What is Henderson like? (Raleigh, Durham: best neighborhood, real estate, renting)

[Funnefam5]

Can anyone give me info on Henderson? I believe it's Vance county? correct me if i'm wrong, what is the economy like there? what is it like in general? is it a place we might like to live?

[Desdemona123]

Originally Posted by Funnefam5

Can anyone give me info on Henderson? I believe it's Vance county? correct me if i'm wrong, what is the economy like there? what is it like in general? is it a place we might like to live?

Economy is not great but it could be worse.....however, there are real problems with crime and....well.....I wouldn't like to live there. Not much to do, far away from things to do, but just big enough to attract trouble.

Actually, this will make a few people who know me on the boards laugh...but I would rather live in Durham then Henderson. I know some very nice people that live there....but they all tell people not to move there.

[SouthernFarmer]

I know this thread is old, but I believe that what I have to say is important to anyone who might be scanning these forums for info on Henderson, N.C.

First off, realize that we're talking about the city of Henderson in Vance County, which is on the NC/VA border, north and slightly east of the Raleigh/Durham "Triangle" area. Some people confuse this with Hendersonville, a beautiful city in Henderson County out in the mountains of Western NC by Asheville. Hendersonville in Henderson County is a nice place, Henderson in Vance County is NOT.

Henderson is an AWFUL place. I've lived here since Friday July 13, 2007 -- and this has been the longest 15 months of my life. I am leaving and moving to the mountains of northwest Georgia next month (November 2008), and I'm leaving running and screaming...like everyone else who can afford to move. Here's why:

Henderson and Vance County have the worst of everything in N.C.; we're at the top of all the bad lists and the bottom of all the good ones

Some highlights:

* Highest poverty rate in the state (over 40% of childern here live in poverty, over 20% of the population as a whole)
* Crime -- people shooting out the windows of your car/truck at night is not uncommon, happened to several people in the 15 months I've lived here
* Violent crime (several murders annually, and this is a TINY city (more like a "small town" in terms of size), things like people beating each other to death with pipes, there was a drive-by shooting in broad daylight on Garnett Drive which is the "main street" here just about 2 weeks ago, and the worst part is that it didn't really surprise anyone)
* Burglary/theft (one of many examples: copper theives are breaking into houses and hack-sawing out the copper plumbing pipes since melted-down copper is so valuable right now)
* Poverty
* Crime -- armed home invasions in BROAD DAYLIGHT on WEEKDAYS
* Highest AIDS rate in the state
* Highest teen pregnancy rate in the state
* Horrible school system -- the worst funded in the state, and one of the highest dropout rates
* Miniscule police presence, and the cops won't even drive through certain parts of town (particularly the 3rd Ward), much less get out of their cars
* Horrible upkeep of roads and buildings; tons of abandoned and falling-down houses
* Crime -- everyone in their right mind hides under their mattresses on Friday night (and the rest of the weekend for that matter)
* Poverty
* Rampant racism -- the KKK has a listing in the white pages of the phone book -- white on black, black on white, black/white on hispanic, etc.
* Tons of bad sections of town, and prejudice associated with that
* Filth, litter all over the city and folks' lawns...looks awful, and lowers all property values, but folks here don't even see it any more they've been looking at it so long
* Very high unemployment rate; almost no jobs, no new businesses moving in (we were devastated by the closing of the Harriett-Henderson yarn mill a few years ago); getting a job at McDonalds or Wal-Mart is considered a "golden opportunity"
* CRIME -- tons of armed robberies, even in places with tons of security cameras
* Very low white population, very high black population -- sorry if saying that offends you, but it's a major factor in the high crime and lack of infrastructure upkeep and jobs; there is tons of black-on-white violent crime here; also a lot of illegals moving in
* TONS of registered sex offenders
* Crime -- three deadbolts on every door + bars on the windows is a common sight here; our crime rate is higher than New York's or Los Angeles'
* Drugs, drugs, drugs -- drugs sold all over the place, right out in the open; always tons of meth busts and other drug busts where the house is filled with guns and drugs and counterfeit cash
* Tons of black youth street gangs, and associated violence
* Tons of abandoned houses being used as "crack houses", and the city is unwilling (and perhaps too poor) to tear them down or bring them up to code
* Ridiculous property taxes which do NOTHING for the citizens
* Over an hour from "the Triangle" (Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill) -- so if you can't buy/find whatever you need in Henderson, you're a long way from anywhere else; we're the only city of any significance in the area; Henderson is a crime-ridden urban center surrounded by crime-ridden rural areas and trailer parks
* The city looks awful; falling-down and burned-out houses all over the place
* Very few homeowners; most houses are on a for-rent or rent-to-own basis, and are rented out by slumlords to the many recent parolees/jail letouts. No one seems to be able to hold down a job or keep out of jail; it seems a different family of criminals is renting it every month.
* Crime
* Crime
* CRIME!

If you have to live in this area of the state (i.e. job transfer), STAY AWAY FROM VANCE COUNTY AND HENDERSON! Check out the Louisburg area in Franklin County, or Wake Forest in northern Wake County; those are MUCH better areas.

For more info, be sure to check out the local citizens' blog, HomeInHenderson.com -- and if you value your life and your stomach lining, KEEP OUT OF HENDERSON AND VANCE COUNTY!

Don't be fooled by the low real estate costs -- there's a REASON why you can buy a 4-bedroom house and an acre of land for under $40,000 (some houses go as low as $8,000 - $9,000) - this is a HORRIBLE place to live and NO ONE wants to live here. The city is in a constant state of exodus, everyone who can leave IS leaving as soon as possible. It's very hard to sell your house here, since no one wants to move in.

There are no "good neighborhoods". The lesser of all the evils is the neighborhood by the "country club"/golf course. It's the best neighborhood in Henderson, and it's several times worse than the worst neighborhoods in many surrounding areas. Don't be fooled by the phrase "country club", it's a horrible place to live just like the rest of the city.

STAY AWAY FROM HENDERSON AND VANCE COUNTY!

[jcross]

i am a native of Henderson i went off to attend college and became a pastor in franklin county. henderson has changed for the worst. the real problem that is eating away at the city like a cancer is the elected officers, they are only concerned about themselves and keeping themselves will groomed. the police department is the worst the FBI should investigate them. Negros are killed and murders are never solved its like the dont care. justice is hidden and only reviled to a certain elect. the police brutality is a shame and it needs to be addressed. public education sucks because our teachers and schools have limited resources. we rather focus on road construction than education our children. economically speaking it is almost back to the hoover days. there is a sorry chamber of commerce they rather build diners and banks, than allow the manufacturing industry to find a home here. people can not dine out or take trips to the bank if there is no money circulating. it is time to revitalize the community and we can not wait. as long as there is a poverty taking over we cant wait. as long as drug industry is still monopolizing we cant wait. as long as there is hate murder and other social ills we can not afford to wait

[zinna]

I was born and raised in Henderson NC and lived there for 47 years. Everything that you have read above from the previous post are so true. We moved away 10 years ago out to the country in Franklin county because of the crime there. In Vance county if you know the right person you can get away with murder literary. Don't leave anything out in your yard at night that you care about it will be gone by morning. There are abandoned bored up houses everywhere that sooner or later are broken into anyway and some how mysteriously are caught on fire and are left still as an eyesore. I still go to Vance county often because of friends and family that are still stuck there and it saddens me so to see
this hometown where I grew up in such a shambled state. But it is so and as long as the corrupt local governance allows it to go on it will continue to is nothing but a burnt out shell of a ghost town . If you are looking for a nice hometown to settle in this ain't it.