Here's my situation... we live in Slidell, and our home got about 6 - 8 inches of water during Katrina. My business is in New Orleans, and although the building is ok, the city is in shambles. So, we're in the process of setting up what was originally intended to be temporary office space in Baton Rouge. However, both of my business partners live(d) in Lakeview, so their homes have been pretty much destroyed, and they're indicating they do not want to return to N.O.
So, I'm trying to decide what to do now. If our business is not going to be coming back to N.O., we'll probably have to move to the Baton Rouge area (a Slidell to N.O. commute I can deal with, but I don't think I could handle Slidell to Baton Rouge).
Without getting into the gory details of all the other factors involved (kids' schooling, sentimental attachment to Slidell, giving up our boat, etc.), I'm just trying to get information on homes in Baton Rouge and the surrounding areas. What's the "Slidell" of Baton Rouge? Denham Springs? How are schools around there? Any areas to avoid like the plague? Any advice at all is welcome! We'll be looking for a 4br house in the $140k - $170k price range.
--Mike