Living in the ghetto

[bobsim]

Originally Posted by Farewelltoarms

Hi. So, I'm 26, make 9 dollars an hour, and live with my father in a rented house in Arlington. I have 10k saved up from the past year of work. I'm looking at buying a cheap house near the Springfield area. From what I can glean, from this board and google street view, it seems that area has a bad reputation for crime.

Is it really that bad living there? It seems you could buy a house for 15-20k, fix it up yourself, then have a nice place to live. I don't understand why people spend 100k+ on houses in the suburbs when you can just buy a house for 20k in the middle of town, put in a few thousand dollars worth of repairs, then have a house just as a nice as the 100k+ ones. Plus you wouldn't be forced to drive 30 mins just to get anywhere.

Does anyone here live in the ghetto? My feeling is that everyone here seems a bit "well-to-do" and lives in gated communities with white picket fences and 2.5 children.

Someone of your age with energy and passion can do anything.

I can't offer any information about Springfield but in my neighborhood (Old Arlington) there are plenty of homes for sale. The trick may be beating the 'house flippers' to the sale. Good quality construction with materials no longer available. Not the 'flash-bang' rapid growth, composite, glue bound junk homes are being built with theses days.

Very refreshing thread you posted, I hope this pulls it back on topic. So nice to read a thread without the mention of best shopping, best restaurants, and gated communities. Well, you did mention gated communities but in the same paragraph as the ghetto so we'll let ya slide.

Honestly I don't consider my hood a ghetto but some would. The key element is the neighbors and mine are top shelf. We keep an eye out for each other and our properties. My passions are the woods and water, easy access to both for me. No mortgage and taxes are reasonable. I'm a happy camper.

Good luck to you, I hope this thread follows your dream and you post progress!

[0nyxStation]

Originally Posted by Farewelltoarms

Hi. So, I'm 26, make 9 dollars an hour, and live with my father in a rented house in Arlington. I have 10k saved up from the past year of work. I'm looking at buying a cheap house near the Springfield area. From what I can glean, from this board and google street view, it seems that area has a bad reputation for crime.

Is it really that bad living there? It seems you could buy a house for 15-20k, fix it up yourself, then have a nice place to live. I don't understand why people spend 100k+ on houses in the suburbs when you can just buy a house for 20k in the middle of town, put in a few thousand dollars worth of repairs, then have a house just as a nice as the 100k+ ones. Plus you wouldn't be forced to drive 30 mins just to get anywhere.

Does anyone here live in the ghetto? My feeling is that everyone here seems a bit "well-to-do" and lives in gated communities with white picket fences and 2.5 children.

I say go for it. Ghettos become neighborhoods when good people move to them. I thought Springfield was being gentrified though. Are you sure its Springfield you found the home in? GOOD thread by the way.

[tacosman]

FSU is fond of mentioning where people like wayne weaver live, as if this means anything....I'm not wayne weaver and I will never be. I have no idea why someone worth 9 figures or whatever chooses to live in such an area. Using 'movers and shakers' like that as indicative of anything is absurd- I'm sure wayne weaver has 5 or 6 properties total. I'm not particularly interested in where people like wayne weaver are moving- I'm more interested in where people like myself are moving. And going to that what isn't absurd is the demographics overall of springfield, even the 'historic district'. They are what they are, and all FSU has done to write them off is say "oh they are out of date"(they arent...if anything in the last year or two they woudl further lag).

So on the one hand FSU talking about what wayne weaver is doing and what some ridiculous print magazines I've never read put out articles of a few pretty remodeled houses on. And then on the other hand there are what I see hundreds of people like myself actually doing....talking to actual realtors in the area who sell houses to the non wayne weavers of the world, talking to people I work with who live here,etc.....

I'll take the demographic data and what I see with my own eyes regarding springfield and parts of riverside over what wayne weaver did.

[fsu813]

Originally Posted by tacosman

FSU is fond of mentioning where people like wayne weaver live, as if this means anything....I'm not wayne weaver and I will never be. I have no idea why someone worth 9 figures or whatever chooses to live in such an area. Using 'movers and shakers' like that as indicative of anything is absurd- I'm sure wayne weaver has 5 or 6 properties total. I'm not particularly interested in where people like wayne weaver are moving- I'm more interested in where people like myself are moving. And going to that what isn't absurd is the demographics overall of springfield, even the 'historic district'. They are what they are, and all FSU has done to write them off is say "oh they are out of date"(they arent...if anything in the last year or two they woudl further lag).

So on the one hand FSU talking about what wayne weaver is doing and what some ridiculous print magazines I've never read put out articles of a few pretty remodeled houses on. And then on the other hand there are what I see hundreds of people like myself actually doing....talking to actual realtors in the area who sell houses to the non wayne weavers of the world, talking to people I work with who live here, etc.

I'll take the demographic data and what I see with my own eyes regarding springfield and parts of riverside over what wayne weaver did.

(sigh)

You try hard. I'll give you that.

The Weaver's live in Riverside, not Springfield. And they're billionaires, not millionaires.

You're missing my point.

There are countless families from Deer Creek, Southside Blvd, Fleming Island, Atlantic Beach, etc non-urban core neighborhoods that have and are moving in. They aren't millionaires, but middle class.

The demographics of that particular neighborhood you're talking about, the Springfield Historic District, are very similar to most of Riverside and Murray Hill - all are transitional (aka gentifrying) neighborhoods (Riverside is almost done, Murray Hill & SPR are in the middle of the process). Here's an article showcasing demographics (it's 4 years out-of-date, but still the most recent data): The Census and Springfield

Here's some of media, you can decide for yourself if they've done a good job:
Press & Media - SPAR Council

Here's some of the local reators that specialize in the popular, historic & unqiue neighborhoods surronding Downtown (San Marco, Riverside, Avondale, Springfield, Murray Hill, Miramar). Again, feel free to contact them to inquire:

http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...057?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
Tripp Newsom III - Jacksonville , FLORIDA Real Estate Agent | Coldwell Banker
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
Cindy Corey | LinkedIn
Thomas Love | LinkedIn


It's ok to admit your're wrong, ya know.

[tacosman]

Originally Posted by fsu813

(sigh)

You try hard. I'll give you that.

The Weaver's live in Riverside, not Springfield. And they're billionaires, not millionaires.

You're missing my point.

There are countless families from Deer Creek, Southside Blvd, Fleming Island, Atlantic Beach, etc non-urban core neighborhoods that have and are moving in. They aren't millionaires, but middle class.

The demographics of that particular neighborhood you're talking about, the Springfield Historic District, are very similar to most of Riverside and Murray Hill - all are transitional (aka gentifrying) neighborhoods (Riverside is almost done, Murray Hill & SPR are in the middle of the process). Here's an article showcasing demographics (it's 4 years out-of-date, but still the most recent data): The Census and Springfield

Here's some of media, you can decide for yourself if they've done a good job:
Press & Media - SPAR Council

Here's some of the local reators that specialize in the popular, historic & unqiue neighborhoods surronding Downtown (San Marco, Riverside, Avondale, Springfield, Murray Hill, Miramar). Again, feel free to contact them to inquire:

http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...057?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
Tripp Newsom III - Jacksonville , FLORIDA Real Estate Agent | Coldwell Banker
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
http://www.realtor.com/realestateage...927?source=web
Cindy Corey | LinkedIn
Thomas Love | LinkedIn


It's ok to admit your're wrong, ya know.

Well heck I wouldn't want to live in Murray hill or large sections of riverside either, so that's not really a plus.

And of course some people are choosing to move to those neighborhoods. The larger trend, however, is more middle class people choosing to move to places like pvb instead. That's why that area is growing faster than the areas you mention, and even moreso wrt middle class folk.

You don't have kids- until you do, you won't understand why these neighborhoods are so limited in what they can become.

[fsquid]

I got two that have moved from Riverside to my neighborhood. The reason, kids of course. i'm sure there are some going the other way too.

[0nyxStation]

Originally Posted by bobsim

My passions are the woods and water, easy access to both for me. No mortgage and taxes are reasonable. I'm a happy camper.

Woods and Water...I like that.