It goes without saying that life would be eventful in one of the oldest cities of the Appalachians. The city that is named after the king Louis XVI, was home to Mohammad Ali and is also famous for horse racing. As adventurous as that sounds, moving to a different city requires substantial thought and information. Keep reading ahead to gather the information you would need to make an accurate decision on the merits of moving to Louisville.
What Should I Know Before Moving To Louisville KY?
Louisville, by area is the largest in Kentucky and by population, is the 29th largest in the United States. The city is spread over an area of 397.68 square miles (1030 km2), 17.23 square miles (44.6 km2) of which is water. It houses a population of 766,757 as estimated in 2019, though the listing in major national rankings is written as 617,638, which is the estimate after excluding incorporated and semi-autonomous places.
The most obvious things one would notice about Louisville are the horses and the bourbon, especially the very famous Kentucky Derby in all its elaborate hats and mint juleps glory. This is a cornerstone of the exciting and diverse nightlife of the city that is active all year round.
And coming to food, it’s an easy connection to make that this is the home of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), but something else that is quite famous here is the ‘hot brown’. It could be the ‘stallion’ of comfort foods, with it being an open-faced turkey and bacon sandwich smothered in butter, cheese and cream and then being oven broiled. Maybe visit the city just for this sandwich.
Another striking feature of Louisville is the abundance of Victorian homes with cast-iron facades. You could sit on the porch with a ‘hot brown’ and soak in the sun or go to one of the parks designed by the creator of Central Park for a picnic.
The city offers a certain dual life to its residents where they are free to choose. There is the exciting pace of the festivals and nightlife, while there is also the quiet history and amazing food for the ones who prefer to take things at their own pace. One can choose to do whatever they want.
Crime Rate In Louisville
The rate of violent crime in Louisville is 7.22, from a study group of 1000 residents, which means that your chances of being the victim of a violent crime is 1 in 139. The rate of property crime per 1000 residents is 40.83, which makes the chances of being a victim of such crime 1 in 24. One must also be wary of motor vehicle theft with the chances of your car being stolen being 1 in 157. Despite what the statistics look like, the crime rate is still lesser than other cities and communities of a similar size to Louisville.
Louisville Weather
Louisville’s weather is classified as ‘humid subtropical’. Summers are typically hot and humid with temperatures around 90 to 100°F (32-38°C), and the city is no stranger to droughts in this season. The hottest month would be July, with the average temperature at 79.3°F (26.3°C).
Winters are usually wet here, with rain, sleet and sometimes, heavy snowfall. Temperatures can go as low as 10°F (-12°C). January is the coldest month with an average temperature of 34.9°F (1.6°C). One can expect a lot of snowy days during the winter months, with the average snowfall would be 12.7 inches (32 cm), a true treat for snow-bunnies.
The wettest time of the year is known to be in the summer and spring months, even though rainfall to some degree is present all year round. The average annual rainfall in Louisville is 44.9 inches (114 cm).
It is to note that it is not uncommon for temperatures to go to extremes in this city. Also, the city experiences what is known as the ‘urban heat island’ effect, so the temperatures in industrialized areas can be higher by as much as 5°F (2.8°C).
Is Louisville Expensive To Live In?
No planning is complete without an idea and estimate of the expenses and cost of living in that place. The more affordable a place is, the greater is the joy of living there. So, it is only reasonable to try to predict the effect moving to Louisville would have on your wallet.
To start with taxes, Louisville is in a state that has a flat income tax rate of 5%, state-wide sales tax of 6% and property tax that averages to $1,257 yearly. Residents of Louisville as well as non-residents who work here pay an additional income tax of 2.20% on earned income. To give a comparison, the sales and property tax are below the national averages whereas the state income tax is as per the country’s mark.
Cost Of Living In Louisville KY
The monthly costs of a family of 4, without the rent would be $3,128, on average. A single person would be spending around $878 per month, again, without rent. The cost-of-living index of Louisville is 88.4.
On a visit to the supermarket, you would spend $0.25 on a litre of milk and $1.95 on a loaf of bread. A kilogram of potatoes would cost $2.48, while a dozen eggs would be about $1.79. If you were to go to an inexpensive restaurant for a meal, your bill wouldn’t be above $15 and if two people went to a mid-range restaurant for a meal, it would cost $70.
Transportation costs in Louisville stand at $1.75 for a one-way ticket in public transport and $70 for a monthly pass. If you take a taxi, the base fare is $2.70 and the price per kilometre thereon is $1.43. A litre of gas costs $0.62 in case you own your own vehicle. These prices have been obtained from Numbeo.
When it comes to health insurance, a single individual should expect to pay $533 for a major plan.
Buying a House
The average price of a house in Louisville comes to $194,638, and this is the price of a regular two-bedroom house, as per Zillow. During the course of the last year, the houses in Louisville have seen an increased growth of 8.7%.
Renting a House
The average rent of a two-bedroom house, according to Zillow, is $850 in Louisville. The low housing cost is a cherry on top of the cake that is the suburban feel of the city and the real estate comfort of most residents owning their homes.
Utilities
The popularly hated hidden costs are surprisingly moderate in Louisville at $146 for electricity, heating, cooling, garbage, and water services. An unlimited internet plan could be around $54.
Louisville Economy And Employment Opportunities
The foundation of the economy of Louisville are its shipping and cargo industries. The city is located right at the Falls of the Ohio, while being in the Central United States. It is a matter of utmost convenience for any business set-up in Louisville that 60% of the cities in continental US are accessible by Louisville by one-day’s travel. This is where Louisville and Nashville Railroad and the Louisville and Portland Canal establish themselves as important modes of transportation via rail and water. Louisville is the seventh-largest inland port in the country.
The city is also the center of manufacturing for two Ford Motor Company plants as well as the headquarters and home-appliance factory of GE Appliances that happens to be a subsidiary of Haier. And lets always remember that a third of all bourbon whiskey comes from Louisville. Distilleries like Brown-Foreman and Heaven Hill are headquartered in and operate out of this city. Another great source of employment for the residents originating from this branch of the economy is Louisville’s Urban Bourbon Trail. This is essentially people stopping at “area bars and restaurants serving a minimum of 50 labels of America’s only native spirit”.
Another industry that churns out profit like there’s no tomorrow is the craft beer industry. More than 14 breweries are based in Louisville and is a huge source of employment for the locals. Some of the other companies based in Louisville are KFC, Papa John’s pizza, Kindred Healthcare, Norton Healthcare, UPS Airline, Republic Bank and Trust Company, Presbyterian Church (USA) and many more.
Louisville also carries quite the entrepreneurial spirit which is evident in its collection of various businesses that have firmly established themselves with their creative streak. It is also the filming location for movies like Goldfinger, Secretariat, Lawn Dogs and The Insider.
Education
Of all the residents of Louisville over 25, 21.3% hold a Bachelor’s degree and 76.1% have a high school diploma, as per U.S. census.
The Jefferson County Public School is the public school system in place. It has more than 100,000 students going to 173 schools. The city also has 27 Catholic schools and a school for the visually impaired.
When it comes to higher education, Louisville has no dearth of institutions for a diverse range of fields. The city has several business and technical schools like Spencerian College, Strayer University and Sullivan College of Technology and Design. There are also four-year universities like Boyce College, Spalding University, Simmons college of Kentucky and others. A laudable achievement of University of Louisville is the many hand transplants that have happened here as well as the first self-contained artificial heart transplant.
Louisville is also home to two graduate professional schools of religion which are the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
Getting Around Louisville
Air
Louisville has two airports – the Louisville International Airport and the smaller Bowman Field. The former houses UPS’s Worldport global air hub and services 4.2 million passengers each year while passing 4.7 billion pounds (2,350,000 tonnes) of cargo through it each year. It is the third-busiest airport in the United States and the seventh busiest in the world.
Bowman Fields, on the other hand, is for general aviation and Clark Regional Airport is for private jets.
Train
Louisville is no stranger to trains. It is served by CSX and Norfolk Southern, which are major freight railroads with the former having a strong presence in the southern metro area. There are also two regional railroads, them being the Paducah and Louisville Railway and the Louisville and Indiana Railroad.
Bus
The public transportation in any city consists mainly of buses and the ones in Louisville are run by the Transit Authority of River City (TARC). They run through downtown Louisville and Jefferson County, Oldham County suburbs, Bullitt County and the Indiana suburbs of Jeffersonville, Clarksville and New Albany.
A number of zero-emission buses called LouLift also run through the city’s shopping districts. They were bought in as a replacement for motorized trolleys.
Highways And Bridges
I-264 and I-265 are the inner and outer interstate beltways of the city. I-64 and I-65 run through Louisville and I-71 has its southern terminus here. All three of them co-incidentally run through the same location and that has come to be known as “Spaghetti Junction”. The Abraham Lincoln bridge that is located downtown gives relief to the I-65 traffic. Two other bridges carry I-64 and I-65 over the Ohio river. There is another bridge, for the purposes of pedestrians and cyclists. Another bridge for people to walk on is the Big Four bridge, which has been renovated to its current purpose.
Walking
A mode of transportation that will never go out of style. As stated above, there are a few bridges for the purposes of pedestrians and cyclists alike with one being rehauled for this purpose. Lets also note that this city was ranked as 43rd most walkable out of 141 cities with a population more than 200,000.
Best Neighborhoods of Louisville
1. Crescent Hill
The residents of this area live a charmed life, what with the homes being mostly Victorian or small bungalows and the rest of the area having ample boutiques, eateries and bars. It certainly suits the population of Crescent Hill, who are mostly baby boomers and students.
According to Zillow, the average cost of a two-bedroom house in Crescent Hill is $250,000 and the cost of rent would be $1200.
2. Clifton
The neighbourhood is literally positioned on top of a cliff, and hence the name. The houses here are quite unique, being long and narrow New Orleans shotgun shaped homes. The residents of Clifton are more artsy and trendy, while the boutiques and the restaurants here surely reflect that.
The average cost of a two-bedroom house here is $220,000 and the rent of a similar house would be $1,000 approximately.
3. The Cherokee Triangle
This is the neighbourhood that is bordered by Bardstown Road, south-East of Cherokee park, the park-like Cave Hill cemetery and the Arboretum. The houses in The Cherokee Triangle are originally Victorian homes that have been divided into apartments. Residents of this neighborhood include hippies as well as a more urban population.
The average cost of buying a two-bedroom house here is $300,000 and the cost of rent of such a house is $1,200.
4. Germantown
This is another area with shotgun houses. You may find older residents sweeping their sidewalk every morning. The people who prefer to live here are mostly art school graduates, who take a hand in renovating their surroundings. A joke about the neighbourhood is that, “there is a church and a beer bar within walking distance of every house”.
The average cost of a house here is $220,000 and the cost of renting a house is $1,250.
5. Norton Commons
This is one of the more unique neighbourhoods of the city and is located at the outer-loop highway. While Norton Commons is a relatively new neighbourhood, it is quite traditional in the sense that it was made to resemble an old-fashioned urban community. It has porches where people can sit and talk while drinking tea. Predictably, the residents here are more suburban dwellers.
The average cost of a house here is $350,000 and the rent would be $1,500, as per Zillow.
Is Moving To Louisville A Good Idea?
Once you have estimated the economic side of things, it is safe to say that the next step would be to understand how well you would gel with the culture of the city. Moving to Louisville comes with nightlife, restaurants, shopping and sports, alongside a decent musical scene for those who would want that. It is also safe to say that the real estate market is quite lucrative in the city. It now remains up to you to measure these factors against your requirements to reach an accurate decision. If your probably move to Louisville would be from a state that’s rather far away, have a look at the 5 Best Long Distance Moving Companies who could make your move a breeze for you!
See also: Best Moving Companies in Louisville KY
