The Sherman Hills neighborhood is immediately west of downtown. It is older neighborhood, but I haven't heard of any serious crime activity. Sherman Hills is roughly between MLK Parkway on the west, Heritage Hills/15th Street on the east, I-235 on the north, and Ingersoll on the south. There are some nice duplexes/condos within this area. Friends of mine used to live in this area; I have been there late at night and did not notice any suspicious activity.
Below is a link which details neighborhoods within Des Moines.
Neighborhood Map & List
Welcome to City-Data.com forum! Make sure to register - it's free and very quick! You have to register before you can post and participate in our discussions with 700,000 other registered members. User profiles and some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your free account you will be able to customize many options, you will have the full access to over 15,000 posts/day about local topics and you will see fewer ads. 
Sherman Hill neighborhood
Linear Mode
