rochester questions (Winona: for sale, real estate market, crime)

[grayslove]

( i posted this on another thread then realised it might get lost in all the other postings so reposted on my own thread ^.^ lol i got too excited after talking about minnesota with my fiance)


My fiance and myself are thinking of relocating to rochester he is in the computer fieled of working and i am a photographer/artist and we both want to take more college courses to broaden our horizons( so being comutable to work and college is a must). I had a few questions though i was hoping someone could answer for me, I have done alot of online research about this wonderful town and it sounds too good to be true! this doesnt daunt my loving hubby to be, but i am a bit more cautious and wondered about a few things. Is the job market good there? is it easy to find work as he is from the uk and im a us citazen, is there any problems with people from other countries like england? or will we fit right in? Also are there any art schools?computer art schools? were both in the under 40 age bracket. another thing is we kind of want a quiet area to live in what parts are suggested?( anything between rochester and twin cities thats not easily flooded and makes an easy comute) also i am worried about the flooding i heard on the news today.Is flooding a problem there? and how is the realestate market?( we are currently trying to sell our home in az to buy one out there) from what ive seen houses go for about 159,000 for a 4 bedroom, also how are the neigbors we are kinda looking for a downhome feel with good people.Basicaly a good place to raise our future( and children) in. Ive read through the entire forum and gained lots of insight so far thank you for any help!

[mudmuffin]

Rochester has a problem with flooding but it's usually in the spring and usually minor flooding. The Zumbro River flows thru the city and the flooding is usually along the river with the occassional bridge being closed. The majority of the flooding that you've been hearing about on the news is an area that is about 50 miles or so directly east of Rochester. The reason that it's so bad is because that area is very hilly and the majority of homes are in the valley so all the water is running down into the towns. It is very unusual for the area to get that much rain but it does happen. The annual precipitation for MN is around 24" for the entire year. Some of these towns got about 10-15" in a day or 2.

As for computer jobs, I know there is a company whose headquarters are in Upstate NY (poughkeepsie I think) that has a branch there but I think at the moment they are either having problems finding people to do the work or enough work for the people who relocated there from NY.

Rochester is close enough to The Cities to go to sports events, concerts and theatre.

There seems to be a varied mix of people from all over that live there and of course there are the usual conflicts when cultures are combined. I think the main misunderstanding or problem has been between some Somalian immigrants and the locals. Not sure about this though.

I think that the largest employer in town is the Mayo Clinic. I'm not sure about the job market in general down there.

As for schools, Rochester has a community and technical college. You can check out Minnesota State Colleges & Universities for locations of more state colleges and universities in the area.

[nebb0r]

Real estate market is probably the same as all over, lots of places for sale, so you can probably get a good deal when you're buying. Northwest has the newest neighborhoods with single family starter type homes.

Job market is OK for the computer field. You have IBM, which is so-so for job security lately, and Mayo (where I work in the computer field) usually has some jobs open on the job-line, but not near as many as years past.
Jobs at Mayo Clinic

I've lived in Rochester my whole life and think its a great town. Crime picks up a bit when the population grows, but its not been really bad. I like to keep tabs on it by watching Rochester Minnesota Crime Information, Maps, and Reports | RochesterCrime.org .

As for colleges, they have Rochester Community and Technical college, Winona State (4 year) college, and now a brand new University of Minnesota (for masters+ degrees) campus in the area. Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC) - higher education and career training in Rochester, Minnesota, University of Minnesota, Rochester., Winona State University | Rochester Center. Quite a good selection of educational opportunities.

Good luck to you! =)

nebb0r

[grayslove]

thank you! thank you!,All your responses were gladly welcomed,makes me feel even more better about the town hes chosen for us to call home soon,we sent away for many informative pamplets for tourism that arrived quickly as well,I honestly cannot wait to visit with my fiance when we go home shopping, once again thank you all

[Ibtannin]

I have lived here for 30 years and yes you would fit right in. we have a college here in town and IBM has a major location here employing around 4-5000 people if I remember correctly. Most people are friendly and if you need any help finding a house I have a lot friends in the business...