Moving to MN; Need advice on 'burbs (Minneapolis, Minnetonka: neighborhood, suburbs)

[Wellstone]

keep in mind that 20 minutes during off peak traffic is nothing like what it is during rush hour, you would know that coming from chicago. but don't assume our traffic here doesn't suck either because it does. i don't live in the southwest but i'm pretty sure the traffic is bad there too.

i'd say maple grove is much more diverse than chanhassen though. stay away from the republican districts like chanhassen. hennepin and ramsey counties are the best bet, and maple grove is in hennepin county.

[golfgal]

General Mills is in Golden Valley which changes things slightly since you don't actually have to drive into Downtown-makes the commute shorter. I would still go with Maple Grove given the information you provided about what you want. You won't find as much diversity in the suburbs of the TC's as you will where you are at, but you won't run into any problems either.

Chanhassen is generally an older population-not as many young families. Maple Grove has a much higher concentration of young families. The commute will be somewhat easier from Maple Grove too.

[ET_MTB]

I will chime in here as we moved our family from NY (Westchester County) to Maple Grove almost 2 years ago. My wife is Dominican and she does miss here NY hair salon but Maple Grove has been a great place to live. We are still renting (still hesitant to buy a house quite yet) and we have found some diversity in the building where we live. There has been some good experiences of friendly neighbors. On Halloween my daughter's best friend in 1st grade ask her to come to her neighborhood and trick-or-treat. The neighborhood is full of really nice houses. I brought her over along with my 3 year old daughter. We were invited in and waited until about 10 other kids showed up with 5 other parents. We walked along together and the kids went together as a group. Every house we stopped at every one new each other and joked around. I never met these people before but they welcomed us like we lived there. It was a good experience and I would consider getting a house in that neighborhood. Seems like really great neighbors to have.

[MSMCGirl]

On a side note (sorta) I DO think there is a "snob" factor in Minneapolis. Having moved from L.A., I was so surprised when I moved to Minneapolis and found so many snobby attitudes about towns here. I had NO clue where or what Eden Prairie was when I moved here...or Chanhassan...or Edina. Yet people from those areas were SHOCKED that I hadn't heard of them, since they were so "fabulous". I know people from Edina who call themselves "cake eaters". Really? A $400,000 home makes you a "cake eater"? Where I come from, that makes you house POOR (unfortunately). My friend lives in Brooklyn Center and I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say to her "oh I'm so sorry you live in Brooklyn Center!" So condescending! Yes, there are snobs in L.A. but I've NEVER heard anyone say "Oh, I'm sorry you live in Inglewood". I guess most of my friends in L.A. were happy for anyone to be able to own a home....whether in Beverly Hills OR Compton.

[uptown_urbanist]

Ha, MSMCGirl, when I first started reading I thought you were going to say that there was a snob factor in that people from Minneapolis or St. Paul made comments about how sorry they were when people said they were living in Eden Prairie!

I think there is a lot of snobbery on the housing front in the Twin Cities, and admittedly it goes both ways. I know a lot of people inside of city limits who look down on all suburbs, despite working in them, shopping in them, eating in them, and basically doing everything except sleep (and really, what's the difference between a neighborhood like Armatage and the adjacent Edina neighborhood just across the city border?). It's not like things change the moment you step over city limits. That said, I prefer a more urban neighborhood myself, but try to avoid looking at things in terms of city name alone. There are some neighborhoods in the suburbs that are more walkable and have better public transportation than do some city neighborhoods.

In general I think there's far less overt snobbery in the Twin Cities than in many cities, but I agree that it does come out in housing choices here than in other places. I think you're right that home affordability is a big part of that; we lived in LA, too, and recently while debating whether or not we could/would move back there, I was browsing housing prices and was thrilled to see that housing prices had come down so much that a small home in need of work in a marginal neighborhood with "bad" schools were "only" in the $300s! (bargain prices compared to just a couple of years ago) In the Twin Cities middle class people can buy houses practically anywhere, and at a much younger age. There's also a greater stigma against renting in the TC than it is in places with higher housing prices. I've heard a lot of snobby comments about renters and their perceived faults from people who should really know better. Maybe the human nature of snobbery comes out in housing in MN because in general it's not all that socially acceptable in MN to be flashy with money.

[MSMCGirl]

uptown urbanist - you captured it well. I think I was so surprised by the snobbery ("I'm SO sorry you live there") because I didn't expect it from Minnesotans - because they are mostly humble, practical people (not to stereotype...and I mean it as a compliment)! But I noticed it pretty soon after I moved and still do to this day. I agree it goes the same way with people who live in the city and mock those in the suburbs. It's just funny to me that L.A (L.A.!) would be LESS snobby about towns/neighborhoods than people in Minnesota. And homes in the least desirable areas of L.A. go for WAY more than the average cost of a home in Edina or Eden Prairie. And yes, there IS a stigma here about apartment living - another thing I found out fast. Wow...in L.A. unless you have two incomes that pay decent you are a renter. Granted, it's a little easier right now to buy a house out there, still most of my single friends who are making in the $80k-$100k range or so in L.A. cannot afford a home on their own (at least not one they'd want to live in). Of course, LA is overall a more expensive town - gas is more, insurance is more, etc etc. I genuinely LOVE Minneapolis and Minnesota and would never go back to L.A., I just have to chuckle when I see the snobbery coming out! I think a lot of this snobbery would be quickly humbled if they sold there Minnesota suburb homes and moved to L.A. or NYC! Their $400k aint gonna go far.

[MN55]

Least snobby town - White Bear Lake

[Robert98]

Would Maple Grove or Chanhassen fit the bill in these aspects? It probably would have been a good idea for me to mention all this before! , please bear with me!

My husband said it only took him 20 minutes to get to Chanhassen (he works for Gen Mills). I will be out there this week to continue house hunting. Thank you all for your comments and help![/quote]

I used to live in Chan and found it is not as far from things as people think. And the people there were a lot more friendly than where I am now in the DT area.

[Mommy2Emy]

Originally Posted by Robert98

Would Maple Grove or Chanhassen fit the bill in these aspects? It probably would have been a good idea for me to mention all this before! , please bear with me!

My husband said it only took him 20 minutes to get to Chanhassen (he works for Gen Mills). I will be out there this week to continue house hunting. Thank you all for your comments and help!

I used to live in Chan and found it is not as far from things as people think. And the people there were a lot more friendly than where I am now in the DT area.[/quote]

I'm glad to hear this since we have decided on Chanhanssen. Fell in love with the area and also the nearby town of Excelsior was really charming. I liked that it was pretty close to Eden Prairie as well for shopping.

I didn't think the drive from Gen Mills to Chan was far either. So far everything about the area is looking good. Thank you!

[mmhl]

I think Maple Grove is probably the least snobby but it is such a zoo of retail and malls, it makes me crazy driving around there. You might find a little (and I do mean a little) diversity in Plymouth, especially northern plymouth, but the schools don't rank as high there as the schools in the Wayzata district. Eden Prairie might have a little bit too. Minnesota unfortunately has little diversity in the suburbs, so many people are Scandinavian going back several generations.

What I normally see is the neighborhoods anywhere with the bigger, more expensive houses ($450 & up) typically have parents who both work. Neighborhoods that are slightly more modest tend to have more stay at home moms.