73 replies to this topic

[crossroad]

Per CA of Oct 31 2006 , only 3 Fortune 500's moved to the entire south between 1975 and 2002. And Memphis landed 2 in one year.  Adding growing of existing businesses, we may see more relocation to Memphis going on.  

Please ask your general Memphis questions here.   I hope this thread can serve as a gesture of welcome and hospitality towards newcomers.  Moderator: could you make this sticky (on top)?  Thanks.

Edited by crossroad, 19 November 2006 - 02:14 PM.

[crossroad]

I know that in Memphis or the Metropolitan area, you pay 9.25% sales tax.  Do we pay this on grocery?

Thanks.

[Rardy]

crossroad, on Nov 20 2006, 09:53 AM, said:

I know that in Memphis or the Metropolitan area, you pay 9.25% sales tax.  Do we pay this on grocery?

Thanks.

I'm pretty sure that groceries are 8.25%.  But across the border in MS it's 6.25% I think (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

But don't forget -- NO STATE INCOME TAX!!!

[crossroad]

For a young single, considering safety and life quality, where is the better place to live, if work location is south of Germantown?  Mud island is said to be nice but how bad would the commute  work be to like?  

Is midtown diverse?  Liberal-thinking?  Heard that there are pockets of areas that are safe and others are not.  What's the advice on this in apartment search?

Could someone please post the website where you can search crime by zip code or cross street?  Thanks.

[hgupta]

crossroad, on Nov 20 2006, 11:26 PM, said:

For a young single, considering safety and life quality, where is the better place to live, if work location is south of Germantown?  Mud island is said to be nice but how bad would the commute  work be to like?  

Is midtown diverse?  Liberal-thinking?  Heard that there are pockets of areas that are safe and others are not.  What's the advice on this in apartment search?

Could someone please post the website where you can search crime by zip code or cross street?  Thanks.

For young and single, you can't beat midtown or downtown.  Their both safe, but like any city, you've got to pay attention to your surroundings.  Midtown covers a large area, and most of it is very safe,  but there are  pockets that aren't.  But it is easy to avoid the parts that are unsafe.  You couldn't pay me to live anywhere else in Memphis, but downtown would be my second bet.  Midtown is definitely the most liberal thinking part of town.  I think it is also the most diverse...but it looks like hickory hill is catching up.  I've noticed a lot more ethnic restaurants and grocery stores in the hickory hill area recently.  Definitely the best thai, korean, and indian restaurants are over there.

This is the website for police crime mapping:

https://crimemapper.memphispolice.org/

[crossroad]

hgupta, on Nov 21 2006, 12:13 AM, said:

This is the website for police crime mapping:

https://crimemapper.memphispolice.org/

Thank you.  I entered "Hickory Hill Road" and "Winchester Road", together with city name "Memphis" and it didn't yield anything.  I used full names.  Am I missing something?  It it even Case Sensitive??

[hgupta]

crossroad, on Nov 21 2006, 02:29 AM, said:

Thank you.  I entered "Hickory Hill Road" and "Winchester Road", together with city name "Memphis" and it didn't yield anything.  I used full names.  Am I missing something?  It it even Case Sensitive??

leave off "road" in the street names

[kiya97]

Remove the 'Road' part.  Just enter the street name.

[idlewild]

I definitely agree, Midtown is the best part of town to live in if you are looking for diversity followed by Downtown and maybe East Memphis.

[Rardy]

crossroad, on Nov 20 2006, 10:26 PM, said:

For a young single, considering safety and life quality, where is the better place to live, if work location is south of Germantown?  Mud island is said to be nice but how bad would the commute  work be to like?  

Is midtown diverse?  Liberal-thinking?  Heard that there are pockets of areas that are safe and others are not.  What's the advice on this in apartment search?

Could someone please post the website where you can search crime by zip code or cross street?  Thanks.

If you're working south of Germantown I'd say East Memphis is your best bet.  There's a ton of young people in East Memphis south of Poplar and around the University of Memphis.  It's an urban area with a lot of young professionals.  It's all "red" though.  

Midtown is great, but it's not exactly an easy commute to south of Germantown.  Mud Island would be a 45-50 minute commute at least.

[hgupta]

Rardy, on Nov 21 2006, 09:41 AM, said:

Midtown is great, but it's not exactly an easy commute to south of Germantown.  Mud Island would be a 45-50 minute commute at least.

I think its closer to 20 minutes from either part.    I live in midtown and work downtown, and to go out to hickory hill is relatively quick and painless

Sam cooper blvd will get you on the interstate quickly for most of midtown,
and I-55 S --> 240 -->385 will take you from downtown in minutes

[idlewild]

agreed, i don't think it would take more than 25-30 minutes from midtown to germantown road/385.

[Rardy]

idlewild, on Nov 21 2006, 02:50 PM, said:

agreed, i don't think it would take more than 25-30 minutes from midtown to germantown road/385.

i don't know...at rush hour, it takes me 30 minutes on a good day to get from downtown to 240/385.  my fiance lives in g'town and it easily takes me 50 minutes to get from downtown to her house...  240 backs up at Lamar everyday, and 385 can back up for no reason at all.

sam cooper's great, it's just getting to it that can take 10-15 mins.

[idlewild]

u might be right, i know that 240 does back up heading east during rush hour and sam cooper has also been known to back up as well in rush hour, so i guess you would know more than me. i work downtown and live in midtown so i rarely go out that way.

[hgupta]

Rardy, on Nov 21 2006, 04:08 PM, said:

i don't know...at rush hour, it takes me 30 minutes on a good day to get from downtown to 240/385.  my fiance lives in g'town and it easily takes me 50 minutes to get from downtown to her house...  240 backs up at Lamar everyday, and 385 can back up for no reason at all.

sam cooper's great, it's just getting to it that can take 10-15 mins.

I'll eat my words.... I never even tried doing that during rush hour.

[Rardy]

hgupta, on Nov 22 2006, 08:48 AM, said:

I'll eat my words.... I never even tried doing that during rush hour.

lol...IMO Memphis really doesn't have that bad of traffic problems.  But I moved here from Baton Rouge, so my viewpoint could be skewed.

[crossroad]

Trying to decide between renting and owning.   Where should I START my research?  For Buying, location wise, looking at downtown, collierville, and DeSoto, what are the average price ranges for these neighborhoods?  I know there is ad restrictions here, but can someone give a few general pointers?  Thanks a lot.

[memphismike]

It would really depend on the price range you have. That could help in giving you an idea of the best place to look for your money. But, I'd recommend you look in Lakeland or Arlington--2 up-and-coming suburbs in the Northeast part of the county. I just moved to Arlington and love it! Prices are still pretty reasonable, but with the development standards they have in place, the property values will do nothing but sky-rocket over the next few years.

By the way, one of the advantages of Arlington is that it will be the only place in Shelby County where I-40 and the new I-269 will intersect. Not only will that make that area even hotter, but it will be very easy to get anywhere in the Metro area in a reasonable amount of time.

crossroad, on Nov 28 2006, 12:59 AM, said:

Trying to decide between renting and owning.   Where should I START my research?  For Buying, location wise, looking at downtown, collierville, and DeSoto, what are the average price ranges for these neighborhoods?  I know there is ad restrictions here, but can someone give a few general pointers?  Thanks a lot.

[hgupta]

memphismike, on Nov 28 2006, 09:08 AM, said:

It would really depend on the price range you have. That could help in giving you an idea of the best place to look for your money. But, I'd recommend you look in Lakeland or Arlington--2 up-and-coming suburbs in the Northeast part of the county. I just moved to Arlington and love it! Prices are still pretty reasonable, but with the development standards they have in place, the property values will do nothing but sky-rocket over the next few years.

By the way, one of the advantages of Arlington is that it will be the only place in Shelby County where I-40 and the new I-269 will intersect. Not only will that make that area even hotter, but it will be very easy to get anywhere in the Metro area in a reasonable amount of time.

I guess it also depends on the kind of lifestyle you want.  You mentioned earlier that you're young and single.   If you like bars, clubs, restaurants and an active social atmosphere, you won't find much to choose from in Lakeland, Desoto, or Collierville.  Those are all family/residential areas.  And finding a designated driver willing to haul you back to the suburbs will be tough.     If you're going to buy a house, think about midtown:  home prices have been on a fast upward trend, or downtown if you're interested in a condo.  From both of these locations. you can walk to a lot of bars and restaurants, or easily find a ride.

I would highly recommend that you rent for a while first so that you have a chance to explore the different sides of Memphis.   A lot of landlords offer short term leases.

[Rardy]

crossroad, on Nov 28 2006, 12:59 AM, said:

Trying to decide between renting and owning.   Where should I START my research?  For Buying, location wise, looking at downtown, collierville, and DeSoto, what are the average price ranges for these neighborhoods?  I know there is ad restrictions here, but can someone give a few general pointers?  Thanks a lot.

In the downtown core it's mostly condo's, which I think average around 200-250k - Mud Island homes are higher.

East Memphis is a great place to start too.  Highland Terrace is north of Walnut Grove between Highland and Perkins and you can get something great for around 150k.  Colonial Acres is south of Poplar between Estate and Perkins and will run you around 125k.  

Collierville averages 375-425k.  DeSoto is a good bit lower, but it depends on which part of DeSoto you're looking at.