Any Nice, Safe, Racially mixed neighborhoods? NYC to Wichita or KC (Kansas City: apartments, rentals)

[VibeMom]

Hi,

I am moving my family to Wichita or Kansas City, MO (surrounding cities) and am wondering if their are any racially mixed neighborhoods that are safe and friendly.

We need at least a 4 bedroom apt or home. I am having no luck at finding any apartments with 4 bedrooms in any areas.

It is weird when you look at crime rates. I can't believe NYC has less crime than both places we are moving. But, I know each city has safe areas and that is where I want to move to.

Any suggestions would be helpful.

[iskerbibel]

I'm no native of the area, and I've never lived there, so I can't give you any first-hand advice. My wife and I are moving to Wichita from Hays KS in just a few weeks, though, and we used the crime maps on the City of Wichita website as a guide to where we might or might not want to live. Here's the url:

http://www.wichita.gov/CityOffices/P...imes_Stats.htm

Down toward the bottom of that page, there are links for several different crime maps of the city. It becomes clear pretty quickly which areas you'd want to avoid. We both really liked the Riverside neighborhood, and we'd definitely live there if we had more money... but we've settled for a boring neighborhood in the NE part of the city because we could rent a lot more house for the money.

[sunflower2]

I lived in Topeka and would advise you to avoid there. I found it racially intolerant towards blacks, particularly in the schools. Many white parents were awful with a girl scout leader treating my daughter differently and excluding her at sleepovers because she was black and even a teacher telling me she forbade her daughter to play with mine because my daughter was too smart for her place in life (waaaay smarter than hers, in other words).

But in a smaller town in south central Kansas that's just as conservative with even less diversity, our family has had no such racial problems at all, not even a hint. The parents and teachers keep their negative feelings to themselves if they have any, and treat all the children equally which is all one can ask as far as I'm concerned.

So I think it's the particular mores of the people in any given area on how much they tolerate open racism, and as everywhere, some places they do(even against children) and in some places it's frowned on by all.

[sunflower2]

I realized that I didn't answer your question. Kansas City is better for diversity and open-mindedness. But it's still conservative. The Missouri schools are terrible. The Kansas side schools are better.

I've lived all around and Kansas City is like any conservative bit city of its size. It's has some pretty areas and the Plaza and Westport are good.

Wichita, despite its size, has a more small town provincial feel. Very conservative. No prettiness or city vibrancy like KC has. Some good private schools though.

It's quite inexpensive and maybe that's what they mean by sucking you in. When you pay $500 a month for a decent house in a safe area, it's hard to up ad move and expect to match it elsewhere.

[Kansas City]

Yes, Wichita is cheap. But you get what you pay for.
Yes, the people are extremely conservative.
Yes, the city government is a joke. They could not tie thier shoes without help.
Yes, Wichita has no stable economy, except the aircraft industry.

Yes, Wichita is a slow paced, narrow minded, backwards city with no future.

I would strongly suggest looking into Kansas City.

[VibeMom]

Thanks for your input. I will check out that site about crime and steer clear of Topeka.

I am pretty sure we will choose Wichita because it is cheaper and that is what we are running away from.

You pay for what you get. So does that mean I would get something bad for $500?

What is the going rate for a 4 or 5 bedroom house or apartment.

I want to rent for a year but will still need a large place to rent before I buy a home.

Thanks again.

[sunflower2]

I think this is the best area in Wichita to live, and the public school seems decent there too.

You're looking at $750 plus for a decent sized house. $1000-$1200 a month for around four bedroom size with a garage and comfort.

Anything less and you're looking at a depressed area with more crime.

[wwaynemcg]

[quote=VibeMom;192165]
<I am pretty sure we will choose Wichita because it is cheaper and that is what we are running away from.>
If you want decent, affordable housing you've made the right choice (no I'm not a R/E agent).

<You pay for what you get. So does that mean I would get something bad for $500?>
I would seriously consider buying right away rather than renting; there is not a lot of selection for rentals (ownership rates in Wichita are comparatively high), especially for larger homes.
It's hard to give you a specific answer without knowing your family income; here are some examples though: Derby, 4 BR, 2 BA, 2000 s.f., 12 yr old - $118,000 - Derby, 4 BR, 3 BA, 2200 s.f., 4 yr old - $132,000 - Derby, 3 BR, 3 BA, 3600 s.f., 22 yr old - $150,000
You can plug in the vitals and get the monthly payment (mortgage loan rates are pretty good now), that would give you a monthly payment idea.
As far as "diverse" neighborhoods; all have some diversity; I doubt you'll find any overt racism (in general) in the Wichita metro area; further out in really small towns...maybe.

[janetjanetbobanet]

Would agree there is a fair amount of diversity in Wichita. Would consider living on the west or south side or Riverside is OK, too. The older people in town tend to be the more conservative ones. Think you will be OK here.

[Versatile]

Originally Posted by sunflower2

I realized that I didn't answer your question. Kansas City is better for diversity and open-mindedness. But it's still conservative. The Missouri schools are terrible. The Kansas side schools are better.

I've lived all around and Kansas City is like any conservative bit city of its size. It's has some pretty areas and the Plaza and Westport are good.

Wichita, despite its size, has a more small town provincial feel. Very conservative. No prettiness or city vibrancy like KC has. Some good private schools though.

It's quite inexpensive and maybe that's what they mean by sucking you in. When you pay $500 a month for a decent house in a safe area, it's hard to up ad move and expect to match it elsewhere.

I take great exception with your statement that Schools in Mo are terrible.
Schools that are in the KCMO school district are terrible! NOT ALL SCHOOLS IN THE KC Metro area are bad. Schools in the suburbs are excellent! I hear this stuff all the time and it is untrue and a disservice to anyone wanting good info. The well known Rockhurst High School is located in Kansas City; as well as Barstow School for the younger kids. For the most part these schools are attended by students from Johnson Cty Ks. Check out the accrediation of any school on the Mo side such as in Grandview, Belton, Lee's Summit, Blue Springs and any of the others and you will find that OTHER than the Kansas City School district itself; they all have great ratings.
A little more research and you wil find out that Kansas is in a financial crisis on funding for education. In other words they do not have much money and are cutting back. Can you prove me wrong?