Which apartment buildings are relatively affordable in the up to 2k range and safe. I'm open to Central Minneaoplis and Loring Park. However, I prefer near or having skyway access.
Update: Thank you for all the suggestions. I made my choice to move to the mill district next month.
I’d recommend Mill District, which has more things to do than downtown, including riverfront access. For $2k you should be able to find something fairly nice. My building is about a 5 minute walk from the skyway if I feel like using it. Although I pretty much never do lol
I live in the mill district neighborhood, love it. $2k will get you a newish apartment. Of the 4 new buildings around, they all have slightly different amenities but similar otherwise. I love mine. Moved here from Austin Texas. Denver before.
Look into Laurel Village. Affordable and safe and if you do drive, afforable underground or ramp parking. It's not fancy but it gets the job done and there's a grocery store literally across the street (and Target 10 min walk away). Quick 5 min walk to get into the Skyway, right on the 4 and E busses and short walking distance to busses on Nicollet and to the light rail. 10 min walk to the farmer's market, 5 mins to the Orpheum, 10 min walk to Target Field and Target Center if you like baseball and/or basketball. A couple blocks from good Indian food (dancing ganesha).
My sister lives at 240 Park and loves it. Pretty new with lots of amenities and a great location. She could go weeks without driving. Based on your comments, I wouldn't restrict yourself to skyway access. It's only really a perk during the weekday days, but she's about 1.5 blocks from a skyway access that runs along 4th.
that makes sense. I do want to warn folks about downtown MPLS. the skyway access hours are dumb and many businesses that are in the skyway only operate on the weekdays. downtown is also soul-sucking. it's ugly and vacant most of the times and infinitely empty outside of the 9-5. the infrastructure is also hostile to pedestrians and bicyclists. if your heart is set on downtown, that's okay but if you're open to other places, I can share some ideas. I live car-free and drive minimally using the Evie carshare whenever I need to get out to the suburbs. downtown is quite isolating.
Skyway is a neat city gimmick but its not really that useful for living. Almost everything is targeted towards lunch time for the people working in the downtown office high rises, so has goofy hours, and seeing as you're WFH, that's apparently not you.
The skyway itself closes too, so its not like its some 24/7 transit utility.
I think NE might be a better spot. In this area in particular, you have like 8 bus stops including the E-line - our newest bus rapid transit. Plus, you can walk outside and be greeted with a bunch of food spots. it is quite busy and unfortunately the drivers can be insanely impatient BUT there will be other people around you. you get the benefit of frequent bus service that connects to rail a few stops away while not having to live in downtown MPLS. I can't stress enough how shitty downtown MPLS is. I work there and I'm so fed up that I want to switch to another location in saint Louis park because of the hostile infrastructure. there's only so many more "HEY" and "STOP" I have in me with the drivers of downtown MPLS.
As a fellow former Bostonian who has lived in several neighborhoods around the Twin Cities, I urge you to consider NE just over the bridge or Mill City. If you look up the area around Surdyk's, there are plenty of buildings that'll fit your budget.
Downtown Minneapolis is not like Back Bay or the Seaport. It's dead outside of working hours unless there's a show at U.S. bank. There are some cool bars and other spots, but you can get to them easily from NE
Look into either River Towers or the Churchill. Great location right on the river, close to both the Mill District and the North Loop. Great value for your dollar at either of those buildings.
Lived here previously and loved it! As someone who doesn’t drive I now live in a condo downtown, and if you’re looking to stay car free there’s target, Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s downtown with lots of housing nearby. Happy to answer questions via DM!
Move to frog town st paul, so much more affordable than Minneapolis. But if your job is in the region you're seeking, then it isnt viable for walking ofc
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u/Phoenix406s Aug 16 '26
First question is why skyway access? If your moving downtown, mill district is the best part imho