How many people are moving to Grand Rapids- From out of state (Ann Arbor: sales, 2011)

[alluralisa]

My family is relocating to GR from Texas. I'm just curious to see how many posters are going our way.

L

[readytojet!]

i would say the amount of people moving to Michigan is pretty low compared to the people moving away. The mood here is pretty gloomy these days.

[Mare0528]

Hey I just posted that we are relocating there next year! Hi neighbor

[alluralisa]

Hello Mare!

Where are you moving from?

L

[Mare0528]

We're moving from PA

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by alluralisa

My family is relocating to GR from Texas. I'm just curious to see how many posters are going our way.

L

How does Grand Rapids look? From what I have heard, GR is doing better than most parts of the state(with the exception of Ann Arbor).

[magellan]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

How does Grand Rapids look? From what I have heard, GR is doing better than most parts of the state(with the exception of Ann Arbor).

GR is doing better than Ann Arbor as far as employment and population growth, which is unfortunate. AA is a great town.

It just came out today that home sales in Grand Rapids were up 20% more in Dec. 07 then Dec. 06. New homes are still in the crapper.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by magellan

GR is doing better than Ann Arbor as far as employment and population growth, which is unfortunate. AA is a great town.

It just came out today that home sales in Grand Rapids were up 20% more in Dec. 07 then Dec. 06. New homes are still in the crapper.

Would it be a good investment to move to GR?

[magellan]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

Would it be a good investment to move to GR?

I think it would depend on circumstances. I don't think there are very many areas left in the country where you could go in and buy, then sell anytime before 2010 or 2011 and make a profit. Grand Rapids is no different. But if you want to start a business or have a job lined up in Grand Rapids, it's a great area with a long history of modest sustained population and job growth. Not a hot area, but also doesn't see the big swings up and down.

It's economy is completely different than the East side of the State. It was settled by a completely different group of people than much of Michigan, so its main industries are totally different. It never was a big auto area, although there are naturally quite a few auto suppliers still around. Not as many as there were in the 90's, but there are some. The ones that have survived mainly have patented technology and dominate their market segment. It seems to be pretty varied in industry, with office furniture, health sciences, retailers (Meijer, Spartan Stores and GFS are headquartered here), and financial services all having a piece of the employment pie. As manufacturing employment has contracted, service jobs in healthcare and financial services have been pretty hot.

Honestly, if I were to move here, I'd rent a house or condo for about a year and see how 2008 goes. Get to know the area and see where you spend most of your off-work time and what commutes are like. Some areas the home prices are going down quite a bit, while others are holding steady or even going up. Since new construction is not going well, existing homes are heating up again. There are some deals to be had but it takes a lot of research to pick the right areas and the right properties.

[underpantsnome]

I would not buy anything in Michigan unless you can pack it in a truck and move it south or west.
Michigan realestate is going to go down so bad it is not funny.
People can not give homes away in Michigan right now.
You may come across one or 2 people who post here that they sold and did it in record time or made money but they either 1 are not telling the truth or 2 are the "one in a million,excption to the rule"

There are so many places you can go to invest. I will not give out any ideas because I am kicking it around. but there are places in the south you can buy and renovate and flip in a few weeks.
This is not every where. but any place is better than Michigan.
Some places in the south think that a boom time in Michigan is a housing bubble popping in their area.