Waterloo Area (Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City: appointed, rentals, crime)

[ERD055]

I have recently applied for a job in Waterloo & was wondering what the general area is like? I have only been their once & I don't know much about the area. Right now I currently live in the mid eastern part of South Dakota & don't really like it because its too uncivilized for me & not close to the amenities I'm used to, (I am originally from NE Wisconsin, which had everything you needed in a hop, skip & a jump) Hence why I think Iowa might be better fit being a bit closer to home, Is the cost of living high or low? I am 20 years old & enjoy sports, the outdoors, photography, History, & some others. I am not into partying & drinking as most people my age are so I am not looking for a place that has a high population of that as where I am now already has a high rate of that but then what place doesn't these days. Anyway any insight is appreciated.

[orthosophy]

Waterloo is its own animal. If you get the job, I would choose to live in CF or the "Cedarloo" area. You are young enough to put up with the occasional bullsheet...it's not really THAT bad, since UNI is small. In waterloo, the nicer areas are pockety, but tend to be the further south areas. I live in the West High neighborhood, which is fine, but you certainly do not want to sign a long-term lease until you see the neighborhood. To be honest, Waterloo may be a different kind of uncivilized. There will be girls (or guys) your age as well, so that's nice.

The area is nice if you can actively look for things to do...they don't usually come to you around here. We have some decent community activities...Fridayloo and the plethora of things to do in the summer will keep you busy, as long as you are remotely willing to look. We generally don't get huge bands or shows, but we have a few. We have gunshows, sportshows, rodeos, and the state football championships are held here in the UNIDome. We have A ball, Hockey, UNI is pretty decent in their athletics, and we have a decent park in the Hartman reserve. I don't know if you mean hunting when you say outdoors, but that isn't quite like western and southern Iowa. Here you need to know a person or two to get land to hunt; there isn't a ton of good, huntable public land. We have a small casino and CF and Waterloo both have decent down towns and malls. It's a nice cross between the small, western Iowa town I grew up in, and a large city, like Iowa City or Des Moines.

You are close enough to ames, Des Moines, Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, and even Minneapolis and Chicago to get most of the events you may want. It isn't like western Iowa for outdoors, though western Iowa has exactly 3 cities. It has your normal stores. It has decent trails (better in CF) and a museum or two; Waterloo and CF are both 150 year-old cities...they have history. We have an active geocaching community, so that may appeal to several of your interests at once. If you pm me, I can get you in contact with a co-worker of mine who is very into that.

Waterloo is diverse. If you do not like Blacks, Asians, or Serbians, don't move here. You can like one or the other, however, since they don't like each other, in general.


The cost of living is relatively low. Waterloo and CF seem to be nice places to try your hand and entrepreneurial endeavors as well...the people here are relatively open to new ideas and things.

[ERD055]

Thanks for the above response. I have been invited to interview for this job I applied for. So I am planning a trip to the area. I will have to take a good look at both Cedar Falls & Waterloo. Just wondering whats Waverly like? I see its a smaller sized community & a short commute from Waterloo. I am always open to new things & meeting new people. I had problems meeting new people where I am now as its not a young persons area as all the colleges are located far away. Anyone know of some sites that provide rental information? Google isnt helping me with my searches.

[orthosophy]

Waverly would not be for me, and this is why:

1. I actually had a job there and lived in CF for a while. The commute isn't bad, except when it's bad. We are spoiled here, but that 40 minutes a day adds up in time, and gas. That's a personal choice, though.
2. Waverly floods. Almost all of Waverly is a flood plain. Maybe it won't matter, and maybe it will be like 2008 when the entire town was under water. This area is a river area...it may be a good idea to check out prospective places when you come to make sure they aren't rice paddies or mosquito farms.

Waverly is also a college town with Wartburg, however, and if you don't mind the commute, it's not a bad little town. There are several smaller towns as well...hudson, di ke (the filer kills it), grundy Center, and some of our teachers even drive to independance. Any place you are considering, just ask this: Do I want to drive there during a snowstorm. This whole area may be a little tough for rentals, because rental property is in high demand. That means if you are planning on staying here for 10 years or more, and you can afford it, it may be cheaper to buy, even if you need a roommate.

[waloo67]

I am a eighteen year old senior who attends Waterloo High School and i have lived here for my whole life and have volenteered countless hours in this city. If anyone ever tries to tell you this city isnt fasinating, they ar'nt trying. The city has some great history, go down to the Grout museum or the Waterloo Public Library ( there might be some scarey looking people in there but they are harmless ) and you will learn boatloads of info. Also as others have noted before there is a great bike trail system that runs through the cedar valley. check out greenbelt or George Wyth. The area also has Lots of good resturaunts. I personally would recomend Paco's witch has the sistine chapel panted on the celieng by spay paint. Also we have good shopping, two malls, two targets ,two wal-marts. As for sports UNI has a great athletic program witch is usually ranked in football, wresling and occasionally basketball. heres a fun fact- did you know that waterloo once had a proffessional basketball team. Ok now that i have told you the perks of waterloo, i now have to tell you that waterloo has a reputation for being a little belligerent. the east side can be rough and so can the area around west 3rd street. In 2012 we had 6 homicides and a little over 600 assults and around 600 burgleries according to the waterloocedarfalls curiour. check out there crime map. also waterloo has a problem with aboandon buildings but they are in my opinion kinda cool. Waterloo does have a huge minority population. 15 % black 6 % hispanic about 10 % bosnian (witch is not a bad thing.) The city isnt really that bad. It grows on you. In my opinion i think cedar falls is snotty same with hudson and waverly. They absolutely demoralize waterloo. I think you will love it here. Enjoy what this city has to offer. You might be pleasently suprised

[orthosophy]

I thing waloo is totally right. Cedar Falls and surround towns DO tend to look down on Waterloo, and unjustly, since there are areas in Waterloo that are as nice as anything anywhere else. I would add that I don't know if its the east side so much as it is the north side you want to look out for. If I can generalize, the closer you get to the river and north of the river, you want to stay in good with your neighbors, as a general rule. And I totally forgot George Wyth and the trails.

[ERD055]

After a short 2 day stay in the area I am very impressed what both communities have, although I was disappointed in the Shopping malls a bit, Cedar Falls looked like it was on its last leg for development & Waterloo lacked the traffic & seemed like it was missing a few stores.I wasn't able to drive around in many neighborhoods but was able to get some locals to point me in the right direction & one said I should be happy in either city. The main work location is located on the east side of the river by East High School. I also found out my work location could also at times be in Cedar Rapids, Dubuque or Freeport IL so I am not sure If I get the job if I will still consider the Cedarloo area or venture a little eastward down hwy 20 to be within an hour of Rapids & DBQ.

[orthosophy]

Cedar Falls is developing more out near the new Walmart/Target/Sheel's on Hway 58. Did you check that out?

If you are working both places, you may want to consider Independence or even Manchester. We have a few people commute from Independence and they only have problems in the wintery blizzardy stuff.

All I can tell you about Manchester is that nearly every woman I've ever met from their is insane. Seriously. I dated one from Manchester when I lived in Des Moines. Not only was her family crazy, but the unrelated people (not even friends of hers) were also off by more-than-one. I'm pretty sure she actually considered shanking me once or twice, and we got along just fine.

Anecdotal, but there you go

[ERD055]

I regret to say I wasn't selected for the Job, So I wont be relocating to the area. Thanks for the information you were able to provide, it was helpful in a way.