Nashville vs Cincy vs Lousville (Franklin, Hendersonville: house, neighborhood, theatre)

[fiskkm]

My wife and I currently live in the Washington DC area, but would ultimately like to be either in Cincinnati, Louisville, or Nashville. Our parents live in Columbus and Cleveland, hence the bit of an outlier in Cincinnati. Can anyone with significant experience in two or more of these locations compare/contrast them?

For background info, we are in our early 30s, have one child and plan to have another, and have $450K for a housing budget. We would end up living in a nice suburb within no more than a 30 min of downtown and would like to be able to walk, or at least have a short drive to, some restaurants/parks/attractions/etc. We like housing with character - either something very old in a unique neighborhood, or something new but not cookie cutter in a master planned community. Work is not a problem as I have basically the same job in all of those locations. I am more concerned with schools, crime, city/community feel, attractions, etc. Any info is appreciated.

[BoldAsLove]

You can easily find something great within your budget. My sister bought a beautiful 4 bed, 2.5 bath, 2800 square foot house in Hendersonville for $260K last year. Its right next to a Kroger, Target, etc. with restaurants, a movie theatre and the Rivergate Mall area nearby. Its about a 25 minute communite to downtown Nashville. You also could look for somethink in Franklin/Brentwood/Bellevue, etc. but you'd get more bang for your buck in Hendersonville.

[BirdieBelle]

Unfortunately for the Nashville area, the older homes with charm are not in the areas with better schools. Williamson County has a limited inventory of historic homes, but they are priced at a premium.We also are generally a car-centered community with tons of recently built subdivisions.
I don't happen to think that's a bad thing, and it works for many people. But it doesn't sound like what you are looking for.

[watchmanonthewall]

Check out the Highlands in Louisville. Very safe, hip, eclectic, and superb for walking. There is a lot of info on google that doesn't do the area justice. Frankfort avenue between St. Mathews and downtown is similar. As for Nashville, try the Hillsboro Village area near Vanderbilt. There is a another area with a similar vibe near Belmont University. As luck would have it, the Hillsboro area borders a neighborhood to the West and the Belmont area borders the same area to the East. Google " Bongo Java " at Belmont. That would be your anchor point, and study the housing area between Vandy and Belmont. As for Cinci, I've never been able to find a similar type of atmosphere in any part of the city. If there is one I would like to find and visit. I spent a lot of time looking while the wife and daughter were in the malls.