Looking to possibly move to Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Madison: renting, low crime, house prices)

[Princess83]

My Fiance and i are looking for a plot of land thats pretty rural. We have a few tiny issues tough,it has to be within a short drive to a hospital for work, and at least a few acres of woods. we want to be able to see nothing but land, and no houses for a few miles.

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

how are the schools?

how about pricing for houses or land?

what is there to do?

is Wisconsin right for us?

[escapetacoma]

Originally Posted by Princess83

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

I've only been here through three of them so far but every single person I've talked to says that there is a spring to go along with the pretty summer, autumn and winter.

how about pricing for houses or land?

This is pretty subjective and varies with where you are in the state. Coming from Western Washington I'd say the house and land prices in general are amazingly low. OTOH I've heard people complain about the concept of spending $150k for a nice a house (in Tacoma it would buy you a rundown shack in a drug neighborhood.)

what is there to do?

Lately? snowshoeing or crosscounty skiing I've heard a lot of good about the bicycling but haven't tried it yet. Once again what's available will depend upon where you are. What are you interested in doing? Don't look for serious mountain climbing - though I've heard that there's some good rock climbing. I think the whitewater rafting options are likely to pretty slim given the overall lack of elevation to lose. No saltwater fishing but Lake Michigan is a good substitute.

[dreamhunter65]

Originally Posted by Princess83

My Fiance and i are looking for a plot of land thats pretty rural. We have a few tiny issues tough,it has to be within a short drive to a hospital for work, and at least a few acres of woods. we want to be able to see nothing but land, and no houses for a few miles.

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

how are the schools?

how about pricing for houses or land?

what is there to do?

is Wisconsin right for us?

Northern Wisconsin sounds like what you want,with land tree's and neighbors far away.
As for 4 seasons yes even though some say just 2 Summer and Winter.
Schools vary but acyually pretty good.
Hospitals for work are plenty anywhere you go.
Land and house prices are low compared to many states and the North cheaper than the south also even though good wooded land is higher.

As far as what to do depends on what into. Spring and Summer fishing,water sports, museums and such.
Fall and Winter Fishing,Ice fishing, snowmobiling, skiing, snowboarding, tubing, snowshoeing, hunting, making snowmen with kids and such.


Wisconsin is a great place to live but not for everyone. If decide to join us Welcome to Wisconsin.

[ekg56]

We are close to Wausau and they have 2 hospitals and rural areas. The schools are wonderful and so are the 4 seasons.

[sammbols3]

Good morning, Princess83,

I was wondering, where do you currently live?

Yes, generally speaking, Wisconsin does indeed have all four seasons. As with any location, it can vary from year to year; but overall, we do have have spring, summer, fall, and winter. Of course, each season varies from year to year. Some years find our winters bitterly cold with little snow all season. Other winters can be milder but with above average snowfall.

I cannot give you information on Wisconsin's schools, since I do not have any children, but my guess would be that the schools are average and adequate.

Houses and land costs are reasonable, in my opinion. Dreamhunter65 is correct in mentioning northern Wisconsin to you, if you are looking for wooded property with no close neighbors. Property values are also much lower in that part of the state.

TravelWisconsin.com, the premier destination for planning your next Wisconsin vacation or Wisconsin getaway.

This link will take you to a wonderful web site detailing Wisconsin's accommodations, arts and culture, attractions, outdoor activities, destinations, and an events calendar.

Wisconsin is a lovely place, but there are a few things you need to be aware of. Our property taxes are generally ridiculously high. Also, if you are not a fan of winter, you might want to reconsider calling Wisconsin your home.

Come and visit us! Our landscape is quite diverse...from the bluffs along the Mississippi River on the west side, to the sand dunes and Milwaukee's skyline on the east side along Lake Michigan, and all the prairies and forests in between. Wisconsin is not for everyone, but it does have a lot to offer.

[blondemama03]

Originally Posted by Princess83

My Fiance and i are looking for a plot of land thats pretty rural. We have a few tiny issues tough,it has to be within a short drive to a hospital for work, and at least a few acres of woods. we want to be able to see nothing but land, and no houses for a few miles.

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

how are the schools?

how about pricing for houses or land?

what is there to do?

is Wisconsin right for us?

I live in Western Wisconsin, an hour from Minneapolis/St. Paul. It is gorgeous here, and housing is very reasonable (we have close to 3000 sq. ft., 5 BR, 2BA, 1.5 acre lot, completely surrounded by lush pines near a river-across the road-tax records just showed it's worth $200-225K. In Minneapolis it's worth twice that if not more, and you can't get the land unless you have millions. From June to the beginning of October I'd say it's beautiful here, then get ready for huge changes in temperature/weather from minute to minute. It can change like 50 degrees from morning to afternoon during changes in season (spring and fall). I personally am looking to move south in the next couple of years. I'd love to visit Wisconsin in the summers, but I'm not a winter girl. Being close to the cities is nice, but it's still a drive (an hour). My husband works in downtown Mpls, but mostly can do his work out of our home office.

Schools, I must say are excellent (in Menomonie area anyway). Hospitals are always hiring for nurses I know, don't know much of other fields though.

What is there to do? Snowmobiling is huge here, and hunters love it here. Deer hunting is considered a season all its own. Kids even take off school for it! In the summer, there are plenty of plush parks and lots of stunning nature to see. The winter can be beautiful, but for me, I need a warm vacation at least once a winter. Get your SADD (seasonal affective...something something???) light out! The sun tends to be shy this part of the world from December through March.

[Simplycomplicated87]

Originally Posted by Princess83

My Fiance and i are looking for a plot of land thats pretty rural. We have a few tiny issues tough,it has to be within a short drive to a hospital for work, and at least a few acres of woods. we want to be able to see nothing but land, and no houses for a few miles.

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

how are the schools?

how about pricing for houses or land?

what is there to do?

is Wisconsin right for us?

My family (I'm 20, oldest of 8) live in southwest/central WI. I'm not sure if its exactly what your looking for, but I'll just tell you a little about our experience.
When we moved there from a subdivision in the Milwaukee area, there were a few things we noticed,
1. Wherever you drove, people would wave at you, we were looking for houses, and we'd drive by one with someone in the yard, and they'd wave, so very friendly.
2. You had to drive half an hour or more to do any kind of shopping other than groceries and gas.
I'll see if I can get a couple of your specific questions answered.
There definitely are "all four seasons". Colors in the fall, snow and cold in the winter, rain and mud in the spring, and nice weather in the summer .
I never went to the schools out here, but from talking to everyone and people in the schools, they're a whole lot better than the schools near Milwaukee, at least the public schools. You don't have as many options when it come to private schools, but they're are a few. And homeschooling is somewhat big here too if you'd be interested in that.
I haven't looked at land for quite a while, but its much cheaper out here and in northern Wisconsin than closer to the larger cities like Madison and Milwaukee, sometimes the same lot/house can be twice as much if your looking near a more populated area, and woods are plentiful, this area consists of %90 woods and fields. Northern WI is more woods, less fields, and more lakes.
In winter, theres skiing, ice skating, snowboarding, snowmobiling (although thats bigger up north than it is here), summer there's biking, hiking, horseback riding... It all depends on your taste and interests.
As far as hospital work, you might find more of that toward central WI.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/wisco...ausau-war.html

From that it sounds like there might be a lot of hospital work there, but it's not my area of expertise.

I hope that helps.
~Nate

[KateDaum]

We are a close drive to Ashland. Land is still reasonable up here. There are hospitals too. All 4 seasons exist. Bayfield is great. The drive along Lake Superior is spectacular.

[Kimnjasonx3]

Yes, Wisconsin definitely has 4 seasons - spring, summer, fall and winter.

My husband and I are relocating in June of 2008 (just a few months away) and are going to be putting our house on the market. We live in Central WI - 20 minutes from the hospital in Medford (Memorial Health Center), 45 minutes from Wausau (Aspirus Hospital), 40 minutes from Marshfield (St. Joseph's Hospital) and about 45 minutes from Chippewa Falls (St. Joseph's Hospital also).

Our house is located on 20 acres (with adtl if you prefer). Includes a pond on the acreage, 1/4 mile driveway long and is off of a dead end road. All you can see are woods on all sides of the house. It is beautiful and perfect for the family that enjoys outdoors. The house was built 5 yrs ago. BIG 2 story with a loft, 4 bedrooms and 2 1/2 bathrooms. If you want adtl information, you can e-mail me by clicking on my user name.

Thanks and good luck!

[famlife]

Originally Posted by Princess83

My Fiance and i are looking for a plot of land thats pretty rural. We have a few tiny issues tough,it has to be within a short drive to a hospital for work, and at least a few acres of woods. we want to be able to see nothing but land, and no houses for a few miles.

also, we want to know does Wisconsin have all 4 seasons (summer, winter, fall, spring)?

how are the schools?

how about pricing for houses or land?

what is there to do?

is Wisconsin right for us?

Rhinelander, where i am living, seems to fit what you are looking for. it has a population of 7,000some people, is all woods and water, has a hospital in a pretty central location (rhinelander is a very small town), a nice downtown, very low crime, and affordable housing (for the most part).

the schools are not very good from personal experience and feel that i've been forced to homeschool. but alot of people say that the new charter school is nice and there's a catholic school that alot of the upper crust kids go to. our home is a 4 br/2ba right in town and it is priced at 138K. it's a decent house with a very nice yard. there are just as many houses out in the woods as there are in town, if not more. and the trees are so thick that even if you had neighbors, you wouldn't be able to tell it. idk what they actually cost out in the woods but when we were renting a 3 br in the woods on a lake, it was only $700/mo, and the place was rustic, yet nice. and if you like lakes, there's a running joke here that there's more water than land. i dont know, maybe it's not even a joke.

most people out here hunt, fish, boat, go to the crandon off road racing, the hodag festival (a large country music event), (oh, and do some research on the hodag itself) theres many, many casinos, snowmobiling, dog sled racing, ice fishing, geo caching, but to be honest.. most of the people i know just arrange card nights and invite people to play hold 'em. that's real big up here. there's also alot of community sponsored sports teams like softball, baseball, volleyball, hockey, etc... and a whole lot of people participate in those. there's countless places to camp, hike, anything outdoorsy that you can think of.

the summers here are mild with the exception of a couple weeks, but they do seem to pass too quickly, and by halloween most years it's too cold for the kids to be out for long. spring and fall seem to only last a few weeks, then it's back to freezing. alot of people go to the outdoor skating rinks and enjoy the winter sports so idk it all depends on what you like. it's been -40windchill for the past week or so.

as for me, i'm getting out of here. there's really not alot of opportunities up here for your children if your raising a family. the dream job up here is to work at the paper mill. if you work at the mill, you have it made. lol. the retirees really have all the money, oh, and the potowatomi indians, which own casinos, including the huge one in milwaukee. it really paid off for them, the town seems to revolve around them. there are 16 year old potowatomis driving escalades that they paid for with cash, when the rest of the population works in gas stations, walmart, paper mill, or foster n smith. there's no hostility towards the potowatomis though. they are really great people judging by the people i know, and the general population feel that they are really striving to make the community a great place to be.

Rhinelander is a really nice place for the outdoorsy person who doesn't need alot of the luxuries and conveniences that a big city offers. it's probably easiest for retirees to get along up here, but there are tons of young families too.