Relocating to Cincinnati from Chicago - Help!

[HWilliams77]

That was a great idea about Glendale. And I appreciate the link to the website where you can look up demographics by neighborhood. That was PERFECT. Thanks.

[movingsoon2007]

I would be concerned about the schools if you're looking to live downtown. Most of these areas would probably be in the Cincinnati Public Schools, and like most inner-city schools, they have their fair share of problems including funding.

Wyoming and Madeira have excellent schools, and are within your 20 minute commute. Also, the schools to the north do well, but that might extend your commute more than you'd like.

I believe some of the Ohio schools in this area usually get better ratings than the schools in NKY, but I could be wrong... maybe someone can correct me?

[HWilliams77]

Yes, I'd really like some input about Northern Kentucky! How is it compared to Cincy? I'm looking at the close cities like Bellevue, Newport, and Covington and Ft. Thomas. How are schools there compared to Cincy? Would I feel awkward living there being African-American? Please inform!

[UncleRando]

Originally Posted by HWilliams77

Yes, I'd really like some input about Northern Kentucky! How is it compared to Cincy? I'm looking at the close cities like Bellevue, Newport, and Covington and Ft. Thomas. How are schools there compared to Cincy? Would I feel awkward living there being African-American? Please inform!

Public education in Kentucky is often regarded as one of the worst systems in America. Now...I'm sure you could find something good, but just overall you have better options on the Ohio side. As for being an African-American...I don't think you'll run into much trouble anywhere. Those communities you mention in Nky already are comprised of a decent number of African-Americans.

Originally Posted by HWilliams77

According to some people I've talked with...the West side is more Cincy long timers and generations of families that have been living there all their lives. "Outsiders" are not as welcome as on the East Side. I hear the East Side is where a lot of transplants end up. Is that true??

I don't think that the Westside is hostile towards outsiders at all. I think it may be part of the perception, but not reality. The Westside is made up of a lot of long-time residents...but that more or so adds to the areas conservative nature and strong family values.

Newcomers are often directed to the more affluent Eastside neighborhoods because that is where the large employers (P&G, Macy's, Kroger, 5/3, etc) direct them to look for housing.

[HWilliams77]

Originally Posted by UncleRando

Newcomers are often directed to the more affluent Eastside neighborhoods because that is where the large employers (P&G, Macy's, Kroger, 5/3, etc) direct them to look for housing.

You are right about this. I am relocating with 5/3 and the rental consultant keeps pushing me to the Eastside.

[YoMikey617]

I’m a newcomer to Cincinnati going on two years living here. Cincinnati is a tough town to learn and get to know people but on the same note I’m just starting to dig the place. I’ve worked as a real estate broker in New England, I’ve lived in NYC, I’m an amateur armchair sociologist, and I have spent quite some time studying the real estate market in Cincinnati.

Here is what I can tell you about Cincinnati.

• Assume that pretty much all of “Caucasian Cincinnati” is going to be somewhat racist and insular. This isn’t to say that everybody in the city is racist or insular, but this is the general attitude of the city.
• Your goal should be to consider degrees of racism and consider the source of the racism. If you’re living in an affluent white neighborhood (i.e. Hyde Park), you’re not going to have redneck white kids vandalizing your property and their redneck white parents pretending to not know that this is going on while eyeing you with jealousy and suspicion.
• Cincinnati is like a checkerboard (no racial pun intended) when it comes to how different neighboring neighborhoods are. You can drive 5-10 miles and it’ll be nice, ghetto, nice, ghetto, nice, ghetto, and so on.
• Cincinnati is very segregated, and 1960’s style white flight is very much alive right now with white people desperate to sell their homes in Westwood, Mt Airy and Cheviot (West Side). These areas have a huge stock of older apartments, and they are increasingly popular with poorer African Americans who have been pushed out of historically poor neighborhoods due to rapid gentrification.
• People in Cincinnati think the world revolves around their Catholic High Schools, their Catholic High School sports, what Catholic high school they attended when they were younger, and of course the Bengals.
• A history professor of mine at UC once commented that Cincinnati is very much like Medieval Europe. 1-3 blocks or 1-3 miles distance can make a HUGE difference in how people behave, what language they speak, and their allegiances to their local Catholic parish.
• Much like Medieval Europe, people in Cincinnati are all about boundaries and few if anyone steps out of those boundaries. Don’t bother challenging anything here just chalk it up to “it is what it is.” (instead just step back and make fun of it with other out of towners / other newcomers).
• From an out of towner point of view, Cincinnatians can come off as having bad manners / being generally rude, very nosy about everyone else’s business, and VERY opinionated on just about everything. The whole “friendly Midwesterner” tag does not apply to Cincinnati or really anywhere in Ohio for that matter.
• The most important question on the minds of every Cincinnatian: “Where’d you go to high school?”

With this in mind, here is my input on the areas I happen to know about.


East Side / Hyde Park:[list][*]If you’re going to rent for a year, I would strongly suggest renting in Hyde Park. [*]Hyde Park is clean / safe, the stores are all very nice, it’s close to downtown, it’s happening, and it’s convenient to “everything Cincinnati”. [*]Living in Hyde Park, you can easily scout out 10-20 different “future potential neighborhoods” in Cincinnati within minutes of your rented house / apartment. You can take side trips home at different times of day to get a feel for what other neighborhoods are like. [*]I think you pretty much have to be here to make your decisions as to where you plan to buy a house. TRUST ME ON THIS… When I first moved here I lived in Westwood for a month before moving to East Walnut Hills. Westwood was deceiving… It appeared nice during the day, but I could count on hearing gunshots at night several times / week. There were 10-15 homes for sale on my street and they were all on the market for 18 mos + and / or under foreclosure.

East Side / Mariemont:[list][*]Mariemont is just all around awesome when it comes to nice preppy towns. I consider Mariemont “the total package” when it comes to suburbs. The taxes are high for Ohio, but you’re paying to be in the school district and if you have kids you absolutely get your money’s worth. [*]Schools in Mariemont are top notch and SMALL. Your kids have a fair chance in participating in extra curricular activities, and college admissions are geared toward the upper echelon of liberal arts schools.[*]Mariemont is very stodgy-white appearing, and you might very well be the token black family in the neighborhood. I have found people from Mariemont to generally be very easy going, laid back and friendly. People in Cincinnati have an attitude problem from hell, but you won’t experience it in Mariemont. If you’re preppy appearing from day one you’ll probably get past people’s “fear of a black planet” pretty fast.[*]Mariemont is an easy commute to downtown. The “bad traffic” in Cincinnati runs North- South on 71-75. Mariemont is east on Rt 50 and it’s maybe 20 minutes max during rush hour. [*]There’s a newer development in Mariemont that is well priced, full of young families, and you wouldn’t have to worry about lead paint issues with your kids. Lookup homes on “Mariemont Crescent” and you’ll get an idea as to what I’m taking about.

• If you buy in Mariemont and decide you don’t like the town, you can always sell your house within 2 months or less. Homes in Mariemont typically sell briskly even during bad real estate markets.

Cincinnati Citywide:

* Cincinnati DOES NOT have trendy / urban chic neighborhoods like Lincoln Park, Gold Coast, or the Upper West Side ( filled with young parents pushing those Range Rover sized strollers around). Downtown has a large new stock of condos coming to market, but don’t let anyone fool you on the first sentence in this paragraph. Over The Rhine is going to take another 10-20 years to even come close to resembling a yuppie utopia, and most of the condo buyers are singles and retiring baby boomers without kids. There are no bustling Whole Foods type markets or even Jewell-Osco style stores downtown.
* Cincinnati lacks the critical mass of “young single professionals” it so badly desires mainly because Cincinnati’s young professionals are all married with children living in the burbs by age 25 at the latest.

* Cincinnati DOES NOT have wealthy African American neighborhoods like Oak Lawn, Olympia Fields, or Bowie, MD. The racial divide here is socioeconomic and there is no large, critical mass of wealthy African Americans living in one single area.
* Downtown has a HUGE problem with homelessness and panhandling. I have friends from Philly and NYC who swear they’ve never seen it quite as bad as downtown Cincinnati. I pretty much count on being hit up for spare change anytime I go out downtown or around UC. I’ve even been hit up for change in suburban shopping center parking lots.
* Clifton (aka. Clifton Gaslight) is probably the closest thing that comes to resembling a nice, “urban chic” neighborhood in Cincinnati. Apartments can be hit or miss and it they’re popular with grad students. Houses in Clifton can be pricey but you’re paying for the eclectic atmosphere and you’re paying to be in the intellectual hub of the city. If there is any one neighborhood in Cincinnati where being black isn’t going to be a problem AT ALL for the neighbors I would say Clifton is it.

Cincinnati – West:

• Don’t bother. If you’re a white, German Catholic generational Cincinnatian, then maybe the west side is worth your time. They don’t like blacks though, and proof of this is in the white-flight going down in Westwood, Mt Airy, and Cheviot.
• North College Hill is probably the only area I would consider looking into but only for the housing stock. I know little to nothing about the schools or anything else for that matter.

Cincinnati - North:

• I would definitely check out Wyoming, Amberly, and Glendale like the other posters mention. They’re all nice areas, but I have no personal experience as to what they are like as far as racial issues go. Amberly is the heart of Cincinnati’s Jewish community, and Jewish neighborhoods tend to be a lot more liberal in than what is typical in SW Ohio.
• Mason / West Chester / North of 275: Unless you want to spend 2 hrs / day sitting in traffic, forget about these areas. They’re both generally upscale and everything is new, but the commute to anything north of 275 from downtown just flat out sucks. When I think West Chester / Mason / Field’s Ertel Road, I think endless shopping centers / strip malls, tons of traffic, and everything starts to generally look like trash 2 years after being built. The schools in these areas are overblown “kid parades.” Sure the schools are good, but your kid will be one out of 2,000 kids trying out for the soccer team. When I think of the kind of people who move to Mason / West Chester / North of 275, I think “Caucasian post fraternity / sorority UC/XU/Miami grad crowd” just living there because everyone else they know is living there. Trust me when I tell you you’re not missing out on anything by not living north of 275.

Northern Kentucky:

• There are some VERY nice suburbs on the NKY side of the river. However…
• NKY is very white, it’s very southern minded, and there are few if any professional black people living on the NKY side of Cincinnati.
• The African Americans [trapped] on the KY side of the river are generally poor and live in the few projects by the river.
• The best public schools in Kentucky are as good as Ohio’s mediocre public schools. In other words, Kentucky public schools suck.
• Affluent people in NKY generally sent their kids to private schools like Covington Latin or a number of Catholic Schools.

Cincinnati East of 275 (Eastgate / Batavia):

• Ditto on most of the above comments in regard to NKY, but add 2-3 times the hillbilly points.
• There are some nice, new affordable developments around this area, but traffic is horrendous once you get off of 275. Builders have been pumping out everything but new roads to handle the traffic.
• You’re also on the cusp of Appalachia and this region is just hick central. An African American professional friend of mine once sarcastically referred to pretty much all of Clermont County as “N-word hatin’ country.” Need I say more on this area of town?
• If you want to live east, make sure it’s one of the more SOLIDLY affluent suburbs like Mariemont or Fairfax.

Places to check out that I have not mentioned:
* Fairfax
* Mediera
* Montgomery


Places To Avoid:
* Green Twp.
* Western Hills.
* Mt Airy / Westwood / Chevoit
* I-275 Region West of 75 (Mt Healthy, Forest Park, Northgate)
* Norwood
* Avondale
* Walnut Hills

[Sunnydee]

Hi, Montgomery and Blue Ash are very nice locations, they're convenient to all of the interstates, they have abundant and nicely maintained parks (I live within walking distance of two parks and a nature preserve.), nice recreational facilities, and the Sycamore school district is excellent, but houses can be a bit pricey. Blue Ash was listed as one of the best cities in America to raise a family a while back and it truly is a wonderful, walkable community. They have the annual Taste of Blue Ash, a gigantic Fourth of July celebration with big name musicians, their own symphony orchestra, free concerts, and a wonderful recreation center.

West Chester and Mason have newer houses, better home prices, and very good schools. They are both growing communities and there have been issues with overcrowding in their schools. West Chester for instance is Lakota school district and they now have two high schools Lakota East and Lakota West. The last time I checked they were one of the biggest school districts in the state. Both of these communities are outside of the I-275, so your commute to downtown would be longer.

Mariemont and Wyoming are great communities with excellent schools, but they're pricey.

There are a lot of wonderful, safe, friendly communities in this area. I know you'll find your spot and love it. It's a great place to raise a family, get an education, work, play, and live.

Make a point of trying Skyline chili (go for a three way and a cheese coney to start with - No, I'm not pulling your leg about the three way - it's weird, but good), LaRosa's pizza, Graeter's ice cream, and Montgomery Inn ribs - they are Cincinnati's signature foods. Best of luck and if you need any help DM, we're here to help you! Keep in touch and let us know where you end up.

[Heaveno]

I am not certain about your preference regarding diversity, but I am an African American female who has lived in Cincinnati and its surrounding areas all of my life. I have lived in the city, suburb, and one rural area. I went to three schools in three different neighborhoods. For elementary I attended North Avondale, which is now North Avondale montessori), on the east side of cincinnati for Jr. High (Eastern Hills), and the west side for High school (Western Hills). I was in a city youth organization that took me all over the city, so I am pretty aware of what neighborhoods I would personally choose for my comfort level. Unfortunately, many of the neighborhoods are deteriorating due to many different factors/variables which you may read about from other topics on this board.

My suggestions would be North Avondale (certain areas, more towards the 1-75 expressway). You will need to have your children enrolled in a private school if you do choose the city or one of the alternative schools within the public school system. The public schools unfortunately are ones that need a major overhaul and no telling when this will occur. I would also look into St. Bernard, Ohio-specifically the area closer to North Avondale.

Other suggestions are Forest Park, Ohio (some select areas), Woodlawn, Ohio (mainly African American, with mixed incomes and low crime), Hollydale (part of Springfield Township) which sits between Forest Park and Springdale. It was one of the first properties where african americans bought farmland to build homes for employees who worked at Ford Motors in Evendale, and the neighborhood is still very decent. Many older african-americans who built their homes still reside in these homes or children have inherited the properties. I too must admit that a few of them are not staying maintained properly as they should, but it is a very quiet and nice hidden neighborhood. The schools are part of the Princeton School District. A hidden gem it is!!

I would also suggest Fairfield, but you may want to take the city streets to get to work (avoid expressway traffic) and be closer to route 4, which will lead you directly into the city.

There are some areas and I am not certain about the names of the neighborhoods, but they are very nice. I could take you to them and maybe someone who is reading this post will know the names of the areas and the school districts. I am going to take a chance and say that one of them may be the Northwest School District. One of the neighborhoods sits off of Mill Road by Winton Woods (park),which probably is the Winton Woods school district. The other neighborhoods are off of Hamilton Avenue, and there are several depending on where you turn off of this main street. If you turn on to Springdale Road off of Hamilton Avenue and on to some of these side streets there are some gorgeous neighborhoods, which are middle-upper level income households. These neighborhoods are closer to Hamilton Avenue once you get past Mt. Healthy going towards Fairfield. Most of these neighborhoods I am speaking about are before you get to Seven Hills-a neighborhood I strongly do not recommend.

I have worked mainly in the city throughout my career. I have lived in North Avondale, Mt.Airy, Paddock Hills, Hamilton, Ohio, Oxford, Ohio, Hollydale, Forest Park, and next permanent stop will hopefully be Glendale or Springdale which are two great neighborhoods also. You can PM me if you have any other questions.

[Linda Pratt]

My vote would be for West Chester - the schools are rated "EXCELLENT" in the state of Ohio.
If would even consider taking the bus (from Meyers at Tyslersville) to downtown, to save on gas and parking.
For rentals in West Chester, you can look in "The Pulse Journal" (the suburb newspaper);
Find rental homes and apartments for rent in the Mason and Liberty Township Ohio area - Pulse Journal Real Estate Plus (broken link)