<p>I'm a freshman and I just finished my first Semester at Cal. My roommates and I have heard that now is a good time to go apartment hunting (my roommate needs to stay over the summer so we probably need to start soon) and we've decided to get an apartment on the northside of campus. Since I'm not really familiar with the north side, I was wondering if you guys could tell me more about how it is. Is the area more quiet than south side? Or is noise level complete luck, depending on who else is in your complex? Are the rooms bigger / more expensive than apartments on southside? Which areas are kind of sketchy, or are there any areas I should avoid? Is there any area on north side that you guys would recommend? </p>
<p>I really appreciate any tips and/or input you guys have. Thank you!</p>
<p>I’ve lived on both north and southside, and both places have their pros/cons. The biggest advantage of northside is the overall more quiet, peaceful atmosphere. The biggest advantage of southside is the convenience to main campus buildings and stores. If you’re in the College of Engineering or Natural Resources, definitely try for northside since most classes will be held there.</p>
<p>I know plenty of people who live on Walnut, Arch, LeConte, or Euclid, so try to start your apartment hunt there. The closer to campus (nearer to Hearst Avenue), the better. Of course, if you have a car then you could search more apartments further north; apartments on Cedar by the Gourmet Ghetto are pretty clean and quiet.</p>
<p>Also, if you haven’t already, try Urbann Turbann. Like Chipotle, large portions and affordable, with Indian influences.</p>
<p>I agree that Urban Turban is friggin awesome And, sadly, it’s sooo true that the northside isn’t as lively as the southside. All the convenience/grocery stores, people, attractions, restaurants, etc. are to the south. Although, it IS really quiet up here, in the north.</p>
<p>After you live on your own for a while, all you need is somewhere to buy the necessary groceries for cheap and the Safeway on Shattuck Ave. and Vine St. never disappoints. If you like eating out, I don’t see why the restaurants in Shattuck ave. (such as Bangkok noodle, Cheeseboard) aren’t as appreciated as the one in Southside. I am definitely biased towards Northside, because it is less crowded and noisy and no hobos and the rent pricing is bit better too for the room size compared to Southside.</p>
<p>However though, from my experience, all it matters is
Location
Location
Roommate. If he/she’s currently your roommate in your dorm, make sure he/she can be a good apartment-mate. I had a serious issue regarding this and it’s my fault for not realizing living in an apartment requires much more maturity than living in a dorm.</p>
<p>I lived in Unit 3 for 2 years and then moved to a house on Northside. I love it here! It is more removed from the southside chaos, but it isn’t dull and boring over here at all. There’s tons of places to eat on Euclid (Northside cafe, Urban Turbann, Le Vals, better La Burrita) and lots more on Shattuck. Try to get an apartment close to Hearst, mine is closer to campus than almost any place on southside would be. And apartments are definitely bigger and nicer on Northside.</p>
<p>The apartments may be a bit more expensive but the peace and quiet and relative safety are really amazing. The residents tend to be older (my apartment building is 80% longtime residents) so that probably explains it. As for groceries, sure it’s a bit less convenient but you really only need an hour or two to grab what you need for the next two weeks or so. Helps me plan what I eat better, in that I can’t just buy random things during my grocery runs just because I’m limited in what I can carry back home.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the info guys, I found your posts really informative. I think I am better suited to north side. Are there really no grocery stores there, though? Oh, and how is public parking? North side is closer to the BART station, right? What are the major buses that run through the area? :] Thanks for the help! Oh, and since I haven’t had any experience with apartment living with roommates before, are there any tips you guys would give in that area? I know my roommates tend to be lazy to clean so I was thinking of setting up some kind of cleaning schedule, at least.</p>
<p>The main grocery stores would be Safeway up on Shattuck, and Trader Joe’s down on University. I think you take the 7 or 18 to Safeway and the 52/51B/25 to Trader Joe’s. In either case, once you start walking on Shattuck or University toward the store, you’ll see and catch a bus headed in the general direction of the store.</p>
<p>I think BART is about the same distance from north and southside. All buses stop at BART on the way so I don’t notice that difference. Of course, if you live at Berkeleyan (popular apartment building at Oxford & Hearst), that’s only 5 minutes walking to the station. I don’t know too many buses that go counterclockwise from northside to BART - probably the 65?</p>
<p>Roommates…hopefully they’re clean and quiet. Otherwise you’ll have stuff and people all over the place, all the time.</p>
<p>I live in Albany. I am about 2 miles from school. It is a short, 10-minute bus ride or I have my girlfriend drop me off. I sometimes walk there and it takes 40 minutes.</p>
<p>It is incredibly quiet up here. I like it because I am an older student, I live with my girlfriend, and like being away from the college lifestyle. There are many students who live in my building, or near me. But there are mostly old people and older adults/families in Albany. </p>
<p>If you want to get away from the bustle of Berkeley and crave some peace and quiet, Albany/North Berkeley along Shattuck and Solano are a good fit. If you still want to be close to campus, the North Side is far less wild than the south side/Telegraph area. But still close to campus.</p>
<p>My place is on the corner of campus by Tolman so I’m really close to Shattuck. Groceries are pretty easy to get from Trader Joes or Safeway. I take buses a lot, basically every time I have class up the hill. I never have to wait more than 5 minutes, the F, 52, perimeter all stop on Hearst and go around campus.</p>
<p>Flutterfly, did you end up moving into one of those fairytale houses on Northside? I remember you making a thread about it before haha.</p>
<p>To OP: I live in the Elmwood area and would really recommend it. It’s on Southside a few blocks south of Unit 2, so it’s convenient to the shops and restaurants on College and Telegraph, but it’s also just far enough from school that it feels quiet and peaceful. It’s a nice little neighborhood with lots of families living in the area. Takes ~15 minutes to walk to campus or 5 minutes to bike.</p>
And, sadly, it’s sooo true that the northside isn’t as lively as the southside. All the convenience/grocery stores, people, attractions, restaurants, etc. are to the south. Although, it IS really quiet up here, in the north.</p>