Another "Moving to Indy" Post

[divehpu]

Thanks for all of the helpful replies.

I've been reading about high property taxes in the city of Indianapolis. Can anyone give me an update on the tax issue?

Thanks

[mbhaddad]

Park Tudor is a great school. I went there for 13 years and would send my kids there. I would consider only sending them there for highschool to reduce the cost. Another good private school is Sycamore, however it is only k-8 most the student go to Park Tudor after 8th grade.

[Naptowner]

Originally Posted by divehpu

Thanks for all of the helpful replies.

I've been reading about high property taxes in the city of Indianapolis. Can anyone give me an update on the tax issue?

Thanks

Property taxes have gone up significantly in recent years, and some of the largest increases have been in older parts of town, including Butler-Tarkington and Meridian-Kessler. Our taxes are now over 2% of the assessed value on our home, which was close to an 80% increase over what we were paying a couple years ago. Indiana funds local services and schools from property taxes - about 80% of property tax revenue goes to IPS schools, which are in pretty bad shape. The good news is that taxes shouldn't have sharp increases in the coming years.

One thing to watch for - property taxes are assessed annually, but paid one year in arrears. So this November I will pay the taxes for the second half of 2007. If you are looking at a house listing, and it states the amount of taxes the owner paid, that number may represent the lower tax before the recent increase.

[divehpu]

Thanks for all the neighborhood and tax info. I haven't seen any mention of Holy Cross, Herron-Morton or Fall Creek Place. Can anyone provide info on these areas?

[MotownLowdown]

I can speak for Herron-Morton. There are a lot of really nice, remodeled older homes in this area. It's a historic neighborhood-- so there is a lot of character to the remodels. There are also some lots on my street that are for sale that you could build on.

It is a walkable neighborhood. I love it-- I can walk or bike to work every day! (Incredible how much I save on gas). You are a 20 minute walk from downtown or Mass Ave-- less if you bike. The Monon Trail, which you can take downtown, or up to Broad Ripple or Carmel, is just a few blocks away. (Just be aware that the area just east of Herron-Morton as you head to the trail can be dicey-- but even that is changing as well.

HM is a safe neighborhood. You just want to use common sense. (Don't leave your car unlocked or valuables in it/have a home alarm system) Most of your neighbors are young, educated couples with good jobs. Not many kids-- which is largely due to the challenges IPS faces. Most of the school age kids who do live here likely go to private schools.

We also looked in Fall Creek Place-- which the neighborhood north of Herron-Morton-- north of 22nd. Homes are newer there. Basically, it was one of the worst neighborhoods in Indy-- and the city tore down a huge amount of homes and provided huge incentives for people to build and move in. I've seen more kids there. That neighborhood was designed to be walkable-- and there are some shops as well.

Can't speak for Holy Cross-- it looked fairly nice. But, it is really close to some nasty parts of town on the east side.

[divehpu]

Well, we just got back from our first house hunting trip to Indy and while we like parts of Meridian Kessler and Forest Hills, we were taken with Fall Creek Place. The previous poster gave some information on the area, but I'd like more information if anyone has it. Also, is there a good site for Indy crime info by area?

Thanks

[gtrman]

Originally Posted by divehpu

Also, is there a good site for Indy crime info by area?
Thanks

Crime in your neighborhood -- 2007

This is the site I used a lot while scouting neighborhoods. It's a bit dated, maybe there's a newer site. Just try 07 instead of 06 and see if it works.