How Do You Like Living In Minnesota? (Minneapolis, Austin: real estate, how much)

[ihatefonddulac]

My husband and I are also native Minnesotans, and we moved to SC for two years. The culture and environment is drastically different. Yes, the winters are warmer, but the air is a lot more polluted in most cities with a population over 25,000. Lots of violent crime. It was nice to be close to the mountains (we were 20 minutes away from the Blue Ridge Mountains and visited them frequently) and the ocean (we were two and a half hours away from Myrtle Beach). The warm winters and closeness to the mountains and ocean were definite pluses but we are back home in MN now and we're glad to be back.

[Kelly C]

I have lived many places throughout the United States. Although I really miss the coast, Minnesota is where my family is.
Mankato and North Mankato are very scenic areas. The river runs right in between the towns giving away to some gorgeous hills and valleys. I live in lower north Mankato and absolutely dread moving out of this home.
I highly recommend MN for the variety of climates, and at the some hand I do not due to the extreme nature of its climates.

Mankato area is one of the most scenic areas I have lived in in Minnesota. I have also lived in Cambridge, Ham Lake, Coon Rapids, Hayward, and Albert Lea.

[Robert P Stewart]

One of my favorite restaurants is in Mankato - it's called the Nile (Ethiopian food). Awesome place. I like McGoff's downtown too.

Fun town!

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by blakeb99

I will be moving to the Midwest soon and am considering Minnesota. I am wondering from the people who live there, how they like it?

I grew up in the western suburbs of Minneapolis and lived in the SW suburbs after college for 17 years, and I absolutely loved it up there, but my experience was mainly in the metro area with five years stuck in Mankato during my college years. :-)

I know I've heard a lot about the cold and mosqutios.

It certainly gets cold, but the windchill isn't a health hazard in the metro area except on rare occasions. In the rest of the state, particularly the south and southwest where there's more open country, you do need to be careful in December-February if you're out and about.

Are there extremely more mosquitos or cold weather in minnesota then say iowa?

If you don't like cold weather, I suspect you won't like either place in the wintertime.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by Woodsman

But nobody discusses the traffic. It sucks.

Try driving in Atlanta sometime. :-)

Seriously, while the Twin Cities has its issues (I used to drive from Eden Prairie to Eagan on 494 right through the heart of Bloomington so I know about that stretch), it's nothing at all compared to driving south from Ackworth on I-75. It takes my manager over an hour most weekday mornings (sometimes 90 minutes) to travel 22 miles.

[marcos]

what are you refering to when you guys talk about the outer suburbs? I am also looking to move to Minneapolis area. I am looking at the town of Northfield. Does anyone have any opinions on Northfield or Albert Lea? Thanks!!!!!!!!1

[Missin_Minnesota]

Dear Sick of MN Letmeout: I moved out of MN with my family when I was 17 and I don't recommend that to anyone. I didn't fit in, had no friends and it was tough. Please wait until your kids are out of school. I've been away from MN for a long time and went back for a visit in 2005. I hated to leave and have since decided to retire there. I can't wait to get back, and where did I move to? Sunny Southern California.

[yellowsnow]

I've been in Minnesota since 1995. Until I moved here, I always said Winter was my favorite season. Not any more! Yes, it's cold and that's doable. The worst part is that Winter is just too long. Summer is too short and humid. The bugs are fierce. I have a neighbor who mows in a bee suit! There are a lot of good jobs in MN.

JMHO, but the folks who really like it here are usually into sports like fishing and hunting. Or 4 wheeling and snowmobiles. Minnesota can be an expensive place to live because the shopping malls are climate controlled and have no bugs!

I would suggest that anyone thinking of moving should try it before you buy it! There is yard work year round and ice/snow loses appeal quickly when one has to drive in it and shovel it!

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by marcos

what are you refering to when you guys talk about the outer suburbs? I am also looking to move to Minneapolis area. I am looking at the town of Northfield. Does anyone have any opinions on Northfield or Albert Lea? Thanks!!!!!!!!1

Both Northfield and Albert Lea are nice towns. Albert Lea isn't really commuting distance to Minneapolis if you are working there. Northfield is about an hour+ into downtown Minneapolis during rush hour.

Outer suburbs would be the second ring of suburbs around the twin cities, Woodbury, Maple Grove, Shakopee, Lakeville, etc. The inner ring are cities like Bloomington, West. St. Paul, North St. Paul, Hopkins, St. Louis Park. A good dividing line would be the Interstate 494/696 ring, if you are inside that, inner ring, outside that, outer ring.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Outer suburbs would be the second ring of suburbs around the twin cities, Woodbury, Maple Grove, Shakopee, Lakeville, etc. The inner ring are cities like Bloomington, West. St. Paul, North St. Paul, Hopkins, St. Louis Park. A good dividing line would be the Interstate 494/696 ring, if you are inside that, inner ring, outside that, outer ring.

Probably a good rule of thumb, except I'd make the boundary the Minnesota River on the south side instead of 494 (since Bloomington is entirely south of the freeway, and it's no spring chicken <g>).