Can anyone tell me what they think of 5025 Knox St? We are looking to buy and it looks quite nice in the pictures online but I know nothing about Germantown and the neighborhoods. Thanks!

-Amy

I actually just drove by that house today. It looks like an okay block...but, I don't know very much about the area. I am thinking of moving into that area too, a couple of blocks away from there. It seems that more people are moving into Germantown now...and I anticipate it getting better. What are you looking for in a neighborhood? in a house?

If you move to Germantown, I would suggest living west of Wayne Ave in that section of Germantown. The area of 5000 Knox has been going downhill for quite a while. Wayne Ave is a notorious drug alley, especially at Seymour, which is right around the corner from where you are looking. Going east, Germantown Ave is not much better, and going north on Knox from Manheim is quite dicey itself. Penn Knox isn't bad, but again, you are surrounded by crime.

Okay, that house went under contract so that is out. I have been looking at a map when I am looking at properties there but I still know so little about the area. We found another house in the "historic West Germantown section" at 6314 Moylan that looks absolutely beautiful. It is a ways away from Knox but it is right near Wayne ave and from what I see, I can't tell if it's West or East of it...it is right near Clifford Park though... thoughts? We're looking for a nice place in a safer neighborhood, easy to get to CC. We have a 6 month old son so we want a place we can get out and walk / play with him. Larger size (1200+ sq ft), 3 br at least. Our RE agent doesn't know much about the area either so any help would be great!! Thanks!

-Amy

actually, I've been living at knox and manheim for over a year now. The neighborhood, while dicey at times, is experiencing a boom. The area of green and seymour has several rennovated houses, and knox from logan to manheim has more rennovated houses. I think the neighborhood is on the verge of quickly coming up.

The house on Moylan is definitely on a 'quieter' block. You have the Retirement home backyard bounding you on the one side and the R8 tracks behind you. Washington Lane above you and only a few blocks from Lincoln Drive. Really nice area to walk around too. I live on Greene at the corner of Washington and walk past this block twice a day to catch the train to work. Have you visted the area at all yet?

I lived there for over 30 years. My family still lives there. I am in that area at least once a week. While the neighborhood has seen worse days, it did take a dip in the early 90s and is not back to where it was. That being said, I have no fears about walking around.
As for G-town quickly coming up, I don't see it happening any time soon. It will be a slow, gradual process, with some setbacks along the way. There is no political force in that area to help things along. Donna Reed-Miller is the worst council person in the city, and unfortunately, she represents Germantown. There is also no business entity in Germantown who has a vested interest. Asher's Candy gave up on Germantown after almost 100 years in the neighborhood. The GBA is a cluster****, with no leadership and no sense of how to guide a business district.
Germantown needs someone of influence to take them under its wing, and that just isn't happenning, nor does it look like anyone is on the horizon.

You got that right about the leadership part. Germantown needs some leadership to pull itself up from the dirt, but I still think that it has more raw talent than fishtown or west philly. The housing in this area is spectacular, with low prices to boot. Investors, and young professionals alike are looking for areas in the city where they can scoop up cheap housing, and still be a stone's throw away from the hot spots of the city. The way I look at it, G'town is minutes from East falls, Manyunk, Mt. Airy, Mainline, and Chestnut Hill. G'town is also only 15-20 minutes from every other part of the city, making it a great central location to any job or event. Back to the leadership, when the right people move in, the leadership will change. But for now, we're stuck with morons who were chosen by fools. You're also right about the businesses too. We need some real shops, and no more dollar stores, weave & oil stores, and fast food joints. We need a real strip mall with a Walmart, Lowes, and Best Buy. But, realestate investing usually pushes business investing along when they see spending power increase in the neighborhood.

Oh, and by the way, they need to bulldoze everything on Hansberry street from wayne to green street. If they did that, you could connect penn-Knox with the whole area south of manheim. I hate hansberry. I drive by that intersection almost everyday and there's always like 10 kids hanging out at the stupid corner store. Half of them are slinging something, and the other half are just looking to fight with kids from other blocks. Nothing but losers on that block.

6314 Moylan is great--if my husband and I had not have bought up the street, it would be have the the "one" we really wanted. I think you'll like the neighborhood. It's a small community. Lots of older people, but new families are moving in too.

Our neighborhood group is the Duval Improvement Association. They have a block party with ponies, games and food. It's nice. Very green, close to parks.

I live just up the street--Washington Lane and Burbridge. You should take the train up...you never really know if the neighborhood is right for you until you see it for yourself.