North end of youngstown....5th ave. area? (Warren, Boardman: fit in, real estate)

[greenfairy]

I grew up in Western PA and want to move back to the area......I've been in Providence, RI for over 12 yrs.. I went there for college and kind of got stuck there. I love it, but the cost of living, especially housing and taxes, is out of control. I was looking into the Youngstown area and its real estate. The real estate is so reasonable, but my mom says that there's news of shootings there all the time. I researched a little and visited. It seems like the south side is the worst part. I haven't heard much about any other sections. I'm interested in knowing more about the north end, particularly around the 5th ave. area. The zip I'm curious about is 44504. There are some great old houses there....just what I want....old and big. I drove around the area and it seemed nice, but driving through and living there are two different things. As for crime, youngstown as a whole rates at a slightly higher rate than providence. There seem to be a lot of random shootings in youngstown....that's my main worry. I'm used to living in a very diverse urban poplulation. One block is the projects, and 2 blocks over is an $800,000 house, so that sort of situation doesn't bother me unless there's a lot of violence. I know that the area isn't very well off economically, but I'm not concerned as I am self-employed and moving won't affect my income, just my cost of living. Youngstown seems like a nice size too, not big, but plenty of cultural events for it's size. I'm pretty much a home-body anyway. Please inform me of the better areas of youngstown and it's suburbs, and I am especially curious about the historic 5th ave area.
Many thanks in advance!

[CortlandGirl79]

Hi Greenfairy,

I too have always admired the houses on 5th Ave. I think if you are going to buy on that street you should buy north of redondo. The area around Wick park seems a little shady to me and there are definitely some questionable areas just a block or two away from 5th. I would think the closer you are to Gypsy Lane, the better off you will be. Also, when it comes to crime, for the most part, it seems like most of the shootings and violence is drug related and some of it is domestic. You are right to assume the south side is the worst, also, stay away from the east side. I do know that there are some good areas near mill creek park, but there are some bad areas as well. I think maybe someone who actually lives in Y-town would know better than me. Also, if you are looking for old houses, i would check out NE Warren or even on the North end on Mahoning Ave. There are a lot of cool old houses there too. My aunt's brother is the building inspector for Warren and i know they are trying to revitalize the north end towards Courthouse Square. I know he's even walked several out of state investors around that area and they seemed impressed. Warren is also w/in a 20 or 30 minute drive of downtown y-town and it has it's own cultural activities to boot. Another town you may want to look into is Niles, i know there are a lot of really cool old houses there too. I used to own an old Victorian close to downtown, 2700 Sq/ft. beautiful woodwork, pocket doors and leaded glass. I paid $76,900 for it in 2001 and just sold it this year for around $85,000. You definitely are not going to make a big profit in this area if you decide to sell, but if you are planning on staying a while i think it's well worth it! If you have anymore questions feel free to PM me, as i love looking for real estate! Good luck on your search!

[boardmanite]

I second that. 5th Avenue is beautiful. The houses are amazing and incredibly inexpensive compared to other areas, like New England. (BTW I spent some time in Providence and absolutely loved it!) Here's some tips for the "North Side", which is the area around 5th, north of Downtown and the YSU campus. The farther you get from 5th Ave (east/west direction) the worse the neighborhood gets. In both directions. The farther south you go, the worse it gets, but going north it gets better. As Cortlandgirl said, the closer you are to Gypsy lane, the better. Buying a home in Youngstown is not a good investment. But if you are just interested in having a place to live and don't need your home to appreciate in value, then the North Side is a great place.

As far as crime in the area, this is what I've heard and read about the North Side: Lately there has been a lot of arson there. But this is not very close to 5th Ave. There are also break-ins in the area. Probably no worse than other areas of the city, but definitely way more than the suburbs. There are murders on the North Side, but the majority in Youngstown are on the South and East Sides. And I think that many of the North Side murders occur in the projects close to Downtown, which are not close to 5th Ave. I've also heard of drivers being haggled by groups of youths while waiting at red lights on 5th Ave, but this is farther south, closer to YSU. As far as random shootings, I don't think there are many of these in Youngstown. Bystanders do get shot here, but usually it is when they are out walking at 2:00am. (There have been at least 3 cases of this in the past couple months) So just be smart.
The North Side is one of my two favorite neighborhoods in Mahoning County, as far as the layout and architecture. The other is in Boardman (where I live now). It's called "The Glen". Just go south on Market, pass Midlothian and turn right on Overhill. Absolutely amazing houses. But again, close to some really bad areas. The houses aren't going to appreciate much there and values may even decline. Time will tell.

Btw, I'm from Western PA too and somehow ended up in the Youngstown Area. And I love it!!!

[greenfairy]

thanks for the help.....what about the mill creek park area on the west side?

[CortlandGirl79]

I've heard the West side isn't too bad, not too sure about the west side near millcreek though. I know Warren better than Y-town. Maybe SouthRange or someone else can help you out w/that.

[boardmanite]

I also think that West Side is ok, but I'm not too familiar with it... Especially near Mill Creek Park, I think it's fine. The houses on the West Side seem to hold their value more. And you hardly ever hear of violent crime on the West Side.

[South Range Family]

When I think of the West Side Mill Creek area, I always think of Schenley Avenue, Cornersburg, Kirkmere school, St Christine's Church on the corner, Bears Den Rd. with that nice little fire station on the corner, and ice skating at mill Creek Park. If you actually want to live in city limits, that's not a bad place.

[maggie4475]

I have only glimpsed these responses so I apologize for being redundant if someone else has made these points.

First of all, I noticed that a lot of the folks that responded to you are not living in Youngstown.

My husband and I live happily and contentedly in the North Side neighborhood that you are referring to in your post and it is wonderful. Full of great neighbors who are interested in preserving this city. We walk around Wick Park and can walk to the university for events like jazz concerts and summer festivals.

Something to note!! I saw that someone wrote that "bystanders get shot there". No, they absolutely do not. I have lived here on and off for 25 years, more recently having returned after living in SoCal, Boston and Brooklyn. Unless you are planning to get into the drug trade, you really don't have anything to worry about.

Unfortunately, the media outlets here are obsessed with their "Youngstown is bad" mantra. Don't get me wrong, there is a tremendous amount of work to do but I live here and have for some time and we do not feel threatened.

Some local blogs to check out for your interest including one that a fellow named Tyler Clark writes called www.youngstownrenaissance.com (broken link). Tyler lives on Fifth Ave. after returning from Tuscon with his wife and young children after several years away. Also, www.defendyoungstown.com maintained by Phil Kidd, another returned Pittsburgh native who came back to Youngstown, where he went to college, after he got out of the military.

We all live here because we love it and we believe in it. We welcome you to come join us and live in a beautiful historic house in a great neighborhood.

Defend Youngstown!

[CortlandGirl79]

Here's a link that works http://ytownrenaissance.blogspot.com/

[JR_C]

I realize this post is somewhat old. So, I hope you've made a decision, greenfairy, and are happy. But, I'll proceed anyway.

I live near Mill Creek Park on the lower west side, in the neighborhood recently named the "Garden District."
http://www.youngstown2010.com/neighb...n_district.htm
The whole neighborhood is just a short walk to Fellows Gardens, and Lake Glacier. There are some great old homes in this neighborhood, too. (Although, not on the same level of grandeur as those on the north side.)