Working at the V.A. where to live? (Gulfport, Biloxi: home owners insurance, house)

[Chuck_G]

Hello all,
There is a possibily that my job may be moving to the V.A. in Biloxi. Where do people live in the area? I've been looking at the forums, and there is a lot of talk about home owners insurance and hurricane related insurance. North I-10 there are a couple of communities that look nice on Google street view, and realtor.com. How far north I-10 do you need to be for the insurances to be more affordable? I would be looking at a house around 150K. Also, what are the school districts like? Any help would be appreciated.
Chuck

[brickpatio]

According to schooldigger.com, North Woolmarket Elementary and Middle School is ranked 4th among the state's 432 elementary schools. This is up Highway 67 north of Biloxi and north of I-10. Three other schools north of I-10 that rank high (in the top 25 or 30 out of 432 schools) are West Wortham north of Gulfport, Lizana also north of Gulfport, and North Hancock which is north of Diamondhead over in Hancock County. Diamondhead is really nice but it's a good 40 miles down I-10 from Biloxi.

These all pop on the map at schooldigger.com, so you can look for neighborhoods near these schools. You will have no problem finding a house for $150k.

Two of the top schools in the state are in Long Beach and Pass Christian but those are closer to the beach so probably higher insurance rates. Ocean Springs is probably the most popular school and suburban community but it's also south of I-10 and closer to the beach. But there are plenty of affordable neighborhoods in this area also.

[Chuck_G]

Thanks for the reply, brickpatio. Diamond Head was one of the areas that I was looking at. I've lived in areas where I had a fairly long commute, so I'm not too concerned with that. Of course, i'd like to live closer to work, and both Biloxi and Ocean Springs look really nice. I'm just not sure if I can afford it.
Thanks again.