Young African-Amerian Male Relocating To Memphis...Your Perspective? (Bartlett, Collierville: apartment, lofts)
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Hello All
I will be relocating to Memphis for an amazing job opportunity. I currently reside in Saint Louis, MO. I am a 27 year old African American professional male (in college as well). I was just interested in hearing opinions about Memphis from as many people in it as I can, I have a few questions and any insight would be greatly appreciated.
1: I hear people talking about and see posts about how dangerous Memphis is. If one actually does their research; St. Louis is higher up on the list and more dangerous than Memphis lol. But it does not seem like St. Louis is dangerous at all and I have lived here my WHOLE life. I know it is just a matter of perspective and environment and truly where you live…..that being said….is Memphis a dangerous place or just has dangerous area’s (as anywhere)
2: Can I find a decent place to live for a reasonable price…decent to me is no people loitering around the complex, an apartment and vehicle being fairly safe, decent manageable staff and the likelihood of crime not likely?
3:Is there public transportation and what is it like?
4:What are the church homes like?
5:What is the job market like and the acceptance of African-Americans?
6:Also…I know there was a flood there recently and am sorry for anyone affected. How did it impact the city…was it the whole city….are things like this common?
My family comes from Millington TN. A lot of my family is in Millington, Nashville or Smyrna. So I am familiar (have been there to hang out) with Memphis; Nashville more so lol. But I have never lived in Memphis and know it is different; very different from Nashville and Millington. I really focus on work and education but would like to be able to meet people and have fun on the weekends when wanted.
Last edited by nixstl8484; 09-24-2011 at 01:29 PM..
Reason: Editing
Im pretty new to the area myself. Been here 2.5 yrs. And for full discolure, I don't live in Memphis, I live in N. Mississipi (aka the burbs).But Ill give you my opinion.
1. Like most cities, Memphis has some areas that are better than others. What makes Memphis a little unique is, because Memphis is about 65% black, the trouble makers have more places they fell comfortsble setting up camp. Meaning, a household with gangbangers feels more comfortable moving into middle class black area, than they would a middle class non black area. Because blacks live throughout the entire city, and are not concentrated in one area, unfortunately the trouble makers have more areas to 'infect'. This creates a situation where the pockets of trouble are spread widely through out the city, instead of just confined to a few parts of the city. The solution is pretty simple. These areas have to fight back, and not make it so easy for the trouble makers to feel comfortable in their areas.
2. Finding decent housing won't be a problem, depending on what you can afford. I just got here so I don't know alot about the pricing of apts. But I can say there are some decent places to live in Memphis.
3. I couldn't tell you, as I have a car.
4. Churches are abundant. Some are black, some white, and there are quite a few that are mixed.
5. Many of the locals here complain about the lack of jobs. We actually moved here because of the abundance of jobs. Not to sound negative, but the competition is not too stiff in Memphis. You have a college degree. I don't, and I earn close to $30/hr. Im AA, and I didn't experience any negative feelings when I was looking for employment here in Memphis. But I also dont have corn rolls, a mouth full of gold teeth and my pants dont hang 6 inches off my ass. Being black is not an obstacle. However, being black and not knowing how to present yourself as a professional can be a hurdle.
6. The flood hit some areas of the city pretty bad. But for the most part, it effected a pretty small percentage of the city. Areas like Millington where hit pretty bad as well. A flood of that magnitude is not a common thing, according to all the news reports. So I wouldn't worry too much about flooding.
Im 37. If I were in my mid-20's, coming out of college, I would give Memphis strong consideration. Memphis is going through a slow, but well needed, transformation. IMO, the Memphis of today will not be same Memphis 10 yrs from now. I have seen these slow transformations before. As a child, the Chicago Stadium was in one of the worse areas in Chicago. By the time I was of drinking age, that same area was transformed into one of the most desired areas in the city. Condos, lofts, restearunts, shops, etc.. replaced projects, pimps whores, and liquor stores.
My optimism may be because I just got here. Some of the long times locals feel the change will never come. But you can drive through a few areas of Memphis and see new condos and shops, next to boarded up bldgs. You can see wealthy people building/rehabbing homes next to poor people. These are same things I saw in the parts of Chicago that went through this kind of transformation.
Memphis, like any other city, is what you make of it. I dont LOVE it here. But I'm fine with living here. I simply enjoy the positive things and people in Memphis, and avoid the negatives.
1.St. Louis doesn't seem dangerous to you because you know it, know what areas to avoid. Memphis is the same way. You might have a slightly higher chance of being a victim here because as Bigman says there are pockets of bad areas spread throughout, not just concentrated into a few areas. You can look at the map sticky at the top of the forum to get a very general idea of bad areas. If you're careful about who you run with and where you go you lower your chances of being a victim quite a bit. OTOH petty theft seems to be just about everywhere here, unfortunately.
3. Public transportation- basically consist of buses and the downtown trolley. You can do a search and pull up some older threads on this, or I can save you the effort and just say the bus system is pretty inadequate for the needs of most people.
Bigman seems to have done a fair job of hitting all the other points.
1: Agreed, if you know the areas to avoid, you'll be okay. The problem is, like mentioned, that the 'bad areas' are all over. Literally street by street an area can turn from very good to very bad.
2: The cost of housing here is very low. While you'll pay more for safety here, even then - it's still lower than what you're likely to pay in other large cities.
3: the public transit system here is pretty bad. People tend to only use it if they HAVE to (ie cannot afford cars, etc). You're not going to find middle class people leisurely taking a bus downtown for an evening.
4:Not sure what you mean by 'church homes' but there are tons of churches here for any religion you'd like.
5: I don't have personal experience with the job market recently, but from being on this forum it seems like plenty of people are getting jobs and moving here.
6: Floods are not common. It was a freak incident that affected a tiny percentage of the city. If I hadn't heard about it on the news, I would have never known anything was going on during that time.
Im pretty new to the area myself. Been here 2.5 yrs. And for full discolure, I don't live in Memphis, I live in N. Mississipi (aka the burbs).But Ill give you my opinion.
1. Like most cities, Memphis has some areas that are better than others. What makes Memphis a little unique is, because Memphis is about 65% black, the trouble makers have more places they fell comfortsble setting up camp. Meaning, a household with gangbangers feels more comfortable moving into middle class black area, than they would a middle class non black area. Because blacks live throughout the entire city, and are not concentrated in one area, unfortunately the trouble makers have more areas to 'infect'. This creates a situation where the pockets of trouble are spread widely through out the city, instead of just confined to a few parts of the city. The solution is pretty simple. These areas have to fight back, and not make it so easy for the trouble makers to feel comfortable in their areas.
2. Finding decent housing won't be a problem, depending on what you can afford. I just got here so I don't know alot about the pricing of apts. But I can say there are some decent places to live in Memphis.
3. I couldn't tell you, as I have a car.
4. Churches are abundant. Some are black, some white, and there are quite a few that are mixed.
5. Many of the locals here complain about the lack of jobs. We actually moved here because of the abundance of jobs. Not to sound negative, but the competition is not too stiff in Memphis. You have a college degree. I don't, and I earn close to $30/hr. Im AA, and I didn't experience any negative feelings when I was looking for employment here in Memphis. But I also dont have corn rolls, a mouth full of gold teeth and my pants dont hang 6 inches off my ass. Being black is not an obstacle. However, being black and not knowing how to present yourself as a professional can be a hurdle.
6. The flood hit some areas of the city pretty bad. But for the most part, it effected a pretty small percentage of the city. Areas like Millington where hit pretty bad as well. A flood of that magnitude is not a common thing, according to all the news reports. So I wouldn't worry too much about flooding.
Im 37. If I were in my mid-20's, coming out of college, I would give Memphis strong consideration. Memphis is going through a slow, but well needed, transformation. IMO, the Memphis of today will not be same Memphis 10 yrs from now. I have seen these slow transformations before. As a child, the Chicago Stadium was in one of the worse areas in Chicago. By the time I was of drinking age, that same area was transformed into one of the most desired areas in the city. Condos, lofts, restearunts, shops, etc.. replaced projects, pimps whores, and liquor stores.
My optimism may be because I just got here. Some of the long times locals feel the change will never come. But you can drive through a few areas of Memphis and see new condos and shops, next to boarded up bldgs. You can see wealthy people building/rehabbing homes next to poor people. These are same things I saw in the parts of Chicago that went through this kind of transformation.
Memphis, like any other city, is what you make of it. I dont LOVE it here. But I'm fine with living here. I simply enjoy the positive things and people in Memphis, and avoid the negatives.
Hello
Thank you for your response. You have definitely given me a lot of insight and strengthened my view about Memphis. You are right a city is majorly what you make of it. I have faith and no that it will be overall a positive experience...I am going to make it that. Strangely I am excited about it; A new place, different place. I have learned there are few things in life that are permanent and where you live does not have to be one (if you don't want it to). I hear as lot of people talking about MS and they have positive things to say about that as well. I may consider living there since from what I gather Memphis and MS are very close neighbors? I will keep you posted.....
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1.St. Louis doesn't seem dangerous to you because you know it, know what areas to avoid. Memphis is the same way. You might have a slightly higher chance of being a victim here because as Bigman says there are pockets of bad areas spread throughout, not just concentrated into a few areas. You can look at the map sticky at the top of the forum to get a very general idea of bad areas. If you're careful about who you run with and where you go you lower your chances of being a victim quite a bit. OTOH petty theft seems to be just about everywhere here, unfortunately.
3. Public transportation- basically consist of buses and the downtown trolley. You can do a search and pull up some older threads on this, or I can save you the effort and just say the bus system is pretty inadequate for the needs of most people.
Bigman seems to have done a fair job of hitting all the other points.
Hello
Thank you for the reply. That is true that I am comfortable in St. Louis because I know it so well and have been here so long. In time if I stay in Memphis long it will be the same way or somewhere along those lines. You bring up good points about watching who I run with. I do that anyway, that is an easy way t stay out of trouble ...you say petty theft?....thank you for your contribution to the information. I will keep you posted and will be more than likely giving your fair city a try. But I am not going to have on rose colored glasses and use my smarts and wisdom to make any risk minimum.
Look for an apartment in Cordova. It's affordable and close to everything.
The Life Church of Memphis is there (also in Collierville). It's the most racially diverse house of worship you'll find in Memphis. You'll like it (love it). Bartlett is another good choice for a young person. These two areas have low crime and aim to keep it that way.
I'm not really sure why you would suggest that a 27 year old single person should live in Bartlett or Cordova. Live in downtown or midtown, with the rest of the people your age.
Anyways, my two cents:
1: I'm from St. Louis, and I think it's much more dangerous than Memphis. If you don't think St. Louis is dangerous than you won't have any problem here.
2: Depends what you consider a reasonable price, but for a young person, downtown and midtown are the best choices. I live downtown and it's really the only place I'd want to live as a single person. Midtown is less expensive and some parts are sketchy, but it has a lot going on, too.
3: It's awful. You need a car.
4: I don't know, I'm not Christian.
5: I have no idea what your line of work is or whatever, but I think it could actually be difficult for a black person to get a really "good" corporate job in Memphis. The people with the money are white, and white people with money in Memphis are racists. It's not like they hate black people, it's just that there is this idea deeply engrained in the mind of the traditional Memphian that white people and black people occupy separate spheres and don't belong together. It's very bizarre to see, and it seems so backwards compared to other more modern cities. If you want to do anything in the public sector though that is all controlled by black people so you'd be fine.
6. The floods weren't really a big deal at all. Nowhere near as bad as the ones in the Nashville area a couple years ago.
Memphis is a majority black city, but young black professionals and blacks who are solidly middle class and aren't welfare recipients are harder to find than four leaf clovers. That should answer your questions...
Hello All
I will be relocating to Memphis for an amazing job opportunity. I currently reside in Saint Louis, MO. I am a 27 year old African American professional male (in college as well). I was just interested in hearing opinions about Memphis from as many people in it as I can, I have a few questions and any insight would be greatly appreciated.
1: I hear people talking about and see posts about how dangerous Memphis is. If one actually does their research; St. Louis is higher up on the list and more dangerous than Memphis lol. But it does not seem like St. Louis is dangerous at all and I have lived here my WHOLE life. I know it is just a matter of perspective and environment and truly where you live…..that being said….is Memphis a dangerous place or just has dangerous area’s (as anywhere)
2: Can I find a decent place to live for a reasonable price…decent to me is no people loitering around the complex, an apartment and vehicle being fairly safe, decent manageable staff and the likelihood of crime not likely?
3:Is there public transportation and what is it like?
4:What are the church homes like?
5:What is the job market like and the acceptance of African-Americans?
6:Also…I know there was a flood there recently and am sorry for anyone affected. How did it impact the city…was it the whole city….are things like this common?
My family comes from Millington TN. A lot of my family is in Millington, Nashville or Smyrna. So I am familiar (have been there to hang out) with Memphis; Nashville more so lol. But I have never lived in Memphis and know it is different; very different from Nashville and Millington. I really focus on work and education but would like to be able to meet people and have fun on the weekends when wanted.
I'm a 25 y/o black professional who relocated to Memphis for a great career opportunity, and will say Memphis has it's up's and down's as does every city.
1- Memphis (just like every other city in America) has its good and bad parts of town. The best food happens to be in the not so good parts of town, but as long as you keep to your self and mind your own business all the while using common sense you will be fine.
2- You can find a "descent" place to live according to your definition, but $$ must not be a factor? I myself live in not the best part of town, but by no means the worst for what I pay. I have had 0 problems, besides every now someone smoking weed on the steps and kids playing which doesn't bother me
that much i.e I mind my business and keep to myself.
3- You will need a car, public transportation sucks.
4- Churches are hit and miss. I was raise in church since I was a child, so that is very important to me. I'm COGIC and have been to several COGIC churches and most of them are only about $$$. So, I haven't been to church in a while, I'm thinking about trying another denomination.
5- The job market it's pathetic! FED-EX is the largest employer in the city, and at night in there, it's like modern day slavery. All you see are black people working and sorting packages until 3 a.m. it's a shame honestly. Some businesses are white owned, and there's still that "good ol boy" system in place, so there won't be any blacks working there, but other business are more accepting to minorities. Most jobs here are blue collar jobs i.e in warehouses, driving fork lifts, in a plant so I'm blessed not work in none of those job categories.
6- The flood didn't change much, if anything at all. Everything seems fine to me, I haven't noticed a difference.
As for having fun on the weekends, there is usually always something going on here in Memphis, spring through fall. In the winter people mostly stay at home and there's isn't much going on. Also, depends on what you like getting into, as for me one weekend I may been at game night downtown, the next weekend I may be watching a stud show @ the Red Apple so it's what u make of it.
Last edited by mallen14298; 10-10-2011 at 08:23 PM..
Reason: Spelling & Added
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Move to Cordova
