There are probably seven or eight nice neighborhoods in Detroit. If I was to pick two it would be Indian Village or Palmer Park which both have their own private security 24 hours a day. Big well kept houses with narrow streets.
A few more better than average would be downtown, Corktown, N. Rosedale, S. Rosedale (where I grew up)and Sherwood Forest. I tell people to think of Detroit not as a big monolith but as a series of villages, some are OK to visit and others are to be avoided at all costs.
Midtown is doing well now as well. Lived there for three years and just visited again for the first time in 6 months or so for Noel Night. I saw a handful of businesses there that had all been established since the time I moved out. Lots of stuff to do, and it's pretty safe. Response time from the WSUPD is just a couple minutes, and they take calls for a few mile radius outside WSU's campus. http://www.livemidtown.org/ is a decent marketing site with more info on it.
It's interesting that Indian Village, Palmer Park, and Midtown all benefit from a police force alternative to Detroit PD. I wonder if there are other services like this? I would assume private schooling would be common, but what about things like public works?
A few more better than average would be downtown, Corktown, N. Rosedale, S. Rosedale (where I grew up)and Sherwood Forest. I tell people to think of Detroit not as a big monolith but as a series of villages, some are OK to visit and others are to be avoided at all costs.