when you start working) will be subject to the Philly Wage Tax (a little under 4% for Philly residents whether you work in the city or not). If you work in Philly but don't live there, the rate is about 3.72%.  If you neither live nor work in Philly, you don't have to worry about the wage tax (some municipalities do have a local tax, but nothing like the city one).  Property taxes tend to be lower in the city than in the 'burbs, though.

Anyway, I think the house you're considering is definitely worth looking at, I'm just not sure I'd buy it sight unseen.  Are you coming to Philly anytime soon?