Is Midtown safe for a 22 yr girl to live? (Memphis: apartment, rental)

[rwadpi]

Ok, I checked on the Memphis Flyer and have found a couple places. I would appreciate it if someone could let me know about these locations:

1703 tutwiler avenue..it is a one bedroom house that seems to be on the Northeastern side of town near Rhodes College and Overton Park.

933 Hawthorne Street

1770 Poplar Ave

159 N Belvedere

ill search again tomorrow and post anything else I find. Letting me know if the locations of these apartments is ok will be the biggest help! Thanks for the help!

[rwadpi]

one more sorry..it is listed as McLean at Jefferson

[tomterr]

1770 poplar, very close to St. Peters, down the street from India Palace,
IMHO, probably ok, but some of the apts look great, others not so great,
also same comments about McLean and Jefferson
1703 tutwiler, nice looking area, no specifics on that particular house
933 Hawthorne St. IMHO, not an area I would go into unarmed
159 N Belevedere, an area with many apt buildings, variable quality

someone with direct personal knowledge of the buildings would be useful

[rwadpi]

Thanks TomTerr you have been a lot of help!! I have found another apartment complex that appears to me pretty new and the property looks nice. However I am not sure about the area. They are located at 3048 Moriah Trail..can you give me any help?

[Pearlbob]

McLean at Jefferson would be good. That is across from St. Peter's.

Also check for apts in the Kimbrough Towers at Union/Kimbrough. I know they have availability right now.

Belvedere between Poplar and Madison is bad. that stretch of Belvedere is bad, even though once you cross Union it is million dollar homes. Just a bad block, for whatever reason.

Moriah Trail is in SE Memphis - not good, not safe. Not close to midtown.

If you are doing law school, why not look downtown and on mud island as well? The law school is moving downtown in 2008.

[rwadpi]

Thanks, I knew that one on Moriah Trail wasnt midtown but had liked the apartments and my boyfriend will be working in Germantown so it is kinda in between the two of us. His work situation is also why I havent really looked on mud island or downtown. I also dont want to live in a high-rise apartment complex. The amenities of Germantown and the other suburbs are nice, but the convenience of midtown is what has drawn me to that area. I am really just concerned about being in the safest area possible.

[Pearlbob]

Midtown is not the safest area of Memphis, for sure. I would say 25% is fantastic, 50% is just fine, and 25% is a little seedy. It's impossible to say where is okay and where is not; it can go from bad to great in a matter of a block. You really need to come down here and look around yourself if you want to be in midtown.

There area also not any high rises in midtown, other than Kimbrough which I mentioned before (maybe 10 stories high) and I guess the Gilmore (maybe 6 stories tall).

Why is midtown convenient to you? If you'll be at UM and he'll be in Germantown? That will be a long haul for him. UM is in east Memphis, however the law school will be downtown as of....2 years from now? Midtown is close to UM, but not Germantown.

[rwadpi]

Well we had looked in the Germantown and Bartlett area but then it will be a haul for me to get to school so either way one of us is kinda out of luck. I am not too worried about the new law school being downtown because we wont be in class there until fall of 09 so I can move for my last year if I really want to be closer. I have been to Memphis a couple times to look at apartments but I just havent much luck and am so unsure of where to live bc of the fact that it is block to block in some places about where it gets kinda sketchy and I am aware of that. Unfortunatly I live 8 hours away now so it isnt convenient to come look and Im trying to do it from here if at all possible.

So those apartments on Moriah Trail (The Trails at Mt.Moriah) are too far south but you did like the ones at McLean and Jefferson?

Sorry to be a hassle, everything just seems to have something wrong with it.

[Pearlbob]

Well, the Mt. Moriah area is pretty dangerous. And, it's further south. Most important is the safety factor. It's not horribly bad, but it has gone WAY downhill over the past 5 years and is now considered a pretty bad area of town.

McLean and Jefferson is a fine area. It's residential, I assume, where you are speaking of (across McLean from St. Peter). I'm sure the place is an old house converted into a duplex/triplex. There are some "apt" buildings there though, that were never houses. I live nearby, it's a fine area of town. You could walk to the zoo, Overton Park, a bit further to Overton Sq, and there is plenty of dining nearby. Walgreens, Starbucks right at Union/McLean. Fino's, Huey's, Neil's, are close by. BBQ Shop. Schnuck's. Rite Aid. Sekisui, Zinnie's, etc etc.

[tennreb]

Check the bulletin boards at the law school. You'll see some good places to rent there. The bulletin boards at the med school are covered with good places to rent. Midtown is safe but you have to be aware of your surroundings. I know plenty of twenty something females that live in Midtown that don't have problems, but they are conscious of their behavior (turn their alarm on, don't get out of the car without a glance around first, etc). There are a lot of small complexes on Central that are safe. The area around Rhodes College is good, as well as the area around overton park.