***Need to know if an area is safe or not(SHREVEPORT) (Bossier City: real estate market, apartment)

[rachpreach]

I currently live in the shreveport area and have for about 6 months. Im looking at a house in an area that Im not sure is safe or not. The overall appearance looks ok but I guess I would like a policeman/woman to give me their experiences in the area. The address of the house is 3002 Wheeless road. Please anybody let me know if you have any info!

[PortCityPJ]

I live in the neighborhood, several blocks north and west of that address. I don't have any personal experience with that block, but I can tell you overall the neighborhood is fine. It is an urban environment, which has good points and bad points. On my street, I see mothers with strollers going for walks, people out jogging for exercise, etc. -- all the good things you want to see in a neighborhood -- and also the occasional shady character walking around. The only problem we've had was when my husband left his car doors unlocked out on the street overnight, and somebody stole his cell phone out of it. (I think teenagers could do that just about anywhere, though.) I've heard of lawnmowers and bicycles getting stolen out of garages every now and then, but that hasn't happened to us. We have a burglar alarm, which definitely gives me extra peace of mind. I'd recommend an alarm to anybody -- the monthly fee is low and its totally worth it. The best thing about the neighborhood is the housing prices, though. People in Shreveport have this total misconception that everything north of Kings Highway is "bad" -- and it really isn't -- so you can get way more for your money there. My husband and I LOVE our house, and we never could have afforded it if it was on the other side of Kings. Throughout the neighborhood there are occasional "bad" blocks, but overall it is fine.

[hindsight2020]

I live north of kings hwy on highlands as well and you're right, there's nothing inherently wrong with the highlands north of kings hwy. That said, the reason you get a discount in housing prices is because the school district north of kings is considered bad. As people without kids this doesn't affect us. Once we have children of school age we will essentially be looking to move south of kings or do the math on private school. We'll probably buy in south highlands at that point in our lives. So that's the reason north highlands is cheap. Family households pretty much buy "school districts" these days, not really houses anymore. I think it's retarded but with such a de facto apartheid socio-economic dynamics between Shreveport proper and Bossier City, there's really nothing an individual household can do to offset such dynamics without making your kids the pawn of that social experiment. As such, most people vote with their feet and move if they can afford it. But if you don't have any kids, the north highlands is the most bang for the money when commute time is taken into account.

Yeah there's riff raff in the highlands, but it's all block by block. It suits our needs and we haven't been victims of crime yet. Ironically enough when I rented an apartment in "lily white" bossier I had my vehicle broken into.

Good luck.

[rachpreach]

well i decided against the house I was interested on Wheeless ave. The neighborhood was just unsettling to me. The houses seemed a little run down and it just had an unsafe vibe to it. Plus, I wouldnt want to be the best looking house on the block....you never want that. I HATED to let the house go but I think my mother, and my realtor will have better peace of mind with me in a different neighborhood.

********* The address of the house I was looking at was 3002 Wheeless Ave. so if yall could look at that area and let me know what yall think of it that would be great!! Thanks soooo much!!

[hindsight2020]

Wow, 190K, that's not why you would move to north highlands. You could find the exact same house south of kings and get the same "charm" you're looking for and better school district, for a higher price but in the same price range (180-200K). That house is priced as it is because it's next to Centennary college. The $/sqft is right on with the better maintained properties in highlands, but I wouldn't make that kind of investment unless you were positive you weren't going to have kids.

As to the neighborhood around there, if you don't feel safe in the streets automatically adjacent to centennary college then yeah highlands will never feel safe to you. You should try ellerbe road or north bossier . Keep this in mind though, there's a premium you have to pay for that "perception of safety". Shreveport Bossier is in my opinion inflated in terms of housing prices, mainly due to the fact that the oil business was in an upswing due to haynesville shale, right as the 2008/09 corrections were happening in AZ, FL, CA et al. Add to that a military base with a higher-than-necessary-for-the-area income influx, and historically low interest rates (a death trap to the cash broke FICO addict buyer) and you have an insulated real estate market that's itching to correct in five years. So I'd be very careful about the kind of investment you want to make in housing around here if you are going to do what the rest of the peanut gallery does and go for as much house as you can afford with no cash to pull out of a bad investment.

We have a saying in aviation; there's always a triad of things people want in an airplane: good, fast and cheap. The thing is that in life you can't have it all (yes, Oprah lied to you) so you can only get two out of three at any given time. Same thing holds true for housing. You want good and cheap, you won't get fast (in this case SAFE, as perceived by you of course). You want safe and good? You won't get cheap. So just bear all that in mind when you continue your house hunting in the area. And please let us know where you settled, I love these social experiments Good luck!

[PortCityPJ]

I just want to add a note about the school system, in case anybody else is reading this thread later. Yes, I agree that I would not want my children (when and if I have any) to attend the neighborhood public schools in Highland. However, some of the best schools in the city are public magnet schools. (In case you aren't familiar with magnet schools, children from all over Caddo Parish can get into these schools based on test scores, as opposed to getting in based on where they live.) I think many people would agree with me that South Highlands is the best public elementary school in the city and it is a magnet school. There are other good magnet schools, such as Fairfield and Eden Gardens. Your kids are eligible to go to these schools if you live in Highland or any other neighborhood in the parish. For children who don't test into these schools, there are also good private schools. My preference is St. Marks, which is right here within walking distance of my house in Highland. I think, nomatter where I lived, I'd send my kids to private school if they didn't get into a magnet school. (I'm sure there are plenty of people who love their particular neighborhood school and will disagree with me about that, though! And I'll admit I am biased, because I grew up in the magnet system.) My point is just that there are great school options available to Highland residents, even if the neighborhood public schools here are -- admittedly -- unacceptable.

[ANGELBABY1788]

Originally Posted by rachpreach

I currently live in the shreveport area and have for about 6 months. Im looking at a house in an area that Im not sure is safe or not. The overall appearance looks ok but I guess I would like a policeman/woman to give me their experiences in the area. The address of the house is 3002 Wheeless road. Please anybody let me know if you have any info!

Thats right down the street from me, and nothing has ever happened to me over here. But there is a lot of drug traffiking.. The jump out boys got all my neighbors.

[ANGELBABY1788]

Originally Posted by hindsight2020

I live north of kings hwy on highlands as well and you're right, there's nothing inherently wrong with the highlands north of kings hwy. That said, the reason you get a discount in housing prices is because the school district north of kings is considered bad. As people without kids this doesn't affect us. Once we have children of school age we will essentially be looking to move south of kings or do the math on private school. We'll probably buy in south highlands at that point in our lives. So that's the reason north highlands is cheap. Family households pretty much buy "school districts" these days, not really houses anymore. I think it's retarded but with such a de facto apartheid socio-economic dynamics between Shreveport proper and Bossier City, there's really nothing an individual household can do to offset such dynamics without making your kids the pawn of that social experiment. As such, most people vote with their feet and move if they can afford it. But if you don't have any kids, the north highlands is the most bang for the money when commute time is taken into account.

Yeah there's riff raff in the highlands, but it's all block by block. It suits our needs and we haven't been victims of crime yet. Ironically enough when I rented an apartment in "lily white" bossier I had my vehicle broken into.

Good luck.

Highland is not cheap! I have a one bedroom thats $525 a month.

[ANGELBABY1788]

Originally Posted by PortCityPJ

I just want to add a note about the school system, in case anybody else is reading this thread later. Yes, I agree that I would not want my children (when and if I have any) to attend the neighborhood public schools in Highland. However, some of the best schools in the city are public magnet schools. (In case you aren't familiar with magnet schools, children from all over Caddo Parish can get into these schools based on test scores, as opposed to getting in based on where they live.) I think many people would agree with me that South Highlands is the best public elementary school in the city and it is a magnet school. There are other good magnet schools, such as Fairfield and Eden Gardens. Your kids are eligible to go to these schools if you live in Highland or any other neighborhood in the parish. For children who don't test into these schools, there are also good private schools. My preference is St. Marks, which is right here within walking distance of my house in Highland. I think, nomatter where I lived, I'd send my kids to private school if they didn't get into a magnet school. (I'm sure there are plenty of people who love their particular neighborhood school and will disagree with me about that, though! And I'll admit I am biased, because I grew up in the magnet system.) My point is just that there are great school options available to Highland residents, even if the neighborhood public schools here are -- admittedly -- unacceptable.

All the schools suck. I got my GED.

[ANGELBABY1788]

Originally Posted by rachpreach

well i decided against the house I was interested on Wheeless ave. The neighborhood was just unsettling to me. The houses seemed a little run down and it just had an unsafe vibe to it. Plus, I wouldnt want to be the best looking house on the block....you never want that. I HATED to let the house go but I think my mother, and my realtor will have better peace of mind with me in a different neighborhood.

********* The address of the house I was looking at was 3002 Wheeless Ave. so if yall could look at that area and let me know what yall think of it that would be great!! Thanks soooo much!!

Highland really isnt all that bad... Well atleast not to me.
Maybe you should look around on Gilbert, turning left off Kings.. Nice houses down there.