Battle of Milwaukee Burbs - Brookfield vs. Cedarburg (Waukesha, New Berlin: real estate, renting)

[securitysix]

We will be locating to the Milwaukee area soon. We have visited the Brookfield area and it seemed pretty nice. Our real estate agent has also pointed us toward Cedarburg, but we haven't had a chance to drive up that way yet. We did drive around Mequon, and it seemed nice, but expensive.

We're looking for a 4 bedroom, in the $300k to $350k range. We are your typical white middle class suburbanites. We have two small children that will be going to school soon, so public schools are very important. Along with good public schools a safe area is essential. I'll be working in downtown Milwaukee, and would like to keep my commute to 30 minutes or so (one-way).

Any suggestions on which suburb would be better for us? Any suggestions on other suburbs to look at?

Thanks.

[mikki]

Both suburbs you mentioned are nice, but most likely you will be looking at buying an older (20 yr or more) home in that price range in those areas (I could be wrong..check it out!). Otherwise you could definitely get a very nice, newer home in that range in the City of Waukesha. All these areas have good schools. In fact, in my opinion, all of the schools (with the exception of some MPS schools) in SE WI are excellent. Other nice subsurbs are Franklin which is south of the city, and New Berlin, which is south and east of Waukesha and Brookfield. Good luck to you in your transition!

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by securitysix

We will be locating to the Milwaukee area soon. We have visited the Brookfield area and it seemed pretty nice. Our real estate agent has also pointed us toward Cedarburg, but we haven't had a chance to drive up that way yet. We did drive around Mequon, and it seemed nice, but expensive.

We're looking for a 4 bedroom, in the $300k to $350k range. We are your typical white middle class suburbanites. We have two small children that will be going to school soon, so public schools are very important. Along with good public schools a safe area is essential. I'll be working in downtown Milwaukee, and would like to keep my commute to 30 minutes or so (one-way).

Any suggestions on which suburb would be better for us? Any suggestions on other suburbs to look at?

Thanks.

I think, even with the high cost of homes in many Milwaukee suburbs and the very high property taxes, you could get a pretty darn nice house in almost any Milwaukee suburb - Brookfield and Cedarburg included - in the $300K - $350K range.

If you are heck-bent on either one...in your situation...I would probably say you might be more interested in Brookfield. It is closer geographically to Milwaukee, so your commute to downtown MKE would be shorter (although it will be congested if you are driving in rush hour). You'll have a congested commute from Cedarburg too though, so either way you'd be shorter coming from Brookfield.

Also...Brookfield is much more close to mainstream shopping, restaurants, etc.

Cedarburg is very nice though too. Extremely nice actually. It is just a little more isolated and farther out. Although many people actually would prefer that about Cedarburg. It also has a very unique, colonial style of architecture and a nice little downtown area.

I think if you are looking for a nice suburb near a big area in terms of ammeneties (restaurants, theaters, big league sports, your job, etc.) you'd want to go Brookfield. If you are looking more for a farther-out, isolated suburb still somewhat reasonably close to Milwaukee, Cedarburg would be a nice option too.

Both are safe and both have good schools.

Other suburbs you may wish to consider would be Pewaukee, Delafield, etc. - a little west of Brookfield, also very nice, or Menomonee Falls (northwest of Milwaukee) or Shorewood/Whitefish Bay/Fox Point (excellent Northshore suburbs near the lake). All are within 30 minutes of downtown MKE.

[daydreamer28]

I don't know how people feel about Grafton, but my husband just got a job in Cedarburg and for now we are renting in Grafton. I have friends that looked at a house in Grafton that was $400k and they said it was new and nice. We are going to try and feel things out before we buy, but I have heard wonderful things about Cedarburg.

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by daydreamer28

I don't know how people feel about Grafton, but my husband just got a job in Cedarburg and for now we are renting in Grafton. I have friends that looked at a house in Grafton that was $400k and they said it was new and nice. We are going to try and feel things out before we buy, but I have heard wonderful things about Cedarburg.

Grafton is nice too. While there is nothing in the world wrong with Cedarburg - it is a great little town - I would actually personally prefer Grafton just for location and a bit more close to "urban" life, but it just depends what you are looking for.

Either way, I don't think you could go wrong with either.

[daydreamer28]

Originally Posted by EnjoyEP

Grafton is nice too. While there is nothing in the world wrong with Cedarburg - it is a great little town - I would actually personally prefer Grafton just for location and a bit more close to "urban" life, but it just depends what you are looking for.

Either way, I don't think you could go wrong with either.

I have visited both Cedarburg and Grafton and I love what Grafton has to offer, but no one has said anything about their school system. I am hoping to enroll our daughter in the Cedarburg Preschool, I have heard very good things about their schools. It seems like you are just minutes away from anything you would need so that is the nice part.

[RNye]

Grafton is a very safe and quite community right next door to Cedarburg. I currently live in Grafton, and attended middle and high school their. I feel that I have a very sound education because the majority of the teachers are friendly and helpful. Plus, the high school only has about 850 students. Futhermore, 300K-350K will get you a brand new house in Grafton with 4 Bedrooms if you choose to build in one of the new subdivisions. If shopping is your thing, then Bookfield is a good choice since they have all the malls and restaurants. However, Grafton does have your basic shopping and is building up very quickly. Brookfield Grafton Cedarburg, your commute will be 20-25 minutes just going in different directions. Grafton (Village) and Cedarburg are very family oriented with sidewalks and parks. Your neighbors will probably ring your doorbell and bring you cookies. Brookfield on the other hand has a commerical feel and is very bussy especially around 5:00PM. (Corporate Parks)
I hope you find what you are looking for, we Wisconsinities are very friendly.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4196/is_20050623/ai_n14678876 (broken link)
(Link To Ranking of High School)