23 y/o SC gal moving to New Orleans! (Jackson: apartments, rent)

[Kellysok]

I am, as the title so eloquently put it, a 23-year-old woman moving from Charleston, SC, to take a nursing job at Tulane Medical Center in March/April (2-3 months from now). I am in the process of looking for a place to live and I am wildly overwhelmed. I would love ANY advice at all!

I am going to be working the night shift- 7AM-7PM, 3x a week, so I want to be somewhere relatively quiet and safe. SAFE. I've heard all the horror stories, etc. I am having a hard time discovering what parts of the city are considered "safe." I've heard a mix of things, and the majority of people just tell me it's a checkerboard.

I'm open to everywhere. I don't mind a commute to work (my SC commute was 45 min). I'm currently looking at 2 places:

A one BR appt in a house on Napoleon Avenue (in the 600's)- this way I could sleep during the day and not have to bother with roommates that think I'm weird for legitimately sleeping my sunshine away, and I would also have a sick porch for watching parades/etc. However, it is kinda pricey ($1300 + utilities) and it is unfurnished and I only plan on living in NOLA for 2 years before I begin Army Nursing... So is that the best investment? Probably not.

AND, a 2BR apartment I found on Tulane Classifieds on Facebook, shared with two grad students I've never met. Totally furnished place at 200-something Cherokee St in "The Black Pearl." Gives up my privacy, risks weirdo roomies, but man after my time was done I would have nothing to worry about. Oh, and the rent is $750 and utilities are split b/w 3 people.. AWESOME.

Thoughts on these areas? Opinions? Suggestions? Anything is helpful 😝😝

[cBach]

The Napoleon Address is in the Irish Channel, an area settled by Irish Immigrants in the 19th century. It's a rapidly gentrifying area but has some crime. You are really close to Magazine Street which has great shopping and restaurants, and a Whole Foods. It is also home to a very large St. Patrick's Day parade and many Irish pubs.

The Cherokee Address is in the Black Pearl neighborhood, many Tulane students in a part of town that is surrounded by a giant levee on one side, Audubon Park on another, and hemmed in by University Square (Tulane) and Loyola University College of Law on the other side. These aspects give the neighborhood a very "small town" feel.

If you are only staying two years, I would go ahead and get the roommates, save the money, and experience the Black Pearl.

Oh and crime is much lower in the Black Pearl.

[rburnett]

Originally Posted by cBach

The Napoleon Address is in the Irish Channel, an area settled by Irish Immigrants in the 19th century. It's a rapidly gentrifying area but has some crime. You are really close to Magazine Street which has great shopping and restaurants, and a Whole Foods. It is also home to a very large St. Patrick's Day parade and many Irish pubs.

The Cherokee Address is in the Black Pearl neighborhood, many Tulane students in a part of town that is surrounded by a giant levee on one side, Audubon Park on another, and hemmed in by University Square (Tulane) and Loyola University College of Law on the other side. These aspects give the neighborhood a very "small town" feel.

If you are only staying two years, I would go ahead and get the roommates, save the money, and experience the Black Pearl.

Oh and crime is much lower in the Black Pearl.

Agree with most of this. Though, regardless of what the official city map says, no one refers to Napoleon Ave as being in the Irish Channel. When you say "Irish Channel" everyone assumes between Jackson and Louisiana from Magazine to the river.

The city is a "checkerboard" in that there are no safe neighborhoods with clearly defined boundaries. On top of that, you can't go by how the "nice" the area looks or how expensive the houses are.

Most of the homicides are usually confined to certain areas, but armed robberies can happen anywhere. Some areas have historically had much lower rates of robberies though (Lakeview, Navarre, Black Pearl, some of Broadmoor, western Gentilly, along Magazine closer to Audubon park, etc.)

Take a look at the actual crime numbers to give yourself some perspective. See here: CrimeMapping.com - National Map Do a ~6mo search on just robberies and homicides and you'll have a much better idea.

Also See:
Mid-City vs. Uptown
advice for a single 20 something moving to NO
22 Moving to New Orleans
Looking for area suggestions (two females, 20s)

[umpteen times]

Both of my children live in New Orleans and for various reasons have changed apartments several times. My daughter lived in a house in the Black Pearl. It was safe but she felt that the location was not convenient, she works in the CBD. Getting around New Orleans seems to take more time than in a lot of other cities. Its Mardi Gras now so I suspect there are not many apartments available. When apartments or houses do become available, at any time, they go fast. You would probably have better luck waiting until right before you go down there. If you go for shared housing, carefully check their Facebook. Personally, if I needed to sleep during the day, I wouldn't want roommates.

[cBach]

I agree that Black Pearl is a bit isolated. The Irish Channel location would be better for being "in the action" but Black Pearl would be more similar to what you're used to in Charleston and the lower crime puts it out as the winner.