Best Chicago Neighborhoods on Southwest Side (middle-class, mortgage, house)

[mel2000]

Originally Posted by otters21

I am not racist but pretty soon,if not already ,the working to middle class ethnic whites are going to have no place to go in the city or even in the inner burbs.

It is white flight that causes remaining whites to have little choice but to leave as the area changes race. Talk to your fleeing kin if you want that to change.

[Drover]

Why not talk to the criminal dirtbags who make fleeing an attractive option in the first place?

[MannheimMadman]

Drover, if I PM you a question about comparing crime rates, will you answer?

[mel2000]

Originally Posted by Drover

Why not talk to the criminal dirtbags who make fleeing an attractive option in the first place?

White flight starts before any criminal element moves in. In fact, it creates a fire sale on home prices that allows the low income to move in with their ensuing criminal element, which then makes the acceleration of white flight inevitable.

BTW, I do not communicate with criminal dirtbags any more than you do, so that is not an option.

[otters21]

My husband and I did do something about it. We took a stand against white and middle class flight by moving into our first home December of 2006 in a working class neighborhood on the North Side of Columbus Ohio that was starting to see decline. Since then the area has improved. People have decided to stay and hang onto their homes.Block watches have been form and there is a vigilant police presence.Crime is not tolerated and neighbors watch out for each other.Several blocks near me have posted "Criminal Beware" signs.I see alot of construction fixing up houses and decent folks seem to be moving in. In fact a hipster couple moved next door to us. By the way the neighborhood is diverse -70% white and 30% minority-and everyone seems to get along and work hard to keep their homes up. Because of this people are not fleeing.However this just one working to middle class neighborhood in our cities across America. If decent folks of all races took a stand against the decline and rising crime in their neighborhoods , white and middle class flight would be nowhere near as rampant as it is today.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by mel2000

White flight starts before any criminal element moves in. In fact, it creates a fire sale on home prices that allows the low income to move in with their ensuing criminal element, which then makes the acceleration of white flight inevitable.

BTW, I do not communicate with criminal dirtbags any more than you do, so that is not an option.

This isn't the 1960s any more. The transformation of the Southwest side has been a very gradual process, not a "fire sale" process. Whites have been holding out for as long as they can tolerate, and property values are generally holding steady. But I'm sure it's much more comfortable for you to cling to the hoary old stereotype that they're just mean-spirited racists than to acknowledge that maybe they have a legitimate reason fore re-evaluating their circumstances. I for one don't blame some of them for considering making exit plans.

The criminal element has already started to move in on West Elsdon, Clearing and Garfield Ridge, and -- whoa! -- there are still a whole lotta white people in these neighborhoods! How can that be? They supposedly all move out before the criminal element even moves in!

[otters21]

Also the ones who are really suffering with all the changing neighborhoods are the working to middle class especially in todays economy. Look at the foreclosure rates in the EXURBS ( even the inner ,more affordable suburbs are changing and not for the good.)They cannot afford the high mortgages and plus every family member over driving age needing their own vehicle to get aound in ( public transit is poor to non existant ).That can run into mighty big bucks with the cost of car payments, upkeep ,insurance and gas (it is now cheaper but who knows how long that is going to last).On top of that the cost to heat and light those McMansions is astronomical. Sadly this is not just happening on the southwest sde of Chicago but all over America. Queens in New York City and Philadelphia's northeast side are two prime examples.

[mel2000]

Originally Posted by Drover

This isn't the 1960s any more. The transformation of the Southwest side has been a very gradual process, not a "fire sale" process.

Actually, I was referring to the white flight period between 1969-1971 that I was a direct eyewitness to. It's the one that affects the way the lower southwest side looks today. I remember it like it was yesterday due to multiple outright displays of racial enmity by fleeing whites. It all happened fast enough to force some whites to sell their homes at very low prices or abandon them altogether. I am not personally familiar with any other Chicagoland white flights than that one.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by mel2000

Actually, I was referring to the white flight period between 1969-1971 that I was a direct eyewitness to. It's the one that affects the way the lower southwest side looks today. I remember it like it was yesterday due to multiple outright displays of racial enmity by fleeing whites. It all happened fast enough to force some whites to sell their homes at very low prices or abandon them altogether. I am not personally familiar with any other Chicagoland white flights than that one.

Well, I was talking about what's happening on the Southwest side today.

[west lawn kid]

Originally Posted by Drover

This isn't the 1960s any more. The transformation of the Southwest side has been a very gradual process, not a "fire sale" process. Whites have been holding out for as long as they can tolerate, and property values are generally holding steady. But I'm sure it's much more comfortable for you to cling to the hoary old stereotype that they're just mean-spirited racists than to acknowledge that maybe they have a legitimate reason fore re-evaluating their circumstances. I for one don't blame some of them for considering making exit plans.

The criminal element has already started to move in on West Elsdon, Clearing and Garfield Ridge, and -- whoa! -- there are still a whole lotta white people in these neighborhoods! How can that be? They supposedly all move out before the criminal element even moves in!

Yea exactly, here in West Lawn we still have lots of white people unwilling to move out. But the crime is reallygivin us a beating, a lone white guy walking down the street at night will attract attention from thugs, but thats why i'm armed