UC Davis-- where to live?

[florence02]

Hey guys. To those of you who are familiar with the UC Davis campus and its surroundings, which part of Davis (East, West, North, South, Central, Downtown) would you recommend that one looks for housing? Thanks for your input 🙂

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[Moskeeto]

you think you'll find housing here this late

seriously, i wouldn't be that picky right now, if I get in here, I'll probably have to try to find an old lady that is renting a room out. Housing in Davis is usually gone by feb or march. downtown, or central would be ideal if you can swing it. heres a pretty good webpage to take a gander at.
Davis Housing

 

[cbpremed]

HI Moskeeto,
What do you know about neighborhoods in Sacramento? Where is a good place to live? Also is Woodland feasible? I have a car and don't mind a short commute. Allrighty then thanks.

 

[Moskeeto]

Sacramento is kind of hit or miss. my gf is moving there next year and she's excited about it. I would definitely check the place out before I sign a lease. Oakpark, anything around broadway are to be avoided. thats were most of the gunshot victims come from at the UCDMC ER. yeah, anything around UCDMC should be avoided cause they're usually rougher neighborhoods.
Woodland is a great option. rent is cheaper, there's more stores in woodland than in Davis and its only a 15 min commute. The med center is right on the highway thats between woodland and davis so its easy to get back and forth. I don't know how many people live in woodland that go to shool here, but its something that has crossed my mind. theres an insane amount of people that share bedrooms here and i couldn't do that, i'd much rather live in woodland.

 

[BallerinaTina16]

i live in west davis, and for the most part rent is cheaper or comparable to other parts of davis. i also like it cause its a bit quieter and more treesy (is that a word). south davis is the most pricy and a little further from the campus and med school.

it will be hard to find housing this late. there are always people looking for roommates and such but entire apts are rare if any. hopefully tho you will able to find something that accommodates you.

 

[gimmedog]

For Sacramento, I recommend midtown, near downtown. It's got cool old houses and cafes etc as I remember. The rest is too suburban and you can't walk to anything.

 

[Liederfan]

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[BKMD]

The zones of Davis:

North: Suburban, drive places, lots of families or "responsible" students if out North East(Wildhorse development). If north by Anderson and Covell big undergrad functional area to live. Able to bike to school or catch bus.

South: Really nice expensive apartments occupied by student who can afford them.

West: Mix of neighborhoods. Arlington and surrounding areas basically like sophomore dorms. Houses around the west are mostly family occupied.

East: It exists, but I never knew anybody who lived there.

Central: Best area in my opinion. Walk downtown, ride bike to school. "Central" to everything. Not as nice apartments, but really who cares about granite countertops in school?


Don't live in Woodland.

Don't worry about finding housing "soo late" Properties change owners in the summer and if you watch craigslist or the Davis enterprise you can find really good deals because most people have already signed their leases and the demand for housing is lower in the summer.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

Sacramento is kind of hit or miss. my gf is moving there next year and she's excited about it. I would definitely check the place out before I sign a lease. Oakpark, anything around broadway are to be avoided. thats were most of the gunshot victims come from at the UCDMC ER. yeah, anything around UCDMC should be avoided cause they're usually rougher neighborhoods.
Woodland is a great option. rent is cheaper, there's more stores in woodland than in Davis and its only a 15 min commute. The med center is right on the highway thats between woodland and davis so its easy to get back and forth. I don't know how many people live in woodland that go to shool here, but its something that has crossed my mind. theres an insane amount of people that share bedrooms here and i couldn't do that, i'd much rather live in woodland.

Whatever med center is between Davis and Woodland is not where you'll be going. I lived in west Davis, nice quiet place.

 

[nick_carraway]

I just want to be sure that you know that the medical school (all of it) is in Sacramento, which is effectively separated into East and West Sacramento.

Certainly you could live in Davis itself, but I just want to make sure that you don't do a whole bunch of research, find a place you like, and then realize that it's 30 minutes away from the medical campus.

If you do live in Davis, I don't know if undergrad housing ideas would be too helpful. Undergrads typically choose housing that's convenient for campus, but also much more expensive. Many apartments/houses in Davis can be found at a reasonable price as long as you stay off the main approaches to campus.

Woodland is a pretty sizeable commute, in my opinion. It adds about... 15 minutes to your commute from Davis. It's just... in the wrong direction...

Cities closer to the medical center and closer to Sacramento like Natomas are places to look into. I'm not sure about their cost, but plenty of med students study at the B&N in Natomas. Be mindful that rush hour traffic is a pain so it'd be ideal if you could simply live within walking distance of the med school. Most common corridors are well lit at night and are safe.

Still, if you're stuck on Davis, check out: http://daviswiki.org/Front_Page

I lived in North Davis at Drake (cheapish, fair), Fountain Circle (old, but large for 5 guys who didn't want to share rooms), and my GF lived in Chaparral (nice but expensive). All of North Davis is convenient thanks to the Marketplace plaza and routine buses.

 

[notdeadyet]

Hey guys. To those of you who are familiar with the UC Davis campus and its surroundings, which part of Davis (East, West, North, South, Central, Downtown) would you recommend that one looks for housing? Thanks for your input 🙂

You're asking about the undergrad campus, not the medical school (in Sacramento), correct?

 

[notdeadyet]

Oakpark, anything around broadway are to be avoided. thats were most of the gunshot victims come from at the UCDMC ER.

Oak Park can be rough. In general, anything west of Stockton by more than two or three blocks gets pretty bad. The Oak Park neighborhood just west of Stockton tends to be okay right around the medical center. Anything very much south of Broadway can get bad, but the area around Tahoe Park is very nice.

yeah, anything around UCDMC should be avoided cause they're usually rougher neighborhoods.

Not true. Aside from the Oak Park area south and west of the school, the neighborhood east and north is very nice. The neighborhood the hospital is actually in, Elmhurt, is one of the nicest in the city. Atypical for a hospital neighborhood, in my book. A good portion of the medical students live in this neighborhood. It's great.

 

[30020tak]

Notdeadyet, do current students generally live in a shared house, individually, w/ 1 other roomate? Personally, do you know students who live close enough to bike to campus (ie. around Tahoe Park). It looks like Elmhurst is right on the river. That's pretty cool! If biking is my main source of transportation, is the ride from Elmhurst to school bikeable? Are there many bike paths (like in the city of Davis)?

Sorry to bombard, but I was really impressed with Davis and I love my bike, so I'm wondering if the two are compatible 🙂.

 

[gobears2007]

You're asking about the undergrad campus, not the medical school (in Sacramento), correct?

i think the OP was asking about Davis, since when this was originally posted (2003), that's where the first two years of the med school took place.

this thread was resurrected after 5 years 👍

 

[notdeadyet]

i think the OP was asking about Davis, since when this was originally posted (2003), that's where the first two years of the med school took place.

this thread was resurrected after 5 years 👍

Nice catch. I missed that. Grrr....

 

[notdeadyet]

Notdeadyet, do current students generally live in a shared house, individually, w/ 1 other roomate?

Yes. Lots of folks do this. Most of the neighborhoods immediately around the campus rent predominanty houses. There are some apartments (usually four-eight unit two floor buildings), but it's mostly houses. So there are a lot of people living in two to four bedroom houses. It works out cheap and is a nice set-up.

Personally, do you know students who live close enough to bike to campus (ie. around Tahoe Park). It looks like Elmhurst is right on the river. That's pretty cool!

If I had to break it down, I would say about 1/3 of the students live in Elmhurst and Tahoe park and 1/3 live in mid-town or East Sac.

Elmhurst is the neighborhood that the school is in. It's residential, quiet and pretty. Lots of trees and nice neighbors. Pretty cheap housing and a huge percentage of the neighborhood are either students or work at the hospital. You're a quick walk to campus (5-10 minutes).

Tahoe Park is a bit further away. Lots of folks regard it as one of the few nice neighborhoods south of Broadway. If you live on the park itself (which is beautiful), you're about 2.5 miles away. Too far to really walk every day, but a quick bike ride.

East Sac is a lot like Elmhurst, just a little further away. It's a fair walk or a short bike ride. It's closer to where the American River runs. The River has 22 miles of bike lanes and jogging paths next to it. It's a great place to exercise.

Mid-Town is further away. You're in for a decent length bike ride or need a car. It's much more city than the other neighborhoods, with lots of great book stores, cafes, nightclubs, bars, etc. There are more apartments here, but it tends to be pricier.

If biking is my main source of transportation, is the ride from Elmhurst to school bikeable? Are there many bike paths (like in the city of Davis)?

Sacramento as a city is definitely not as bike compatible as Davis, but it's okay. Lots of folks use it as their primary transportation. A vast majority of students live close enough to either walk or ride their bikes, so it's not a problem. And the river is great biking.

Sorry to bombard, but I was really impressed with Davis and I love my bike, so I'm wondering if the two are compatible 🙂.

Very much so. But your slugline indicates you're already a medical student, no?

 

[nick_carraway]

i think the OP was asking about Davis, since when this was originally posted (2003), that's where the first two years of the med school took place.

this thread was resurrected after 5 years 👍

Amazing that it went on so long without someone noticing. I feel dumb now.

At least I'm not the one who bumped it...

 

[30020tak]

Very much so. But your slugline indicates you're already a medical student, no?

Woops! New to SDN. I changed my status😳.

Currently deciding between UC Davis and Keck. Thanks so much for the comprehensive info. Appreciate it!

 

[notdeadyet]

Currently deciding between UC Davis and Keck. Thanks so much for the comprehensive info. Appreciate it!

No sweat. You'll get a great education at either. Both are fantastic medical schools.

Were it me, assuming that USC was throwing enough scholarship at me to offset the higher tuition and cost of living, a fair bit of the decision would come down to where I want to live and where I want to practice. Both schools are similarly ranked, but you're going to get a very different vibe from the schools.

If you're in to urban, big city opportunities and want to practice in LA, it's hard to beat training at LAC and the USC network. If you're interested in a wider variety of urban/rural and want to practice in northern California, it's hard to beat UCDMC and our scope up here. Both schools have a good commitment and oportunity to the underserved, but your style of living between USC and Davis couldn't be more different.

Best of luck with your decision. Two great choices.