re: Anyone familiar with Nola real estate?

My childhood best friend was murdered on Forstall St (the traffic light at the base of the bridge), one block off St. Claude. It's not as bad as it used to be since Katrina "flushed" it out but it's still bad and you'd still have to travel through one of the worst areas in the city EVERY DAY to get anywhere. Yes, it's the area where Brad Pitt has his houses and a lot of developers have bought up abandoned and blighted properties and turned them into AirBNB's but it's still the Lower 9th Ward.

Old holy cross or new?

New holy cross is in an up and coming part of Gentilly. Old holy cross is in the lower nine.
As Manny Fresh said.
"He's from the lower nine so he don't mind dyin"

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For instance you will never get a package from Amazon

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It helps if you have an office to get stuff delivered to pretty much no matter where you live in the city.

Stay away from there man. I grew up in that area as a kid, stayed there when I bought the house I grew up in about 1975 and stayed there 3 more years before moving out.

That area is so depressed with a lot of vacant houses, lots of drug activity, no real places to shop for groceries unless you cross the Parish line into St. Bernard or head farther back into N.O.

I am surprised at what folks are getting for houses down there with some going in the $200K+ range for double shotguns, but you'll be immediately upside down is how I see it.


Edited to add this:

If you are looking below the Industrial Canal, go a bit farther down the road into Arabi and check out what's there. Much safer area for sure, I'm betting way lower property taxes and I know for sure a hell of a lot less criminal activity.

Holy Cross is gentrifying. All of the hipsters/do-gooders who have been priced out of the Bywater are crossing the Industrial Canal and headed into Holy Cross.

Like most gentrifying neighborhoods, there is a wide variety the rebuilt homes that are very nice, and the untouched homes which are hellholes.

Also like most gentrifying neighborhoods, your block might be awesome, and three blocks away, is a row of crackhouses.

I would not move there with a family at this point. If I was a single guy and betting on more real estate growth, yeah, I'd move there. It's a high risk, high reward thing.

The Robert's everyone is talking about is at the edge of the Upper 9 / 8th Ward, and depending on where you are in Holy Cross, Canseco's in Arabi will be closer. There are a couple of random gas stations and corner stores in Holy Cross, but businesses haven't really moved in yet.

If you want to live in that area, consider Old Arabi. They have some nicely rebuilt and new construction houses too, cheaper than Holy Cross. Taxes are less, and the police in St Bernard will actually respond to your house. Much safer. If you are trying to live close to downtown... you might be 5 min further away than you would be in Holy Cross.

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in Holy Cross neighborhood.

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I went to high school out there. It is gentrifying some now, but there are still a bunch of murders out that way. I would not live there

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If you are looking below the Industrial Canal, go a bit farther down the road into Arabi and check out what's there.

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I second this, Arabi has been pretty hot lately

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It's 8th ward, almost 7th.

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You are right... I was thinking the line was at Elysian but it's more like franklin

There is currently a caravan (literally) of transients living out there for one thing. Basically an unofficial homeless encampment. At least there was, as of a few weeks ago.

Lots of crime nearby, including the really bad stuff.

The Lower 9th is NOT gentrifying. Some people may be TRYING to gentrify it, but that has been supposedly going on since 2007 or so and it aint happened yet with little hope in sight.

If you are looking to flip, go for it. Some sucker will dish out big bucks to "be cool."

There's very little upside other than you are probably getting a relatively low price. If you are into the St Claude scene, I suppose it grants easy access... at least when the bridge isn't up - which is frequently. Not far from the quarter and easy access to downtown.

If you have a home intruder, the cops won't show up until long after whatever happens happens. Smaller crimes? They won't even pretend that they're going to show up. NOPD is stretched thin... Lower 9th is akin to the Wild West. Don't see many patrol cars on that side of the canal.

Being closer to the river, you are less likely to flood, but you will still have horrific infrastructure issues.

I certainly hope you do not have a family. If you do, invest in effective tactical weapons and multiple large dogs. Have cameras and learn the specifics of what is legal for castle doctrine and to avoid in terms of "grey area."

if you need to be in that part of town, I'd follow the advice of some of these other posters and go to Arabi.

At the very least- drive around the whole area before even meeting with the realtor. get a look for yourself.

Short answer - it is very much a not so good area of the city.