"Bad" Neighrboods (Indianapolis, South Bend: transplants, apartment, foreclosure)

[Boston1979]

My wife and I currently live in Boston, and we hate it. We just had our first child and everything is a constant struggle here, and we are tired of it. We are both transplants and our families are still in our respective hometowns(Southwestern Michigan and Metro Pittsburgh) and we would like to relocate somewhere that is somewhere in between the two, which leads me to Indianapolis. I grew up only a few hours away, however I have never visited and just recently the potential for a job transfer to Indy came up so I wanted to ask about the general state of the area.
We are average people, I work in an office, so does my wife, we don't require a lot, just a safe neighborhood with affordable housing(for right now we will be renting) and something like easy access to the rest of the world and without having any first hand knowledge I don't know where to even consider looking for an apartment because I don't want to move my family to any place unsafe. I know that most of the large cities in this country are gentrifying (Boston is an excellent example of this, so much so that the average worker can only dream of affording an actual house here) and I can only assume Indy is no different. I also know that despite all this new money and interest, their are still pockets of bad places and before I even consider getting into the U-haul, I am trying to find out where those places are. Moving to a new place sight unseen can be nerve wracking enough but landing in the middle of the worst neighborhood in town can make matters even worse.

[hapaleeretired]

Like your wife I spent my childhood in Pittsburgh then moved to Indiana. I feel your angst. I felt it 35 years ago. For me Indy was perfect. It was big enough without being too big. It has grown and has had growing pains.
For raising the family you cannot beat the south side of Marion County or Greenwood. The same house there is quite a bit less expensive than what you'll find on the north side. But, the north side and the north west side is where the majority of office complexes are.
The far west side and south west side has been growing like wildfire and offers very reasonable housing. Take your time, rent first and look into buying a foreclosure. There is a glut of them on the market. Another reason to rent for a while is to make sure that you like it there. I am confident you will. Friendlier people are hard to find.
As far as neighborhoods: A rule of thumb is to buy outside I-465 except for the east. The problems there have expanded east of the beltway.

[sweetana3]

I have told many people that Indy is a huge city area wise (10 miles by 10 miles just inside I465.). If you are new, identify where your job is going to be and then think about the areas close. Would not be nice having a job on the southwest side of the city and then driving to the Northeast side if you did not have to. There is well priced housing no matter where you go. There are questionable neighborhoods everywhere.

We can help a lot more if you tell us generally where you will be working and then we can give some concrete examples of what you might be interested in and where to maybe avoid. Also give an example of the price range if buying or the rental you can afford. "Affordable" is often too general and what we may think is affordable may be way lower than you would expect. Boston and Indianapolis are at opposite ends of afforability.

Also helps to establish what you want in housing. What are the priorities regarding amenities, etc.

[indy317]

It sounds like indy really will fit the bill for you. You will find housing is the least expensive of any major city in the US. Hard to find a "bad area" outside the beltway. Many very nice bedroom communities. As mentioned kinda depends where you work. Traffic is NOTHING compared to most cities. Very safe place with good schools. I live NE in the Fishers area, Hamilton county to the north is the fastest growing county in the Midwest. Also nice areas in AVon, Zionsville, Carmel, Westfield. A little farther east is Greenfield. North will be a little more $$ but still very reasonable.

[inndeeannaaa]

I lived in Bloomington, IN. Nice place... I wish I would have stayed. I'm going to school out of state. I will return to Indiana in 2008, though. Should I move to Indy???

[sweetana3]

You would have greater job opportunities in Indy. I like Bloomington for the social scene and the college, but there is a lot of competition with others who will accept lower wages to just have a job.

Live on the south side and drive to Bloomington when you need a "fix" or join in the Indy scene. Lots to do for all ages. Check out NUVO weekly newspaper or the Indystar.com and the GO section of the Friday paper.

[Spartanacus]

I grew up in a far North Detroit suburb. I spent a few months in LA. I lived in Orlando for a year. And I've lived in Fishers (NE of Indy) now for over 7 years, and I'd say it's the best place I've ever lived.

Unfortunately we're moving to IL/WI as my wife got a great opportunity...but it was an awful decision to make. We're giving up so much as far as our home, our sub, our Town, and the general quality of life of the Indy area. But we don't have much as far as family ties here, so we're following the almighty dollar to see if we can duplicate our happiness down here (everyone seems to speak very highly of Chicago, besides the cost of living and colder weather).

So yes, I highly recommend you moving to Indy, as it is "The Crossroads Of America." My wife and I moved there without jobs, temping a bit, then we quickly found full time work. We chose it due to it's Central location, near my family in MI and her family in South Bend, IN.

If you're interested in buying, I can PM you a Snapfish link of pics of our home in a few days, as I think you'd love it and the area, and it may be a great opportunity for you. My wife works downtown and deals with the commute fine. And I work North of the city, as there are a lot of jobs in the Keystone/Castleton area.

If you aren't in the market to buy just yet as you need jobs first, I can recommend a good Fishers apartment we lived in for a year when we first moved to town.

Let me know.

[domergurl]

I've been in Fishers for almost 4 years now. We love it. It's not the most exciting place, but we can get anywhere in the metro area within 30-45 minutes. Coming from Boston ... that will be a luxury! We live on the northeast side of town, near I-69. Schools are fantastic.

[Southside Shrek]

Originally Posted by Spartanacus

If you're interested in buying, I can PM you a Snapfish link of pics of our home in a few days, as I think you'd love it and the area, and it may be a great opportunity for you. My wife works downtown and deals with the commute fine. And I work North of the city, as there are a lot of jobs in the Keystone/Castleton area.


Let me know.

Spartanacus. can you also PM me since I know someone who is looking and comparing prices of homes around the northeast side of Indy. Thanks.

[JRB73IN]

Do not go to the north side unless you like traffic, It is unbeleivable how crazy it is, the west side is not bad if you are out around avon/Plainfield area, Southside is Nice if you get south of 465, and East side is horrible, in the last few years it has quickly become a gang riddon area with a record number of homicides this year. Unless you get out about 20 minutes from 465 and there are nice areas here and there throughout the city, but it is really chancy to find the right place. There are some really nice condo buildings down town, but as with any city, there are alot of rif-raf down town. I see some live in the northeast side, it is Really traffic riddon too, though you do have some nicer areas, I am actually building my new house NE of Indy, but I also went farther out to Pendleton, which is the next town outside of the congested areas. I do have to say all the schools up that way are mostly new and there are plenty of commercial areas. The biggest thing to watch out for is to try not to buy any of the vinyl village homes, the have little or no return and I am in the new residential contsruction industry and I have worked in alot of these little boxes and they are very cheaply built.