Considering a Move to Mobile

[brewers0048]

Just to experience something different, I

[DruidCity]

I'll take a stab at this, though the Mobile natives might offer better insight :

1. "What areas are the safest to live?"

Like most places, crime tends to go along with poverty. In other words, I wouldn't particularly recommend areas like Prichard.

2. "How does the cost of living compare to the Midwest ?"

Mobile's pretty inexpensive, for a city its size.

3. "Are people generally friendly (attitudes towards non-natives)?"

I'd say so. There are plenty of transplants from Midwest and elsewhere, especially in Baldwin County.

That said, when my brother lived in Mobile for a few years, his neighbors were less-than-welcoming.

Most of them were senior citizens who were very set in their ways, and made it very clear that they did not like having a "young outsider" in their neighborhood, even though my brother was a very quiet professional and very nice to them. That's probably more a function of that neighborhood than the whole city, though.

4. "What is traffic like?" Airport Boulevard is pure hell, but I guess most cities have one road like that.

5. "How is the job market ?" Mobile is adding a lot of jobs right now, but the city's per capita income is on the low side, even by Alabama standards.

6. "Anything else I should know?"

Although Mobilians and urban purists might want to burn me at the stake for suggesting it,

I'd recommend taking a strong look at Baldwin County - better retail selection, better public access to the water, better schools, and lower crime than Mobile. It's not "urban," but really, Mobile itself lacks much urban functionality.

[elb401]

honestly......to get a better response from more locals go to skyscraperpage.com and go to the southern forums. There are a lot of Mobile people there. hummmm....Mobile....

1) as for crime it is really concentrated in the poor neighborhoods....so if you don't live in one you are pretty safe. I've lived in Midtown Mobile (which some say is unsafe) for 21 years and there hasn't been a crime in my street for also 25 years.

2) Mobile is a cheap place to live with pretty good standards.

3) I think people are very friendly to non-natives.

4) Traffic is okay....except for Airport...but besides that there is a 20-30 communte from one end of the city to the other if you stay away from airport. Mobile also has good interstate access. it takes me 25 minutes to get to fairhope...on the other side of the bay...from my house.

5) Druid is right about the jobs....but our per capital income is on the rise....but still lower than average because of the huge job losses in the 80s and 90s. Now there is a huge labor shortage (in all areas) on the coast. You might actually find a job easily because of it.

6) Not trying to discredit every thing druid is saying about B-county (it is a nice place) good waterfront access. But has poor road layout which breads congestion, and the retail selection is crossing the bay to Mobile with several new shopping centers in Springhill (upscale), west Mobile, and Midtown (Ashland Place).

Oh you might want to look into the area just south of the city.....lots of waterfront and promising area for development. There are many planned upscale subdivisions planned for that area.

Mobile is a nice place to live...but to talk to more locals about Mobile I would go to Skyscraperpage.com

[DruidCity]

I agree with elb401's comments.

Oh you might want to look into the area just south of the city.....lots of waterfront and promising area for development. There are many planned upscale subdivisions planned for that area.

That area has a ton of promise. Being close to Bellingrath Gardens and Dauphin Island is a nice

plus.

[convulso]

a lot of newcomers rave about the surrounding small towns as well - people especially seem to love fairhope and daphne.

i think the attitude toward outsiders is likely to be commensurate with the attitude of the outsider toward his new environment. judging from this poster's positive vibe, i'd guess there wouldn't be much to worry about. at any rate, alabama metros are about as welcoming as other cities in other regions when it comes to accommodating transplants, IMHO. just don't make the fatal mistake of telling everyone you meet how much better it is where you came from than where you are now...even if it's true!

[ChiliPepper]

If you're looking for a place in the city, I'd begin by looking around the 36608 and 36695 areas....Hillcrest, Grelot, Knollwood, Girby, Springhill areas (West Mobile). There are a lot of nice neighborhoods in that area. I live off of Hillcrest and have no complaints at all. Avoid North Mobile (Prichard).

I'd say you've got a better than average chance of landing a fair/good job in the business management area. At least, I had no trouble in 1999 (check Professional/Technical classifieds in the local paper).

Over the last decade or so, a lot of upper middle and upper income families have located in the Daphne, Spanish Fort, Fairhope areas of Baldwin County. Nice areas, but prices have gone up. They're still affordable though, especially for people who are used to higher property taxes in other parts of the country. Alabama has one of the lowest overall tax rates in the country. Also, I've had people tell me that they couldn't believe the housing prices in this region as compared to their native areas.

Mobile does have traffic congestion at certain times of the day, mostly east-west routes. Cottage Hill, Old Shell, and especially Airport can really try your patience. I10 can bottleneck big time around the tunnels at rush hours, especially on holiday weekends.

People are generally polite.

[elb401]

True about old shell and cottage hill. I forgot about those roads. But yeah I would look at west mobile, eastern shore, and I would also look at the historic neighborhoods too..chramful and very walkable. Those would probably be the best.

[The Dude]

If you are an urbanist than there is only 3 areas worth considering a move to. Downtown, Midtown or Oakleigh. I personally can't stand Mobile west of Florida street. I live in Hattiesburg now, but when I was in Mobile I lived as close to downtown as possible, which put me in the Oakleigh district near Callaghan's Irish pub. If you want character, somewhat urban lifestyle (improving daily), shade, and beautiful architecture then I'd only consider those areas.

In regards to traffic, Mobile is extremely sprawled out, so plan on driving for all of your daily needs with frequent fillups. I love Mobile and downtown is improving by leaps and bounds monthly.

[brewers0048]

Thank you everybody for your great feedback on Mobile. I actually have an opportunity to do an internship in Mobile next summer (2007) that will last a couple months. So I will be able to really experience what Mobile is all about.

[DruidCity]

I expect you'll have a great time. The Mobile area has a lot to offer.

Those old areas with the oak canopies are very beautiful.

A couple more bits I'll recommend are to stay at least once at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear and to see Bellingrath Gardens. These are classic Alabama experiences.

[PortofBama]

I have been to all 4 of the major metros in Alabama and each and every one has its on charecteristics,and beauty but the gulf coast region have just a little more culture to it I hope you like it