Are MetroWest and Hunter's Creek safe neighborhoods? (Orlando, Hunters Creek: apartment complexes, foreclosures)

[lauriemsr]

Hi~

So we just spent a couple of hours down in Orlando looking at properties. The apartments are in foreclosure (great price, nice location and good amenities), yet in great shape both out and inside, from what we could see.

Now the question is, how safe (non-ghetto) are these neighborhoods? Although we are aware that Orlando is very diverse and that we are paying almost nothing for these apartments, I do not want to compromise safety.

The realtor told us that he couldn't do any "red-lining"; however; for me it is important to know around whom I may be living. Again, I actually like living in a town where there is an ample White, Latin, African-American, Asian, etc.. community. (There is a big difference between having diversity and dealing with an unsafe,loud, dirty, highly ghetto, uncomfortable neighborhood.)

Here are the neighborhoods we are thinking of:
The Hamptons at Metrowest
Azur (Raleigh St.) at Metrowest
Serenata at Metrowest
Villanova at Hunter's Creek
Capri at Hunter's Creek

Any feedback is greatly appreciated! (yet do not offend anyone, plz!)

[flooryou]

Hunter's Creek by far is safer. It is a mixture of about 40% white, 40% hispanic 10% black and 10% Middle Eastern/Asian. Metro West is only a couple of miles from some of Orlando's most notorious hoods, and violent crime is pretty high there.

[wigs11111]

metrowest is a more central location, probably has higher crime than hunter's creek. In general, the further south you travel in metrowest, the safer it will be.

[annerk]

Agreed, Hunters Creek is FAR more desirable than Metrowest.

[lauriemsr]

Originally Posted by wigs11111

metrowest is a more central location, probably has higher crime than hunter's creek. In general, the further south you travel in metrowest, the safer it will be.

If I were to put in Mapquest.com, "Metrowest", from what street/road/blvd to what is considered unsafe Metrowest? Or better yet, what will be my North and South of Metrowest?

Thanks!

[volk2k]

Originally Posted by lauriemsr

If I were to put in Mapquest.com, "Metrowest", from what street/road/blvd to what is considered unsafe Metrowest? Or better yet, what will be my North and South of Metrowest?

Thanks!

Lauriemsr... unfortunately the Metrowest area has gotten a bad rap over time because of its proximity to Pinehills. My family and I have had homes in Metrowest since 1992 (and we still do)... and it's definitely changed....

Aside from spending time at Walmart, you would not think you were in a "ghetto" area were you to drive through the majority of Metrowest....especially the "green areas"

I have kind of outlined "my opinion" of living in the Metrowest area in the attached picture. So I would personally NOT buy in the Hamptons or Azur... Seranata is kind of on the fence for me.... Since it looks like you are looking at condo conversions, have you considered Bermuda Dunes? It is directly on the golf course and is smack dab in the middle of my "green" area

I'm sure others will agree or disagree, but having lived in the area for over 17 years, the only other place in Orlando I'd rather live is Dr. Phillips.....my two cents

[mongoslade223]

Raleigh st is pretty dicey

[Silent1900]

If you are looking at condos in Metrowest, the ONLY complexes that you want to explore (in my opinion) are Stonebridge (my personal recommendation), Bermuda Dunes, and Element.

The Hamptons, though right across from Stonebridge, have some VERY SERIOUS HOA issues that you will really want to dig into. Many of the units have water damage, and there was a lawsuit pending against the builder last I checked. I know that there have been an inordinate amount of foreclosures in that complex, and several months ago there were special assessments made. There was even talk of the complex having to be condemned if money could not be found to make the necessary repairs. Is a shame, because I am kinda fond of the design of the community. All this may have been resolved, but as of 5-6 months ago all of that was in play.

Azur and Seranata I would personally pass on, just because they share the same road as that godforsaken Wal-Mart. May lightning strike it down someday....totally ruined much of the Metrowest community.


I cannot speak on Hunter's Creek personally, but I have heard good things from co-workers who live there. Make sure you check out the crime map on the Orlando Sentinel website so you can see a reasonably recent picture of criminal activity in each complex. In Orlando, the line between ghetto and safe is quite thin.

[lauriemsr]

Originally Posted by Silent1900

If you are looking at condos in Metrowest, the ONLY complexes that you want to explore (in my opinion) are Stonebridge (my personal recommendation), Bermuda Dunes, and Element.

The Hamptons, though right across from Stonebridge, have some VERY SERIOUS HOA issues that you will really want to dig into. Many of the units have water damage, and there was a lawsuit pending against the builder last I checked. I know that there have been an inordinate amount of foreclosures in that complex, and several months ago there were special assessments made. There was even talk of the complex having to be condemned if money could not be found to make the necessary repairs. Is a shame, because I am kinda fond of the design of the community. All this may have been resolved, but as of 5-6 months ago all of that was in play.

Azur and Seranata I would personally pass on, just because they share the same road as that godforsaken Wal-Mart. May lightning strike it down someday....totally ruined much of the Metrowest community.


I cannot speak on Hunter's Creek personally, but I have heard good things from co-workers who live there. Make sure you check out the crime map on the Orlando Sentinel website so you can see a reasonably recent picture of criminal activity in each complex. In Orlando, the line between ghetto and safe is quite thin.

I was looking at the outside painting of the Hamptons and thought I had seen some water damage but then again I wasn't sure. Thanks for this info.

[lauriemsr]

Originally Posted by volk2k

Lauriemsr... unfortunately the Metrowest area has gotten a bad rap over time because of its proximity to Pinehills. My family and I have had homes in Metrowest since 1992 (and we still do)... and it's definitely changed....

Aside from spending time at Walmart, you would not think you were in a "ghetto" area were you to drive through the majority of Metrowest....especially the "green areas"

I have kind of outlined "my opinion" of living in the Metrowest area in the attached picture. So I would personally NOT buy in the Hamptons or Azur... Seranata is kind of on the fence for me.... Since it looks like you are looking at condo conversions, have you considered Bermuda Dunes? It is directly on the golf course and is smack dab in the middle of my "green" area

I'm sure others will agree or disagree, but having lived in the area for over 17 years, the only other place in Orlando I'd rather live is Dr. Phillips.....my two cents

Thank you so much! I saw that unfortunately we spent a whole day looking at the wrong (bad) side of the community. ;( It is impressive how during the day it looks like a great place to live because everything is close by and the apartment complexes are actually taken care of. You barely saw weird people around so that also made it look "safer". I guess I will start looking around based on the map that you provided me and also take a look at the communities at night.