Is It Safe????? (St. Louis, Florissant, Webster Groves: hardwood floors, best neighborhood, transplants)

[mghere]

I know it must have been cliche
is St. Louis a safe city to live in?
i was searching the internet and found that it is No 1 city in Us in crime
I'm coming for two years only and don't know what to do
thank you

[aragx6]

There are dangerous areas of the city and incredibly safe areas of the city.

St. Louis sometimes is ranked #1 for crime, but those rankings are done by a private, for-profit company, and the FBI says that their crime stats shouldn't be used for comparative analysis in that way, so take all of those rankings with a grain of salt. All cities are dangerous in some places, but St. Louis is no more dangerous than most other places.

If you share a little about where you will be working, we can share more. Will you be looking for housing? We'd be happy to help with that too!

[BoomBoxing]

Originally Posted by mghere

I know it must have been cliche
is St. Louis a safe city to live in?
i was searching the internet and found that it is No 1 city in Us in crime
I'm coming for two years only and don't know what to do
thank you

Yes, it is cliche. But on a helpful note, you could also search City-Data forums and see the many lengthy threads on this topic. Some parts of the city are very dangerous some are very safe, most are somewhere in between. And this is true of most cities.

St. Louis' unique political boundaries exacerbate its crime rankings. That does not mean it doesn't have a high crime rate or that parts are dangerous - but it does mean that it's probably not the "most dangerous" as is often cited. Until someone does a real objective analysis, we'll never really know which cities are really the "most dangerous". But crime is really better measured on a neighborhood basis anyway.

[mghere]

thank you so much aragx6
you seems like a very nice and helpful person
I will be working in washington university hospital for 2 years unfunded, on my expenses
i think the work will be between the large three hospitals
i hope to get housing near for good price, two bedrooms
i'm not American
i'm married and have a 5 yo son
thank you so much

[aragx6]

Because of the your son's age, you'll want to choose a place that offers you both an easy commute and has good schools. Based on that, I would initially look in Clayton, which is a wonderful and safe suburb very near the city and Wash U. The schools are fantastic, but the rental prices are high as a result.

If you find Clayton to be too pricey, you can look a bit farther from the city at places like Richmond Heights, Brentwood, Webster Groves and beyond -- there's a lot of great options.

There are also some beautiful and safe city neighborhoods, but schools can be a little more difficult. Many St. Louisans send their children to lottery-based magnet schools, but you can't get in mid-year, which is hard on transplants. Others send their kids to one of the many parochial (Catholic) schools in the area, for which you'll have to pay tuition -- but you don't actually have to be Catholic to attend.

If living in the city sounds like something you'd like to pursue, let us know and we can suggest some great family-friendly neighborhoods that would still give you an easy commute such as Lindenwood Park: St. Louis City Talk: The Lindenwood Park Neighborhood

[Dawn10am]

WashU hospital is in the Central West End, which is arguably the best neighborhood in the City. You'd be fine living there, but it is pretty pricey. You could probably live in Clayton for the same price and not have to pay for a private school.

[mghere]

aragx6, boomboxing and dawn10am, thank you so much for your help
I started to like the city before even seeing it
I will search these areas when I'll come (I will save names in a file)
but how much it will cost me, like rent, appliences, car, insurance, and life expenses
we are three and going to live for 2 years?
I hope that I won't exceed 1500-2000 USD monthly in all areas, I want to know where I will be with this budget
thank you so much for your help

[mghere]

i found this app for 800, is it ok
Park Clayton in St. Louis, MO
what should I look for in an apartment?
MG

[aragx6]

Your budget is going to be tight (If anyone disagrees with any of my numbers let me know, but this is a general guess on stuff)

If you spend $800 on an apartment, you'll probably have a total utility bill (for lights, heating, cooking etc.) of $100-150 depending on the time of year, whether the heating is electric or gas etc.) If you want cable and internet, you're looking at another $100 a month -- internet alone can be had for more in the $30-40 range.

A family of three will likely spend a minimum of $75 a week on food ($300 a month), though with incredibly careful planning I've known people who spend well less. If you eat out often those food costs will rise a ton.

If you have a car that's paid for you'll be better off, but a car payment (if you have to take out a loan) is likely to be $200-400/month. Insurance is probably about another $50-100/month, though without a US driving record it might be more expensive, I'm really not sure. Gas, if you have a short commute, will still probably run you in the $125-150/month range, and regular maintenance like oil changes or new brakes is at least $500-750/year, which breaks down to an average of about $60/month.

So let's add up those essential expenses:

800 + 150 + 40 + 300 + 100 +150 + 60 = $1,600: That's without a car payment or internet and without ever doing anything for entertainment like seeing a movie or going to the circus or a baseball game.

As far as apartments: That one is actually located in St. Louis City, not Clayton (it's just on a road called Clayton), so the schools are going to be bad (see my previous post). With your budget, private schools are likely out of the question, so you might need to look into cheaper areas of the metro.

In some places, I'm thinking Florissant -- schools there are considered by most to be OK but certainly not top tier --, it might even be possible to get into a small single family house, which would be nice for your little one!

I took a few minutes and ran through some listings -- some might not be available once you're actually moving, but it will give you an idea:

http://maris.rapmls.com/scripts/mgrqispi.dll (broken link) -- a single family in Florissant
3621 McCausland Ave(2 bed, hardwood floors, full renovation) (http://stlouis.craigslist.org/apa/2705159743.html - broken link) -- This is a great St. louis city location, and a great price. But you'd have to look carefully at the school situation.
Beat the cold. Move in TODAY!! (http://stlouis.craigslist.org/apa/2695021361.html - broken link) -- Farther away but nice
Condo for Rent-Near Hwy 70 & 94 (http://stlouis.craigslist.org/apa/2727575814.html - broken link) -- This would be a significantly farther drive, but the schools are good and the area very safe

What you'll realize as you look through those is that after your budgt is factored in, you really can't afford to stay as close in to the city without sacrificing on schools. This is a decision you'll have to make.

[mghere]

aragx6, I can't express how thankful I'm to you with extensive data you informed me
thank you, now I'm on hard land to judge the situation, but good to know now
I will do my homework and come back to you
MG