Moving to Ohio and considering Dayton (Columbus, Cincinnati: real estate, apartments, rent)

[arena73]

Since my job has permanently gone to work from home, I can finally leave South Carolina. I moved here nearly 6 years ago due to my job but Columbia, SC never felt like a good fit. Ohio is one of the states that I can work in and it meets all of my top relocation priorities: liberal state/city (or more so than my current location), cooler summer, low cost of living, low/reasonable taxes and good place to retire. My plan was to move to a larger city/town and rent for a year to give me time to explore smaller towns. I want to find a good fit for me to buy a house and move permanently. Initially, I was looking at Columbus but the lower rent in Dayton caught my eye. When I look at the Dayton forum, it looks like the cheaper areas are also (possibly) not very safe. And when I compare Dayton to Columbia, SC on a few sites, they are pretty much the same except Dayton has cheaper cost of living than here.

I'm looking for a 1 bedroom apartment in the range of $650-800. It doesn't have to be fancy but in a safe area for a single woman. I can pay more but was hoping to save money for the future home purchase. I don't have kids and I have a vehicle to get around so school systems and public transportation are not concerns. I would like to have access to a top library system though. I'd love to get your thoughts on why you think Dayton might be a better choice than Columbus. And any suggestions for neighborhoods in Dayton would be appreciated. If you need more information, let me know. Thanks in advance.

[Natural510]

Hopefully I can help...grew up in Columbus & Springfield, moved away, came back. Columbus is a larger city with more amenities (really, just more of everything like restaurants etc not necessarily anything game-changing). Although I’m a big city guy at heart I actually prefer Dayton, at least the Dayton of the past 5-6 years. It’s much easier to get around than Columbus, which is much more spread out and many of its attractions in the traffic-gridlocked northern suburbs. Dayton is definitely more of a Rust Belt town with more dilapidated neighborhoods, but there also some great neighborhoods within the city proper which are revitalized with strong neighborhood associations. Downtown is also near capacity for residency, with more developments in the way. And the suburbs are easy to reach with Trader Joe’s, Costco, Whole Foods, the malls etc.

What truly changed Dayton proper was the state severely loosening the rules for breweries and distilleries to open and operate. Even if you don’t drink, the brewpubs and distilleries have attracted a lot of new restaurants, cafes, other shops to open up in neighborhoods where it was mostly a ghost town before. Dayton certainly is rough in a lot of places...I’d recommend looking in Saint Anne’s Hill, South Park, Oregon District, McPherson, Wright-Dunbar, Belmont/Walnut Hills, in that order. Beavercreek and Kettering for the suburbs, Miamisburg and Centerville if you don’t mind living further out. I particularly like S.A.H. because it’s a neighborhood right outside downtown full of restored Victorians with a strong neighborhood association, with a co-op brewery/eatery as the neighborhood spot.

Columbus is fine too, but more expensive and harder to find housing, and more hectic to drive through. But if you’re younger and like to go out a lot, it might be the place for you.

[midwest1]

Yiu might want to give Middletown a look. Small city located halfway between downtown Dayton and downtown Cincinnati. The city is, like Dayton, seeing revitalization.

[ohio_peasant]

Ohio is notorious for local income taxes, and in the City of Dayton, these are in relative terms quite high. A good alternative for apartments is Beavercreek, just east of Dayton. It has no local income taxes at all, and a decent selection of apartments.

[arena73]

Such good info, ya'll!

Natural510, thank you so much for all the details and suggestions for Dayton. I will take a closer look at the neighborhoods to see if they might be a good fit. I truly appreciate your reply.

midwest1 and ohio_peasant, thank you for providing alternative suggestions. I will look at Middletown as well as Beavercreek. If you think of anything else I should know, keep posting!!!!!

[wrightflyer]

I think Natural hit the nail pretty well. If taxes are a concern at the local level, Beavercreek would offer a good selection of apartments that can have varying price points. Keep in mind with neighboring Fairborn and Wright State University, some complexes may be more student oriented, especially north of I-675 and Colonel Glenn Hwy.

Austin Landing (Miamisburg, Centerville, Springboro area) may be another option but is further out from Dayton proper and its amenities. Most of the area is township based, so I believe there may be no income tax. But the area is zoned as a special development zone, so perhaps there is an income tax? Not sure if anyone has background on that. Apartments are also newer, and as a result, more expensive in the Austin Landing area.

Beavercreek may have more affordable places, but schools and the base will drive a premium. Expect to pay at or above your top budget, depending on the complex.

[woxyroxme]

One area that was not mentioned is Grafton Hill which is kind of west/northwest of downtown which has a few mid rise apartment buildings, there are a few in downtown Dayton on 5th st. near Sinclair, one looks kind of rundown but the other is a bit nicer.

[Michaelnel4449]

My wife and I retired and left Dayton after 30+ years. We watched how the corporate billionaires destroyed thousands of good paying union jobs. Dayton had at least 3 good size GM plants, 2 Chrysler plants, NCR and Frigidaire plants that were either shut down or moved out of the country to Mexico, China and Canada.
The only thing left standing now is Wright Patterson AFB which amazes me to this day. Thousands have fled Dayton and Ohio to find work and escape the high taxes. We finally sold our 150,000 home built in 2008 and was lucky to do so. This home was on a 1/2 acre lot and property taxes were over 5,000 per year. The home values in Dayton are in the tank and the people who still live there are trapped paying these high taxes because they cannot sell their homes even at the incredible low values. Few buyers want to pay tax rates 4 times higher than other cities around the nation. The weather is terrible for 9 mos out of the year, winters are cloudy, miserable, rainy and humid with some snow that never seems to melt. Winter goes right into summer about April with incredible humidity and heat until about Sept. Then Sept, Oct and November are usually nice and in Dec it turns to crap again. Dayton has a huge drug problem, you name it, they have it there. Dayton is right at the nation's drug corridor with interstate 70/75 crossing just a few miles up the highway. A lot of poverty and low paying jobs if you like that sort of thing.
We moved to Grand Junction Co and never looked back. So come over to Dayton, the waters fine....

[joe from dayton]

Your statement about Dayton real estate being in the tank is simply wrong. I know people buying and selling homes, and I know real estate agents. You are wrong. Period.

https://learn.roofstock.com/blog/day...-estate-market

https://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/n...market-is.html

[arena73]

Michaelnel4449, I appreciate you sharing your experience with living in Dayton. It must have been frustrating for you and your family to watch the city you love go downhill over those 30 years. And I am happy you seem to love Colorado. I did end up choosing Dayton, specifically Centerville, for my relocation. The poverty and drugs you described are rampant most places, including where I live currently. All I can do is research and ultimately go with my gut to see the Dayton area with my own point of view. But, I do thank you for your perspective.