How many people are moving to Grand Rapids- From out of state (Sterling Heights: relocation)

[magellan]

Originally Posted by 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.

I would actually agree to an extent. If you are looking at Grand Rapids to buy property and then just flip it, I wouldn't do it. It's not all that great for a community's longevity anyway. It only artificially raises home prices for people who actually are looking to invest/live in the home in the long term. That's one reason the country is in the mess it's in, and why Florida' housing market is in a free fall.

No flippers! Thanks!

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by magellan

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.

I don't graduate from college until 2009, but it couldn't hurt. I am still exploring other places to move(as well as other states). I guess my reasoning to exclude Michigan before was because I thought Michigan was a violent places with horrible racial tensions(which I know now that it is the eastern part of the state that is troubled). Then Atlanta,Ga started to get hit by a massive drought. There are rumors we may run out of water in the next year. Lake Lanier(which is really a reservoir), is at a low capacity now. I have always wanted to move out of Georgia for many reasons, but never considered MI as a state to live in. I started to look at Michigan as a possible relocation. I read up on GR and found it to be something special and unique in Michigan. How would GR be for someone who is a Geographic Information Science major? What kind of jobs could I get in GR?

[magellan]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

I don't graduate from college until 2009, but it couldn't hurt. I am still exploring other places to move(as well as other states). I guess my reasoning to exclude Michigan before was because I thought Michigan was a violent places with horrible racial tensions(which I know now that it is the eastern part of the state that is troubled). Then Atlanta,Ga started to get hit by a massive drought. There are rumors we may run out of water in the next year. Lake Lanier(which is really a reservoir), is at a low capacity now. I have always wanted to move out of Georgia for many reasons, but never considered MI as a state to live in. I started to look at Michigan as a possible relocation. I read up on GR and found it to be something special and unique in Michigan. How would GR be for someone who is a Geographic Information Science major? What kind of jobs could I get in GR?

There are a couple of different agencies that use GIS, including the City of Grand Rapids and Grand Valley Metro Council to name a few:

City of Grand Rapids - Information Technology and Government 2.0
Grand Valley Metropolitan Council

Plus, there are a number of planning and engineering firms where you could probably get in with that kind of degree. I certainly wouldn't rule GR out.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by magellan

There are a couple of different agencies that use GIS, including the City of Grand Rapids and Grand Valley Metro Council to name a few:

City of Grand Rapids - Information Technology and Government 2.0
Grand Valley Metropolitan Council

Plus, there are a number of planning and engineering firms where you could probably get in with that kind of degree. I certainly wouldn't rule GR out.

Thanks for the info. How is everyone else doing in GR?

[alluralisa]

I have to wonder if housing market is so bad, how it can be so difficult to find "the right" rental. With the amount of people "fleeing" MI you would think that desperate home owners would be listing homes left and right even if only to lease or rent.

I imagine that is not the case in the Grand Rapids area. We have found a few nice homes in nice areas, but they are entirely too pricey for a rental.

The moderate priced homes are too far out and the very reasonable are in the wrong areas.

This part is very frustrating.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by alluralisa

I have to wonder if housing market is so bad, how it can be so difficult to find "the right" rental. With the amount of people "fleeing" MI you would think that desperate home owners would be listing homes left and right even if only to lease or rent.

I imagine that is not the case in the Grand Rapids area. We have found a few nice homes in nice areas, but they are entirely too pricey for a rental.

The moderate priced homes are too far out and the very reasonable are in the wrong areas.

This part is very frustrating.

Another option, which a lot of parents do, is live in the city of GR in a nice affordable area, and then do School of Choice to a different district, or send their kids to a charter school.

A recent article about it (easy to register to see the article):
School choice rules eased - Latest News - The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com

The price ranges you mentioned are pretty low to get 3 - 4 bedrooms and 2 full baths. Any decent homes are going to be minimum $90 - $100,000, and that translates to at least $1000/month.

[blessings11]

we will be moving to the Grand Rapids area. Of course in California, that could be a long time coming!

[suydam]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

Thanks for the info. How is everyone else doing in GR?

My family, and most of our immediately friends, are doing quite well, thanks for asking.

If you're going to have a GIS degree, I imagine you'll really be able to live anywhere you want. That's a very portable degree (good choice!). I have a brother-in-law who does something classified with his, so make sure to check federal job boards too (that won't help here in GR, but just in general).

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by suydam

My family, and most of our immediately friends, are doing quite well, thanks for asking.

If you're going to have a GIS degree, I imagine you'll really be able to live anywhere you want. That's a very portable degree (good choice!). I have a brother-in-law who does something classified with his, so make sure to check federal job boards too (that won't help here in GR, but just in general).

You're welcome. I wonder what made Grand Rapids better off then eastern Michigan. I know Michigan was hit hard by the manufacturing bust, but I found that Grand Rapids is doing better than most parts of the state. Can you give more details about GR?

[alluralisa]

Yes I was having some sort of pipe dream when I was looking in that price range. I am not all that upset, I knew that I was most likely going to pay a bit more for something nicer.

You never know what will turn up though, I have found some people here and there who are willing to negotiate depending on lease terms, etc.

I'm staying optimistic! I have a couple of weeks before I have to full on commit to something.