Relocating from Texas with kids... (Detroit, Ann Arbor: houses, best school districts, college)

[vanbev]

Okay, so I have been stalking these forums and I have learned quite a bit about an area I know nothing about! Here's our situation and I would love input....

We are moving to this area from a suburb in Dallas, TX. We used to live in Minnesota so we actually prefer colder climates or at least seasons. Anyway, my husband accepted a regional job with Michigan being our home base. He needs to go to Birmingham, Southfield (sometimes Novi) and the airport on a regular basis...oh and he will drive to Cleveland too. I have three children in school with one in high school. People that he has reached out to with work said the Northville area is a good in between for the commute. The schools look great and I understand that homes are more expensive than where we are now but I have no idea where to look? We want good schools but there seem to be plenty around... Is there another area we should look at? Since we have three kids and two dogs we would like a 4 bedroom home and our budget we want to stick with is no more than $550k. We are a pretty laid back family and I just want to know if we are missing other areas due to not knowing Michigan. Any information is greatly appreciated!

We are actually very excited about our move.

[animatedmartian]

Anything above $400K is likely going to be a house that's only a couple of years old and/or will be pretty huge. Especially in the Northville/Novi area. Are you looking for a house with 4,000 square feet? If not, then you can try nearby Livonia or Farmington Hills/West Bloomfield where the homes are a little more older, but usually more modest in size and price.

[Republic of Michigan]

Look into Plymouth Charter Township off of Beck Road, just south of N. Territorial Rd. by Hill Top Country Club. Great schools, safe, and upscale. Plus right off the freeway. Close to the Airport, and as far south as you want to be in the direction of Ohio. Also, close to downtown Plymouth and downtown Northville, and Ann Arbor is not too far!

[vanbev]

No, I don't necessarily want a huge home and I actually like the yard and trees more than the house.



I liked Plymouth but I am confused about the high schools. It looks like all three are together on the map and its huge. Am I wrong?

[animatedmartian]

All three are in the same school district and serve Plymouth and Canton. They're like any other high schools but just next door to each other and share classes. The only thing separate to each school are the athletic programs. Basically it's just a super sized high school. As to why they did it like that I don't know.

[mgkeith]

We moved here from out of state and are a laid-back family as well. Interesting that you mentioned that...we like Farmington Hills a lot, in that regard. We are down to our last child in the public schools, and have been very happy with them. The truth is, we find some of the communities you mentioned rather...starchy compared to what we were used to. Great schools, lovely homes, (teensy lots) but more status-conscious families; certainly not everyone, but your kids will definitely notice, if they aren't used to this sort of general mind-set. Perhaps this won't bother you; I guess it depends on your family. I wish you the very best of luck in your move! It's exciting, for sure.

[DTWflyer]

$550k is going to get into almost anywhere in Metro Detroit, all but some of the biggest/newest/gregarious properties in Birmingham, Bloomfield, and Novi. So budget isn't going to be an issue at all.

You're looking in the right places. Basically you are looking at places in Oakland County and/or Northwestern Wayne County.

Birmingham
Beverly Hills
Troy
West Bloomfield
Farmington Hills
Novi
Commerce Township
Plymouth

All of these are known for their good schools and all fit the area of reasonable commute.

The style of home/lot is going to factor into this.

And to the poster above, I agree it is surprising that these areas of Metro Detroit tend to be so status-conscious in comparison to the overall demographics of the region.

[vanbev]

Thank you! I was only up there a day to look and it seemed that the houses I looked at were all the same and not much back yard. ��

We live in an area right now that is a little status conscious and I would like to get away from that....not my thing.

I will look at the other areas listed. I love homes that have personality but I can't find them in the area we were told to look!

[snoopygirlmi]

I know I sound like a broken record to people who read my posts, but Plymouth Canton schools aren't that great. They are poorly managed and seem to be riding on their past reputation.

We moved here from a comparable district and we aren't impressed based on our experience.

PCCS comes off cold and distant and the elementary school we are assigned to feels like a prison. There just isn't a good way to make it sound like a place that I'd recommend to anyone moving to this area. I spend a lot of time watching what I say around other parents because they think that PCCS is the greatest thing ever and they plan to stay in the district until their kids graduate.

In the end, everyone is allowed to make their own choices about where they want to be.

A lot of people will tell you that PCCS has a lot of opportunities, but it comes at a cost.

From what I understand, competition to get into the high school sports programs are really fierce, so if your kid is just an average player, they probably aren't going to get a spot on a team. In 8th grade, high school placement ends up being picked by a lottery. Classes are held in all three buildings and students move between the buildings like a college campus. One of the supposed selling points is that "they try to keep the 9th graders" all in one building, but even that they can't guarantee. In the end, you either love the Park or you hate it. There is no in-between.

A lot of the changes are due to the fact that Plymouth isn't the "growth" area, but Canton is. The thing is that Canton doesn't have the infrastructure to deal with all of its traffic, nor are they committed to solving their problems. They want to be a 'rural area', but have all the traffic problems of a growing suburb.

We are looking to move to Ann Arbor or Northville because their school districts are on a more solid footing and can do the basics, like communicate to parents in a timely manner (and you can get a lot of specific and good information off of their websites - you aren't left frustrated).

When something goes wrong, everyone will be like, "well, it is Plymouth Canton, what do you expect?" There's just a real lack of confidence from the parents.

Do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. It's not an easy place to build community and you to put up with a lot of crazy for what they offer. I'd argue that the district is too big and they do themselves a disservice trying to offer everything to everyone.

Again, that's just our experience. Other people think they've hit the lottery by living here and going to PCCS.

Good luck making your decision.

[Arthur Digby Sellers]

I agree with your husband's co-workers that Northville is the best choice for the commute and schools. Good freeway access and one of the best school districts in the state. Novi, which is just north of Northville, would be a good consideration as well and would make for a slightly shorter commute to Birmingham and Southfield. Novi schools are on par with Northville. Novi is slightly less expensive per sq foot, but you'll probably find more homes with "personality" (i.e. older) in Northville.

Others will disagree, but I would steer clear of PCCS. Enrollment is declining in the district and they are going through some churn which include school closings. Interesting insights from SGM.

Farmington Hills is nice, but I have heard the schools are a bit of a mixed bag.

While Northville and Novi are affluent, they are not at all status conscious and have a pretty laid back attitude - at least in my experience. My family lives in one of the older subs in Novi which is populated with "smaller" (in comparison to the new builds in town) homes and have never felt a stigma. All of the status conscious burbs - Grosse Pointe and Birmingham, specifically - are on the east side of town.

Congrats on the move and best of luck to you and your family.