19th avenue and McDowell (Phoenix: for sale, neighborhoods, purchase)

[Blair62]

Hello, I'm looking into moving to 19th avenue and McDowell but
I am concerned about the safety. Ive never spent time in that neighborhood, the villa verde district to be exact. Does anybody have opinions on how safe that area is or how dangerous if that's the case??? Thanks in advance.

[LocoAZnative]

Definitely not a good area and the further west you go the worse it gets.

[observer53]

You'll get opinions like the above, but like many areas in the Valley with a less favorable reputation, you may hear from people who actually live there who get along just fine. I see that it's a historic district. That is a positive, to me, in terms of a a neighborhood feel and function to the area, and sets it apart from some of the other older areas in west Phoenix.

[Blair62]

Thank you for replying, really hoping to hear from residents of that neighborhood!!

[El_Waiboi]

It's a decent area. The neighborhood itself is very small compared to other Phoenix neighborhoods: Monte Vista to Granada Road, 19th Avenue to 20th Avenue. Pull that up on google maps and you will see how small it really is. People are going to tell you it is a gang neighborhood, but that is not true. I am going to be honest with you - there are a lot of different hoods not far from there, but that historic district is a good pocket. I think that kind of area (a historic district so close to downtown) is going to skyrocket in property values in the next few years. If you work in for the State of AZ in the Govt district right down the street then I would definitely focus on that area.

I have a friend who lives in that neighborhood and she is very happy there. She told me that she has always felt safe there and had no issues. And just for the record she is Caucasian and a single mother. The only issue you may have is that, like all historic districts, sometimes you have to put a little money into the property upon purchase to make it up to your standards.

Plus I looked at the two properties currently for sale on the MLS and they both look nice and definitely worth going to look at in person. Good luck!

[Bondurant]

You could do better or worse. I might be moving a bit south of there later this month. A question like yours will generate some knee-jerk hyperbole. It's an area you'll have to experience for yourself. No one else can dictate if you will be comfortable or not.