CLEVELAND: Best Neighborhood to Live (Euclid, Cleveland Heights: condos, buying a home, neighborhoods)

[costello_musicman]

Simple poll:

Which neighborhood/area is the best place to live in Cleveland?

[costello_musicman]

Other note:

As many of you have already noticed, I've made it a multi-vote poll, especially since many of the areas overlap...and to allow for more than one favorite area.

And please be specfic with the "other." I'm curious what other people like that I did not list. Clark-Fulton...Slavic Village? My apologies for leaving them out.

[CTownNative]

North Collinwood is my favorite neighborhood in Cleveland. I was born and raised in Euclid right around the border between Cleveland and Euclid, near East 185th street and East 200th street.

[Clevelander17]

I really only know the eastside. And in that area, the only neighborhoods I'd ever consider living in would be Shaker Square and University Circle/Little Italy. And even then, I probably only rent. I would never really consider buying a home in those neighborhoods.

[andrew0816]

My favorite neighborhoods/areas in Cleveland are Downtown (pretty much all of it), Ohio City, Tremont, Detroit Shoreway (Gordon Square and Battery Park), Little Italy, University Circle, Coventry (I know, technically in Cleveland Heights), and Shaker Square. So, pretty much the whole city...however, my top 3 would be Downtown, Ohio City, and Tremont.

[jam40jeff]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

And even then, I probably only rent. I would never really consider buying a home in those neighborhoods.

Why's that (especially UC/LI)? There's some nice new condos in LI/UC and I see the potential investment in owning a property around there as being better than many other areas in Northeast Ohio.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by jam40jeff

Why's that (especially UC/LI)? There's some nice new condos in LI/UC and I see the potential investment in owning a property around there as being better than many other areas in Northeast Ohio.

At the end of the day, those areas are still part of the Cleveland School District. And even though we're talking about townhomes that will probably only be used by children-less couples and empty-nesters, property values are still driven by school district quality. At least in my opinion. Though I'm also looking at it from the point of view of someone who will be looking to have children somewhere down the line and has no interest in raising them in an overly urban environment.

[jam40jeff]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

At the end of the day, those areas are still part of the Cleveland School District. And even though we're talking about townhomes that will probably only be used by children-less couples and empty-nesters, property values are still driven by school district quality. At least in my opinion. Though I'm also looking at it from the point of view of someone who will be looking to have children somewhere down the line and has no interest in raising them in an overly urban environment.

That's understandable if you wouldn't want them for yourself due to the schools and private schools were not preferable to you. But from the perspective of someone who is worried about the investment involved in buying a property, buying in a bad school district is like buying stocks when they're low. They're most likely only going to either stay where they're at or go up, unlike school districts like Solon, which can only go down from where they're at.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by jam40jeff

They're most likely only going to either stay where they're at or go up, unlike school districts like Solon, which can only go down from where they're at.

That's an interesting take. However with the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, you're likely to be waiting for a while for that "stock to rise." More likely is that a major overhaul to the education system will occur first, which could also positively affect property values.

That said, I don't entirely agree with your "stock" theory, but I'm too tired to debate it right now.

[5Lakes]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

At the end of the day, those areas are still part of the Cleveland School District. And even though we're talking about townhomes that will probably only be used by children-less couples and empty-nesters, property values are still driven by school district quality. At least in my opinion. Though I'm also looking at it from the point of view of someone who will be looking to have children somewhere down the line and has no interest in raising them in an overly urban environment.

Singles, childless-less couples, and empty-nesters can drive neighborhood values as much as anything. Such is the case where I live (Chicago) and the city schools are just as bad as Cleveland's. In fact, trendy city neighborhoods far outpace suburban areas for property values in many cities. I would think the same rules apply to Cleveland as some of these city neighborhoods continue to gentrify. On a personal basis I can't say I blame you for not wanting to do the city thing though with kids and all.