Bad neighborhoods in coal country towns - Shenandoah, Mahanoy City, Ashland, Frackville...? (Philadelphia: sale, real estate)

[RomaniGypsy]

My wife and I, in our relentless quest to determine where we really want to live, are investigating the coal region of PA. I used to live in Shenandoah but that was from 2005-2007. I also had an investment house in Ashland during that same time... but I know that times can change, even in six years.

Do any of you know of any neighborhoods in any of those coal towns (you can consider any of them in the entire region, theoretically) that I would do well to avoid? I never knew any neighborhood to be unsafe, either through personal experience or the rumor mill, but again, my information is years out of date. Any information you have would be awesome. If you know of any bad neighborhoods, I'd appreciate knowing why they're considered "bad".

[jtab4994]

Rather than list bad ones, I'll give you a "good neighborhood". My wife's brother lives in Coal Twp which adjoins Shamokin. His section is the one where all the streets are named after trees. It seems like a fairly nice blue-collar area of smaller, older homes and narrow alleys. If you like that sort of thing. He's lived in the same house since the 1970's.

[RomaniGypsy]

Thanks, but I was looking specifically for bad neighborhoods, if they exist. When I was out there in the coal region, I never saw a neighborhood I would have pegged as being "bad"... you know how you can spot such neighborhoods in certain towns... to me they all looked the same. Hence why I'm looking to determine if there actually are any bad neighborhoods.

[Sarge621]

I can say one thing about you RomaniGypsy at least you are asking about how it is in the present day instead of making assumtions that things can't change for better or worse over the course of years. Seems like a ot of people on these forums are stuck in the past. Much respect...

[RomaniGypsy]

Originally Posted by Sarge621

I can say one thing about you RomaniGypsy at least you are asking about how it is in the present day instead of making assumtions that things can't change for better or worse over the course of years. Seems like a ot of people on these forums are stuck in the past. Much respect...

Stuff always changes. Take any "bad area" of today, and I guarantee you will be able to locate a time in history when it was perfectly safe and upstanding. I'll use East Cleveland as an example. East Cleveland, today, is naught but a hole. However, if you look at the architecture of the homes, it's obvious that at the time they were built, there was much pride in the area.

When it comes to the coal region, real estate agents have been telling me that over the past few years, slumlords have been buying row houses at fire sale prices, advertising them at slightly inflated rent rates to people in expensive cities like Philadelphia and New York City, and essentially attracting unemployed city trash by promising a much lower rent rate for a much better place, compared to their present living situations. That wouldn't be so bad if those people would get jobs and be productive in the coal region, but the stories I have heard make it seem like they just come out to the coal region and remain unemployed and on welfare. That's never a good element to have, en masse, in any area.

Honestly, though I am a fan of capitalism, I still say that something should be done about this. When people buy property in an area and don't care if the area goes to crap by their hands so long as they're making money off of the transition, that's a recipe for disaster and there has to be some way it can be stopped. Restrict zoning for rentals, perhaps? Who knows.

[MaggieZ]

all those towns are poor with a lot of housing that's below par. Mahanoy City is a fire hazard. We had a hard time getting fire insurance there because all the houses are connected and when one goes, they all do in most blocks...it's a sad area, depressed, I guess is the word..
a friend of mine got laid off from TriState envelope in Ashland after wbeing there for over 30 years and so did loads of others. They were a great company to work for and paid well. So it's not getting better.

[RomaniGypsy]

Perhaps. But what neighborhoods in those towns are unsafe? (When I say "unsafe", I don't mean "fire hazard"... I mean "crime hazard".)

[julian17033]

I lived in Lavelle for two years which is adjacent to Ashland. I commuted five days a week to Harrisburg which was an hour drive each way for work which worked out decently. In the Ashland area as well as the other towns you had mentioned you will see three types of homes inhabited by three types of people. 1_Row houses which are usually rented as income property to low skilled and or welfare recipients due to the inexpensive rent. 2_Older detached homes which are primarily owner occupied by older middle aged/senior residents that have lived in the area all of their lives. Most likely these are direct descendents of coal miners/workers. 3_Newly constructed homes in the outlining areas of these towns often times very large and built on fairly sizable parcels of land. Owned primarily by people that commute to Harrisburg, Reading and Allentown. I owned an older detached home that needed some work when I bought it. On weekends I poured seat equity into it and sold it a couple of years later for a decent amount of money. Do not discount coal towns and the areas surrounding them as viable locations in which to live. These towns have less of what one is used to concerning retail convenience but are adequate in covering your needs with what currently exists there. All said, I do miss where I lived but for personal reasons I had to leave. Many here on C-D absolutely despise coal country as it pertains to Schuylkill County but I'm an optimist and saw the good rather than the bad there. Addendum; please forgive the lack of paragraphs but despite many attempts to break apart my post C-D is currently posting it as one long paragraph. Sorry

[Clark Park]

I wonder where the nasty Red Light Districts in towns like Lansford, Jeddo, and New Philadelphia are situated?

[Cpt.Trips]

Originally Posted by Clark Park

I wonder where the nasty Red Light Districts in towns like Lansford, Jeddo, and New Philadelphia are situated?

FYI, Hazleton is loaded with prostitutes. Both sexes. Just head down to where Northeast Counseling was or just cruise Alter St. Or, for a twenty, you can get anything in Bumville. Happy Hunting!!!