Hawley MN info please (Minneapolis, Moorhead: middle-class, for sale, renting)

[snowlandcook]

We are moving to the Fargo/Moorhead area next month (new job). We have been looking at homes (to buy) but have not found what we want. We are now thinking about renting for a year or so and then building our dream home. (My spouse is in the building industry and we've built before--never quite our "dream home" though.)

We just started looking at property (at homeshq.com) and have seen some gorgeous lots with rolling hills and trees in Hawley. Looks like a new development going in. Lots were in the $35,000 range.

Can someone tell me how the local Hawley folks feel about new developments? I don't want to be treated like an "intruder," if you know what I mean.

Also, what is the commute like from Hawley to Moorhead? How bad is it in the winter? Are there carpools going into Moorhead?

What else is in Hawley (besides UBC)? Any grocery stores? Parks?

Thanks!

[Lindenin]

I can't give you many specifics, as I spent some time in the F/M (Fargo Moorhead) area more than 10 years ago. Hawley is a hike from Fargo, but depending on what you are used to, might be reasonable. I'm guessing it would take you 20 minutes to get to the edge of Moorhead and 30-35 to parts of Fargo. Yeah, you'll get a few winter days when traffic is slow and tough, but most winter days are going to be just fine.

As for the area, I have to admit that I recall Hawley being a small, highway, farming town that I never really stopped in. I think there is alot of new development east of Moorhead on Hwy 10, so if you lived in Hawley you would probably only be 10-15 minutes from it.

You would be probably building in an area that used to be a cornfield. I'd want to make sure that there are enough homes like your prospective one so that you didn't become "those rich people with that nice house" in town... you know what I mean. Might want to make sure my home didn't tower above the others too much. Kinda nice to find a neighborhood with similar people and homes.

I know you aren't asking for suggestions, but if it were me and you're not going to be in F/M anyway, I'd go another 10 miles past Hawley and build on a lake. Cormorant lake would be a true place for a dream home. Or any of the other lakes around there. You'd be 35-40 miles from Moorhead, but you'd also be in a great, great location that would be super easy to sell again if you ever needed to. Lots won't be as cheap on the lake, but for good reason. It is better.

[snowlandcook]

Originally Posted by Lindenin

I'd want to make sure that there are enough homes like your prospective one so that you didn't become "those rich people with that nice house" in town... you know what I mean. Might want to make sure my home didn't tower above the others too much. Kinda nice to find a neighborhood with similar people and homes.

I know you aren't asking for suggestions, but if it were me and you're not going to be in F/M anyway, I'd go another 10 miles past Hawley and build on a lake. Cormorant lake would be a true place for a dream home. Or any of the other lakes around there. You'd be 35-40 miles from Moorhead, but you'd also be in a great, great location that would be super easy to sell again if you ever needed to. Lots won't be as cheap on the lake, but for good reason. It is better.

I know what you mean--we definitely want to build near other homes that are similar in size. Not only do we want to avoid being snubbed, we also want to retain the value of whatever we build. The biggest house on the block always has to sell for less than it's worth b/c the others around it are valued at less.

From what I've seen online, it looks like Hawley is growing. Someone on this site said that it is becoming a "bedroom community" to F/M. I'd like to hear from more people on this.

As for Cormorant--hey, I'm open to ANY suggestions! Originally, I thought it would be nice to live in Moorhead and walk to work, but the houses nearby (MSUM) are too small. Then I thought it would be okay to live further out and bike to work (weather permitting). Houses are spendy (high "specials") and the yards lack trees. (Talk about being built in a cornfield!) So then we started looking for wooded property--the closest we could find--and that led us to Hawley. But we are definitely open to ideas, as we know nothing about Hawley and very little about the F/M area in general. (Been there only twice.)

So other people build dream homes in Cormorant? I'll have to do some investigating, but tell me what you know. I've never even heard of the town, and I fear it might not be open to newcomers--especially newcomers who build a big house! Your thoughts?

[Lindenin]

Actually, Cormorant is a lake. There is also a lake called Pelican, but I think it is $$$. Any of those lakes just south of Hawley are nice, and yes, you see everything from a small family hand-me-down bungaloo to $1 million + places. For most people, they are weekend getaways, but more and more people are commuting to F/M from there.

You're right, the area right around MSUM is mainly student housing. You'll start to get a little nicer neighborhood near that one park... Gooseberry? There are also nice homes near either country club, the Moorhead one or the Fargo one. I think the area near Trollwood park is nice, too, in Fargo (at least it was when I was a student many years ago, but then again my standards have changed). Beware of the Sugar Beet plant... it can create a foul smell on some days and you don't want to be too close to it.

You'll like Fargo-Moorhead. While it doesn't offer alot for landscape and terrain, it is a good community with good civic involvement, and a large population of good middle-class families. The F/M area economy has been doing very well for many years. One of the little gems of the upper midwest.

[Lindenin]

Originally Posted by snowlandcook

So other people build dream homes in Cormorant? I'll have to do some investigating, but tell me what you know. I've never even heard of the town, and I fear it might not be open to newcomers--especially newcomers who build a big house! Your thoughts?

Trust me, when it comes to lakefront property in Minnesota, you'd have to spend millions (plural) before you became the obnoxious person with a too-big house. The trend is for people to begin building their retirement home on a lake when they are still in their 40's and 50's, and make it a dream home.

There will always be a rift between the old-timers and the new people who are building up the town. But I see that on the outskirts of Minneapolis and Chicago, in mountain towns like Jackson and Steamboat Springs, and I'm sure there is an element of that in the F/M area too. However, I'm sure that old farmer who just sold part of his pasture for $10,000 per acre will love you guys

[jwmn]

I posted on your thread in the ND forum, but I thought I'd comment about a few things here.

Originally Posted by Lindenin

I know you aren't asking for suggestions, but if it were me and you're not going to be in F/M anyway, I'd go another 10 miles past Hawley and build on a lake. Cormorant lake would be a true place for a dream home. Or any of the other lakes around there. You'd be 35-40 miles from Moorhead, but you'd also be in a great, great location that would be super easy to sell again if you ever needed to. Lots won't be as cheap on the lake, but for good reason. It is better.

While these lakes would be a great place for a dream home, I don't think it would be worth it to have to make that commute every day. It would add more than 10 minutes to the commute. Hawley to Moorhead is about 20 miles. The village of Cormorant, which is a tiny town between Cormorant Lake and Pelican Lake, is about 40 miles from Moorhead, and these lakes are not just off the highway, so you would have to drive on a 2-lane road for part of the commute. So your commute would be about 25 minutes from Hawley, and probably 45 minutes from the Cormorant lakes area, though maybe you could find a lot on a smaller lake that's a little closer. You could have a real beautiful place, it just depends how much you are willing to drive.

Here's a lot for sale for $99,900 on a small lake south of Hawley that's about 30 miles from Moorhead. I don't know what lake lots normally go for, but this one is being advertised as affordable. http://www.homeshq.com/index.cfm?pag...number=07-2096

Originally Posted by Lindenin

Trust me, when it comes to lakefront property in Minnesota, you'd have to spend millions (plural) before you became the obnoxious person with a too-big house.

That's very much true. For example, you can find a few houses like this: http://www.homeshq.com/index.cfm?pag...number=07-2329
I also wouldn't worry about it too much in Hawley because there are some nice new houses being built in the area. I've seen a few nice ones built along the highway within the last couple years.

[snowlandcook]

jwmn:
I dream a whole lot smaller than the million dollar home you linked.

For lake property, $99,000 is reasonable--if it's as nice as it looks online.

Thanks for all of your help. Not sure what we'll end up doing for a home, but I agree that commuting 45 minutes each way is too much!

[Lindenin]

Yeah, the commute thing is a downer. My point is that to me, if you are already going all the way out to Hawley, why not go a little further and have lakefront?

If the primary area where you were looking was right in Fargo or Moorhead, it would be a moot point. No comparison in commutes. But when you start driving 20-25 miles to get to a bedroom community, it is worth asking.

[tls1995]

I have lived in many different places all across the country while growing up including Hawley. My family lived in Hawley in the early 80's for approximately 2 years. Of all the places we lived Hawley was by far the worst. The majority of the people (adults and children) did not like "outsiders" and were not shy about telling you so.

I realize that this was over 20 years ago and things may have changed since then and for your sake (and your childrens) I hope things have changed. No one should be treated as badley as we were treated while we lived there.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[kizzeith]

Hawley is boring...

I went to school in Moorhead, and if I were to buy a place there, I would try to live in the Osgood development. It's an upscale, new development that will be amazing in a couple of years.