Living on lake winnebago (Appleton, Neenah: homes, buying, good schools)

[doublee]

My husband and I are possibly relocating to Neenah/Appleton. Any opinions on those areas? Seems more to do in Appleton but we like the lake living idea of Neenah. Schools? All good? ALso, IF we could find a smaller property on the lake that is in our price range is that a good investment? Say we found something that we might need to fix up over time as funds are available but that was still livable as is. Is the lake a solid investment? Are there areas of the lake one wouldn't want to be on that I should be aware of or negatives of living on the lake?

Thanks so much.

[apompa]

Where are you comming form have you toured the different areas?

You can't go wrong with schools in the Neenah district. It is very affluent and a really nice town with bike lanes and good schools. There is more to do in Appleton but it's only a 15 miunte car ride. And there is a lot building up just east of town. Most of Appleton schools are great too but I wouldn't send my kids to a couple of them in the center of town.

Living on the lake is a solid investment. You will be swarmed with lake flies for a couple of weeks in the spring (and I mean swarmed). But people like the lake and it is very active all year with boating in the summer and snowmobiles/ice fishing in the winter. It would be a very good investment. The north side of the lake has a whole bunch of old beachy cottages that people are buying up and turning into mega homes. Most of these will be in Harrison or Menasha so your taxes will be MUCH less than if you purchased in Neenah. If you really like Neenah you can do well there too but the availablity of little waterfront fixer uppers are becoming scarce.

You might also want to check out homes on Strobe Island in Appleton. It's a wonderful community just south of the mall in Appleton. Homes there are mid 70's style and reasonable some of them could use some tlc but they are very well maintianed. Plus you get access to the lake and still get to be in the heart of the city!


Good luck with your srearch!

[doublee]

HI! We are coming from the DC area so it will be a big change size wize. However I grew up in a smaller CT town and as we are at the "starting a family" stage the area seems to be a great fit. We both felt DC was great as single professionals and a young married couple, but in order to have a family and for me to possibly be able to stay home for a few years we would have to move an hour out and still pay 600 - 800k for your standard family home. We are excited about what we have heard of the schools in the area and the fact that with cheaper housing staying home could be a real possibility.

We have seen one property on the lake that looks interesting. It has Town of Neenah taxes which from what I can tell seems to be a lower tax area? The home needs some work but is livable for now. Living on the lake makes me slightly nervous with a young family but I suppose people do it and find ways to ensure safety?

Thanks so much! doublee

[apompa]

There won't be as much to do in the fox valley as there is in DC but that being said it's not dullsville either.

I recently moved to Florida (My husband's dream) but we both grew up in Appleton. We started our family there and it is a great place to raise children. The schools are wonderful and even though the winters are long there's generally a lot to do. (Skiing, snow mobiling, my husband loved the ice race on the frozen lake with the auto club) Housing is afforable and the cost of living is relatively low. The lake is very busy year round. I would't worry about raising your kiddos there. Just keep an eye on them and teach them to swim


Town of Neenah taxes will be much lower than city of neenah taxes. I hope you enjoy!