Grand Rapids Area - relocating?!! (Forest Hills, Rockford: home, public school, tornado)

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Love the Rocky Mountains

One last thing, do you really have a lot of tornadoes? Thanks!

No, we don't have a lot of tornadoes. I've seen some rough thunderstorms with straight-line winds, but we're just outside of "tornado alley":



There was a tornado that hit the Southern Lansing area the other day, and destroyed something like 12 homes.

WOODTV.com & WOOD TV8 - Grand Rapids news, weather, sports and video - 12 homes destroyed in Eaton County

It's nothing like the tornadoes that you see that hit Texas, Oklahoma City, Florida, etc.. where they are a mile wide and F5 winds.

Floods? If you're referring to all the floods that CNN is obsessing about lately, they're not happening here in Michigan.

Hope that helps!


P.S. We live in the Forest Hills area and really like it.

[M TYPE X]

Originally Posted by magellan

No, we don't have a lot of tornadoes. I've seen some rough thunderstorms with straight-line winds, but we're just outside of "tornado alley":



There was a tornado that hit the Southern Lansing area the other day, and destroyed something like 12 homes.

WOODTV.com & WOOD TV8 - Grand Rapids news, weather, sports and video - 12 homes destroyed in Eaton County

It's nothing like the tornadoes that you see that hit Texas, Oklahoma City, Florida, etc.. where they are a mile wide and F5 winds.

Floods? If you're referring to all the floods that CNN is obsessing about lately, they're not happening here in Michigan.

Hope that helps!


P.S. We live in the Forest Hills area and really like it.

That's funny, because Chicago and lower Michigan got really hit with this last line of storms. We got dark clouds (ooooh) in midstate Illinois. I heard the tornado sirens on the other end of the phone, talking with my parents in Detroit suburbia on Friday night.

When I was living in Akron, I thought there were a lot of storms, compared to SE Michigan.

[TaxBait]

You don't say what your plans are, but I'd rent first. That gives you time to really explore the area and see if the job works out.

I don't know specifically about the economics of renting vs buying in the Springs, but if it's anything like Denver you might be assuming buying is cheaper. That was certainly the case when I got transfered to Lockheed Martin in 94 (Martin Marietta at the time). I didn't even want to be a home owner but I couldn't afford a decent rental.

Here in Michigan renting is usually cheaper than buying. If you bought a typical house in a best case scenario with 20% down and 6% mortgage, you still probably can't get enough in rent to cover the mortgage, taxes, insurance, and potential interest not realized on the down payment. And prices are not going up so there's no incentive to buy now. Bide your time and wait for the right deal.

And you can find private rentals here with land. Unlike Colorado where development is far more dependent on public water and sewer, you can put in a private well and septic system just about anywhere in Michigan. That means lots of sem-rural home/land units available.

[CaseyAnnWMU]

I currently live in downtown G-Rap, but was raised here and went K-12 at East Grand Rapids. hands down the best education you will get in the area. It's a social nightmare because there is a hefty portion of kids that are rich and drive their Jeeps 2 blocks from home to school once you hit HS. But once I went to college I was NEVER more thankful to have come from EGR. Because of good grades and AP classes, I already had a semester knocked out when I hit Western Michigan University, and I placed into many upper level courses and tested out of a lot of Gen Eds. I cannot tell you how much my education meant to me. East can be expensive, so some other excellent areas are Forest Hills, Jenison, and Grandville. The last 2 are 20 to 30 minutes out of G-Rap itself, but the schools are good there too.

[mom_of2_in_mi]

My family and I will be moving to the Grand Rapids area for his job soon. We are coming from the Jackson area (YUCK, not the best place to live it seems) and this area seems far more advanced as far as schools. My husband and I both grew up in small towns so we are looking for smallish towns with good schools for our kids (elementary and middle). In the little research I have done, this area seems the best. However, we will have to rent for now and trying to find this seems a bit hard without living in an apartment, which we would prefer not to because of the kids. Any suggestions on towns? We fell in love with Rockford but rentals seem scarce.

From the sounds of it, Forest Hills, Jenison and Grandville....any others to consider? How is E Grand Rapids? My oldest (boy) is not into sports and in a small town like where we are, he is considered "odd." Any help there???

Thanks!!!

[suydam]

Originally Posted by mom_of2_in_mi

From the sounds of it, Forest Hills, Jenison and Grandville....any others to consider? How is E Grand Rapids? My oldest (boy) is not into sports and in a small town like where we are, he is considered "odd." Any help there???

Thanks!!!

Do you have time to visit FH, Jenison, Grandvile and EGR before you make the move?

I'm sure all 4 districts would welcome potential relocators and give them a tour of the schools, town, etc.

From a schools perspective, you've picked 4 quality districts.

You should also examine Rockford. It's a small town about 15-20 minutes north of downtown GR. It has great schools as well.

Of the districts you've listed, EGR and FH are the most affluent and hence the most expensive to move into. Some people would say they're the best too (highest meap scores, highest ACT scores, etc.) but you really should check all of them out and see what the best fit is for your family. Like I said, all four of the districts you listed have good schools.

You might also want to check out Caledonia. Good schools, rural/suburbia feel similar to Forest Hills 20 years ago (I'm told).

[DreamGrantor]

I am so Glad I found this site..I just registered! I am planning on moving to Grand Rapids prob in the next 6 months...have to tie up my business here. I am a Realtor and also a Mortgage Broker...so very super busy here in Seattle. Market here has not been hit like rest of US and MI. I was born in MI , my father moved us here to Seattle when we were in Grade School and I have always wanted to move back there...so now I am..and I cant Wait. Seattle is a Nightmare. Too many people...Too high cost of Living..people are rude...traffic is a nightmare....way to Liberal if you ask me...Anyway..I have spent last 2 summers in Grand Rapids...looking around and getting the feel of the City. It is really improving..in a Positive Direction....Art Musuem....The Medical Facilities..the Focus on Science...The focus on Medicine...and the Citys Committment to Green Building and Transit is so Impressive. Coming From Seattle...I am VERY Impressed By the Vision that the leaders of Grand Rapids have created. Housing is very well priced and from the people I met...they were all very friendly and helpful. Typical for MidWesterners. My Husband was in Shock when he saw Lake MI for the first time. It is so beautiful. Does anyone on this site have any input for me as to where exactly the "Bad" areas are in Grand Rapids...since being a Realtor myself....I know the Realtors there...cannot legally answer my questions on this. I have examined the Crime Rates there for the Last Few Years...and have personally driven through several neighborhoods...EastTown seemed cool...Heritage Hills was Gorgeous..and Ottawa Hills was Just Beautiful. If anyone knows where exactly..the so called bad areas are...let me know. I have checked out East GR and that was super great area also...Coming from a City where the Average Priced Fixer Upper/Dump is about 350 to 370,000....GR house prices are so nice. Thanks for All Replies. Its Hard to Relocate on your Own..and Realtors are not really Personally helpful. They just find you a house...(I will of course be diff when I end up there) I love helping people ReLocate..as I used to do Relocations for Microsoft workers..when I worked for Microsoft...preceeding my career in Real Estate and Mortgage! I will ck for replies Monday or you can email me personally at bbonafair@hotmail.com /Thanks everyone on this site.Your Posts have been very informative and helpful to me ~ BethB

[suydam]

Originally Posted by DreamGrantor

I am so Glad I found this site..I just registered! I am planning on moving to Grand Rapids prob in the next 6 months...have to tie up my business here. I am a Realtor and also a Mortgage Broker...so very super busy here in Seattle. Market here has not been hit like rest of US and MI. I was born in MI , my father moved us here to Seattle when we were in Grade School and I have always wanted to move back there...so now I am..and I cant Wait. Seattle is a Nightmare. Too many people...Too high cost of Living..people are rude...traffic is a nightmare....way to Liberal if you ask me...Anyway..I have spent last 2 summers in Grand Rapids...looking around and getting the feel of the City. It is really improving..in a Positive Direction....Art Musuem....The Medical Facilities..the Focus on Science...The focus on Medicine...and the Citys Committment to Green Building and Transit is so Impressive. Coming From Seattle...I am VERY Impressed By the Vision that the leaders of Grand Rapids have created. Housing is very well priced and from the people I met...they were all very friendly and helpful. Typical for MidWesterners. My Husband was in Shock when he saw Lake MI for the first time. It is so beautiful. Does anyone on this site have any input for me as to where exactly the "Bad" areas are in Grand Rapids...since being a Realtor myself....I know the Realtors there...cannot legally answer my questions on this. I have examined the Crime Rates there for the Last Few Years...and have personally driven through several neighborhoods...EastTown seemed cool...Heritage Hills was Gorgeous..and Ottawa Hills was Just Beautiful. If anyone knows where exactly..the so called bad areas are...let me know. I have checked out East GR and that was super great area also...Coming from a City where the Average Priced Fixer Upper/Dump is about 350 to 370,000....GR house prices are so nice. Thanks for All Replies. Its Hard to Relocate on your Own..and Realtors are not really Personally helpful. They just find you a house...(I will of course be diff when I end up there) I love helping people ReLocate..as I used to do Relocations for Microsoft workers..when I worked for Microsoft...preceeding my career in Real Estate and Mortgage! I will ck for replies Monday or you can email me personally at bbonafair@hotmail.com /Thanks everyone on this site.Your Posts have been very informative and helpful to me ~ BethB

Rather than tell you the bad areas, why don't you tell us what you're looking for? It's easier to tell you things about the good areas than come on here and bash certain neighborhoods (which isn't fair).

[magellan]

Originally Posted by DreamGrantor

I am so Glad I found this site..I just registered! I am planning on moving to Grand Rapids prob in the next 6 months...have to tie up my business here. I am a Realtor and also a Mortgage Broker...so very super busy here in Seattle. Market here has not been hit like rest of US and MI. I was born in MI , my father moved us here to Seattle when we were in Grade School and I have always wanted to move back there...so now I am..and I cant Wait. Seattle is a Nightmare. Too many people...Too high cost of Living..people are rude...traffic is a nightmare....way to Liberal if you ask me...Anyway..I have spent last 2 summers in Grand Rapids...looking around and getting the feel of the City. It is really improving..in a Positive Direction....Art Musuem....The Medical Facilities..the Focus on Science...The focus on Medicine...and the Citys Committment to Green Building and Transit is so Impressive. Coming From Seattle...I am VERY Impressed By the Vision that the leaders of Grand Rapids have created. Housing is very well priced and from the people I met...they were all very friendly and helpful. Typical for MidWesterners. My Husband was in Shock when he saw Lake MI for the first time. It is so beautiful. Does anyone on this site have any input for me as to where exactly the "Bad" areas are in Grand Rapids...since being a Realtor myself....I know the Realtors there...cannot legally answer my questions on this. I have examined the Crime Rates there for the Last Few Years...and have personally driven through several neighborhoods...EastTown seemed cool...Heritage Hills was Gorgeous..and Ottawa Hills was Just Beautiful. If anyone knows where exactly..the so called bad areas are...let me know. I have checked out East GR and that was super great area also...Coming from a City where the Average Priced Fixer Upper/Dump is about 350 to 370,000....GR house prices are so nice. Thanks for All Replies. Its Hard to Relocate on your Own..and Realtors are not really Personally helpful. They just find you a house...(I will of course be diff when I end up there) I love helping people ReLocate..as I used to do Relocations for Microsoft workers..when I worked for Microsoft...preceeding my career in Real Estate and Mortgage! I will ck for replies Monday or you can email me personally at bbonafair@hotmail.com /Thanks everyone on this site.Your Posts have been very informative and helpful to me ~ BethB

Welcome BethB! Suydam is right that even the "worst" areas have neighborhood associations and organizations that are fighting hard to take back the areas from gangs and violence, and it does them no good to undermine their efforts on here. If you want info on specific neighborhoods, send me a DM. The ones you listed are all good places to start.

[magellan]

Beautiful sunsets over Grand Rapids last night and tonight!