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My wife, 7 month old son, and I are considering moving to the Cleveland Area from the San Francisco Bay Area. My wife has family in Sandusky and I would love to be able to go into Cleveland on the weekends. We do not know where we will be working yet. We are trying to narrow down our rental search and are looking for:
1) A place near the lake that has some natural beauty and the houses have yards and are spread out a bit.
2) Good schools
3) Safe
4) Good deal on rent.
The Cities/Towns we are looking at are:
Lakewood
Rocky River
Westlake
Avon Lake
Vermillion
Heron
Sandusky
We have been cautioned against Lorain (not sure why?)
Can someone familiar with these areas let us know how they differ and the pros and cons of each?
We would also love to hear from anyone who has moved from California to the Cleveland area and what the biggest differences are.
There are a few folks around the forum here that have moved from CA. We moved from Oakland,CA to Rocky River. I thought, aside from not knowing anyone, that the transition was very easy. All of the small towns you mentioned are close to ammentities and have great activities for kids and great schools. (Actually, I'm not familiar with Vernillion, Heron, or Sandusky schools)
I felt an immediate wave of tension and stress release when we first moved here. Getting around town was easier than CA and I could be a stay at home mom with my 3 yr old and newborn.
The first 2 winters were novel and exciting. Now, I know to plan a trip mid-Feb to break it up and get some relief from the grey sky. We don't waste sunny, decent days in the winter. We bundle up and get outside and enjoy them!!
The lack of diversity in my town is starting to get to me a bit. It is a huge shift. But, I have met some if the most intelligent and real people in the Cleveland area.
Also, what is your budget? When we first lived in Rocky River, we paid 1200/month for a huge house within walking distance to everything. Now, we pay $2000/month on a "better" street but smaller house. It's crazy. Lakewood is a lot cheaper and as a say, just a mile away in River is a lot cheaper. We're not sure where we are going to buy yet. Most of the housing in River and Lakewood are old homes, with tiny kitchens, if that matters. Not much yard, but walking (or very close) distance to parks.
You will be pleased at how much home you can get compared to the Bay Area, but it's amazing how quickly you adjust and what seems "high" to me now, people would laugh at in CA.
The biggest difference you'll notice is cost of living. I'd highly recommend getting a property that faces the lake, as I'm guessing it'll be cheaper than the average price on an apartment in the Bay area.
For what you're describing I'd recommend looking into Rocky River or Avon Lake.
Lakewood is very affordable with houses available for under $100k. The houses are pretty decent, though older. The population is more diverse than nearly any other community in the area. Rents are also pretty low.
Major factors to consider in all this will be what kind of income you'll have once you move here, what geographical area you'll be working in, how long a commute you're willing to endure, and what your major requirements and expectations are for your living space. Also, whether you're looking to rent or purchase a home is important.
Huron, Vermilion and Sandusky are all small towns, especially by comparison to either Cleveland or the Bay Area. Unless you really want the "small town experience", I'd recommend against them, because there's a good chance you and the family will be bored. (And I say this as someone who grew up in a small town and then moved to a large city in adulthood.)
Also, it takes a long time to get from any of them into Cleveland proper, so if you're working in Cleveland, you'll have a considerable commute that will be even longer in the event of a winter storm. None of them are particularly prosperous by comparison to what you're likely accustomed to, and that will be reflected in their infrastructure. I will note however that Sandusky is the hub of "vacationland" -- the area of the Lake Erie shoreline closest to and thus serving attractions like Cedar Point amusement park and the Lake Erie Islands. Still, in winter a lot of what's out there shuts down to a large extent, and northern Ohio winters are long, harsh and bleak. You'd think you were living on the surface of the Moon some days.
From what you describe, I'd say you're better off looking closer to Cleveland itself, where there will be plenty to do year-round. I'll hop on the bandwagon to vouch for Lakewood, as I've lived in Lakewood for 12 of the 13 years I've spent in greater Cleveland. It has lots of advantages: It's right up against the lake, it and Rocky River are both in an area that doesn't get anywhere near as much snow as some others during the winter (lake-effect snow bands react in interesting ways to the local topography when they make landfall), it has a slightly small-town feel while simultaneously sharing a border with the City of Cleveland, placing you within a 20-minute drive of downtown if you want to go places like the sports stadiums, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, attractions and events at the Port of Cleveland, etc. It's also close to the marinas at Edgewater and Whiskey Island if you're into boating at all, and to the west side's theater and arts offerings in the Gordon Square Arts District. Ohio City is nearby as well, with easy access to the West Side Market (not to be missed!) and some neat boutique shopping.
Lakewood itself is known for its tree-lined streets, diverse population, cultural offerings (local theater at the Beck Center, which also offers classes in the performing and other arts for both children and adults), good public schools, a beautiful lakeside park complete with free open-air community concerts on summer nights, plenty of activities for children and youth, and a vibrant downtown business district. It is a highly walkable community, and caters to all kinds of interests.
Along with Rocky River, Lakewood shares easy access to the Cleveland Metroparks' Rocky River Reservation, part of the famed "Emerald Necklace" of connected parks that ring greater Cleveland. If you enjoy the outdoors, you'll definitely want to spend time there. The Necklace has hundreds of miles of biking, hiking and horse trails, plus golfing, nature education centers and picnic areas.
Now, having said all that I will also point out that you've overlooked one lovely west-side gem: Bay Village. Bay Village has great schools, is right along the lake, and has a lot to offer. Most of the housing stock there is owner-occupied rather than rental, although there are some single-family homes for rent and a few apartments. If you're looking to buy a home, you can find some very nice ones for prices that ought to be very reasonable in comparison to the cost of similar homes in the San Francisco Bay area. There isn't a lot of commercial activity in Bay Village; just one small shopping plaza and a couple of restaurants. People cross the railroad tracks and go into Westlake for that kind of thing, or head east into Rocky River or west into Avon Lake and Avon. Still, Bay Village has much to recommend it.
If I may ask, what kind of work do you and your wife do, and/or what are you looking for?
As others have asked...please provide your ideal rental price range. All of the places you mentioned are great in their own ways. Rocky River will be expensive, but is beautiful and very convenient to downtown. Bay Village is more affordable. You will get bigger lot sizes as you move into Avon Lake and farther west. Vermilion has more of a small town feel and will be farther from Cleveland. Lorain is an old manufacturing town. As manufacturing has left over the years, it has left Lorain with many older homes and not many middle-upper class people (and along with that, not many dining/entertainment choices). That's not to say Lorain is unsafe or a terrible place to live.
Lorain is crime ridden, the city is very poor and the schoolare are one of the worst in the stae.
A lot of the recommendations are based on what you can afford. You will get more for your money somewhere like Lakewood, but the schools are not as good as Rocky River, Avon Lake and Westlake. Also, crime will be higher in Lakewood and Sandusky.
If you decide on Sandusky, consider Perkins for schools. Much better than Sandusky City.
I grew up near Sandusky (went to Perkins actually). Sandusky for the most part is a standard blue collar rust belt manufacturing town but happens to have a world class amusement park in it. The amusement park is somewhat removed from the rest of the area since it's on the other side of the Sandusky Bay from everything else and the commercialized zone is more or less limited to one corridor. That can be a good thing since the tourist traffic can easily be avoided but it also does mean Sandusky has the feel of a smaller rust belt town too. Sandusky City schools are okay, could be better, could be worse. It's probably about on the same academic level as the average around the area, but is pretty small and largely lacks the bottom end of the achievement spectrum. It's not a horrible urban ghetto like some folks in the Sandusky area sometimes seem to think, but it's a bit gritty. Sandusky also has a Catholic school if you're interested in that. Truthfully almost every city in northern Ohio is going to be a bit gritty. Sandusky's water front has some gorgeous sights to it if you like old rust belt places. There is even an operating coal docks you can sometimes watch freighters come in from Lake Erie and be loaded with coal from giant cranes. Downtown Sandusky is far older than any other built-up area in Erie County. It has been redeveloped somewhat in recent years, but at one point was just about completely dead. I wouldn't call Sandusky unsafe by and means, at least not on a level like East Cleveland, although there are certain neighborhoods I'd avoid.
Perkins Township was mostly developed in the 1950s when the suburbia movement started in the US as the suburb of Sandusky (really the only one). While there never really was the kind of mad rush to the exits from Sandusky that many of the bigger cities saw, over time Perkins did typically attract a slightly wealthier and more white collar populace than the City itself. Perkins is by no means on the wealth and education level of a place like Rocky River or Westlake, but is a little more upscale than Sandusky. Perkins is mostly safe, but there are a handful of neighborhoods I wouldn't advise living in. Perkins is land-locked but a very short drive to Sandusky or Huron.
Huron was its own separate city to begin with. Unlike Sandusky, Huron cared less about preserving its historic sites and actually bulldozed its downtown rather than let it sit empty. As a result, Huron, while close to Perkins in income and education level, ended up much less gritty, a bit more white collar, and a bit more conservative. While Huron might be a slightly better school on paper than Perkins mainly because Huron has fewer poorer residents, I doubt the best each school has to offer is considerably different. Huron has the added bonus of a nice lakeshore, nice parks, and a large pier you can walk out on.
If you're more into the cute, small town feel, I'd also suggest Milan. It is a historic little village built along an old canal and is actually the birthplace of Thomas Edison. If you're looking for an area that's both old and well kept-up Milan would probably be the best fit. Unlike most of Erie County which has almost universally flat terrain, Milan has a few hills along the river. It's home to the Berlin-Milan school district (Edison High School), which has the same grades as Huron on its report card, but in my personal opinion is probably the best school in Erie County.
If you can afford it, I'd choose Bay Village/Avon Lake/Rocky River.
Your daily commute is what will weigh most heavily - even though as others have noted Cleveland 'traffic' is nothing compared to SoCal or the Bay area. Westlake also worth at least considering, plus it's probably where you'll do most of your shopping.
The occasional 20 mi run to Sandusky is generally going to be a pretty easy drive from any of those places. Likewise, getting into Cleveland on weekends, pretty easy.
My understanding is Vermilion is a town whose fate has been tied to the decline of the auto parts industry and Lorain more generally. It's still got just enough going on to make it worth the occasional visit, but I think its best days as a place to live are behind it. Vermilion was more or less to Lorain what Bay/RR was to Cleveland - a nice little lakefront town with a decent commute to Lorain jobs. With most of those Lorain jobs now gone its not clear to mewhere new money will come from other than the somewhat limited tourism they draw.
Edit - in my opinion Vermilion is too far out to want to commute into the city, and I think local job options may be limited, certainly compared to what the nearer-in suburbs offer.
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