Possibly moving to Shelby County what are the safest areas to live in ? (Memphis: sales, apartment)

[chuck1229]

Originally Posted by curbysgal

Thank you to everyone for responding.. and the honesty is greatly appreciated I have found in searching for apartments in Shelby County when I ask about the safety I keep getting the response, "Well, crime is everywhere".. This is alarming to me that they can't even tell me they are generally safe places.. Can you tell me if you think Germantown is safe? That is the general area of the Preserves at Southwind, which I am told is considered Memphis and exactly how close to the city crime is that?

Germantown is better than Memphis but parts of Germantown border Hickory Hill which is not really good anymore..The northern part of Germantown, north of Poplar Avenue is better but Collierville may be better than that. There is a complex on Bailey Station Road and Winchester that is nice,very near a big Federal Express office complex and that area should be OK. Only minutes from the Interstate. For the life of me I cannot remember the name of that complex, must be getting too old, the memory is going.

[Pearlbob]

Safe places: Germantown, Collierville. Most of Bartlett. Most of midtown is generally safe, as is east Memphis, and downtown. The suburbs in MS are fairly safe.

Is Southwind Memphis city? I thought it was Germantown? Southwind is sort of SE, and SE Memphis has become very violent. I am not sure about the apts...now "Southwind" the homes (ie..where most of our NBA players live) is a gated million dollar home community. But as for apts in the area, I don't know.

[chuck1229]

Bailey Creek Apartments 901-853-0003
Madison At Schilling Farms 901-853-5000

[UofMGrad92]

If it were my family, I would move to Collierville proper (at one of the places recommended by chuch1229) if you are considering that part of town. I have a friend who lives in that general area and is happy with his complex (I think it is the Bailey Creek complex). Lots of shopping and dining in the area, and it is as safe a part of town as you can find. Apartment living is always a little more difficult due to the transient nature of the residents, but the Collierville PD does a good job and are responsive to the needs of the citizens. The Southwind area might work for you, but Memphis is moving to annex the area and a general decline has started in the area and will likely just get worse. I wouldn't move my wife and kids to the area if I could afford other choices.

Crime is a fact of life in the Memphis area. You will hear about it a lot, and it certainly is a good idea to be vigilant and take the proper precautions (ie, be aware of your surroundings). That being said, I have no problem with my family shopping or dining in Bartlett, Collierville, Germantown, Lakeland, Arlington, Millington, Cordova, East Memphis, Downtown, or Midtown. I don't live in constant fear for my life as I live and work in the Memphis area. There are parts of town that I might, but not in the burbs or the better parts of town. I think what people are trying to say when they talk about crime in Memphis is that it does exist, it is worse here than many other places, and you need to be prepared for that. You could be a victim of crime, but it is not going to be a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly occurance in the better parts of town and the burbs. But it could happen, so you need to be mentally prepared for that.

If hearing that an apartment in your complex was burglarized or a car was broken into or stolen in the parking lot is going to drive you nuts, then I wouldn't recommend this area or really any other mid sized to large Southern city.

[Pearlbob]

Car break-ins are common everywhere. I've known many people to have their cars broken into, in the suburbs, in "gated" apartment complexes. It's cheap money, so there's hardly anything you can do to stop it. People don't really steal cars here, it's just smash and grab things.

I think that is really a good way to describe most "crime" in Memphis. Of course there are murders, but those happen primarily in very bad parts of town, parts that I never go into, ever. Other than the horrendous stuff, most crime here is done by poor people who are wanting to make a quick buck...you leave a cell phone in your car, they see it, they break the window and take it to make $20 at a pawn shop. You leave a lawn mower in your front yard, they steal it to pawn it. Anywhere where you might find that type of person, either truly poor/homeless people, or just ignorant trash young people, you'll find crime like that. And, unfortunately, it's hard to get away from the trashy people when you live in an apartment complex.

[mzloolue]

Are you thinking of an apartment or something a bit more rural?

I live in north Shelby County in the rural reserve.

I would recommend looking in north Shelby...Rosemark, Bolton, Millington, Arlington, or Lakeland.

If you are not looking to be in a subdivision, but do need to be in Shelby County and in a good school district.

As there are (fortuantely) no sewers in my area all the homes must be on at least 2 acres. The lack of sewers is what is saving this area from being totally ruined by the developers. Not many houses come up for sale, but a few do and it is worth looking.

[tennreb]

Originally Posted by curbysgal

My fiance' I and our 18 month old daughter are considering moving to Shelby County.. We are from a very country like small town setting, and advice on where to live that will be safe enough and offer family oriented things to do? Is the crime really as bad as people say? The crime could be enough to deter our move so PLEASE be HONEST!!

I've lived all over the Memphis area from downtown to both Germantown and Collierville. Both Germantown and Collierville are virtually crime free. I don't think there had ever even been a break-in in any of the neighborhoods I have lived in either Germantown or Collierville. I haven't even heard of so much as a weed whacker stolen out of an open garage in years. My family there was never very concerned with even locking the doors. The southern part of Germantown that borders Hickory Hill and the portion of Collierville that border Fayette County do have some property crime, but it isn't bad. Downtown, crime is much more of a concern, but I am just aware of my surroundings. In 20 years, I've never been the victim of a single crime in Memphis (knock on wood). If you are from a rural area, you will probably prefer Collierville. You can get a cheaper house in the more rural Fayette County, though property crime is higher there and the schools are horrible (everyone that isn't poor sends their kids to private schools in Shelby County). DeSoto County (Mississippi) has decent schools, a more rural (though rapidly changing) way of life, but crime is a little higher than Germantown and Collierville.

[strumpeace]

Germantown is the safest city of its size in the entire state of Tennessee. It is also the only municipality in Shelby County that has a crime index (both violent and non-violent) below the national crime index.

[gotigersgo10]

I have been in Memphis almost 24 years and not one member of my family has had anything stolen or broken into(knock on wood too). The best part is I have lived in get this...THE MIDDLE OF THE CITY, where some of ya'll think all we do is run around breaking into people's cars. Let's tell it like it is. The majority of crime is in Orange Mound, Hickory Hill, and parts of Winchester. Stay away from there and you will be fine!

[JMT]

Originally Posted by gotigersgo10

I have been in Memphis almost 24 years and not one member of my family has had anything stolen or broken into(knock on wood too). The best part is I have lived in get this...THE MIDDLE OF THE CITY, where some of ya'll think all we do is run around breaking into people's cars. Let's tell it like it is. The majority of crime is in Orange Mound, Hickory Hill, and parts of Winchester. Stay away from there and you will be fine!

I love Memphis, but there is crime everywhere. My bike was stolen from my 2nd story balcony when I lived in Midtown--less than a block from the Union Ave police station.

My home 3 blocks from the U of M was broken into four times in 18 months.

My car was broken into while parked at Oak Court Mall in broad daylight. A friend's car was broken into while parked behind her house just off North Highland.

A colleague of mine in posh East Memphis was attacked at her mailbox at the foot of her driveway.

Thugs snuck onto the MUS campus and broke into cars during the middle of the school day.

I may be crazy, but all of that crime has not deterred me from loving Memphis. But crime is indeed everywhere, some places more than others. It is very misleading to say that crime in Memphis is isolated to only a few neighborhoods. While in Memphis, one should be very observant and cautious no matter what part of town.