[mindbodysynergy]

Good Evening,

I'm new to the forum and I'm because I'm looking into the possibility of relocating my family to Northern Michigan. My husband and I have vacationed in Traverse City/Petoskey/Mackinaw for close to 20 years together (he much longer with his family) and we just love the way things seem to be up there. It's a slower pace, cleaner air, quieter. Just all-around beautiful!!!

We're currently live in Holland but I commute to Grand Rapids for school. I have to say, I'm not fond of the hustle/bustle of Grand Rapids. It's just too busy. Even Holland is getting to be crazy-busy for our tastes.

My husband is an LPN and I will be completing school for Massage Therapy in February and then looking for work. We have 7 children ages 14 down to 4. We currently homeschool, but if the schools are decent, it would be wonderful to have the kids back in school.

We don't necessarily have our hearts set on one particular area, just something north of Ludington, west of I-75 and south of the bridge. We would likely put our house on the market in the spring and look for a place to lease/rent for a while to get settled. My husband may even move ahead of us if he can secure a good job and then look for a place to move all of us to.

If anyone has any suggestions, we're open to anything you might wish to offer.

Cheers!
Dana

[beadster]

I really wish you would reconsider your thinking. I would suggest renting a summer home, not living up there. Marquette and Traverse City would be the best places to go, as they are the biggest economic areas, in northern michigan. But neither offer much in the way of jobs. Its very weak up there, and very miserable. You would be moving your family into hopelessness, to avoid the city life. Why not move to Grand Haven, or somewhere small, but still near grand rapids, and jobs

[scolls]

Saying anything negative about northern Michigan on here is likely going to bring me grief, but I'll do it anyways since I have experience.

In short, I had a horrible experience in northern Michigan. Grew up in Detroit, bounced between Detroit public and private schools. In 99, my parents had enough and did not want to send me to Detroit Public High School (Denby). My dad was getting set to retire from Ford's so the family decided against my wishes to move north. We ended up in Roscommon, about 12 miles north of Houghton Lake. The people are rude. The cute little town where everybody supposedly knows everybody and are so friendly is false. They greeted us upon arriving, but as soon as we said we were from Detroit, we literally did not see them again. They live 100 yards away and we would not recognize them if we saw them at the store. The people we meet in town are rude. My first week in Roscommon I was at the local gift shop and the woman working there accused me of stealing. (I was not stealing. She thought my wallet was something I stuck in my pocket)

Within my first week of high school, i was offered pot and prescription pills. (Never exposed to drugs while in Detroit) After 3 weeks, I had my bicyle stolen the first time I forgot to lock it up. The next summer, we bought a patio set, and within two weeks, someone managed to make off with a patio table, 4 chairs, and an umbrella over a chain link fence. When I got my first car, I installed a CD player (No loud system) and the first weekend that was stolen. Finally, just a year ago, someone busted my mom's window on here car and stole her GPS. Between all these incidents, we called the police on three seperate occasions when the neighbor across the street from us, is out on her lawn screaming for help while some man is yelling "I will kill you *****" The worst part is, the police station is less than two blocks away and it takes 20 minutes to get over there. I finally gave up calling the police when the woman refuses to leave this man. This is all relevant because in 10 years, we've had to call the police 7 times. In my 14 previous years in the city of Detroit, we called the police zero times and had zero things stolen, or damaged.

If you look at crime rates, most of these communities have double the crime rate of a lot of suburbs. I don't know how many times my school was on lock down while the drug sniffing dogs came in and how many kids were taken out of class in handcuffs. The amount of sexual predators is ridiculous to. Roscommon averages 54 resdients per sex offender. That's the worst I have ever seen. Highland Park isn't even that bad. Roscommon has more predators than Harper Woods with a 10th of the population.

The lovely downtown is lined with vacant buildings (Ala Detroit) An entire block in downtown is vacant. There are 4 vacant houses on my parents block. (there are 7 houses total) Most all towns are like this. From Houghton Lake, to Grayling, to Kalkaska etc.

There is nothing to do for kids. Most kids at my school chose to do drugs to pass time. We spent most of our time finding places in the middle of the woods were the cops couldn't get us. There is nothing for young people. The economy is horrible.

The doctors are horrible. My parents have to go to Traverse City just for competent health care. They have to go there just for a shopping other than Walmart. My parents are sick of it and are trying to dump their house, but the one behind their's sold for six thousand. Their stuck.

If you're still reading this, at least Traverse City isn't as horrible as the rest of Northern Michigan. They have competant doctors and some form of shopping. My parents got fooled into thinking northern Michigan is a great place to raise a family because of their weekend trips to the area. It's great to vacation to, but I'd think twice about living here.

[scolls]

Originally Posted by beadster

I really wish you would reconsider your thinking. I would suggest renting a summer home, not living up there. Marquette and Traverse City would be the best places to go, as they are the biggest economic areas, in northern michigan. But neither offer much in the way of jobs. Its very weak up there, and very miserable. You would be moving your family into hopelessness, to avoid the city life. Why not move to Grand Haven, or somewhere small, but still near grand rapids, and jobs

You summed up my thoughts so beautifully.

[Northman]

Originally Posted by mindbodysynergy

My husband is an LPN and I will be completing school for Massage Therapy in February and then looking for work. We have 7 children ages 14 down to 4.

Did I read this right? SEVEN kids?

.....and you want to live in northern Michigan on an LPN's salary?

I hope massage therapy pays a LOT.

You must have a bundle of money put away to even be thinking about doing this. I hope so, because jobs up north are scarce, even in Traverse City and Petoskey, and the pay is much lower than in the bigger cities.

Come to think of it, how are you even getting by in Grand Rapids with 7 kids and an LPN's income???

[michigan83]

In short, I had a horrible experience in northern Michigan. Grew up in Detroit, bounced between Detroit public and private schools. In 99, my parents had enough and did not want to send me to Detroit Public High School (Denby). My dad was getting set to retire from Ford's so the family decided against my wishes to move north. We ended up in Roscommon, about 12 miles north of Houghton Lake.

Not sure what that has to do with Traverse City/Petoskey.

[Peter B]

Exactly! Roscommon & the areas near it are Ground Zero for white trash & inbreeding. Traverse City is a beautiful place to live but as said earlier, there is NOT an abundance of jobs. As is mentioned on this forum ad nauseum, if you are in healthcare or the legal field, with a little legwork, you can make a nice living up here. I would not move up here with a large mortgage or without a few grand in the bank. That being said, to each his own. Also, crime is basically non-existent in Traverse City except when folks get intoxicated and crash their vehicles, fistfight at a local dive bar (Brady's & Dillingers come to mind)or the Northern Express runs a story about a man growing some medical marijuana and almost the entire police force is mobilized to confiscate a couple of plants

Originally Posted by michigan83

Not sure what that has to do with Traverse City/Petoskey.

[scolls]

Originally Posted by michigan83

Not sure what that has to do with Traverse City/Petoskey.

Its called telling a story. I was explaining my situation. I love how people think Traverse City is so much better. Crime rates are lower, but if you enjoy trying to make a living off a part time Walmart job, then by all means move there. Munson is a good hospital. Its got that going for it.

[deslok]

LOL, leave it to a Michigan forum where people are judging people about having too many kids. I say if you can find a job and it pays the bills, go for it. Western Michigan isn't for everyone.

[Northman]

Originally Posted by deslok

LOL, leave it to a Michigan forum where people are judging people about having too many kids. I say if you can find a job and it pays the bills, go for it. Western Michigan isn't for everyone.

What are you talking about? They can have 27 kids for all I care. I was asking how they expect to support them on an LPN's salary - which is far less than an RN's - in northern Michigan, where jobs are scarce and pay is low. The OP said she was just getting out of school, so she doesn't have a job at all. I hate to break it to her, but massage therapy isn't exactly a booming enterprise in these parts.

Hey, I hope they pull it off and all their dreams come true! It just doesn't sound like they have much to go on to me. It's hard to raise one or two kids in these economic times, let alone seven on one middle class income.