Here's one: What's the WORST neighborhood? (Fort Collins, Loveland: apartment complexes, HOA, crime)

[Vic 2.0]

When I do finally get the chance to move, are there any neighborhoods or apartment complexes I shouldn't even bother with? We're looking for a place that is fairly inexpensive but also fairly quiet.

[Mike Weber]

Different people have different definitions of "bad neighborhood" so it is a bit difficult to pin down. If crime is part of that equation for you, you might find the online crime map a useful tool.

If you are concerned about noisy neighbors, consider that much of the off campus university student population lives near campus. If road noise is a concern, avoid homes located on the arterial streets that make up the main road grid in town and avoid homes near the freeway.

As was recently discussed in another post, some people's experiences with neighbors, dogs, and the HOA may make the neighborhood "bad" in their opinion.

I would imagine that answers you may get in this discussion will be stories of individual experiences that people have had that made a neighborhood the "worst" for them. Be sure to compare your circumstances to theirs.

Good luck with your move.
Mike Weber

[Vic 2.0]

Thanks, Mike! Yes, I'm sure that site WILL be helpful, but I am also interested in hearing about people's experiences. More details, I guess...

[davemess10]

Originally Posted by Vic 2.0

When I do finally get the chance to move, are there any neighborhoods or apartment complexes I shouldn't even bother with? We're looking for a place that is fairly inexpensive but also fairly quiet.

Anything North of the Poudre and near College I would avoid.

I'm also not a fan of the south of town (past Horsetooth), it gets really suburban down there).

Most people will say avoid the neighborhood right next to stadium on the West side of Overland Trail.
Of course closer to the college you'll get more students. BUt surprisingly they filter out a lot just a half mile north of campus in the older houses area.

[Vic 2.0]

Originally Posted by davemess10

Anything North of the Poudre and near College I would avoid.

Just to clarify: When you say "near College", do you mean College Ave., THE college, or both?

[Lady Crossbow]

I would say that they are referring to the strip of College Ave that runs North of Down Town. It's still in the process of being updated and has a lot of old motels and hit/miss trailer parks. Mostly along the road, but better neighborhoods to the E and W.

[NBeener]

I think Mike has a lot of wisdom on this one.

But ... I also think this one can be extremely difficult to ferret out -- even once you move here.

I wonder whether the Police could talk you through this. Some areas will be FAR more prone to generate noise/party complaints than others. CSU Campus Police, similarly, may have some info. A recent initiative set up an even stricter enforcement policy for party noise. That may have generated more data that you can use.

I think "boots on the ground" can be very helpful. We stayed in hotels for a few days, a few times, before moving here. Checking out an area on the weekends, in the evenings, right after school gets out, etc., can give you a pretty clear picture if there IS a problem, but ... are less telling about whether or not there's NO problem.

I do think -- all things being equal -- staying far away from the campus will probably make you a happier camper, if "peace" is an important factor for you.

Good luck !

[davemess10]

Yes, I"m referring to College Ave. People will refer to CSU as CSU, and College almost always means the street (which is a major street).

[tfox]

There's not much of bad neighborhoods in the Fort. Those that are "bad" area only in a relative sense. FC is an affluent town with a large student population. The latter can be drunken and obnoxious but are almost never truly criminals or dangerous.

As others have said, rowdy CSU students with beer will dominate anywhere within a half-mile radius of campus, and make that a full mile due west of Campus (the Campus West area), or anywhere within a mile of campus near College Ave. This is probably where you're going to want to avoid, but mainly for reasons of noise and beer rather than a true threat to your safety.

There are a few sections of town that are undeniably run-down, where the relatively small population of lower-income people live in Fort Collins. The older areas north/northeast of the Poudre River are generally run-down until you get to the lakefront neighborhoods to the north (mostly outside of city limits), where it becomes quite nice indeed. In addition, the older areas northwest of Old Town (think Laporte Avenue) can be a bit on the run-down side as well in spots, although those closer to old town are being fixed up.

Most of the rest of town is fine. The areas to the far south (toward Loveland) are more suburban style and newer, but the older 50s/60s/70s neighborhoods in the central part of town are mostly fine as well if not as shiny. In addition, north of town near the lakes tends to be more of a semi-rural area (horse properties and the like) which also tend to be pretty affluent.