Ange

I worked on the Westbank for many years. There are many great neighborhoods there, but go to nola.com and take a look at their crime map. New Orleans is a very tightly integrated city, so it is possible to be a millionaire, yet live two blocks away from murder central [mostly gang related]. Personally, I'd recommend crossing the bridge and making the commute to Uptown. If you can live in a smaller space, 300K should do you. Algier's Point is beautiful, but you'd have to pass some very dangerous areas getting in and out. Also, the Westbank is very vulnerable to flooding. Make sure you know what's higher ground. - Mon Oct 26 2009, 10:51

If you want a second home which you plan to leave closed during summer, please look into the Garden District, the area bounded by Jackson, St. Charles, Magazine, and Louisiana Ave. I live here and we are thinking about a second home in Florida for the summers [NOLA is far hotter and humid] so we would be leaving our house vacant for long periods--a liability if you live in an urban area. If you go to nola.com and look at a crime map, you'll see that the Garden District has fewer incidents--hardly any. We have private security for a low, low, low cost and these guys are just great. They'll look at for your house. They stayed for Katrina! I was able to call and find out if my house was okay during my evacuation. If you come home in the wee hours, you can phone them and they'll wait for you at your house to make sure you get inside safely. I've lived all over NOLA and I love the beauty of the Garden District and the vibrancy of Magazine Street and how everything you need is in walking distance--grocery, drug store, coffee houses, shops, restaurants, art galleries, etc.. Just walking through the GD is a joy in itself--it is so beautiful. And the community is very tight here--great neighbors. The GD is comparable in cost of living to the Quarter, the CBD, Warehouse District, and Lower GD, but it really offers more in terms of ease of living. Parking is not an issue. Seasonal parades, including second lines, are in walking distance. I can't recommend it enough. Fred Buras is a great realtor, if you wish to explore the GD. - Mon Oct 26 2009, 10:39

Hi, Amanda! I'm also from the Northeast and have been living in New Orleans for 20 years now. First of all, most of the violence in the city is gang related, so as long as you avoid gangsta turf, you'll be fine.

In my opinion, you should avoid anything on the lake side of St. Charles [look at a map and you'll see Carondelet, Barone, Dryades and so forth leading towards the lake--off limits]. Anything on the river side of St. Charles tends to be safer. If you stay within the boundaries of St. Charles and Magazine, all the way to the zoo, you won't have any trouble. The Carrollton area is ok too.

The French Quarter is romantic--I lived on Esplanade Ave. before buying my house--but the inconveniences wear you out: the battle for parking, having to make several trips from wherever you park to get all the groceries to your place, people breaking your car windows to steal anything in your car they believe valuable--you can't leave jackets or electronics in your car because they[ll steal them. - Sat Sep 26 2009, 23:15