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Old 12-23-2009, 09:49 PM
 
3 posts, read 9,936 times
Reputation: 11

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my husband and I are empty nesters. transferred to northern de. We don't have to be any where in particular, just within fifteen minutes of a major highway. We are looking for a safe pleasent area where we can buy a home.
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Old 02-02-2010, 09:16 AM
chy
 
10 posts, read 18,367 times
Reputation: 10
And to those who just posted all of your comments...was it helpful no. Just people using this forum to spout. How unfortunate that the person who originally posted walked way thinking why did I even bother...way to go in helping bring in newcomers to your community
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Old 02-03-2010, 10:53 AM
 
4 posts, read 25,484 times
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Well, I've been in Wilmington for four and a half years now...I've been mugged twice within three months here. I come from NY,so to be mugged in the laid back south was kind of a jolt. To be fair though it can happen anywhere. I currently live in Rocky Point and I do miss Wilmington. I am lucky to still work and go to school there in the downtown area. I am surprised at the crime rate but in all fairness to the officers who have to put up with the wannabe gangsters, the judicial system and the local government are really to blame for the crime rate woes.. The officers can only do so much, the richie rich lawyers find ways to make it easy on the criminals and harder on the police dept. to enforce the laws. I am proud to say that even through all my bad experiences in Wilmington, the southern people do possess quite a bit of charm. I work overnight shift in a gas station and on a rough side of town, I'm confident enough in our police dept. to feel safe even through the early morning hours. Good Luck, and by the way The Creek is not in a great area; it's cheap but dangerous.
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Old 02-03-2010, 03:07 PM
 
3 posts, read 9,936 times
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I too lived in Manhatten, during the very dangerous Koch years. Crime was really bad, garbage strikes, transit strikes and homeless peopls everywhere. After eight years I could not wait to get out. It is amazing how much better it is there since Gulianni cleaned up that city. We enjoy going there now.
We just don't know neighborhoods in the Willmington area. You sound pretty young so think about where you would send your mom. It does not need to be in Willmington city, any outlying area would be acceptable.

Last edited by ronnya; 02-03-2010 at 03:10 PM.. Reason: punctuation
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Old 02-04-2010, 01:35 PM
 
Location: wilmington
70 posts, read 181,806 times
Reputation: 21
Ronnya, This thread is so long I'm not sure if I posted here before so I wanted to say that anyone thinking of moving somewhere should go to the local tv stations(WECT, WWAY) and newspaper websites(Star News, Topsail Voice) and look at all the info there. Also crime statistics provided by the local police. Any local realtor should be a huge help for buyers(ask how long they've lived here and where they live and why). When you visit a good rule of thumb is to ride through the area at different times of day and night. When my daughter first started looking for a house my husband and I drove her crazy telling her no because of -not safe, no prospect to resell easily in the future,too much yard, high HOA fees, etc. It's really hard being a realtor to your own daughter:-) I wouldn't live any where else(ok maybe a tropical island if there were no hurricanes)
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Old 02-11-2010, 06:39 PM
 
Location: San Diego, CA
65 posts, read 196,100 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bastetcat View Post
Try some of the neighborhoods around Monkey Junction. There are houses, condos, apts, townhomes. You might have to drive to work, but it is safe out here!
yea in monkey junction you'll just be with all the white trash and rednecks, what a f**king improvment!!!
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Old 02-12-2010, 08:11 AM
 
Location: Wilmington, NC for now... By summer of 2011? Cobb County?
63 posts, read 204,794 times
Reputation: 44
Ogden, Gordon Road, etc are pretty safe areas. Just the usual petty crimes: car break-ins, house break-ins, etc.

We lived at the Creek Apts back in 1996. My bicycle was stolen form our apartment - from in front of our second floor, back of complex door. We had just gotten home from a trip and the front door was open while I got things from the car. The person had to go out of their way to even see my bike, so it wasn't like it was left laying around in the parking lot. We moved a month after that.

Carolina Place and the Chestnut/ Princess St areas from 15th to 25 are very nice areas and a good range of prices. You want to avoid - for now - anything on the north side of Market from 5th to 15th, south and east of Dock from 7th to 17th and ANYTHING in the Dawson/ Wooster corridor. Greenfield Lake area is still sketchy.

Anything on Kerr would be bad because of the traffic and the concentration of UNCW students. Racine, New Centre, College Acres... full of UNCW students. While they may be nice to look at, especially in the summer months(!), they tend to attract crime because criminals know they will have: iPods, iPhones, laptops, game consoles, money, etc and that they would probably be a little lax in their security. Also, they tend to live in groups of 3 or more so there is three times the stuff to take. Plus, they leave their homes for weeks at a time during Christmas and summer breaks. Most of the apartment complexes in town are going to be a little on the shady side just because the transient nature of apartment complexes. The exception is the apartments over at Mayfaire. Of course, they are pricey, so... I have nothing against college students, but I have a family now and don't want to live among them. I did that when I was one of them.

In the middle of downtown there are some really great areas. From Castle to Red Cross, west of Third St. From Castle to Grace west of 5th. But, you are downtown so common sense prevails.

Last edited by tpfilm; 02-12-2010 at 08:14 AM.. Reason: spelling, information
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Old 02-14-2010, 01:32 PM
 
69 posts, read 180,901 times
Reputation: 100
Thank you TPfilm. After reading the entire thread you have given the most helpful account. I have been browsing homes from the internet. I'm interested in being as close to downtown as possible while still being affordable. I'd like to walk to the action. I have noticed the prices are all of the map. Condos are WAY overpriced. It''s Wilmington for god's sake not Chicago. Houses very close to the DT action are also pricey but there are some places within walking distance that are very reasonable.

I have lived in NY, Paris, Miami, and Boston and have been a victim of numerous crimes and one terrorist attack. I have held my ground against a teenage gang (in NY), chased away a guy mugging a tourist in Spain. and I nearly laughed at a guy who pulled a pocket knife on me in Paris traffic. Guns scare me but not pocket knives. I have also had a house broken in to (NY), and a few cars (NY and Miami). I walked down 60 flights of stairs in black smoke and no lights in the 93 bombing of the WTC. I had to drive around ground zero to get to work everyday after 911. I'm not about to let some good for nothing criminals scare me away from the neighborhood of my choice. That being said I don't want my house broken into or my car vandalized. I travel a lot and was thinking the house good be an easy target.

The neighborhood I lived in in Charlotte is very pricey but being in the center city there is also a lot of crime that has occurred close to home. Fortunately the only crime I have experience have been the squatters (squirrels in the attic and possums in the crawl space) that have broken in while I was away.

If you owned a home in some of the dicey areas near the downtown is it still possible to find a good renter?
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Old 02-28-2010, 01:25 AM
 
6 posts, read 13,569 times
Reputation: 20
Wow...some of you are all over the place....

If you are focused on staying near downtown, I'll give some suggestions.

Have you checked the Forrest Hills Apartments off Confederate Drive? It's right behind you and other than a few B&Es it's not too bad.

Carolina Apartments, at 5th and Market, are about as close as you can get to downtown.

The trolley townhomes or whatever they are called that are right across from you are nice too.

I'd check Craigslist for houses for rent down there too.

The major thing is no one has any business being out by themselves after dark within 40 blocks of downtown. If you follow that rule and also don't buy drugs, you will probably never have a problem.

Go to Starnews online and look at their crime map, and you will see what I mean.

And as far as gangs...yes, we truly do have a gang problem. In 2008 there were 12 murders, just in the city limits. Every single one was gang related. 2009 was a pleasant change, but there were still numerous shootings and robberies related to gang bangers. There are gangs in every high school. And probably 90% of all the robberies and 75% of all assaults (that are not domestic) are gang related.

Wilmington's crime rate is high. We are currently rated at number 87 in the nation in violent crime.

I can back this information up because I am a police officer that works night shift in the worse area of the entire city.
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Old 01-24-2011, 09:01 PM
 
1 posts, read 2,971 times
Reputation: 10
There are gangs in Wilmington, and there are violent crimes associated with them - most of the crime is gang members fighting each other, and criminals breaking into homes and cars (close to main roads, shopping centers or downtown I might add). There are plenty of safe neighborhoods. Go to the Star News website, and look at their crime map - you can see where the crimes are concentrated ... there are areas with few to no crimes month after month. Seagate/Masonboro/Porters Neck are all relatively quiet. The further off the beaten path you get, the further away from the riff-raff you'll be. Close to a major road or near downtown/public housing, and you might be subject to a break-in.
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