Moving into Raleigh (Memphis, Midtown: apartment complex, high crime, buying a house)

[crashback]

This year my mom and I was thinking about moving into Raleigh. We're both longtime Memphis residents and we was checking out a house on Merritt St. We want to know is this is a high crime area to live in?

[knucklehead_vol]

I love Raleigh. Of course I did spend my early years there. I don't think it is any worse than any other area, its just an area that has fallen on very hard times since the mid 80's. You just have to have the usual tendencies such as lock your car doors, don't leave anything visible, etc. I am actually thinking about buying a house in Lake Windemere while we renovate our Midtown house.

The upside is the houses have nice big yards, houses are still well kept. Its diverse, the downside is if you want good restaurants, markets, or just about anything else, you have to head into East Memphis, Midtown, or Downtown.

[strumpeace]

Merritt Street is a really pretty street.

I lived in Raleigh and never had any problems. (And I would add that I lived in a pretty ratty apartment complex.) There is property crime there, but as the previous poster noted, if you take proper precautions, you can minimize your risk. That said, there is violent crime in some parts of Raleigh. I would recommend driving through the area many times at all different times of day and night to see whether this particular neighborhood attracts shady characters. I just don't know enough about that particular part of Raleigh to give an unqualified thumbs up or thumbs down.

And, btw, it's certain to happen that someone(s) will tell you to avoid Raleigh at all costs, it's a hellhole, etc. Simply not true. Just be aware that that's the perception that many people in Memphis have of Raleigh.

Best wishes.

[Moneybucks]

I can give great details on this neighborhood because i live a block over on Mayo ave.The neighborhood does have a great deal of gun shots that go on throughout the night but its usually coming from the Community Center which is a haven for Gang Members and Drug Dealers.Living on Merrit You will see your share of Shady characters walking down your street at all hours,Usually The - F.A.M. GANG which claims the territory your moving in to.Th F.A.M. gang is notorious for jumping random people which makes them so Violent.They have even been on the news a couple times for random acts of violence. //http://www.wreg.com/news/wreg-gangfight-story,0,3380256.story (http://www.wreg.com/news/wreg-gangfight-story,0,3380256.story - broken link) Im not trying to ward you away from the area just telling you to be aware.
Here's another story
http://www.wreg.com/wreg-raleigh-residents-worry-about-violence-story,0,6123011.story (broken link)

[charper1]

Originally Posted by crashback

This year my mom and I was thinking about moving into Raleigh. We're both longtime Memphis residents and we was checking out a house on Merritt St. We want to know is this is a high crime area to live in?

Used to live at 3591 Merritt @ Merritt Cv; DO NOT move into this area for any reason!!

[crashback]

Thanks all for the help. I just talked to mom about the situation and showed her the videos from Moneybucks post and decided to not move there. We're now looking at another house on Scotland Rd in the Scenic Hills area.