Michigan negativity? (Detroit, Grand Rapids, Wyoming: homeowners insurance, gated, vacation)

[Sonnenwende]

Originally Posted by mary_in_michigan

Here, it's slower, nicer, people seem more easy-going.

Something I found interesting was how a good percentage of people attempted to say hello to us in passing out on the street or on the trails or even start some small blah conversation when we were riding around western Michigan. I very rarely have that happen in Indiana and certainally had no expectation for it in Michigan. Neither my husband or I found the people to be really rude or too impersonal at all. Just some random first impressions.

[selfunemployed]

Based on this forum so far, it appears Michigan sucks big time.
Personally I feel if you are a home owner and havent got out yet, it's too late.

The first sign a while back was the growing number of people in the lotto line...you know the type
- pick up truck
- baseball cap
- mustache
- nascar jacket
- buys "basic" brand cigarettes to save 25 cents then buys $25 worth of scratch offs and a 40 ounce budweiser.
- complains about the michigan economy, but voted for granholm AGAIN, because his union said so...then blames bush for the economy because he/she cant see beyond michigan's borders that the national economy is doing good.

I'm 43, been self employed for 20 years. bought a house on the water 7 years ago in a small town between detroit and port huron, then whammo! business dies this last year. Nobody is buying jack! (accept lotto tickets and budweiser)

Here I am after owning a successful business for 7 years forced to sell it and find new work. Sold it just for enough (to an out-of-state buyer) to prevent the foreclosure sheriff's sale that was to take place on my front lawn in 10 days. Now I'm looking for a manufacturers rep line of products to sell with out-of-state territories.
Sure I'd move but I have 2 step kids that have a really nice father that works with one of the "big 3" and we cant yank them away from him, he'd be devastated. Of course as soon as they close his ford plant, he'll be out of michigan in a flash. Plus my lakefront home in my remote community is now worth about $100,000 less than it should be.

I can do without the change of seasons too. Michigan winters age you. I age 10 years over the winter. From boating and scuba in the summers to eating and tv in the winter...I add 15 lbs, and get that nice waxy opaque skin thing going on. If I live never to see snow again...just fine. I mean 20 degrees below zero? that's insane!
This "I like the change of seasons" stuff people say...the seasons are
1. 2 months of sun/warm temps and rain with foilage (july/aug)
2. 4 months of no sun/cold temps, dead trees, gray skies rain/drizzle/mud (sep-dec)
3. 3 months of no sun/cold temps, dead trees, gray skies snow/freezing rain/drizzle/mud (jan-mar)
4. 3 months of no sun/cold temps, dead trees, gray skies snow/rain/freezing rain/drizzle/mud (apr-jun)

Earlier in this thread, dmoney posted:
Highest unemployment
most job losses
highest forecloser rate
biggest drop in housing prices
Lowest job placement of resent college grads
highest vacantcies for commercial property
highest poverty rate (detroit)
net population loss

I'll add -
- Highest number of anti-depressants prescribed
- Ranked as one of the fattest states in nation
- for every 4 people that move to michigan, 5 leave

Recent Detroit News Article
"The Detroit News reports that the number of homes under foreclosure in Michigan doubled from 2004 to 2006 to a rate that is 2 1/2 times the national average. According to foreclosure.com, Michigan had 8,240 homes in active foreclosure on Monday, 8.6% of that nationwide total of 96,019. Our population is only 3.4% of the national average. "
Now that's an old article.
Go to http://www.foreclosure.com/
and currently Michigan's current number is over 11,000, while florida is at only 1600!

Another site (crude but funny): http://www.cafepress.com/michiganfnsucks

But...that's only my opinion!

[magellan]

1) By the second quarter of 2006, Colorado led the nation in foreclosures. Followed by Florida, Georgia, Texas, Utah, Indiana, Nevada, Illinois.....Michigan was #8. There is definitely a NATIONAL problem with people overextending themselves financially that is not reserved only for Michigan

2) Real estate prices have dropped much more dramatically in Southern Florida, California, and Northeastern States like Mass. than they did in Michigan in 2006. Much of the job growth in the U.S., especially in the Southern states, has been directly tied to their housing industries. Watch what happens when the national housing bubble deflates (bursts). Bye bye Michigan as the poster child for job losses.

3) Poverty is much more widespread in the South than in Michigan:

http://www.censusscope.org/us/map_poverty.html
(you'll have to manually copy this to your URL, but it's worth a look)

Gee, could it be the low paying wages that Toyota, Nissan and the other transplants are so eager to exploit?

4) Michigan is a world powerhouse both in technology and in brain power compared to 90% of the rest of the country. The shakeup of the automakers was very much needed and a long time coming. I got out of automotive supplies 6 years ago because I could see the writing on the walls of Lear, Magna and GM. Only the idiots stood and watched the train run them over.

Is Michigan doing great? Of course not. Will Michigan come out of this better than ever? I'm willing to take the chance and see. If you're the kind of person who likes to move every 2 years trying to find the next best real estate flipping market: Michigan ain't it. Looking to plant your roots, raise a family, start a business that's not automotive related, get involved in the community, not deal with rude people everyday: Welcome!

By the way selfemployed, I am a hobby photographer, and I can tell you there is foliage on the trees from May through late October. Sounds like you need to take up some winter activities (snow shoeing, cross-country skiing, walking).

Peace and loving it on the West Side.

[paintballer1708]

I look at it this way. There are three states in this nation that get bad raps all the time. Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Now i do have to say that Pennsylvania and Ohio are really starting to rebound and their economies are doing pretty well. Their population growths are getting better and better every year, and their unemployment rates are right about the national average.

But these three states really shouldnt get a bad rap. Why? Because they pump trillions into the American economy every year. They are home to huge American corporations, which other states wish they could have. We are also home to a large portion of the American population. All three states are in the 10 most populated. Pennsylvania having 12.4 million, Ohio 11.5 million, and Michigan 10 million. We are home to some of America's greatest cities, yes including Detroit. Sometimes it would be nice to see these three states get annexed by Canada, and then this country would truly see how important these states are to America, and the history we have made on this nation. We truly have the most friendly people in the nation IMHO. When im driving through my development here people wave to me on the sidewalk, and other drivers will as well. Now during the morning rush it is not so nice, but i will tell you the people here are extremely polite. I go to Florida to visit my wife's family, and the people down there are so rude. Horrible drivers, and could careless if they make you have a bad day.

I noticed earlier about people moving to Florida from Michigan. Well Florida is truly overrated. Most of my wife's family is looking to move out. My wife is originally from West Palm Beach and the problems down in Florida seem to go beyond Michigan's. My brother-in-law just got a job near Columbus, and they love the suburb they are living in. Hilliard, Ohio. The schools are so much better there than Florida, and my nieces and nephews are getting a much better education. My wife's sister is looking to move to Tennessee, and her other sister is also looking to move around Columbus or Cleveland.

Every year i head to Florida the problems just seem to get worse. From abandoned highrises in downtown West Palm due to hurricane damage from over two years ago, to abandoned houses in some of the most exclusive areas of the city. The population growth is getting terrible, and on this site i see more and more Floridians looking to move to either Pennsylvania, Ohio or Tennessee. I remember in the Tennessee forum there was a thread titled "Yet another Floridian headed to TN." There are many from Florida posting in the Ohio and PA forums wanting to move to these states as well. I think in a few years the population trend will change in Florida as more are looking to move out. Hurricanes are really hurting things down there. Yes, they have great beaches, very nice cities, and some very nice recreational areas. But hurricanes are really hurting things, Miami is really starting to become like a 3rd world country, you must know spanish or you will get no where, crime and drugs run the streets like crazy, and the schools are ranked 49th in the nation.

Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania are prooving to this nation what great states they are. Like i said, population trends in Ohio and Pennsylvania have been picking up steadily over the past three years, it was depressing to see Michigan actually declined in the last census. But Michigan truly has one of the best scenic views of any other state in the nation. The great lakes and the beaches. The blue waters of lake Michigan and Superior are like spots in the Carribean. Michigan has so much to offer, and its a shame that many people dont want to see that due to its sluggish economy or even worse due to Detroit.

[Wabbit]

Paintballer,

Great post, I agree with everything you said.
I don’t think there is any doubt that the Great Lakes are
the most under ‘exploited/utilized’ natural wonders in
the country.
A great article that highlights this can be found here:.
Michigan negativity?
It’s about three guys from the Boston Globe who want to
‘get back to nature’ and are (initially) depressed that
all they can only afford is Michigan. They go none the less are
stunned by what they find: Here’s a snippet.


On our final day, we drove west of Traverse City to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. When we climbed the ridge to one of several lookout points, the three of us were stunned. Laid out before us were magnificent sand dunes rising as much as 450 feet above Lake Michigan's shoreline. The view was surreal: part tropical, part Saharan, part heaven. Below was a pristine white sand beach with the aqua-colored water of the Caribbean. People were running and sliding down the dunes all the way to the water, though the climb back up was not for the faint of heart.
I looked at my travel partners and said for about the 10th time: "This can't be Michigan."
We drove south to a small town called Empire, where Barry and I took a refreshing swim in the lake. With waves and current and a seemingly endless shoreline, the only thing that convinced us we were not in the ocean was the absence of salt in the water.
We only scratched the surface in our five days, but as Paul Simon once wrote, "Michigan seems like a dream to me now."

This should be what people think of when you mention Michigan.

[WazzuCoop21]

Originally Posted by jetsjoe

What is with all of the Michigan negativity on here? Yeah, the state has it's problems. And it is most definently NOT the only one. But what good does it do you people to spend your time on the internet complaning about it?

How about A) be more positive about something OR B) go live in another state with "problems". Go try the prices, traffic, population problems of SoCal, NYC, South Florida, CT, ect. ???

I've lived in MI for 2 years now and originally being from WA, I had never heard anything good about this state. I always heard it was miserably cold and the economy was crap. Well, I've been pleasantly surprised while living in the Kalamazoo area the past 2 years going to graduate school. It's such a beautiful state, there are lakes and beaches within a short drive from anywhere, and the economy is only bad in towns like Flint and some of the more heavily manufacturing areas that have been downsized. But all in all I think MI has gotten an undeserved negative reputation. Look on the bright side: If people realized what it was really like living here, you'd start to see all the good things about MI disappear (affordable living, cheap housing, trees). You oughtta keep it quiet. Just my 2 cents.

[WazzuCoop21]

Originally Posted by Wabbit

On our final day, we drove west of Traverse City to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. When we climbed the ridge to one of several lookout points, the three of us were stunned. Laid out before us were magnificent sand dunes rising as much as 450 feet above Lake Michigan's shoreline. The view was surreal: part tropical, part Saharan, part heaven. Below was a pristine white sand beach with the aqua-colored water of the Caribbean. People were running and sliding down the dunes all the way to the water, though the climb back up was not for the faint of heart.
I looked at my travel partners and said for about the 10th time: "This can't be Michigan."
We drove south to a small town called Empire, where Barry and I took a refreshing swim in the lake. With waves and current and a seemingly endless shoreline, the only thing that convinced us we were not in the ocean was the absence of salt in the water.
We only scratched the surface in our five days, but as Paul Simon once wrote, "Michigan seems like a dream to me now."

This should be what people think of when you mention Michigan.

I had an almost identical experience when I first came. When I thought of the great lakes, I NEVER thought of beautiful white-sand beaches. All the beaches I'd ever been to were cold, rocky, and salt water (WA & OR coast). I was absolutely stunned the first time I went to South Haven and when I made it up to Mackinac Island this summer, it blew me away. This state is a complete oddity to those outside of the midwest. When I returned back to my home state of WA for the first time and was describing the beaches, I got a lot of "yeah right" looks, because everybody has a pre-concieved idea of what the Great Lakes are and let me tell you, it's definitely not of nice beaches.

[mary_in_michigan]

Selfunemployed? Might be a good idea to buy a liquor store, lol!

[tasdad4701]

Me and my wife have lived here our entire live's.
She has a bachelors in elementary ed and I am a
heavy equipment operator. We have a new born son and a
new house. We have suddenly came to the conclusion that we
can pay our bills but that is it. She can not get into a public school to
save her life. My job has good pay but high benefit co-pays.
We are putting our house up for rent, and moving to Florida, she can get a job in 5 minutes, that pays 100% of the benefits. I can get a job just as fast,
this was a tough desision, we wanted our son to grow up here and like we did. Our parents are from the auto era and have retired and are doing great.
We thought that education and hard work would give us a similer outcome.
But it has not, we do not want to wait until it is to late. We have to rent out our house because the housing market is horrible.
We pray we are doing what is best for our son, I am just tired of having to
watch every penny we spend. If my wife wants a new pair of jeans she should just go buy them, just getting by sucks. We just want to have the life
our parents did, not rich just secure.

[Wabbit]

tasdad4701,
I read your post and sincerely feel for you.
No one can deny that it's a tough time for
Michigan right now and if you've found a
place where you can better meet your
family's needs, no one can blame you for
leaving. Hopfully, unlike some people on
this forum, you'll always have a warm spot
in your heart for Michigan and come back to
visit us. You sound like a good guy and I'm
sure someone's going to miss ya.
Good Luck!