Dutchtown area (St. Louis, Benton, Craig: renting, crime, new home)

[jojojohnson76]

My wife, myself, and 10 month old son are looking for a new home. We found the perfect house in the 40xx block of Nebraska in Dutchtown.

I looked up the crime stats for that particular neighborhood on the St. Louis Metro PD website, and they were a little startling. They had one of the higher crime indexes, but it also appears to be one of the bigger neighborhoods, it has over 17,000 people in it. I was told by the landlord that the area is "block by block" but this particular part is safe.

Do you think it would be a good idea to knock on a few doors on this block and ask people, or do you think that would just open me up to a "hey, there's a new couple at 40xx Nebraska, let's get'em!"

What is your take of this?

Also, will my wife be safe to go around this part of the city during the day?

People who hate the city and call it all "dangerous" need not respond. I would true, honest, and KNOWLEDGEABLE responses.

Thank you

[TGS]

If you were a tough-looking single man, buying the house as an investment with a good 5-10 year time frame, then I would say go for it. I wouldn't say it is a good area for a young family. There are a lot of family-friendly neighborhoods nearby that would work much better.

The neighborhood directly north, Gravios Park, is the worst one on the south side, and currently presents a serious barrier between Dutchtown and the nicer neighborhoods like Tower Grove and Benton Park. A lot of the criminals have been pushed out of previously bad areas like Benton Park and McRee Town, and have taken over Gravois Park. Some of them are moving into Dutchtown and causing a lot of problems. That area also has a lot of absentee landlords, and they aren't screeing their tenants properly, so it seems like the crime is getting worse and worse.

I do think this area is probably a great area for long-term investment, though. The housing stock is great, and with its proximity to other good areas, it will eventually turn.

[aragx6]

I would agree with TGS on this one. It's not there yet, and I wouldn't probably want to raise kids there, not yet anyway.

Whatcha lookin to spend?

[jojojohnson76]

Well, we are renting...so 700/mo or lower.

I'm thinking about just staying in Illinois. We are happy there, and this place in Dutchtown wouldn't have even cut my commute down really any way.

[aragx6]

If you are happy, I wouldn't move honestly. Happiness isn't always so easy to find! If we can help ya in the future though definitely let us know jojo!

[TGS]

For $700/month, you should be able to find a two bedroom place in a good neighborhood. I did a quick run on Craigslist and found a large selection of 2 bedroom places with W/D hookups for that price range in Tower Grove, North/Southampton, St. Louis Hills, Holly Hills, Soulard, Benton Park, etc.

I thought you were talking about buying in the area. There isn't any reason to live in an unsafe area unless you are making an investment by buying and holding on to the house.

[jojojohnson76]

Thanks a lot guys. I'm a little heart broken because this place was perfect, and nice, and everything in between. But I'm glad I got some honest opinions and had the know-how to check the STL Metro PD web site for crime stats.