Am I missing something about North Highlands? (Rancho Cordova, Carmichael: rentals, condos)

[akuena]

I looked at a condo in (I think) North Highlands - near the corner of Greenholme Dr and Hillsdale Blvd - that was in beautiful shape for a great price, and the neighborhood seemed just fine, with lots of kids playing and people out and about, but after the things I've read on this board I'm having second thoughts.

Can anyone who lives there (or who knows about the area) tell me anything about it? As another poster said, I don't mind having to lock my house and garage up, but if gang members are going to be harrassing me while I'm out walking my dog, that's a deal breaker. Are there shootings, gang activity, loads of property crime? I am a 20 year old girl, a college student, who would be living alone and I don't want to move anywhere that won't be safe.

[zen_klown]

Different people have different ideas of what is and what is not a good or bad neighborhood. For some people if they aren't living in Granite Bay than the neighborhood must be dangerous. There are also people who were born in neighborhoods like Meadowview and Oak Park and somehow survived. So your perception of good vs bad neighborhood is somewhat a function of your past experiences and somewhat a function of what else you can afford.


Historically this was a neighborhood where the people who were stationed at Mcclellan AFB lived. The neighborhood has always been pretty blue collar. When the AFB closed this was one of the neighborhoods where religious refugees from the former Soviet Union moved. More recently, the neighborhood has seen an influx of hispanic folks. You will also find a few filipino families as well a lot of retired military folks remaining from the AFB era. You can also find a fair amount of students from ARC.

In the local shopping center an older Nugget store was replaced by a La Superior Super Mercado, which is hispanic supermarket chain. You can still buy most of the foods you would find at any other supermarket, but you will might not find everything labeled in English. On the other hand, there bakery has about the cheapest cherry turnovers I have seen and they were pretty tasty.

Because of all of the immigrants who live in the area and don't speak English as a native language, the local schools don't do real great on standardized tests. As a result people who have more money might prefer to buy into a more expensive neighborhood with better schools. A lot of people also would prefer the option of shopping at a local store which was designed to cater to people who speak English.

You have seen the place during the day and you felt comfortable, but you might consider going back there again at night and seeing how comfortable you feel.

The Sacbee also has a crime mapper tool and so you might want to spend time, looking up the address of the place you are interested in to see what crimes have been reported in that area. If what you read, freaks you out, move elsehere. If it doesn't, then you might have found your next condo. One technique to see more data, is search by specific crime you are interested in.

Online feature - Crimemapper - sacbee.com

[CityGirl72]

Okay - I went to Sac State I was in my 20s and I lived alone - NO WAY IN HELL I WOULD LIVE IN NORTH HIGHLANDS

It is NOT safe. I don't care what anyone says.

[silencetheshadows]

lol citygirl72

Just review the area both in day and night, to decide if it is for you.

Is it Highlands or maybe Foothill Farms that the area is in?

[ubu]

I don't think of North Highlands as especially dangerous. I put it in the same category as Rancho Cordova.

Unlike Oak Park, Meadowview or Del Paso Heights, most people in North Highlands seem to have gainful employment. You don't come across a lot of abandoned homes, or abandoned stores. Your shopping choices aren't limited to liquor stores.

When I was 20 and going to school, where I was living wasn't as nice as this. This is also probably a lot cheaper to buy than to rent. If she is buying something like this, she is probably a very shrewd girl.

Homes - MLS - sacbee.com

[akuena]

Thanks so much for the help everybody. I'd already decided to go check it out at night, but thanks for all the other info - I can't believe I got so many responses so fast.

[mrmarcus]

I live in North Highlands and I have no real problems. I suggest just lock up your stuff like anywhere else in America here in 2008/09 and I'm sure you will be fine...

[Inthesierras]

To me, Greeneholme is not a street I would live on. Over the past 20 years there have been many murders, rapes, etc right there. But now that people are not renting those condos, it has gotten better. When they were rentals, it was not a pretty site. I know the price is probably great, but maybe Antelope, Carmichael, or even a different area of Foothill farms would be a better choice. Before you make a commitment, drive by there on weekends, at different times. It is winter, so there won't be as many people hanging outside like there is in the good weather. Talk to the neighbors when you and the realtor are there looking at it.

I grew up in NH and most of my family still lives there. For the most part, living there will bring you no problems. Get to know your neighbors, lock your things up, be aware of your surroundings, etc. We had some wonderul neighbors that we considered family. But then there are the 'other' neighbors, lol. The ones that cook up meth and beat each other in the front yard, hang outside all hours of the night being as loud as they can, grandma is caring for teenagers and cannot control them, people that paint their houses at 3 am because they on meth and they need to do something, lol. My friends parents used to get out lawn chairs and microwave popcorn to watch police raids on other neighbors. I will say NH has some great entertainment value.

But, there is random violence, schools are not great, etc. In the 22 years I lived there, I did witness multiple shootings, stabbings, beatings, etc. All were in public places, sometimes in front of dozens of people. I wasn't in trouble ever, but living there you see some crazy things just going about your daily business. The problem with that is when you are a kid, it is such a common occurance you don't think of it as 'not normal'. That is what bothers me now. After I moved away I realized, that crap is not normal, lol.

NH has been cleaned up alot. I don't see prostitutes hanging out on the street like before. Drive by shootings are not happening all the time anymore. The ghetto folk are not hanging out in front of the stores like they used too. But the homeless population still seems to be there. The tagging seems to have gotten better too.

[wanttono]

go to the police dept web sight or sheriffs web find the crime reports'maps and ck it out ........ or go to the cop shop in person
luck to ya
oh to be 20 again

[makrokat]

I would never live in North Highlands. My boyfriend has lived there his whole life and has had his house broken into twice and a car stolen. A friend of ours was walking through the elementary school behind my boyfriends house and was approached by a member from a down south gang ...he was packing. Just a a block away a father and son were murdered. Also if you really want to be convinced, just look up the city on Meagan's Law website. Good Luck!