It’s been 7 years since I lived in Baltimore but I’ve been back since and my old neighborhood is actually better now than it was then. Yes, Baltimore does have a crime problem. But like most cities the crime is concentrated in certain areas (and we all know, crime can happen anywhere). I lived in Butchers’ Hill as did a number of my friends and none of us was ever the victim of a crime (not even vehicle break-ins). I loved my neighborhood and found a great community there. Some of my friends lived in Canton and Federal Hill – also nice neighborhoods but pricier. There are areas off of Charles Street that are nice neighborhoods (Mt Vernon) and I always liked the shops in Mt Washington. I always thought Hampden was cute and it seems to be up and coming these days. You might want to check out this link http://livebaltimore.com/nb/list/ for Baltimore neighborhood descriptions. Some of the pages list contacts so you can reach out to people who live in the various neighborhoods. Hope this helps.