Wilmington Apts/rental homes - Which Zip Codes to AVOID? (New Bern: low income, affordable apartments) - Coastal North Carolina - North Carolina (NC) - City-Data Forum

Needz2Know · 08-29-2009, 02:24 PM

Ok I'm desperately in search of AFFORDABLE rental housing for myself and my children, and have discovered that it's rather hard to do on-line

Anyway, in all honesty, we're leaving a bad situation here and finances are VERY tight at the moment - I'm also currently 6 months pregnant, so job hunting isn't exactly working in my favor. If I'm forced into low-income or income-based housing, that's fine, and I'll do what I have to in effort to build a better life for my children and myself.

There are so-ooo many apartments out there and it gets hard to keep everything straight, so that I can narrow my list down to a chosen few favorites. So, I'm hoping that by having maybe a listing of zipcodes to avoid - due to higher crime, and the likes, that I can start crossing some of these of the list. I did read in an on-line paper that a place called Creekside? is a horrible place ... is that a town, or apartment complex, or what?? And, is it as horrible as they say?? Plz give details, and/or zipcode, of that area so that I can avoid it if at all possible.

Or, if it's easier ... maybe a list of zipcodes for the "better" areas?
If there are certain apartment complexes notorius for crime & drug-deals, feel free to list them, so that I can avoid them as well. Same goes for nice, and affordable apartments if you know of some, that are AFFORDABLE (as in: staying under $1,000/mo.) plz suggest them.

Right now, the few that I'm drawn to are:
Crosswinds, The Village at Greenfield, The Creek at Forest Hills (is THIS Creekside?), Chateau Terrace, Canterbury Woods (can't remember if this one is even Wilmington?), The Berkshires at Pecan Grove, and Colony Village (in New Bern), and a handful of others that I just don't have in front of me at the moment ... PLEASE advize!

Oh, and I need a minimum of 3-bdrms - I noticed a few places have dens that could be used as a 4th bdrm, but I can't find the sheet that I had it written down on, so if any of you know of places fitting the desription, plz point me in the right direction...

Thanks MUCH!!!

NCGT · 08-29-2009, 03:12 PM

You'll be generally safe with anything along the College Road area, anything near the mall off Oleander Drive, and most of the newer complexes in the Monkey Junction area. Wilmington has a huge University population and if you don't mind living hear college kids, the condos they generally populate are quite safe. You should have no problem finding a descent 3 bedroom condo under $1,000 a month. Also, newer condos are probably going to be nicer/safer. Maybe avoid anything built prior to 1990.

Needz2Know · 08-29-2009, 06:32 PM

Thank you so-ooo MUCH!! I was actually just looking at a few located near the campus. I keep hearing about Monkey Junction - is it a town??

coffeebean330 · 08-30-2009, 08:07 AM

From the research I've done I've noticed The Village At Greenfield is low income housing. It looks pretty nice too. Also, I'm not sure if you've looked at it, but Mill Creek is my top choice. The main reason for me is the pet policy is right, but they have events for residents and it just feels comfortable.

le roi · 08-30-2009, 08:27 AM

If you want to live in cheap and/or low-income housing, my advice is to stay away from downtown Wilmington.

The Village at Greenfield and Creekwood, you want to avoid. Lots of shootings and violent crime take place in close proximity to those areas.

The Creek at Forest Hills is an apartment complex. A lot of drugs move in and out of there, but I wouldn't call it the worst place in town.

Creekside is a yacht club towards Wrightsville Beach.

Chateau Terrace - I've never heard of it, but it looks to be wedged in between a nice country club, and a rough part of downtown. It may have potential if the train doesn't bother you.

BTW, I just found several 3-bedroom ranch houses for rent, in good/decent areas of Wilmington, for under $1000/month on craigslist. I would recommend something like that.

historychic09 · 08-30-2009, 10:41 AM

Also, in June/July there were several apartment complexes that flooded near campus. you should ask them if they were involved in that and what they did to fix the apartments after the flood. you don't want to be in an environment with mold! only the first floor apartments were really affected though, but it seems to happen often near campus.

I live in mill creek and it's not been loud so far. the issues that i've had have been dealt with pretty swiftly too. be advised though, electricity will run you 80-100$ /mo i'm not sure about water yet. seems like a lot of the places don't include utilities with rent.

monkey junction is an area south of the city and school. it's close to carolina beach and has quite a few suburbian-type communities. it seems to be a safer area. really, a lot of the places around here seem to be safe, except downtown. as long as you lock everything up and don't run around after dark.

i hope that your move goes well!

browneyes280 · 11-15-2009, 11:19 AM

i am moving to Wilmington at the end of the month . I have been having a hard time finding a place that will take section eight. I have not signed my lease yet .....now i see the comintient about the village at greenfield....it does look nice but i do notice the projects up the street. I was weary when i went to see them....maybe i can hear more about the apts? The manger showed me the community center and the little house was clean and nice but the area was not so good. Im worried......how worried should i be for me and my daughter....please be truthful...thank you......im not from the area.