low income and young. (New Orleans, Slidell: apartment, rental, houses)

[treynus]

my girlfriend (both early 20s) and I are looking at new places to live, and New Orleans is pretty high on the list, but I had a few questions before to ask before I want to get my heart set on someplace:

-realistically, we will be rather low income, she is going with americorps, so she will get a small living stipend, and I don't have a collage grad, so I'm gonna get whatever crap job I can to hold down rent/such.

so is it realistic to have a (reletively) safe home without much money? and is the city even worth it if we're poor?

-are there even enough crap jobs around that I may get one easily enough? I am more than willing to do construction or anything of the like, though I'm a little more tenetive about working at micky d's or something.

-it it pheasable to live there without a car, i.e. bikeing and walking most places? (will get a car evenutaly, but hell, im poor)

any answers that let me get a better idea of what I may be getting myself into are much appriciated. and any answers that don't are appriciated too, just not as much

[loyalty321]

hi treynus.. im 4rm new orleans n id try 2 help... have u been there l8ly? have u noted the level of safty the area has? after katrina the city hasnt been itself most of the natives have moved accross the river r baton rouge 2 feel more secure. the stumbling economy has hit there as well and prices have skyrocketed! these r some of the dwn falls... now 4 brighter things.. the n.o. is filled wit culture everthing is walking distance (unlike where i am n houston) and there is always public trans.. ol' rta!! shes so faithful.. she evens runs 4rm accross the river.. im sure u can find alot of job avaliblities bc ppl r always rebuilding. new orleans is a beautiful place 2 live and call home! i truley miss it!!!

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

The last time I was there, earlier this summer, there were a lot of signs in stores for counter help jobs. Regular restaurants need bar help, servers, etc. Try craigslist for sharing a house - it's cheap and usually you can find something. Good luck!

[TNRyan23]

Cheapest decent house my wife and I could find in the area was in Slidell and was around $650 a month...

There are tons of jobs availible but alot of them pay $8/hour or less.

Good luck !

[LSU Tiger Z71]

New Orleans is a great city for low income persons. Walkable distance and cheap fun. You also have somewhat decent home prices and a good cost of living here.

New Orleans has a lot of service jobs for you to consider. If you take the time to get a bartending license, that could be helpful! However, there are other options to consider. Expect to make around $7.50-9/hour.

[Drouzin]

My younger sister was here visiting, and she was just shocked at how high the prices have gotten. There are jobs available, but like Loyalty said we are feeling the economic hit here as well, (although I don't think it's as bad as in some parts of the country).

As for inexpensive housing, you might be hard pressed, but it's not impossible. Check into Arabi, LA there is a portion that is set between the Mississippi River and St. Claude/St. Bernard Hwy. The area is called Old Arabi. It has lots of old houses for that NOLA feel, but has a few inexpensive rental buildings as well. I know someone who has a 2 bedroom second floor place for $600 and it's a safe neighborhood to live in. I recommend that area because of the low rent, safety, and for the fact that it is on the New Orleans RTA (bus), route (within walking distance). There is a Rally's hamburger, and Family Dollar store also within walking distance of the neighborhood.

Before I make it sound too great, it is in St. Bernard Parish which was devistated for Katrina, and you will be told to evacuate, (they do provide buses that take you to a shelter if you can't get out on your own), and unless you have a second floor apartment you will lose your stuff. I also want to warn you that pretty much any neighborhood in NOLA will be the same as far as hurricane problems go.

I don't want to discourage you, I just want you to realize that if you move here, you can expect to have to evacuate at some point. If you are okay with living with the adventure of being a "bag lady" every now and then for hurricane season, (as we all have to do here), and the reward of freshly fried oysters then I think you'll like it.

[Prytania]

Well the evacuations have only become common place during this increased hurricane activity period...and not every neighborhood is going to flood. That's why I live 2 blocks from the port...short of the river levee breaching (which would be near apocalyptic) you would be ok.

The MR-GO and the Industrial canal is what messed up Da Parish in so far as flooding is concerned.

[treynus]

first off, thanks for all the reply's, I'm glad to see that a job shouldn't be to hard to get, even if it its a lower pay one. I haven't been down to town yet, and would like to get as much info as I can before I shell out for a visit.

that being said, my lady friend and I have found are selves with a few more questions:

-I assume you all are fine, but it needs to be asked: how is the religious tolerance down there? what is the general religion? I'm kinda pagan, though very relaxed about it, and not "in your face" or anything.

-I have heard horror storys about the driving, and traffic in N.O., but I live in and around D.C., so it couldn't be any worse than up here, could it?

-I already know that the city is plenty tolerant racially, but how about the surrounding state? we are an interracial couple (her black, me white) and would rather prefer not to get crap for it we wanted to travel a little.

sorry to have so many questions, but like have said, money is a little short, and I would like to know as much as I can before we got to go all the way down from northern VA to visit.

(also, Im kinda excited, looks like an awsome place to live, and Im always hungery for more info.)

[juana_the_piranha]

Oh my lord, driving in NO is so much easier than DC, I can't even tell you. If you can drive in DC, you can drive anywhere!

[Innotech]

Originally Posted by juana_the_piranha

Oh my lord, driving in NO is so much easier than DC, I can't even tell you. If you can drive in DC, you can drive anywhere!

this is true, but the highways around NO are pretty dangerous as well. Not DC dangerous but still scary.

My recommendation would be check out the Westbank for homes. I had a friend who lived in Gretna and the area seemed pretty decent.