Safest area? (Sacramento, Roseville, Folsom: appointed, for sale, apartment)

[newtosac]

So I posted a few weeks back when I was first starting to look for housing (I'm moving in January to transfer to Sac State). I have checked a few places out but was disappointed to hear about the amount of crime in the areas, which I got the impression were decent--La Riviera specifically with lots of car burglary/theft. Looking at the Sacramento Police Dept's website, Campus Commons has had a lot of similar crimes in the past few months as well. I realize that there is crime everywhere and have lived in some rough neighborhoods when I went to school in Boston, but my main concern in picking a place to live is safety and I'd prefer to be in a better area if possible. So, what areas would you consider to be the safest in Sacramento?

[wburg]

Sacramento has a fairly high crime rate. It sounds like you have already taken a look at Sac PD's website, that should be the easiest way to figure out which parts actually have less crime, vs. the parts of town that we think have less crime. East Sacramento, River Park, Campus Commons or Sierra Oaks are all pretty decent neighborhoods close to Sac State.

[CityGirl72]

Not that La Riviera is the worst part of Sac but I wouldn't choose to live there - What was the reason you were looking there?

There are much better spots for students. When I went to Sac State I lived in Midtown. La Riviera area is (in my opinion only) more of an "affordable lower-middle income" family area.

[CityGirl72]

PS and the SAFEST areas aren't in Sacramento. They are the far outlying suburbs. Folsom, Roseville, Granite Bay, El Dorado hills......which aren't where students usually live.

[NewToCA]

Originally Posted by CityGirl72

Not that La Riviera is the worst part of Sac but I wouldn't choose to live there - What was the reason you were looking there?

There are much better spots for students. When I went to Sac State I lived in Midtown. La Riviera area is (in my opinion only) more of an "affordable lower-middle income" family area.

La Riviera is absolutely awful concerning car burglaries and stealing catalytic converters. I'd have to say that personal crime though, such as muggings, isn't a problem in that area.

[CityGirl72]

NewTo Ca- I know about the crime, I just didn't want to bash the area to much cuz there's always someone that tells me "it isn't that bad"

To me La Riviera is dirty and dusty...
The West part of the street (closer to Sac State) is better (but still dirty) and it just gets YUCKY the farther east you go (towards Watt)

[newtosac]

Originally Posted by CityGirl72

Not that La Riviera is the worst part of Sac but I wouldn't choose to live there - What was the reason you were looking there?

There are much better spots for students. When I went to Sac State I lived in Midtown. La Riviera area is (in my opinion only) more of an "affordable lower-middle income" family area.

I was looking there because I don't live in Sac, have never spent much time there, and was looking for proximity to campus. Based on the first post that I made here, I was under the impression that the areas right near cmapus WERE safe (despite my initial thoughts that there were some sketchy areas, hence the post). This place was a mile from campus so I assumed that it would be ok. Also, I'm looking to move into a shared rental as opposed to finding my own place in a complex I'd like to live in, so it was what was available when I started my search. I guess I should have looked more into the crime stats ahead of time so I wouldn't have used an entire day driving to and from Sac only to feel bummed about my options haha. Since I don't know anyone there, I think it would be nice to find people to live with, but I'm almost feeling like it would be better to find an apartment that is in a nice area, has good security system, etc than to try to find that PLUS people who I want to move in with.

[CityGirl72]

By Sac State to the WEST is very nice - on the east of Sacstate is nice if you stay as close as possible to Sac State - don't deviate too far

If you want safe and clean and new - try Roseville and commute

[wburg]

newtosac: Look closer to campus. Generally, property crime (especially car break-ins etc.) is a bigger problem in better neighborhoods because there is better stuff to steal. So while the neighborhood itself is very safe for you (you are unlikely to be mugged, harassed, or offered drugs for sale) but maybe not for your car (because people who steal cars/stereos generally don't bother stealing in poor neighborhoods with cheap cars/cheap stereos.)

Once again. Look in East Sacramento. Look in River Park. Midtown probably isn't as "safe" as you would like--we have car break-ins, and there is a lot of simple assault and drunk driving because there are a lot of bars around here.

In any case, the neighborhoods around Sac State are far safer than Sacramento's high-crime areas (around North Sac and South Sac.) By comparison, the neighborhoods around Sac State ARE very safe, pretty quiet, and while they are not crime-free (no place is) they are comparatively low-crime areas.

If you don't own a truck, stealing catalytic converters is less of a risk. The best way to avoid car break-ins is to never, ever leave anything of value visible in your car (including the stereo.)