I Regret Moving To Baltimore!!!!!!!! (renting, home, buying)

[Scudder]

My advice: cut your losses and move ASAP. Sadly, I doubt you'd be happier elsewhere.

[Georgia]

Originally Posted by Scudder

My advice: cut your losses and move ASAP. Sadly, I doubt you'd be happier elsewhere.

Take my advice and don't come south. Think Bawlmore is rough, try Atlanta! Now this place is sliding down the slope to slop so fast each day is a day of terrible discovery.

[PGC301]

Originally Posted by Georgia

Take my advice and don't come south. Think Bawlmore is rough, try Atlanta! Now this place is sliding down the slope to slop so fast each day is a day of terrible discovery.

Atlanta may have crime problems as well, but the murder rate in Baltimore is almost twice as high as Atlanta.

Atlanta (pop. 486,411) averages 130-140 homicides per year. That works out to between 26-29 murders per 100,000 people.

Baltimore (pop. 631,366) averages 290-300 murders a year; about 46-48 murders per 100,000 people

[jsharma]

My Husband has been offered a job at John Hopkins university and I am hesitant in him taking the post as I have 2 young children and I will have to give up my work. Can anyone offer any advice on where is the best place to live and a place near some good schools. Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated

[bawlmer]

Your post sounds like the decision has already been made. I would suggest staying as far away from the city as you can for the welfare of you and your children. I live in the city, but would never have brought children into this environment. The Annapolis area has great schools, great recreation(you can actually swim in the Magothy River), the bay, great food. I live in SE Balt, supposedly one of the safest areas in the city. Within the past two years there have been 3 police officers shot, within 15 blocks of my home, a random citizen shot in a robbery attempt about 100 yds from my house and a robber shot and killed by police 2 blocks from my house. This is reality. You deserve to know that unless you are ready to accept this as normal, you need to stay away.

[jonjj]

jsharma--check out the federal hill thread. there is a discussion there about a good school that many newcomers seem to like. Also, I have heard from many that Patterson Park Community School is another option. Believe it or not, Baltimore City in fact has two of the best public high schools in the entire area: Western and Poly. I also heard that City College was a good school. Sorry I can't offer better advice as I am not to familiar with the school system.

[thegrandjess]

In addition to witnesses, police, etc as targets of crime, you have to think like gang members think, PRIDE. I work in Durham, NC, as a social worker, and I can tell you of many many RANDOM killings that occur because of initiation rituals or mistaken identity or family and friends of rival gangs. This is what causes murder rates as high as Baltimore, difference is in Durham the public is horrified enough by each act to report it as is really happens, as random acts of violence related to gang activity. These happen anywhere and everywhere. This is probably what happened to this poor girl.

I wouldn't want to live in a city that criminalizes normal citizens as they did with this poor lady and her husband and masks the truth and reality. Where does the line stop when these lines have already been crossed?

[barante]

Jsharma -- Welcome to Baltimore. I seriously advice you against considering options that involve a long commute. Instead, I would investigate the Patterson Park area. This is easy to do. There are residents who follow this board who will be more than happy to advise.
Another possibility is the Cross Country Boulevard area, just north of Mount Washington. Safe, convenient to everything. In fact, lots of Hopkins medical personnel live in this area. I know this because I keep getting misdirected mail for a doctor.

[helenejen]

Hi Jsharma,

I live in Patterson Park and really enjoy it, but I don't have any children. If you did want to live in a city environment close to the Johns Hopkins medical campus, Butchers Hill and Patterson Park are certainly options, BASED ON MY EXPERIENCE. (And is it just me or is the park been full of pregnant women over the last year?) I've heard that the Patterson Park charter school is very good and know several parents that are very happy with the enrollment of their children there. And a new montessori nursery school opened in the fall at the corner of E. Fairmount and Kenwood. The owners of the montessori live in Butchers Hill, the neighborhood next to Patterson Park, and recently told me that their enrollment is up to 14 children. (The school is pretty small, as a montessori should be, so the school is doing very well for only its second semester.)

But there are plenty of more suburban areas north along 83 past Hampden that would offer more options for people with children. Can anyone suggest some of these areas? These areas would also work very well if your husband's job is at the main campus.

[BMorePeachy]

I live in the North Woodring area (near Northern Pkwy and Harford Rd) and have lived here for 3 years. I love my neighborhood. I love my neighbors. We've never had a problem crime-wise or otherwise. It's quiet and safe. My neighbor and I have taken our babies for walks together since they were born, and have walked the entire neighborhood multiple times. Again, no problem. I've never felt unsafe ONCE. I think the North Woodring area is a 'hidden gem' in Baltimore. It has nice single family detached houses with big yards (that are reasonably priced compared to the county!), and close proximity to Towson, White Marsh and downtown. You can literally get anywhere in the Baltimore area within 15-20 minutes. My commute is all of 7 minutes to work

The reason I write this is so that anyone reading this that may be thinking about moving or relocating to Baltimore doesn't get the wrong impression about this neighborhood! It's been great to me