Cedar Rapids, Iowa looks good! Recommend other good cities too.

[jds]

Cedar rapids is good place to raise a family and with iowa city close it makes it fun during the football season the iowa games are simply amazing but cr is a gr8 place for schools and for kids a pretty safe city for the most part!

[Stevie]

I agree that Cedar Rapids is a great city. Of course I often think of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City as one big metro area (even though there's a good 15-20 miles of rural area in between) as well as both of them are great cities. It's also one of the hilliest areas in Iowa (other than what’s near the Mississippi and Missouri rivers).

Yes, plenty of things to do in the area. There are shopping malls in Cedar Rapids (Westdale and Lindale are the largest), colleges (including Coe, Mount Mercy and in nearby Mount Vernon they have Cornell), sports, etc.

And if that's not enough then drive to Iowa City, which is only 20 minutes south. They have the Coral Ridge Mall (which used to be the biggest in Iowa before Des Moines opened Jordan Creek) and there's the University of Iowa, which is huge!

And there's even the Amana Colonies about 20 miles southwest of Cedar Rapids and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Iowa.

Also if you enjoy fishing and boating there's Coralville Lake, which is right in between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

Also in Iowa City they have outstanding hospitals: University of Iowa Hospitals And Clinics (one of the best in the nation), VA Medical Center and Mercy Hospital. There's also a Mercy Hospital in Cedar Rapids.

I rate the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City area a 10/10.

[Stevie]

Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home

Im not interested in sports. What I like is lots of shopping and I wouldnt mind some great restaurants. Some carnivals, festivals, amusement parks, clubs and other forms of entertainment would be great. Im trying to determine how much better Cedar Rapids is vs. Oil city to make it worth the fact houses cost twice as much!

Well, I wouldn't worry about how big the shopping malls are nor would I worry how many there are. As long as they have the things you really like, which could be clothes, jewelry, antiques, etc. or the casual shopping for things like DVDs, music CDs, Video Games, etc. It all depends on what you like. I myself am not much of a shopper and it's probably been a good 5 years since I've been to a mall of any sort or size. I prefer the casual shopping at discount stores, which usually suit my needs. But if you like lots of variety I wouldn't consider CR as a specifically great location for it. However, I certainly wouldn't say it lacks it either. And IA City has Coral Ridge Mall, which is one of the biggest in IA. I would say CR and IA City both have great amounts of shopping for cities their size.

Also, there are great restaurants. And we serve great food in them because IA processes some of the best food in the nation. My grandparents are down in Texas right now and they say the restaurants down there don't have that great food. I heard it has something to do with what they feed their livestock. Iowa uses much of its corn to feed livestock and apparently it makes the pork, or whatever meat, tastier. The Amana Colonies have GREAT restaurants. They're somewhat rustic but the food is excellent, very homemade.

As for housing in CR I would say it's in great shape. Not too rich, not too poor, just right. I don't find that much new housing development in CR to be very rich so it's probably easier to find a decent home. On the other hand, the suburbs of IA City are quite rich.

Yes, there is a lot of food manufacturing plants in CR that give out all kinds of different odors, but I don't think it's enough to ruin your day nor your decision to live there. And it's only bad during certain times of the year and in certain areas of the city. Don't let a few flaws like that affect your decision to live in a great city. We welcome you with open arms (as any Iowan would).

[Stevie]

Well, I have to be honest; there are no mountains in Iowa. In fact the only mountains you'll find in the Midwest are the Black Hills and the Ozarks.

But if you're looking for hills or even hills that you might think at first are mountains then I would strongly recommend anywhere along the Mississippi River between Dubuque and the Minnesota border. It is very pretty up there. Dubuque is a very nice town and it's growing fast in the surrounding areas.

Another very scenic place in Iowa is the Loess Hills. They run north and south within about (a wild guess) 10-20 miles of the Missouri River. They are very pretty and one thing that is neat about them is how quickly they cut off the flat farmland.

They're not the Rocky Mountains...but then again, what is?

[Chase2U]

I've lived in Cedar Rapids before.. And to be honest its not to bad of a city, but Des Moines is far better. The smells could make you a bit sick from time to time which is why they call it "The City of 5 Smells" rather than "the city of 5 seasons. And Ive seen some of the homes you have posted and beware in the winter time the cold wind and air could blow through those houses like you wouldnt beleave. If I were you looking in that price range I would check out the suburbs. If you dont mind a little country which most of us around here dont it would be a much better place to check out and you may get more for your money. With the cost of heating and cooling a good deal on an old home could give you monthley bills that would force you to an early grave. I know two people who just built a brand new home. Not a mogular, but it was pre built for the same price you looking at. It sits in Mitchelville which is not far outside Des Moines. And is actually pretty nice. As far as entertainment you would like Des Moines better for many many reasons. And the best way to discribe Iowa is there is something here and there, theres just nothing in between... So make sure you get into the right spot for you.

[Tek_Freek]

If crime stats are important take a look at West Des Moines...