Michigan City - Relocating (Gary, Merrillville: foreclosure, crime, mortgage)

[tk3000]

Hello,


I am looking into relocating to Michigan City, IN. Currently I live in Lansing, MI. I am looking into cheap decent and structurally sound house that I am likely to pay in cash that may need some TLC. But I am not familiar with the area. I found a place that may fit the bill but I am concerned about the location (don't know if that is a safe and good area to live); it is located close to the intersection of “E. Michigan Blvd” and “South Woodland Ave”


thanks for any input,

lazarus

[Midpack]

There are definitely safe/unsafe parts of Mich City. I would think a realtor would be helpful, and a call to the Michigan City Police also, or this

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

[gochicagobears]

Personally, I would always stay away from the BLVD. always.

[negativenancy]

^ Agree with gochicagobears!

There's a new Dollar Store at that intersection and a police car often sits in the parking lot because it can get rough in that area.

[tk3000]

Sorry for the absence of a response; I never receive notification of any response before.

As of now, I am considering moving to Lake Station, Hobart, or Merrillville. It bewildering how every medium town are so close to each other in NWI. Also how close they all are from Gary (10 minutes driving). Doesn't Gary problems spill over to these areas to some degree? I heard that Merrillville is going the way of Gary.

[Midpack]

The Lake Station/Hobart/Merrillville area isn't markedly different from Michigan City, though Mich City has the advantage of being much further from Gary (not knocking Gary, a very sad situation for a once very nice city). All of them have good and (very) bad areas, so you can find what you're after in any of the four.

If you want really safe, try Munster/Schererville, Beverly Shores or Ogden Dunes, but you'll pay orders of magnitude more for houses there. More often than not you get what you pay for...

I assume you have looked at the crime and other stats for each right here on city-data.com...

[Northwest Indiana]

Originally Posted by tk3000

Sorry for the absence of a response; I never receive notification of any response before.

As of now, I am considering moving to Lake Station, Hobart, or Merrillville. It bewildering how every medium town are so close to each other in NWI. Also how close they all are from Gary (10 minutes driving). Doesn't Gary problems spill over to these areas to some degree? I heard that Merrillville is going the way of Gary.

As far as spillover, Merrillville definitely had major issues with spillover and now, a lot of Merrillville crime is homegrown. Hobart (for the most part) feels more isolated and not directly connected to Gary and doesn't have as many issues with crime (even the "New Chicago" area). Lake Station also does not have as bad of crime issues as Gary but more than Hobart. Lake Station actually used to be "East Gary". It is a low-income area but it feels more small railroad town than urban like Gary.

If you consider Merrillville, realize that the prices of housing are still higher than it probably should be and it will only go lower as time goes on.

How much cash are you looking to pay for a house? That may help narrow down some areas for you!

[tk3000]

Originally Posted by Northwest Indiana

As far as spillover, Merrillville definitely had major issues with spillover and now, a lot of Merrillville crime is homegrown. Hobart (for the most part) feels more isolated and not directly connected to Gary and doesn't have as many issues with crime (even the "New Chicago" area). Lake Station also does not have as bad of crime issues as Gary but more than Hobart. Lake Station actually used to be "East Gary". It is a low-income area but it feels more small railroad town than urban like Gary.

If you consider Merrillville, realize that the prices of housing are still higher than it probably should be and it will only go lower as time goes on.

How much cash are you looking to pay for a house? That may help narrow down some areas for you!

I am looking to pay in cash since as of now I still have a mortgage and with the more stringent rules I can not qualify for another mortgage. I am mostly looking into a distress foreclosure home which will need some repair (drywall, plumbing, etc) since one can always fix a house, but can never fix a neighborhood. So I am looking into paying no more than US$25000. I found many houses in Lake Station which are almost move in ready for much less.

How about a property in Merriville close to the Westfield Shopping Center in a more rural type of set and far from Gary's sphere of influence?

[artemis]

Originally Posted by tk3000

I am looking to pay in cash since as of now I still have a mortgage and with the more stringent rules I can not qualify for another mortgage. I am mostly looking into a distress foreclosure home which will need some repair (drywall, plumbing, etc) since one can always fix a house, but can never fix a neighborhood. So I am looking into paying no more than US$25000. I found many houses in Lake Station which are almost move in ready for much less.

How about a property in Merriville close to the Westfield Shopping Center in a more rural type of set and far from Gary's sphere of influence?

That would still put children in the Merrillville schools.

[Northwest Indiana]

Originally Posted by tk3000

I am looking to pay in cash since as of now I still have a mortgage and with the more stringent rules I can not qualify for another mortgage. I am mostly looking into a distress foreclosure home which will need some repair (drywall, plumbing, etc) since one can always fix a house, but can never fix a neighborhood. So I am looking into paying no more than US$25000. I found many houses in Lake Station which are almost move in ready for much less.

How about a property in Merriville close to the Westfield Shopping Center in a more rural type of set and far from Gary's sphere of influence?

Given that price range, your best bet would probably be Lake Station. Even if you live in the most "rural" area of Ross Township, you won't find a home for $25,000 and it would still be zoned to Merrillville schools.