Midtown help please!!! (Mobile, Daphne, Fairhope: crime, how much, houses)

[port25]

After some serious soul searching and thought I have decided to stay in Mobile!! with that being said I am now looking to buy a home. I have been looking around the city and even in Daphne at homes but none have really peaked my interested. But the other day i did take a drive in midtown, particularly oakleigh and i fell in love with the homes and vibe!!!Even though I grew up in Mobile I never really took notice of it....its a great mix of Savannah and the NO! But I do question drugs and crime in this area.... Do you guys really think that it is safe for a young single female to live alone in midtown! Any advice would be great!

[sk8t]

Mobile in general is relatively save city despite what paranoid people across the bay will tell you. If you stay in midtown it depends on the demographics of the particular area since you can have "hood" on one block and a expensive historic homes on another. There are usually more cops in that part of town so if you live close to government street then you are usually the safest since that is where the headquarters is (about a mile or two from Murphy High). That being said, this is not the worst or best area as far as crime goes in Mobile, but you just have to be smart and know your surrounding like most places before living there or walking around at night alone.

[nuhall]

My family and I are in the process of moving to Oakleigh and we have two small kids. Here's why we're moving there...
1)Walkability and bikability - There are four restaurants in the neighborhood that are within easy walking distance including an Irish pub, a coffee shop, a southern style restaurant and a barbecue restaurant. There are other families, a running group and a biking group that are in Oakleigh.
2) Accessability to downtown - we ride our bikes from Oakleigh with a group to downtown events such as LODA and the farmers market. I commute in on my bike every day. The neighbors walk to Mardi Gras together.
3)Safety - if you stay in the nicer sections of Oakleigh (this is obvious by looking at the homes) you will have active neighbors that are walking, jogging or going out to one of the restaurants from early in the morning to late at night. That being said I would not venture out to the south side of the neighborhood at night. Also, many city leaders live in Oakleigh and you know they want to keep it safe.

[sk8t]

Can we get some information your job prospects and how much you are willing to spend a month? Information like this would help.

[humacaena]

My neighbors next door moved to Fairhope after 2 murders occurred in their Midtown area. They were in Macy Place, and there was a nice young man killed a few houses away. Just telling the truth...not paranoid like sk8t mentioned. Just the facts!

[nuhall]

Fairhope is nice but it is primarily for retirees. It is very clean and safe but also much more boring than Mobile IMHO. For a single person Mobile would be my suggestion. Mobile does have crime like any other city and the murder on Macy Pl was shocking, especially because of its randomness. Coincidentally I know a young family with small children that just moved to Macy Pl and they love it because of the family friendly atmosphere. You can't let fear run you life and more and more good people are moving to the city.

[port25]

Thank u guys for the advice.....sorry I am responding so late! I grew up in the rough parts of Mobile, so I am not foreign to drugs and crime at all. I just really fell in love with the area and after talking with some realtor's, I have found some prospects, that I am very pleased with and hopefully will be closing on a house in the near future!

[emilyruth9]

I lived in Oakleigh until I was 16 until my parents decided to move a little further west, a mile. We had some petty theft but nothing too bad. Most of the neighbors look out for each other but be sure to have lots of porch visits in the late afternoon

[Martha Byrne]

I don't call Oakleigh "Midtown". I consider midtown starting at the cannon on Government.