Job relocation from PA to Memphis, help! (Southaven, Olive Branch: real estate, city hall)

[tlg30]

My husband took a job transfer and we will be moving to the Memphis area over Christmas. I have a six year old boy and a one year old little girl. I am looking for some opinions on the different towns that we can look at for housing in northern Mississippi. We are considering Olive Branch and Hernando. I have gotten previous advice to stay away from Horn Lake and Southaven. We obvioulsy are looking for good schools, I heard Desoto County is the best. I am also looking for hospital and emergency medical services info. because my son has asthma. I really need the names of subdivisions that are safe and we want to live in a neighborhood with a lot of families so my kids have neighbors to play with. I have been doing some research on the internet but there are so many subdivisions, it is impossible to know where to start. We hired a relocation real estate company but they are not going to be able to tell me what I need to know. I have also heard that there is a lot of crime that spills over from Memphis into all areas, how far away from the border is safe? Basically any information that anyone can give me will be helpful. We are going into this move very clueless. I need some honest opinions to help us start looking in the right direction. I have also heard a lot about flooding areas, where is this a problem? Please help!

[mshomeinfo]

tlg30 - Northwest MS is a GREAT place to raise a family. There is a hospital in Southaven right at the Hwy 302/Goodman Rd. exit off I-55. It is called Baptist Hospital-Desoto. There have been many doctors offices to spring up around it. My sister-in-law works for a childrens clinic in the area. Her youngest son also has severe asthma. So many people want their children to get into the Desoto county school system that they had to have a department to investigate out-of-district students sneaking in. The Desoto Central and Center Hill districts are said to be very good as is the Hernando schools. The rules of this forum will not let me put a link in here, but you can google Desoto County Mississippi School and get the main website.

Your price range will have a lot to do with the subdivisions to look in. I don't understand why the relocation real estate company can't offer some guidance.

The only flooding I know about has been around the extreme west portion(close to the MS river) and in the Delta (like around Greenwood). If you buy property with a creek, I would imagine you chance of flooding would be higher.

I hope this information has helped. Good luck and we will be happy to have you in our community!

[blreeves]

I don't know why anyone would advise you to stay away from Southaven. Obviously there are parts of every town that you may not want to live in for a number of reasons. I was born and raised in Memphis, but have lived in Southaven since 1972. I graduated from Southaven High in 1973. Even though you ocassionally hear about the spillover of crime from Memphis, we have never had an issue with crime in any of the areas we have lived in. I think we have one of the best Police Departments in the country for a city of our size. They make their presence very visible which is probably one of the reasons our crime rate is so low.

We currently live near the intersection of Goodman (Hwy 302) and Swinnea. There is a lot of traffic in our area, but the conveniences far outweigh that. When we moved to this neighborhood in 1986, there was still pastures and a Dairy at this intersection. The area has grown a lot since then.

Our kids are grown now with their own families, but two of our kids spent their entire school years in Southaven schools. Southaven Middle school is a wonderful school. My granddaughter went there and loved it. She is now in the ninth grade at Southaven High School. She really enjoys going there, but I have also heard very good things about DeSoto Central as well.

The Shopping available in the Southaven/Horn Lake/Olive Branch area has all the choices you could ever want. Very rarely do we need to go into Memphis anymore other than to work. There are also more and more work opportunities in North Mississippi as well. There are many fairly large employers in the North Mississippi area.

The Baptist DeSoto Hospital is modern and has just about any type of specialist available nearby. There are numerous doctor's offices within a mile of the hospital, both specialist's and general practices. Our oldest son had asthma, so I know what you are dealing with.

As you said, there are many neighborhoods to choose from in the area. There are some nice areas next to the DeSoto Central school with lots of families with young children. When it comes to sports activities, I think Southaven has a lot to offer. There are numerous Baseball, Softball and Soccer fields throughout the Southaven area. Also Snowden Grove has the largest Baseball facility in the United States. There are many choices of entertainment. We have attended several events at the DeSoto Civic Center just off Church Road. They offer concerts, plays, conventions and many other types of events. It is a very nice facility. They have also just completed a new Library building in Southaven. It is located right between City Hall and the Police Department headquarters, so I am very comfortable for my granddaughter spending time on her own there.

All in all, I think the North Mississippi area is a wonderful place to live and raise a family. Although Olive Branch and Hernando both have some very nice areas, I would definitely recommend that you consider Southaven.

Good luck with your move and I'd like to welcome you to the area.

[delaura18]

I agree that North Mississippi is a great place to live. My little family and I moved to Hernando in May...so we haven't been here long but long enough to see what a great town it is. We are about a 10 minute drive from Southaven and go there often because there are a lot more stores and products available there that we need for out business...however, I am always glad we live in Hernando because it is still slower paced, smaller...we have never felt unsafe! When we first moved here we were worried because we saw Police Cars everywhere we went...we have come to realize they are very visible and that is a very good thing!! While crime will happen everywhere the police are doing a really good job at keeping Memphis crime at bay.

If you want a smaller, slower paced town choose Hernando..we do have the convenience of WAl-Mart and Wal-Greens and an assortment of fast food...but Southaven, Horn Lake, Olive Branch have the bigger department stores and chain sit down restaurants...as well as the movie theater and hospital. So it just depends...getting on the interstate and hoping up to Southaven really isn't a big deal at all and we do it at least once a week.

I don't have school aged children yet...but I hear the schools are great. We have a bunch of small businesses and boutiques and privately owned little restaurants. I always tell friends that Hernando is a charming place. It is cute and quaint...you have the charm of old town and the convenience of the new side of town.

Anyways...I am just rambling...both of your choices are very nice...I highly recommend driving around both and making a decision...either way I think you will be very happy!

[Frank1938]

If you want to look over the Hernando area, I would be glad to help you. I can give you my phone number by PM.
I have lived in Hernando for over 35 years, retired mail carrier, worked a few years for the sheriff's dept & am well know by many folks here including the mayor, police chief & many business owners so you could check up on me.
I would be glad to show you around as I am retired & have a lot of time on my hands.
If you are interested let me know.
Now is a good time to buy for the people that can. New houses in Hernando are going to run near $200K with a few exceptions but some nice, older homes in my are can be bought for 150 to 175
There are some rental houses around, but rent will run around $1000.00

[abonds]

I don't know who said that Southaven is not a good place to live...I disagree. We've been here going on 4 years and we love it here! It's a great little town, the crime rate is low and there are plenty of places to shop and eat. Both Olive Branch and Horn Lake are right down the street in opposite directions. We lived in Olive Branch for 2 years which is smaller than Southaven and a little more country but still a great place to live as well. We actually prefer Olive Branch to Southaven but as far as housing and land cost it is cheaper in Southaven. You may want to go to realtor.com to check out some subdivisions since I don't know what price range you are seeking. Plus my hubby is the expert in this area. Southaven is the largest of the three surrounding cities (Olive Branch and Horn Lake). Horn Lake is smaller than Olive Branch. You are 5 minutes from Memphis. One thing I can say is that the police here in Southaven are on their jobs and address any crime overflow from Memphis promptly. I think that should you decide on Southaven, you will come to love it as we do that is if you are looking for that small town home grown feel. Email me when you get here if you are interested and maybe I can answer some of your questions.

[hernandojaybird]

I personally would agree with staying away from Horn Lake period and some parts of Southaven, and Olive Branch ,specifically anything north of Goodman RD.My friend lives in Olive Branch right near the state line and the crime is spilling over. The further from memphis, the better, obviously. I live in Hernando, I love it.