Help deciding where to live in Ho Chi Minh City

Hello all
Me and my best friend are teachers moving back to Vietnam to teach in Ho Chi Minh City - we have previously lived in Hanoi. We are struggling to decide where is best to live. Our school is located south in Tan Phu district, and I am wondering whether it is better to live close to the school (we found blocks within a 5 minute radius like RichStar, Carrillion 5, Rubyland, Melody Residences etc), Celadon City further north, or whether the local area around Tan Phu is a little too out of the way, noisy or polluted. Also checking out D11, D6, Binh Tan, D10, D8, Tan Binh, and D3 which are all within the 20-25 minute radius
Previously in Hanoi we lived at Tay Ho and commuted into the city center for 20 minutes to work by bike. I had originally hoped to have about the same commute here -- but apart from District 3, which I hear is great, I'm not sure the best areas which are in that 20 minute radius.
Ideally I had planned to stay in District 7, as I love the idea of cleaner air and wider, greener streets, a bit of peace from the hectic city which reminded me of what we found at Tay Ho in Hanoi.
The ideal specs for us are a two bedroom apartment with a swimming pool, with an ideal cap of 800usd. I am seeing a lot of places go in D7 for this price point. We have a 6 day accommodation window paid by our school when we arrive, so we plan to go and check the districts and apartments etc out during that time.
So advice please... is it worth taking an hour commute across the city to live in the relative peace of D7 these days? How is D3, and any recommendations on decent apartment blocks there? Any experiences at Celadon City and Tan Phu in general?
Thank you all, really do appreciate your input and thoughts. Cam on!
-@TravellingTeacher

Here is a recent thread where many forum members shared their opinions and observations about a number of areas in HCMC:

expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=1010825

Regarding noise, there are very few places, even in Phu My Hung, near D7, that are super quiet. I lived for two years on the 30th floor of a 34-floor high rise there. The apartment was large and comfortable 3 bed, 3 bath place. The neighbors on that floor were noisy and the (many) karaoke places down on the ground within 200 meters of the place were also very noisy.

I recommend you contend with the noise by using a white noise generator on your computer. You can set the volume of the white noise as low as you can consistent with the masking effect you desire. It's the phenomenon, "I can't hear you when the water's running" that you can possibly relate to.

Also, my rent for that large and luxurious place was $800 a month and the electric bill was $100 a month (we kept one room air conditioned all the time due to sensitive equipment needing a low-humidity environment).

Good luck.

@OceanBeach92107 Thank you, I'll check it out!

@Lennerd Thanks for your in depth reply Lennerd, it's much appreciated!

Much like Hanoi, you never really escape the din truly! We had a construction site next door to us for 6 months on our quiet island

Re: HCMC, I feel you might get more for your money in D7 than D3, from looking at rental listings and prices. What are your thoughts on living in D3? And have you been to Tan Phu at all?

The white noise generator is an excellent idea! Which one do you suggest? That's hilarious

Rent for us in Hanoi at Tay Ho was negotiated down from $900-$700 per month by paying 3 months up front, and about the same as you in bills.

Thanks bud!

@TravellingTeacher Don't forget there is the fast speed passenger boat from HCM / Vung Tau <-> morning and evening. This way you can use the beach and work in HCM while missing out on the trafic jams. (Greenlines)

@TravellingTeacher

White Noise Lite on the App Store.

And the karaoke 🎤 on Vung Tau is as loud as in HCMC. 🤪