Possible move from Michigan to Minnesota (Minneapolis, Duluth: job, crime, company)

[organicgirl]

My husband and I are considering a move from Michigan in the next year and wonder what the weather is like- different from Michigan. I sometimes get the seasonal depression her in Mich (the sun shines so little in the winter) and wonder if Minnesota gets more sun? We like the cold and the snow, and wonder if there are some nice places to live that are still in the "country", but not too far from place to work- my husband is a controller for a manufacturing company and I am in pr. Any thoughts on moving to this state- good weather and people?

[BJB817]

To be honest, I don't know that you gain much by moving here. Now granted, I've never been to Michigan. I imagane we see more sun here than you, but I'm guessing it's not an appreciable difference. If you have SAD but still want winter but with more sun I'd probably consider Colorado.

I'm not sure how the people are here VS Michigan. The people here are generally nice but pretty reserved. It'll take some effort on your part to break into a new circle of friends.

I know this isn't the most glowing review of MN, but I'm just giving an honest answer from my own point of view. MN does have it's good points, but I just don't know that you'd be gaining much over where you're at now given what you're looking for.

[Robert P Stewart]

The weather in Minnesota is FAR better. After the air whips over the Lake, Michigan gets hit with frigid DAMP air - the kind that cuts right through ya. We have a drier cold which is much more palatable. Also, take away the lake effect snows and you have a fairly tame winter by comparison.

Hope this helps -

Robert

[HKB]

As far as sunshine goes, you won't see any more in MN than you do in MI. Cloudy winters are one of the things I hate about living here. It's not uncommon to go a week or two without seeing the sun.

[The Icy River Vagabond]

This is my first winter here, after moving from Michigan. I can't really make a call on it, because obviously this winter is not like normal winters, it has been very warm. Depending on where you live in Michigan, upper Michigan, and the west side of the state generally get quite a bit more snow on average than Minnesota does. I think Minnesota is colder on average in the winter, but maybe a little warmer on average in the summer. It does seem like there is a heck of a lot more blue sky here than in Michigan, and a heck of a lot less rain. But those could all just be part of some freak weather thing that may be going on around here. Not really sure. You will notice a huge difference in the cities, the cities here are not the filthy crime infested cities that Michigan has. There are not abandoned buildings everywhere, and the roads are in supurb shape compared to Michigan's. Another thing you will notice here is that there are people outside everywhere, riding bikes, walking and jogging. It seems that in Michigan, at least in the larger metro areas, that is a rare sight. There are a lot of green areas in the cities here. Also, it goes without saying, Minnesota's economy is MUCH better than Michigan's, you will not have a problem at all finding a well paying job here. y wife and I flew out here about 6 weeks before our planned move for interviews and both of us had multiple job offers to consider. As far as places to live, you will have lot's of choices, I suggest renting for your first year to get a feel for the area, that is what we are doing, and I'm glad that we did. The people here are decent, they talk a little funny but you get used to it quickly.

[Deuce Deuce]

I have lived in MN and now live in MI. MN definitely gets more sunshine, but it is a bit colder. I preferred MN weather and the economy goes without saying.

[jwmn]

It's colder in Minnesota but sunnier. This table shows the average percent of possible sunshine by month for a number of cities across the country:
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/...ccd/pctpos.txt
In January, Minneapolis has 53% sunshine, while Detroit has 40% sunshine and Grand Rapids, MI has just 28%.

As for temperatures, the average high/low in January is 22/4 in Minneapolis, 33/20 in Detroit, and 29/16 in Grand Rapids, MI.

Western Michigan gets more snowfall than Minnesota, although the snowfall in Duluth is pretty comparable. Minneapolis averages about 50 inches of snow per year, which is about the same as Lansing, MI.

This website has tables for average temps, precip, snow, sunshine, wind, etc. for a number of cities.
http://ols.nndc.noaa.gov/plolstore/p...0095-PUB-A0001