Possible move to Grand Rapids, areas to consider.

[MIcouple]

Hudsonville is another place I'd consider looking if I were you. The advantage to this area is that you would be able to buy a newer (if not brand new) home in your price range and you'd be close to Lake Michigan as well as downtown GR. Lake Michigan (via Holland or Grand Haven) is a place you could take your son to and enjoy a nice summer day.

Grandville is an area that offers a similar feel - but with a mini downtown area (I'm talking very mini, sort of town center) that has a couple places to eat and a hair salon. Grandville also houses the big mall on the west side of town and LOTS of restaurants. There is a place called Millenium Park in Grandville that a lot of families visit in the summertime - it is very family friendly.

If you were going to send you son to either school system, however, I'd recommend Hudsonville. It's a little bit smaller and more personable, a child can feel left out in a school as big as Grandville.

To get an idea of homes in your price range all over the GR area, your best bet is to look on grar.com and search, then when you find something you like come back on here and ask for advice!

Once you get to the grar.com homepage select 'residential property search' on the left hand side. From that point you can search however you want. You might want to try 'search by property types' first and then choose 'residentail single family' and then the zip codes for Hudsonville and Grandville are 49426 and 49418. To find other zip codes of other cities that others have suggested you could easily google them.

[Grace101]

A friend of mine may be relocating to the Grand Rapids area. From what I have researched so far, Forest Hills is the best school district. What I am wondering is what is the median home price? I see a lot from $189 to $220's. This would be the price range for them. I see homes that are zoned for Forest Hills that are located in Grand Rapids Township. What is this area like? They are in their 30s with 2 kids under 5. Looking for a family friendly town, love being outdoors. Looking for good schools, safe area but affordable. He will be commuting to downtown Grand Rapids, so commute is also concern. Thank you to anyone who can help!

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Grace101

A friend of mine may be relocating to the Grand Rapids area. From what I have researched so far, Forest Hills is the best school district. What I am wondering is what is the median home price? I see a lot from $189 to $220's. This would be the price range for them. I see homes that are zoned for Forest Hills that are located in Grand Rapids Township. What is this area like? They are in their 30s with 2 kids under 5. Looking for a family friendly town, love being outdoors. Looking for good schools, safe area but affordable. He will be commuting to downtown Grand Rapids, so commute is also concern. Thank you to anyone who can help!

We live in Grand Rapids Township and have 3 kids in Forest Hills Eastern schools. I'd dare say it's almost perfect, except that the bike path system doesn't go past our neighborhood (yet). Once it does, it will connect with about 20 miles of continuous bike trails. But you can cover about 1.5 miles of walking/running/biking in just our neighborhood alone. Our (fairly new) hood has about 125 families now (180 total when finished I think), 75% of which I'd say have Elementary-aged kids. I commute to downtown GR in about 12 minutes. If you want more specific info on particular neighborhoods or the area, shoot me a message.

[Grace101]

Thanks for the positive feedback. What are the property tax/millage rates like in Grand Rapids Township compared with Ada, Cascade? Do you kow what the neighborhoods are like near E Fulton St, west of Forest Hills ave?
What price range is average for a nice house in good/safe neighborhood?

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Grace101

Thanks for the positive feedback. What are the property tax/millage rates like in Grand Rapids Township compared with Ada, Cascade? Do you kow what the neighborhoods are like near E Fulton St, west of Forest Hills ave?
What price range is average for a nice house in good/safe neighborhood?

Virtually the same, about 25 or 26 mills. I think you're talking about the area around Collins Elementary. I think it's pretty nice. Pretty convenient to everything.

[Moore&co]

I'd like to put in a plug for the Georgetown Twp/Hudsonville Jenison area on the West side of town. My wife and I always assumed that we would stay in the SE\Cascade area but found a great deal (I'm in the RE development business so I never can pass up a good deal) when I was out with my son on father's day 3 years ago. The neighborhood that we found and eventually purchased in was next to some commercial property I was looking at. The area has a 140 acre lake, is within 20 minutes of the airport (very important for my wife as she travels each week) and the schools are awesome with the lowest taxes in the metro area. All of the homes in our area are also very different as a number of young builders build for themselves and live in them before they sell. Properties range in price from $250k to $800k and I can't say enough good things about all the good things anyone would want in a neighborhood. There are also several areas of very nice homes in the $190k to $250k very close by. We had a choice between Hudsonville and Jenison schools when we moved there and we chose Jenison. We are very pleased with everything about our experience with Jenison and have friends that feel exactly the same way about Hudsonville so you can't go wrong. The area is really growing also and we love that we can have the boat in the water in Holland in 30 minute and Grand Haven in 45. To be honest, I never would have guessed that we would live in this area but now I can't ever see why we would leave...
Moderator cut: advertising is not allowed

[suydam]

Grace, perhaps you've already looked here (as it's next-door to Forest Hills) but I think you should check out East Grand Rapids as well.

It's got a completely different vibe than Forest Hills as far as homes, lots, sub-divisions, shopping, etc. but also has the top-notch schools you observed in Forest Hills. From EGR you'd have a shorter (distance) commute to downtown GR, but with the freeway, many parts of Forest Hills are just as close time-wise (depends heavily on where you live I suppose...the eastern reaches of Ada can be a bit of a haul for my taste).

Generally you'll find two things to be common between Forest Hills and EGR: People move there for the schools. After that, the similarities end. Both are outstanding choices and you'd likely get a feel about which you prefer without much work.

Forest Hills has newer, bigger homes in big subdivisions, bigger lots, more shopping strips and the Grand River (which is great for birdwatching and canoeing, as well as power-boating and fishing if you're in one of the wider/deeper areas) and low taxes.

EGR has old homes, sidewalked streets, a 283 acre lake, a little downtown and high taxes.

Forest Hills has 4 high schools (3 "regular" and 1 "alternative"), a transition center, 3 5/6 schools, 3 middle schools and 8 elementary schools. With a district that large you get more diverse academic programs and electives. EGR has 1 high school, 1 middle school and 3 elementary schools. With the small school district, your kids will supposedly get more personal attention throughout their entire academic career. As far as test-scores and college-placement, the two districts are very similar. I think it comes down (again) to personal preference.

Despite the taxes, we picked EGR. Some of our best friends picked Forest Hills. It's really a matter of preference, but if you're after great schools I'd start with those two districts.

[Grace101]

Thanks for the input from everyone. I have to say I am encouraged by all the positives you talk about. They are also considering Helena, MT. But what I find there is not nearly as appealing as the Grand Rapids area. As far as your weather and seasons are, can you give me some detail? Do winters go into the spring time? They are coming from west Nebraska, so understand winters and cold. However, each area is different. Thanks again!

[suydam]

Originally Posted by Grace101

Thanks for the input from everyone. I have to say I am encouraged by all the positives you talk about. They are also considering Helena, MT. But what I find there is not nearly as appealing as the Grand Rapids area. As far as your weather and seasons are, can you give me some detail? Do winters go into the spring time? They are coming from west Nebraska, so understand winters and cold. However, each area is different. Thanks again!

I would recommend you use a weather almanac to form a conclusion about weather.

The reason is, your answers will vary wildly based on people's personal opinions.... and the condition of the season we just finished.

Example: This past winter was the all-time snowiest winter in the history of Grand Rapids. You're likely to get comments like "WINTER NEVER ENDS!!!"

Three or Four years ago (I've forgotten which) we had an abnormally warm winter. Those years people will tell you how over-hyped Michigan winters are.

The facts:

• We get anywhere from 50-100" of snow in Grand Rapids most years.
• It's not terribly cold here. Minnesota, the Dakotas, Montana, etc. are much colder during the winter.
• It snows once or twice in November, frequently in December, January and February, a few times in March and sometimes once or twice in early April.
• Don't plant tomatoes until June 1st. They hate temps under 40 at night and we have a few nights like that through May.
• Most years we have at least one frost warning in May where nighttime temps dip down to that 32ish range.
• It's cloudier here in the winter than most parts of the country

My observations:

• The snow comes primarily in small doses. Friends that have moved here from other places are somewhat depressed to find a fresh 2-3" on their driveways every morning for days on end. Friends from Boston noted that our storms are less severe but that they had more trouble keeping their driveway clear in G.R. because shoveling became what seemed like a daily chore.
• Because our average temps in the winter are about 30 degrees, we end up with at few big thaws during the winter. This is my biggest annoyance truth be told. All the great snow melts and we're left looking like dreary brown Indiana/Ohio for a few weeks each winter. Thankfully the lake-effect usually replenishes enough snow to cover the grass. If given a choice, I'd pick 30 and snowy over 35 and brown any day.
• Summers are nice here. It rarely gets over 90 (a few days a year), the humidity is nothing compared to most parts of the country, it's sunny enough to enjoy the beaches.
• Beaches here are incredible. Partly because they're used less than other parts of the country (7 months of "too cold to swim", 2 months of "probably too cold to swim" and 3 months of "probably warm enough to swim"), partly because they're fresh water, and partly because West Michigan has literally 100s of miles of uninterrupted sand beaches.

[Grace101]

The info you gave helps a lot. Thanks!