Frankfurt

[santeya]

Hello. Can someone recommend nice areas to live in with easy access to the Lycee Victor Hugo in Praunheim? Doesn’t look like Praunheim itself is a nice area to live in so wondering what other options there are. We are a family of four and very likely relocating from London to Frankfurt. Also, I’m considering doing the school run by car, what is traffic like in Frankfurt city? Wondering if it would be possible to live on the other side of town in one of the obvious areas or whether that’s going to make the commute to the school hell. Any ideas?

Praunheim is on the U6 underground line, so you could look at places along that line.
In that area Bockenheim, near the university, is good or the Europa-Viertel. Westend is also a pleasant area, but quite expensive. You might also consider Sachsenhausen as there are good tram connections (12, 15, 16, 17 & 21).
Not sure about driving for the school run, but should be ok if you are going against the traffic. Alternatively look at busses/trams.
Personally I would not want to cross the city by car in the morning rush hour. Hope the link below to the local transport website works.
www.rmv.de/c/de/linien-netze/

Thanks GinUser. Is there a difference between north and south Sachsenhausen?

South Sachsenhausen is very trendy, right by the river, lots of bars, restaurants, museums, lovely old buildings and expensive. North Sachsenhausen is more family friendly, more residential feel, you’d likely get some or a lot of noise from the aeroplanes depending on exactly where which is why it is a bit cheaper than other areas. Both nice but I wouldn’t want to do the school run from either to Praunheim tbh!

Apart from the areas GinUser mentioned you could also look at Dornbusch or Eschersheim which aren’t on the same ubahn line but would be easy enough by car.

Slight disagreement with Welshcake on the North and South Sachsenhausen. North is closer to the river, South is up the hill in the direction of Neu-Isenburg.
As for 'plane noise, it very much depends on the weather and which runway the 'planes are heading for. I often stay near Kennedyallee and don't really notice them at all.
Agree with Dornbusch (used to live there) and Eschersheim as possible locations, but also agree with comments on traffic at school run times. However, I have, in the past, caught the bus over to Hausen from Dornbusch, which is quite do-able and doesn't take very long at all. For balance, though, it once took me over 2 hours to get back to Dornbusch from Hausen by car. It was after work one day, so left about 16:00. No idea why it was so bad that day!
I would avoid anything that described itself as being at the Nordwestzentrum, although there are some nice residential roads around that area, just some not very nice ones either.
You could also consider Eschborn.

Thanks both. Sounds like the traffic in Frankfurt can be unpredictable. What would the commute be like from the Taunus?

To Praunheim by car? Would be about 25-30 mins if you have to get there for 8am school start. I can get into Frankfurt city centre from Bad Homburg in 20 mins by car if I leave between 7.30-7.50. After 8 takes anything from 30-60 mins.
S-Bahn or Ubahn to Praunhim would take about 46-60 mins depending on exactly where in Taunus.
I live in Bad Homburg so let me know if you have any questions about that area.

And I can’t believe I got my North and South mixed up thanks for pointing hat out GinUser!

I used to live (as an au pair) near Kronberg in the Taunus hills. Beautiful area - or was all those years ago.

Thanks so much, that narrows it down quite a bit. Can’t really risk a long commute to and from the school so not sure Taunus is an option. It’s one of the things we are struggling with in London at the moment! I have heard the area is beautiful though!

It is a beautiful area! But I totally understand you wanting easier/shorter commutes. I’ve never lived in London but have a few friends there and don’t envy them their commutes!

I’m sure you’ll be able to find a nice area with a short journey to the school. And you can visit the Taunus on the weekends :)

We spent the weekend there in June last year. On the Saturday morning DH left the hotel early to go to watch a rugby match and was astounded by the number of people sleeping rough as he walked up from our hotel (Marriott) to the main station. Also on Sunday almost everything was closed, which we hadn't anticipated. I loved the Stadel Museum but apart from that we were glad to leave.

Yes, Germany is mostly closed on Sundays. I have been here 30 years now and when I first arrived Germany closed at 14:00 on Saturday. Too bad if you ran out of anything and weren't near a major train station or airport! It was quite a shock when later closing started in 1996!
I lived in Frankfurt for 11 years, in various areas. It is mostly a lot better than it used to be, but the area within a 2km radius of the main station is still pretty dodgy.
Having said that I have a real soft spot for Frankfurt and have been working there again for the past 3 years. I would move back, but prices have risen and I now own my own house (out in the sticks) so I have to content myself with business trips and staying in nice hotels.
The Taunus is lovely. I was an au pair there before I went to university and sometimes stay at a hotel up there.

Following on from the below, does anyone know a good Makler in Frankfurt? I think we have exhausted all “free“ options!

Makler are free for the tenant now Sentaya, any who charge you a fee should be avoided. Who have you spoken to so far?
And have you decided on an area? I can ask around for some recommendations

Hi Welsh - have only been checking the usual sites but there doesn’t seem much on the market and I have been looking for a few weeks now. Was wondering if I can get a Makler (with connections I hope) to look for me. In the end decided on bockenheim and Dornbusch.

Ah ok, I get you. In that case I would try the main agencies like Engel & Völkers and Von Poll first. They have lots of branches and will have properties that don’t even make it to the usual websites because they have tenants waiting. When do you need to be in Frankfurt for?

Also if you’re on Facebook it might be worth joining the groups ExpatBabies Frankfurt and Expat Frankfurt Talk and posting on there to ask if anyone is leaving a rental property in those areas soon.
It is hard to find something at the moment as demand is very high. Good luck!

Thanks Welsh, will try that!

Just came on to say that the lovely @Welshcake77 helped me lots with advice and helped to qualm my anxieties about moving to the region.

God bless you Welshcake77. One year on and still alive

Oh thanks @TeaAddict235 that’s lovely! Glad I could help and nice to know you’re still here and (I assume!) enjoying it x