Mt. Washington vs. Pleasant Ridge vs. Norwood (Cincinnati, Mason: crime, mortgage)

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by TomJones123

I never really felt unsafe when I have been in Pleasant Ridge. I thought it was a nice area. I am sure there are some crappy apartment buildings in the area, and perhaps that drags on the community somewhat.

There were crappy apartments in Pleasant Ridge 60 years ago. But what neighborhood does not have their share of crappy apartments? I agree that Pleasant Ridge is mostly safe if you avoid the obviosly rundown areas, with the crappy apartments.

[progmac]

Originally Posted by n8buckeye08

Thank you all again for all the thoughts... the in-laws keep chiming in about how they're hearing Pleasant Ridge isn't safe and they really want us to move to Mt. Washington (wonder if it has anything to do with them living in Anderson Twp.? ).

My impression is that Mt. W and P-Ridge are similar in that there are areas that are bad (Section 8, drugs, crime, etc.) and should be avoided and other areas that are relatively safe and nice. The biggest difference being that Mt. Washington is more suburban and P-Ridge is a little more urban.

pleasant ridge has the lowest crime rating of any neighborhood in the city.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by natininja

I am not bullish on Mt. Washington; I have heard anecdotes about it being in decline, and given it's a city neighborhood on the fringe, that doesn't bode well for it in terms of general housing trends. Norwood is fairly stable and safe in most parts. I think Pleasant Ridge is about the same as Norwood in safety, maybe a little better, has stability, a nice walkable NBD, and a good sense of community.

The crime stats seem to show that Mt. Washington is near the safest neighborhood in the city:

Cincinnati's top 10 and bottom 10 neighborhoods by crime

[n8buckeye08]

Thank you again for all of the interesting posts. I drove around Pleasant Ridge over the weekend and there was a lot to like and a lot to second-guess, so I think it's still an option, but not quite the panacea I was hoping for (but certainly did not seem like the den of crime that the in-laws make it out to be).

Completely off the wall, there is a house in Madiera that my wife found that is ideal for many different factors (walkability, safety, character of home) and is at the upper threshold of our budget, but the taxes are ridiculous. Is ~$400 a month for a $160k house accurate or would that be adjusted based on the sale price of the home???

Besides that, I think we are leaning towards Anderson for the time being, which neither of us are in love with, but it checks off many of our boxes.

Thanks again everyone!

[natininja]

What about Oakley?

I sort of assumed you were looking for a blue collar-tinged neighborhood, because of the ones you said you were looking at. But maybe you aren't?

[progmac]

If you are shifting towards a more suburban feel, Anderson and Madeira have a lot of good choices. Try to stay patient and look for a small but tidy home in your budget. I'm thinking you'd be in the 2BR + converted attic (range). But I think the neighborhood is more important than the house, so if you love Madeira (EG), find a workable house and there you go. It isn't your "forever house" in any case, right? I remember when we found our house, we looked and saw it was exactly (location-wise) where we wanted to be and we immediately were able to overlook little things with the house (no 1st floor bath, outdated kitchen, etc). I remember feeling about northside the same way that (I project) you feel about the Ridge. Sometimes having that moment of, okay, let's cross that place off the list, is as helpful as finding a place you love.

Have you looked at northern kentucky? I feel like a place like Ft Wright might work for you.

[n8buckeye08]

I'd say the neighborhoods listed had more to do with our price range (120-160) and wanting a house with some character and some walkability. To get that in Oakley, we'd be looking at a 2BR at the very edge of Oakley. I'd personally like to look in NKY (Ft. Thomas, specifically) as my job's by NKU, but wife's job is off in the Loveland/Indian Hill area, so right now, we're looking on this side of the river.

Basically, what we want is a home with the character of Walnut Hills or Westwood in a neighborhood as safe and quaint as Mariemont, with the walkability of downtown or OTR, 5-minute commutes downhill both ways, and a 1/2 acre yard with a white picket fence at Norwood prices.

Thanks again for the input!

[n8buckeye08]

Also, don't get me wrong about Pleasant Ridge... I really liked it and wouldn't hesitate to live there if it was just me. I don't think the wife would be as crazy about it. I also feel like as long as the surrounding areas stay in their current state, I don't think Pleasant Ridge will change for the good or bad all that much.

The other consideration is that as certain areas are aggressively targeted for restoration and gentrification (i.e. OTR, Price Hill, etc.), it's a little concerning investing in a transitional neighborhood like Pleasant Ridge, but I could be completely wrong. I know the city issued a huge long-term plan recently and I haven't had a chance to wade through it, but is there a "Phase 2" of the city plan that focuses on the neighborhoods? I think they've done a great job of investing in downtown and OTR, but my understanding that the funding has come at the expense of the local communities.

[progmac]

I totally understand the difficulty of finding the perfect place. From a "citywide" perspective, government funds aren't really needed to improve Pleasant Ridge because of the already existing strength of the market. I certainly don't view it as a transitional neighborhood and I'm not sure that any data could support that idea. A lot of how somebody views a place depends on their lens and what they consider normal, and what things they identify as good and bad.

Something I believe very strongly is that if you don't like a neighborhood as it is, then you shouldn't build your home there. Places change, but change takes time and most of your interaction with a place will be as it currently is.

[n8buckeye08]

I guess I meant transitional neighborhood, as it sits in between some vastly different neighborhoods and whatever particular area you are in Pleasant Ridge seems to be greatly affected by the closest neighborhood. Again, that's based about an hour or so's driving on a wintry Sunday afternoon, so it might feel completely different on a nice day when people are out and about.