Moving to Kenosha Area (Milwaukee, Racine: apartments, to rent, condo)

[dudenamedric]

My wife just got a job offer in Kenosha, so we're making arrangements to move from Florida. Neither of us has been to Kenosha or the surrounding areas, so we don't know what areas are safe and which areas we should avoid. We have a 1 year old daughter, so we really need something safe and suitable for a young family. We don't make a lot of money, so we also need to find affordability. Can anybody give some insight into what we should expect from Kenosha, where to look for a home/apartment, and general opinions of living in the area? Thank you.

[Drover]

Do you want a larger city or a smaller community? What's your housing budget?

Usually people inquiring about the Waukegan/Kenosha/Racine area get steered toward Gurnee in IL or Sturtavent or Pleasant Prairie in WI.

[dudenamedric]

Smaller community, with access to a larger one. Our budget is probably around $1000/month to rent. I'd like to stay around $800, but if my kid's safety becomes an issue at that point I'll pay the extra $200.

[Drover]

Your budget pretty much rules out Gurnee. The upper end of your budget will probably get you a 2-bedroom condo in Sturtevant, and maybe Pleasant Prairie, or a small house in Union Grove and maybe Burlington.

As for access to a larger community, you have basic shopping and amenities in nearby Kenosha. If you need access to big-boy stuff, you'd be about a 30-minute drive to Milwaukee and a 60-minute drive to Chicago. There's also commuter rail service pretty frequently from Kenosha to Chicago.

[dudenamedric]

what are the neighborhoods like in kenosha? are there any areas to avoid?

[Drover]

Some parts of Kenosha are fine, some are a bit iffy, but there are no genuinely bad neighborhoods in Kenosha where you'll hear gunfire every night. The reason I suggested the alternatives is because you said you were looking for a smaller community. Kenosha's population is nearly 100K which doesn't strike me as a "smaller community." But maybe it fits your definition of such; it certainly is compared to the two major urban centers to its north and south.

[Chelito23]

Personally I would say go with Kenosha. It really isn't a large community. It is quiet, small, laid back, easy to get around, peaceful, safe and affordable. Every town or city has varying neighborhoods, some better than others, but Kenosha doesn't have any ghettos and the bad areas are spotty and not al ecompassing of neighborhoods.

I think Kenosha is very underrated for all it offers and considering it's location. The smaller communities people usually recommend around Racine and Kenosha are small farming towns with suburban subdivisions, think country meets subrubs but minus the commercial activity.

It´s up to you what works best, but I prefer not having to drive 15 minuted to go to a store or hospital, a walk, bike ride or 5 minute drive is better IMO.

[Caitlinmari]

I would say live on the south side of kenosha.. there are apartments called riverwood apartments that are nice and around 1000 to rent for a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom. there is also a place called court yard junction which is in a better area and affordable rent.

[wolfman24]

Hello

We are also thinking about moving to the Kenosha area in the next couple of years. I am from NE Wisconsin and my father was born in Port. I have some relatives in the Wauwautosa area but that about it.

We will be looking for an area with condo's or houses around 150-200k. We would prefer "suburban" type living with shops, hospitals, malls, etc within easy driving distance. We will be retired when we come so we are not interested in schools or anything like that.

I have heard that Somers is a nice place but have no idea. I am not concern about whether having grown up in the Lakeshore Region of Wisconsin and having gone to UW Eau Claire for 5 years.

Any information you can provide will be helpful.

We are sticking with the SE 1/4 of Wisconsin since my adult son is autistic and this is where the best services are because of the population. There are other reasons we are focusing on Kenosha but for now lets just say that they are our concern.

Thanks

Wolfman24

[wicurious]

Resurrecting this thread because my husband and I might be moving to the Kenosha area in the not-too-distant future. We've lived in a community about the size of Kenosha before, so the small/large issue isn't really relevant to us. We're more interested in finding a friendly, safe neighborhood in a decent school district - our daughter is 3, and ideally we'd like to NOT move again for a long time! Several people have suggested renting, but the idea of packing, moving, and then repeating the whole process in a year or 2 is killing me - I've moved 6 times in the 12 years since I finished high school, and I'm just about done! LOL
We are also quite a distance away currently, so just driving around and checking things out isn't really an option.
Any advice? I'll admit to being a little concerned at the low ratings given to the Kenosha schools by various agencies/websites...