Considering New Orleans w/ children, where to live? how long of a commute? (Jefferson: houses)

[mortymouse]

Considering a move to New Orleans. Have never been there. Have a couple school age kids. Want to be somewhere safe. Private or good public schools would be ok.

No idea where we should be looking at as possible places to live, or how long of a commute we would expect to have.

Would be working at Touro Infirmary, University Medical Center.

Please help!!!!

[annie_himself]

Would you be able to afford $400-500k? A commute to Touro or UMC from any safe area of New Orleans would be pretty short, no more than 30 minutes.
Look Uptown between the river and St.Charles, that's going to be the safest, and the most expensive. Also the neighborhoods upriver (west) from Louisiana Ave on either side of St. Charles are safe areas. It doesn't get dangerous until you get past Carrollton Ave north of Oak St. These areas are going to be closer to cultural activities and different retail corridors, and depending on where you live, tourists.
More affordable and safe neighborhoods would be Broadmoor and Gentilly.
Lakeview is going to be the safest and very expensive, also the furthest away from Touro, not too bad from UMC. It's also going to be where you find newer homes compared to cottages or shotgun houses. Harrison Ave is the retail corridor for that neighborhood.
Bayou St. John is a consideration also, stay north of Canal and west of Broad as a general rule of thumb. Close drive, or streetcar to UMC.

If you can afford private school, I'd do it if I were you, there are a few good public schools in the city but I know they are difficult to get in. I don't have kids though.

[jamesducote]

Annie mentions some good neighborhoods near Touro, uptown between the river and St. Charles. There are also some good private schools in that area: Newman, St. George's, Trinity, McGehee, Sacred Heart. They are not cheap, however. There are a few good selective admission public charter schools: Lusher, Hynes, Audubon. If you're living and working in that area, the schools I mentioned for the most part are pretty close. Your commute will not be very long at all.

[Vicman]

One issue with New Orleans is that there are no attendance boundaries (even Lusher Charter School's Kindergarten priority boundaries are going away). In other words where you live has no automatic bearing on where you may send your children to school (as long as the school is in New Orleans). The lack of attendance boundaries is a legacy of Hurricane Katrina wiping out much of the city structure.

Jefferson Parish and St. Tammany Parish, the suburban school districts, do have attendance boundaries.

[leroy217]

What is your budget first and foremost?