Whats it like to live in Philadelphia or the outer suburbs? Is this a growing city or people leaving like NY?

I grew up in Northeast Philadelphia all my life. If you're raising children and can afford it, definately try the "Mainline" and the suburbs. However, these areas aren't very diverse. The most diverse places are within the city. It's like any city, there are dangerous parts but lots of kids, including I, do fine. North and West Philadelphia are probably the toughest to grow up. But generally, in any city, the poorest and richest places are always near each other for some reason. Beyond West Philadelphia, there are really nice neighborhoods. Northeast Philadelphia isn't too bad, but lots of people of moving from the North so it's getting worse, or at least my old neighborhood. My parents just recently moved into a nearby development in the Northeast are are estastic. The downtown area is nice, there a lots of old houses that are beautiful and the neighborhoods are really lively but also quiet when they need to be. There also some of the best schools near center city and in the NE including "Roman Catholic High, Masterman, Central and Girls High." I'm not as knowledgeable with elementary schools, but there is a directory online if you want to do some more investigation. Healthcare systems has is faults, I'm not sure what place doesn't. I do know that the standard of living here is pretty cheap and real estate is much less than other major cities including NYC and Boston. Hopefully that helped.

philly is like my favorite place in the world.it is so cool here, u have the liberty bell here,the declaration of independence here and the best cheesesteaks.it has more and more people every day you and ur soon to be family will love it here

Im from a suburb of Philly and it is great here...and the city itself is great..."people" as a group are rude but everyone knows that about philly...i LOVE it here, if you want to raise children i would advise choosing a spot based on the schools...if you want to live the city, go to like manyunk or the main line, those areas are nice...if your looking for a suburb, than i would either suggest collegeville and surrounding areas so your kids can go to methacton or somewhere in the north penn district...King of Prussia is also real nice :)

According to the U.S. census, Philadelphia has lost about 100,000 people in the last 5 years. Though it is shrinking, it hasn't lost 1 million people like new york has. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=&geo_id=05000US42101&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US42%7C05000US42101&_street=&_county=philadelphia&_cityTown=philadelphia&_state=04000US42&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=050& The suburbs of Philadelphia are safer that living in the crime ridden city. The school systems in the burbs are also better that the failing Philadelphia public school system. From my knowlege, the better areas are in Montgomery and Chester county while Delaware and Bucks county seem to be hit or miss (there are some really seedy areas in both). There are many activities for the family in the burbs and in the city. The great thing about the area is that even if you live in the suburbs, you are just a short ride away from all of the entertainment in Philadelphia. There is always something to do in the area-you should never get bored. The public transportation system is very extensive, covering philly, the burbs, and NJ/Delaware. The area is very diverse and it is into natural healthcare. There are many in the area who promote a more natural approach to healing and maintaining the body.

I live in the Philly 'burbs and take the train into the city often. The regional rail system is excellent. The city is not as big, crowded, congested as NYC and there's always something to do, something to see, places to eat. I'm a country gal but it's fast, easy and inexpensive to get down to the city for a day or evening and get home safe and sound.