Biloxi or other area? (Gulfport, Long Beach: renting, low crime, lawyers)

[anon2304]

I'm interested in renting a nicer home (family communities) that isn't too far from the beach. I'm relocating and my kids will be with me in the summer and during their breaks. Schools aren't important but low crime is. What are some good areas to look?

[brickpatio]

Ocean Springs is one of the most loved areas along the Coast. The downtown area is full of restaurants and art museums and they have a charming community beach, busy with runners, walkers, bikers, and kids playing volleyball.

Adjacent to Ocean Springs further east is a large area called Gulf Park Estates which is full of residential subdivisions within a walking or very easy driving distance to the water. Generally speaking the beaches are nicer starting in Biloxi, all the way to Bay St Louis; however, Ocean Springs beaches while smaller, have more of a town/community feel in certain ways.

There is also Gulf Hills, with nice homes (on somewhat hilly terrain, especially in comparison to most of the surrounding areas) just off Biloxi Bay. This is a somewhat affluent spot, especially for homes with direct water views.

Next, look at Diamondhead. This is on the west end of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and is a golf course community (now its own city) with newer homes from the 80s to today, affordable, and an easy drive to the gorgeous beaches in Pass Christian and Bay St. Louis.

Pass Christian itself is stunningly beautiful but is mostly known for its beachside historic mansions and bayside homes up on stilts with boat access. They are some golf course / country club neighborhoods there also but are fairly pricey.

Bay St Louis is melt-in-your-mouth beautiful with a great little, waterside downtown area and wonderful community beach also active with bikers, walkers and runners, fisherman and volleyball games. Bay St Louis has lots of charming smaller homes (and some big ones facing the beach) but mostly they are older homes. There are some new streets, so it just depends on what you're looking for.

Gulfport has some beautiful neighborhoods but they're (mostly) right off Bernard Bayou rather than by the beach (but just a couple minutes drive). One of the nicest is called Bayou Oaks, with beautiful homes built in the 90s and early 2000s. This appears to be where a lot of doctors and lawyers live, with many homes backing up to Bernard Bayou. This is right off Cowan Rd just north of Bernard Bayou. Also look just across the bayou, with residential areas right off Courthouse Rd.

In Biloxi, there are very nice, fairly new neighborhoods just on either side of Popps Ferry Rd, just south of the Back of Bay of Biloxi. A lot of these homes back up to the bay with water views. North of the bay there are plenty of regular family style neighborhoods also. It's not exactly right on the beach but an easy less than 5 minute drive to the beach.

Long Beach is a quiet area with a number of nice and quite affordable subdivisions starting a few blocks from the beach. Like much of the Coast, the homes in the first 3 or 4 blocks north of the beach were blown away, but after that you begin to see homes and subdivisions more or less untouched. Long Beach has a nice beach and marina area and the beach highway there is much quieter than in Gulfport and Biloxi. And Long Beach has more affordable, middle class homes than Pass Christian (by and large) and more newer homes than Bay St Louis.

North of I-10 is getting further from the beach, but there are lots of suburban homes up that way. If you want a newer home, my favorites are Florence Gardens (melt in your mouth beautiful) and Tradition (emulating a historic small town feel, but with new homes).