Edmonton new home areas

[jadeddog]

We are thinking about moving to Edmonton (as I have mentioned in another thread) and have been looking at houses on realtor.ca and other sites. I was wondering if I could get some "general opinions" on what constitutes a good area in Edmonton.

If we do move up there, I will be working a little north of the city, so that access needs to be kept in mind. Basically, I don't want to live in the far south end of the city, say south of Henday. Ideally, I want to purchase a newer home (built within last 5 years or so). Oh, and our budget is in the $500-600k range (obviously like to spend less, but would even be willing spend a bit more on a house that catches our fancy).

Here are the general areas we've been looking at:
- St. Albert
- Sherwood Park
- the area between Big Lake and Yellowhead Trail (Hawksridge and Starling area)
- Rosenthal/Suder Greens
- the general area surrounding Rabbit Hill Road/Terwillegar Drive (Rhatigan Ridge/Henderson Estates/Carter Crest/Terwillegar Towne) - this is already lower priority due to the imposed driving distance to north of the city
- northwest area (just south of the forces base) - the Crystallina Nera/McConachie Area)

I have a good understanding of St.Albert (grew up there), so I don't need any comments on that area. I used to think of the north side of the city somewhat badly, but noticed that there seem to be some nice houses in that new northwest area.

Anyway, any comments would be appreciated.

[sdimedru]

Griesbach sounds like it would fit the bill

[McBoo]

Griesbach seems pretty good actually.

Between St. Albert and Sherwood Park, would tend to recommend the latter.

Not that St. Albert isn't a nice place, it is, but if you have to come in to Edmonton (and you'll want to at times) bad weather = really, really REALLY bad traffic.

[CMD UW]

Griesbach would be my first choice. But with the Henday travelling north of the City from St.Albert and Sherwood Park should be quite easy.

[jadeddog]

Originally Posted by sdimedru

Griesbach sounds like it would fit the bill

i hadn't heard/known about this area before... is the north end a good area though? i seem to recall when i was younger and living in st.albert that the north end didn't have a very good reputation

[mcc16]

Originally Posted by jadeddog

i hadn't heard/known about this area before... is the north end a good area though? i seem to recall when i was younger and living in st.albert that the north end didn't have a very good reputation

I grew up on the north side but went to school on west end. The majority of west Enders seem to be scared of the north side. But in reality the majority of the Northside is just your typical suburban community very similar to anywhere else in the city. There are some areas that are still seen as a little rougher even to north siders such as clareview/or possibly castle downs... But there are also many neighbourhoods where houses can be 600-800 000 with some even approaching 1.5 million. Don't be scared of the North side! Especially greisbach. It's a very desirable newer community. Maybe I'm wrong but from what I've seen, the one bad thing about greisbach is that you get a slightly smaller house at a premium because of its popularity/amenities/density?

But if you ask a west ender , us north siders all have to carry guns to walk safely at night.

[Chopper]

Living here in Edmonton for a year now and I find that west end people are really afraid of the north side.
Off topic
A friend/officemate told me this when I was still new(sort off) to the city,
West end upper upper-crestwood,oleskiw,donsdale,west ridge
Southwest upper upper-windermere(windermere estates, upper windermere, one windermere)
Snobbish west-rio terrace, laurier heights, lewis estate
Snobbish southwest-henderson and falconer
Far west snobs-all west of henday(lewis farms, granville,hamptons) and cameron heights

The north-true edmontonians hahahahahahaha

[jadeddog]

Originally Posted by Chopper

Living here in Edmonton for a year now and I find that west end people are really afraid of the north side.
Off topic
A friend/officemate told me this when I was still new(sort off) to the city,
West end upper upper-crestwood,oleskiw,donsdale,west ridge
Southwest upper upper-windermere(windermere estates, upper windermere, one windermere)
Snobbish west-rio terrace, laurier heights, lewis estate
Snobbish southwest-henderson and falconer
Far west snobs-all west of henday(lewis farms, granville,hamptons) and cameron heights

The north-true edmontonians hahahahahahaha

lol, i think i might be a snob then, pretty much all of those places are the ones that i am the most interested in.... although i feel they are likely out of my budget for the most part... 600k doesn't get you much in most of those locations

[Landlocked]

Originally Posted by jadeddog

lol, i think i might be a snob then, pretty much all of those places are the ones that i am the most interested in.... although i feel they are likely out of my budget for the most part... 600k doesn't get you much in most of those locations

A lot depends on your lifestyle as well. Starling, Trumpeter, and Hawksridge are further from amenities but close to Louis Hole Provincial Park, easy access to the Henday, and not that far 'timewise' from West end restaurants and box stores.

[noodlenoodle]

Originally Posted by jadeddog

600k doesn't get you much in most of those locations

$600K will get you a nicer-than-average house in an average neighbourhood or an average house in a nicer-than-average neighbourhood. If you want both you're gonna come up short.

[tele75]

@jadeddog

Being born in Edmonton, I have lived in the northwest side, east side, west end, downtown (near the Leg grounds), just off Whyte and Millwoods. I can say the east and west sides were my least favourite, with downtown and the northwest being my preferences. We also lived in Beaumont (not my cup of tea, a bit too quiet) for a couple of years, before finally settling down in Sherwood Park, where I have been working for many years and have to say has been terrific. We have no plans on leaving anytime soon. We have excellent access in and around Edmonton, especially with the AHD being completed. The housing is a bit pricey, but it would seem most areas of Edmonton are also becoming quite pricey.

[maxy38]

Originally Posted by tele75

@jadeddog

Being born in Edmonton, I have lived in the northwest side, east side, west end, downtown (near the Leg grounds), just off Whyte and Millwoods. I can say the east and west sides were my least favourite, with downtown and the northwest being my preferences. We also lived in Beaumont (not my cup of tea, a bit too quiet) for a couple of years, before finally settling down in Sherwood Park, where I have been working for many years and have to say has been terrific. We have no plans on leaving anytime soon. We have excellent access in and around Edmonton, especially with the AHD being completed. The housing is a bit pricey, but it would seem most areas of Edmonton are also becoming quite pricey.

Lived downtown for 7 years give or take. Wish I could move back eventually