suburbs/ residential areas of GR (Grand Rapids, Wyoming: for sale, houses, neighborhoods) - Grand Rapids metro area - Michigan (MI) - City-Data Forum

rolltide324 · 03-23-2011, 06:53 PM

So... if you read my post from a few months back you know I'm relocating from ATL to GR. Well, the ATL house is sold and we are looking for a home in GR.

In our searching, we seem to be finding many of the houses we like in Wyoming, Byron Center, and Rockford. However, we keep hearing different things about each area. EGR is generally out of our price range. We would love something in the Forest Hills school district (as I hear it is one of the better ones) but there doesn't seem to be much inventory there.

We hear that Wyoming is an older, more industrial area and doesn't have great schools. We don't hear much about Byron Center except that it doesn't have really anything to offer. Rockford seems to be the best fit for us, but it is further out.

What can you guys tell me about Wyoming/ Byron Center? Are there " up and coming" residential areas that we may have missed? (Hudsonville and Greenville are out at this point.)

Thank you for your input!

beachmouse · 03-23-2011, 10:53 PM

Wyoming's big selling point as it developed as a city was that it was outside the GR city limits. And in the present day, it's got the same identity problems as many other inner ring suburbs- when your identity come from what you are not, you can be rather stuck when you have to turn around and define what you are. Byron Center schools got a black eye in the 90s over the whole Gerry Crane affair:

Gerry Crane Passes Away

I tend to group it in with the more insular CRC-dominated I-196 suburbs.

Rockford's got a nice mix of small town/traditional suburb development/rural areas, and the commute is still going to be easy 'that far out' compared to what you had in Atlanta.

And current residents want to chime in on Northview's current status and school quality? I had a number of friends and family who did well going through those schools, and there are some nice neighborhoods, but my info on the area is 10ish years old.

Jandur · 03-24-2011, 09:29 AM

Byron Center is sort of... blue collar, if that makes sense. This is a broad generalization but just about everyone I've known that grew up there drives pickups, likes country music and is a closet racist. If that's your scene, more power to you.

I would pick Rockford over either one of those areas in a heartbeat. I know plenty of people that commute from there and you can get anywhere in about 20-30min unless there is bad snow.

michigan83 · 03-24-2011, 10:27 AM

Have you considered the Lowell area? It is the next school district east of Forest Hills. There are some very nice hilly, wooded areas out that way, or subdivisions if that's what you want. You don't actually have to live as far east as the city of Lowell itself. The Forest Hills district ends just east of the village of Ada, and the Lowell district begins. So you can actually live just outside of Ada, but within the Lowell school district (not as expensive). Sort of a compromise between Forest Hills and more rural Lowell. IMO, it's an easier commute than coming down the East Beltline from Rockford, even if it is slightly farther, and it is one of the prettier spots in the GR area. Less congested than Rockford, and much more scenic than Byron Center or Wyoming. I think the schools are pretty solid.

I would also rank Caledonia ahead of Byron Center or Wyoming, and it's about the same distance from downtown as BC. It's pretty sprawly, but it's not as conservative as Byron Center, and there are some beautiful places if you know where to look.

magellan · 03-24-2011, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rolltide324

So... if you read my post from a few months back you know I'm relocating from ATL to GR. Well, the ATL house is sold and we are looking for a home in GR.

In our searching, we seem to be finding many of the houses we like in Wyoming, Byron Center, and Rockford. However, we keep hearing different things about each area. EGR is generally out of our price range. We would love something in the Forest Hills school district (as I hear it is one of the better ones) but there doesn't seem to be much inventory there.

We hear that Wyoming is an older, more industrial area and doesn't have great schools. We don't hear much about Byron Center except that it doesn't have really anything to offer. Rockford seems to be the best fit for us, but it is further out.

What can you guys tell me about Wyoming/ Byron Center? Are there " up and coming" residential areas that we may have missed? (Hudsonville and Greenville are out at this point.)

Thank you for your input!

Forest Hills is perfect, but that's why the inventory is so low. I swear a house in our neighborhood in FHE was only on the market for a week and sold (I haven't seen that happen in... uh ever). One down the street from it took about 5 months to sell, but they both sold within days of each other. I believe there's only one house now in our hood for sale (out of about 165).

What was your price range again?

Maybe the Southern end of Wyoming/Grandville schools? The other option we looked at a while ago was Belmont/Rockford Schools around West River Drive.

captaingr · 03-24-2011, 12:49 PM

There are a number of good schools found in Grand Rapids area. I would consider Rockford as having the best school of the places you list.

You might want to look at this web site. It lists the test scores for most Grand Rapids schools.

SchoolMatters

francishsu · 03-24-2011, 05:42 PM

Parts of Wyoming are in Grandville school district, which does have very good schools.

suydam · 03-27-2011, 06:13 PM

I'm surprised EGR is out of your price range but Rockford and Forest Hills aren't. Last I checked average home prices were fairly consistent in all three of those areas with wide variations from sub-$100k to $3M+ depending on what you want out of your house. A quick search of grar.com confirms this (that is best place to search for GR-area homes by far).

Anyway, to target your real question: If the decision is between Rockford and Byron Center, I would go to Rockford. That said, while Byron Center is rather insular in reputation, I think it's like any other former-exurb... the reputation is probably 15 years old and in that last 15 years it's gone from a church/farm/pickup-truck community to a suburb that still has the original set of people living there but 1,000s of new folks who don't care for the old reputation. Just a thought.

Regarding Forest Hills, it's tough in the best school districts to find homes for sale. You just have to stay on it. Personally, from my perspective Rockford, Forest Hills, EGR and Lowell are all worth a look.

rolltide324 · 03-28-2011, 07:49 PM

Thanks everyone. There are a few houses in Lowell I do want to see next week when I am there, and I'll be sure to take a more appreciative look of the area. Same goes for Caledonia. Byron Center doesn't sound like my cup of tea; however I am coming from Georgia (raised in small town Alabama) so pick up trucks and country music and close-mindedness aren't new to me. You can actually find that anywhere. Anyway, back to my point.

Suydam - the prices are similar, but the lots are small in EGR and to get what we want we would be paying more than we would for the same amount of space further out. My husband wants more of a rural area than we have now (epitome of suburbia) and while I'm not ready for a farmhouse it seems that we should probably be looking at the Lowell area. I've also found a few things in Alto... what is Alto like?

As for schools, we don't have to be in Forest Hills, we just want to be in a solid school district. One where parent input is welcomed, there is a good mix of activities for the kids, and the administration seems to be working well together. If there are other districts we should be looking in, please let me know.

thank you all for your input!!!

michigan83 · 03-29-2011, 04:26 AM

Quote:

I've also found a few things in Alto... what is Alto like?

I like the Alto area (Bowne Township) a lot. Just don't bother with the actual "village" of Alto (at Bancroft and 60th), which is kind of a weird little town that feels like it is stuck in the 1800's. I would probably avoid the village by a mile or so while you are searching.

There are some nice places out that way. The good thing about Alto is that it is pretty rural, but you are still in a solid school district. The northern Alto addresses will be in the Lowell school district, and the southern areas will be Caledonia schools. If you are somewhat close to Alden Nash Ave, the commute into town is very simple and easy. Not a single traffic light to deal with on the way to the freeway. If you get over to the west towards Whitneyville Ave, you will technically be closer to GR, but the commute can be a little more tricky (no good way to hop on the freeway). The drawback to Alto is that there basically is no town to speak of. You will probably end up driving to Cascade, Lowell, or Caledonia for groceries, etc. As a general rule, east of Alden Nash Ave can get very rural. West of Alden Nash is a little more scenic, but also more populated (still rural though). I would start by looking west of Alden Nash.

http://www.bownetwp.org/