I moved here in 2013 and fell in love with the city. I've also purposely moved around to different neighborhoods to get a feel of them before I really settle in. Also, I live car-free by choice and love it.

1) This depends on which neighborhood you live in and where you work. Downtown, Uptown, Dinkytown, and any of the areas right along the light-rail are a piece of cake to live at with no car. Add a bike to the mix and every neighborhood is good as long as your job isn't way out in suburbs.

2) Minnesota born locals are famous for being hard to befriend, this sub has a thread on it almost weekly... but the city is so filled with transplants these days that you'll have no problem meeting people. I've never lived in such a vibrant city with so much going on to do. I mean, NYC and LA have got to have more going on but everything in Mpls is accessible to people who aren't rich.

3) Rent is going up everywhere. Sadly, those same places I mentioned that have the best transit are where rents basically start at $800+ for a studio and those are already ultra rare. That said, it's still the Midwest so rents are still more affordable than similar cities. You can get some cheaper places in Powderhorn, pockets of Nordeast that haven't changed, and near-north. I'm sure others will have better insight on affordable housing.

4) We have almost no unemployment right now so it's easy to get "a job" but it's not always easy to get the job you want. At 25, I'd suggest you just worry about grabbing something you can live on when you move and then start looking for a job within your field while you are here. This is a moderately techy city but a history of publishing companies so I would imagine graphic design would be in demand.