Is San Pedro safe to live (Los Angeles, San Diego: real estate, apartments, rentals)

[kftselios]

Hello
My husband and I are moving from Mass to CA and just found a beautiful place in San Pedro, but I am not sure if it is in a safe area. It is in the 90731 zip code on 4th street. It looks very nice, but the more I researched the area on the internet the more bad things popped up. I just want a place that I will feel comfortable in with our 7 month old daughter. Thank you so much for the help.

[EscapeCalifornia]

My wife's from San Pedro. Her dad had a store at 1st and Bandini and she says that's not a good area. You either want to be west up the hill or north of Summerland.

[JTGJR]

What's the nearest cross street. Escape is generally correct, but without knowing the cross street, I can't tell you if you're far enough west. Personally tho, there are better communities to raise a family. The private schools are OK in "Pedro," but the pubic school system is in a bit of a shambles.

[dbaMommy]

As with any city, there are good areas and not so good areas. San Pedro has some very lovely areas. Of course opinions are subjective but personally I would not recommend that general area to anyone. Keep in mind that Gaffey is a main street which all traffic exiting the Harbor Freeway feeds onto and contains commercial, retail etc. businesses---Drive-thrus, gas stations, 7-11's etc. In particular since you expressed interest in a home on 4th St.(without knowing the cross-street) the 7-11 on 9th and Gaffey has seen more than a few instances over the last few years of crimes involing shootings/stabbings and the like. It is routinely listed in the crime logs in the newspaper. Gaffey is not a street I would walk along with my children at any time of day much less at night. I'm just above San Pedro in Ranch Palos Verdes. My sister-in-law lives in San Pedro in the Dodson St. area which is very nice. My cousin lives in "the Gardens (townhomes) off of Westmont and I have friends who live near Western and 19th St. as well as in the South Shores area, Paseo del Mar area and above Western Ave.

I would recommend a house hunting trip here and seeking the council of a real estate professional (unless you have friends or family here) to help guide you to areas that fit your family's needs and priorities. San Pedro really is one of those towns that you need to know the area or know someone that does before selecting a neighborhood. I suppose that's true of anywhere but especially here.

[kftselios]

Hey to all
Thanks for your responses. The place we are looking at is called Garden Court Apartments and it is located near South Pacific Ave and South Mesa Street. We weren't looking at San Pedro originally, but the place seems so nice and is fairly affordable so we thought we would give it a try. I am really hoping that this happens to be a decent area because the place is perfect for us. Please let me know if you have more info now that I have given a cross street. Thanks again.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by kftselios

Hey to all
Thanks for your responses. The place we are looking at is called Garden Court Apartments and it is located near South Pacific Ave and South Mesa Street. We weren't looking at San Pedro originally, but the place seems so nice and is fairly affordable so we thought we would give it a try. I am really hoping that this happens to be a decent area because the place is perfect for us. Please let me know if you have more info now that I have given a cross street. Thanks again.

I found the complex at 4th and S. Pacific. My wife says NO WAY to that area.

[kftselios]

I was just curious if you knew what the problem is with that area. So many responses I have seen on other peoples threads were referring to places being bad due to the fact that there were a lot of hispanic people living there, and that is not something that affects our reasons for getting a place or not. I just was hoping you could tell me exactly how awful the area is and maybe recommend some areas that are better yet fairly affordable. We are hoping to pay 1400 but can go up to 1500, and want to live not too too far from LA. Thanks again.

[dbaMommy]

Originally Posted by kftselios

I was just curious if you knew what the problem is with that area. So many responses I have seen on other peoples threads were referring to places being bad due to the fact that there were a lot of hispanic people living there, and that is not something that affects our reasons for getting a place or not. I just was hoping you could tell me exactly how awful the area is and maybe recommend some areas that are better yet fairly affordable. We are hoping to pay 1400 but can go up to 1500, and want to live not too too far from LA. Thanks again.

That area is definitely not an area I would recommend to anyone that I cared about. The issues are socio-economic. It really is just a more ecomonically depressed part of town--common place to see security bars on people's windows etc. Crime is an issue there and just an overall rougher element. There is also gang activity in the lower San Pedro areas

Here's the best way to convey that area of town, I know I'm there when I check to make sure my car doors are locked and my windows are up just driving through. Not trying to be harsh, just factual.

[EscapeCalifornia]

hi. I'm the wife and I grew up in San Pedro and this is my answer:

there are some very nice places to live in SP, but the area bound by 1st street, Western Ave, Gaffey Street, and Pt. Fermin is not the safest area. It is a mix of working class longshoremen and poor white, black, and Mexican. There are very expensive houses above San Pedro HS, but that is b/c it has a view. The longshoremen working in LB have driven the price up, and I hope one day to have that kind of money. The "kids" have no fear and have no problem identifying territory. My parents had a liquor store at 1st and Bandini and I grew up amongst the gangs (and there were a lot). the hispanics in San Pedro are good people, its the people that don't care that give the city a bad name. If you can stay west of Western Ave and north of Park Western, its a nice area. West of Western Ave is the edge of Rancho Palos Verdes, and I would look in that area if possible. I hope this helps, but if you have any other questions, please let me know.

[dbaMommy]

I did a quick search for rentals and here are a couple in San Pedro in good areas. Apartment Rentals in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego and Apartment for rent in San Pedro, CA 90732 — 2 Bed $1,495/month — ApartmentHunterz.com

I'm sure there are more but wanted to give you a couple of examples of nicer areas for you.

Have you considered Torrance?