Texas to Minnesota (Minneapolis, St. Paul, Apple Valley: property taxes, health insurance, travel)

[Dustin D]

Hi everyone! I currently reside in Houston but I am ready to leave Texas. I am thinking about heading to Minneapolis or St. Paul, MN. Can anyone fill me in as what the job market is like in the Twin Cities? In Texas the oil industry is big business. What fields in Minneapolis provide the most jobs? Also, from what I understand, the cost of living in the Twin Cities is not that expensive. Can anyone confirm this for me? Thank you...

[Minnehahapolitan]

Generally speaking, Mpls. has a pretty stable and diversified economy. It doesn't boom, and it rerely busts. There are only three other cities with more Fortune 500 corporations. What field were you looking into?
The cost of living is pretty good. It isn't cheap, but very bearable. The average housing unit is about $230,000. You can get a respectable bungalow for around that in a good neighborhood. There is no sales tax on food and clothing, but property taxes will be higher than you are used to.

[Mark_22]

I would echo what Minnehahapolitan said. The economy is very diversified, and there isn't one dominant industry that I can think of. Fortune 500 companies with headquarters here that I can name off the top of my head include General Mills, 3M, Best Buy, Target, United Health, Travelers, Medtronic, Ecolab, and Northwest Airlines (albeit not for long). I know there are others. So this list represents foodstuffs, manufacturing, retail, health insurance, property casualty insurance, medical devices, and transportation.

[prymel]

We just moved from San Antonio to MN last year. One correction I'd make to what has already been said is that property taxes are not as high in MN as they are in TX. Prop. taxes in TX are stifling, due to the lack of state income tax.

[Dustin Daniel]

Originally Posted by prymel

We just moved from San Antonio to MN last year. One correction I'd make to what has already been said is that property taxes are not as high in MN as they are in TX. Prop. taxes in TX are stifling, due to the lack of state income tax.

Prymel how did u adjust to the cold of Minnesota coming from the lone Star State?

[rerooting]

Have to admit I have MN native friends in Rockwall TX that love it. Here's the scoop on the western Mpls suburbs / MN thoughts from a native:
1. Winter may be a shock. MN is exceptionally beautiful, the four seasons are extremely different, the issue most of us have is that the winter / snow season can be late Oct-March, it gets long. There are many days of sun, that keep us from killing each other.
2. Housing costs- shockingly high compared to TX, my 450K 2600 sq foot house in a way, way out suburb is not nearly as nice as my friends 350K house in Rockwall TX.
3. The state is more democratic than republican, so if that is a big deal...but people are respectful overall and tolerable both ways.
4. Lots of large companies hq here....from Cargill to Best Buy, to Target. The job opportunities are solidly good in Mpls St Paul area compared to many cities across the US.

It's a great place to live, just dang dang cold.

[Gruffalo]

I recently moved from Texas to Apple Valley. I grew up in the Northeast, so this part of the country is a lot more to my liking than Texas was. I just couldn't stand the heat and humidity. Although I have zero regrets about the move, it is a lot more expensive to live here. An apples to apples comparison of housing between Houston and Minneapolis is pretty hard because of the age difference of the average housing stock. For what you get for your money though, I would have to say the housing in Minneapolis is twice as expensive as Houston. 230k in Minneapolis is going to get you about a 1500 square foot, 80 year old house in decent shape, but pretty much functionally obsolete. For the same money in Houston you'd get a brand new 2300 square foot house with granite, whirlpool tubs, closets the size of the bedrooms in the Minneapolis house, etc.

I haven't figured out the best place for groceries yet, but Rainbow is about 30% more expesive than HEB and the selection and quality is not as good.

It depends what you like and what you're looking for, but there is a very short list of places that I would consider moving to from here. I would make triple my current salary in the oil industry in Houston right now, but there's more to life than money.

[golfgal]

Housing in the south is over less expensive then it is in the north. With the upgrades on the windows, insulation, basements, etc. you are going to pay more. We had a friend move to MN from Atlanta several years ago and was shocked at the housing prices here. He contacted his builder in Atlanta to see if he could build him a house here for what he did in Atlanta. The builder said "sure, but it would fall apart in about 5 years". . You have to build a house here for -50° and 110° and that is what makes them more expensive.

[Bongopercylou]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Housing in the south is over less expensive then [sic] it is in the north. With the upgrades on the windows, insulation, basements, etc. you are going to pay more. We had a friend move to MN from Atlanta several years ago and was shocked at the housing prices here. He contacted his builder in Atlanta to see if he could build him a house here for what he did in Atlanta. The builder said "sure, but it would fall apart in about 5 years". . You have to build a house here for -50° and 110° and that is what makes them more expensive.

This is an interesting hypothesis. I would imagine that the price of homes in PARTS OF the South also have to do with perhaps less expensive labor, population numbers and general standard of living. But is the South really less expensive overall? I understand areas of TX and GA are less expensive than here. But, if you look at other areas where there is warm weather (parts of AZ, NV, CO, and pretty much the entire state of CA) homes are much more expensive than they are in MN or other cold climates. Based on the 2002 boom article here: 'Homes 55% more expensive in south' : In2perspective - confirms my thought that it has VERY LITTLE to do with materials used.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by Bongopercylou

This is an interesting hypothesis. I would imagine that the price of homes in PARTS OF the South also have to do with perhaps less expensive labor, population numbers and general standard of living. But is the South really less expensive overall? I understand areas of TX and GA are less expensive than here. But, if you look at other areas where there is warm weather (parts of AZ, NV, CO, and pretty much the entire state of CA) homes are much more expensive than they are in MN or other cold climates. Based on the 2002 boom article here: 'Homes 55% more expensive in south' : In2perspective - confirms my thought that it has VERY LITTLE to do with materials used.

Did you even READ that article? That is based in the UK, not exactly applicable in the US. California is in the WEST, AZ, etc is SW, Texas, etc is SOUTH, Florida is SE if you want to get technical.