Phila to Somewhere in WI (Milwaukee, Madison: best cities, crime, how much)

[MCRBLR]

My husband, 2 children (10,7) and I are thinking of relocating to WI. I've been reading this forum for a few months but I'm still in need of direction. Hubby is a pressman. We're looking at Appleton, La Crosse and Madison areas. We have no problem commuting (I currently have a 35 min drive). I'm from a small PA town and want my children to grow up in a community - the way I did. Here's what we want - a small community (between 5,000 and 10,000) with good schools (gifted program) and pee-wee sports (ice hockey, football, soccer). I've read so many threads about housing but a lot of them seem out of our price range. We're looking for an 3-4 bdrm older house to buy under $170000. I've seen plenty of properties on various websites and our PA realtor is going to set us up with a realtor there but we'd like a clue from those that know. We don't want cookie-cutter developments. We're visiting for a week in mid-March to check out the area so our exploration time is limited.

[dreamhunter65]

Look at Chippewa Falls/EauClaire/Altoona areas.Can find more rural with cheaper houses under the 170,000.00 and housing Market slow so bid way under and they may accept as just to get out. They have hopefully what looking for.Now as far as jobs go never said what employment looking at so if DM maybe tell you more on this.

[MCRBLR]

Thanks I'll check them out. As for employment we have a few leads. My husband has 20 years exp in the printing industry. I'm just waiting to see where we land before I apply.

[dreamhunter65]

Hope all works out for you.Welcome to Wisconsin early.

[Emeralds52376]

I live in Appleton and honestly love everything about it except for the bitter cold winters and all the snow we have gotten this year! There are several small communities/towns near Appleton (waupaca, weyauwega, new london, fremont, hortonville, kimberly, kaukauna - all 20-40 minutes). I have lived here my whole life; the schools are great - the lack of crime is awesome! I currently commute 7 minutes (ten with traffic; LOL). I don't see why you would have a problem finding a house within your price range - good luck!

[badger13]

If you are looking in the Madison area, you can either go south toward Janesville, or east towards Fort Atkinson. Fort would probably be your best bet, and they do have a local printing company (not sure if they are hiring).

[Suzanne1945]

Unless you are a died-in-the-wool Steeler or Eagle fan, you will love WI and especially Door County. Sturgeon Bay offers many choices for kids activities, too. Schools throughout the county are all good. Each has its own recognition for excellence in different areas. Check out the local paper--Door County Advocate. Good luck with you move!

[JustT&Me]

Hello & Welcome New-coming Wisconsites!

Grab your green and gold... you'll be entering Packerland!

Okay... from someone who's lived around various parts of the state and reading the posts so far... this is what I'd recommend:

WI is a great state, btw, for growing families! So you're making a great move!

In this neck of the woods, Grafton is a small but growing town as well as Cedarburg, but Cedarburg is going to be pricey whereas Grafton is not as high (as Cedarburg). Grafton is about 20 minutes north of Milwaukee for jobs with an easy commute but with a family-safe, active community. Shopping is very easy in Grafton for anything you'll need at a great price. Good schools, clean, and growing. Just great!

There's a small town further north, Cedar Grove with a great school district. I know some of the teachers there, and they are very devoted, long-term, and fun! They take pride in their work and take their work personally - many of them have students coming back (I hear their stories) for years who are now teachers themselves. It's a small community, very safe, with a growing housing market but not definitely not a boom. Very small-town but I'd say welcoming to outsiders. And busy for children! I know folks there whose children are busy every night with some sort of extracurricular and/or school events. Your husband would have more of a drive from there, but there are some small town papers and publishing companies where he might find work.

Sheboygan Falls might not have gifted courses, but they are a small, countryside town with an "old-fashioned" atmosphere. Settled on a river that runs through the town, and just charming. Cedarburg is definitely charming, but bigger and much more expensive. This would be a small, tucked away town... nothing most ppl would know to mention. Something nearer which you've probably heard of would be Kohler (plumbing & toiletry fixtures/porcelains). I have never really seen the "heart" of Kohler - compared to other small communities, I don't know - do they have a downtown or town square?

Heading up the peninsula, I'd opt for Door County over Appleton, but ppl who live in Appleton love it! It's just much busier and larger but has surrounding smaller communities. Door County is going to be pricier, and it's been definitely growing in the past years (a lot of Chicagoans building).. which is why I don't go there anymore... it's a bit cluttered now compared to it's former state of beauty & WI "wilderness" for what that was worth. But you'll be in nice, safe, beautiful country, and I'm certain whatever services are there would be good.

Okay... I don't know about their schools, but I've heard a lot of great things about the Rhinelander area. You'd have to ask someone who knows... ask a local realtor or call a couple of churches in the area or a chamber of commerce to get a feel for it.

And.. then there's Eau Claire. I'll have to ditto the person who noted it's draw. I lived there for quite some time and loved it. Beautiful university town - a lot of opportunities in-town and around the around for a smaller area with great opportunities and a lesser price. Won't be as pricey as other areas like Madison. Hilly and with a river running through town - (or two - I don't remmeber.) Lots of churches (they're everywhere in WI). Older homes - turn of the century as well as nice homes in town - both small and large. A wide variety. Lots of work opportunities. Great stuff for children. You'd be two hours from Mpls if you ever wanted to go. Check a map for surrounding towns... I'm sure you'd find something there you'd like.

Okay - now that I've typed all that, I'm not sure how much that will help - we could all give you a string of towns and communities, but perhaps if you see a few of them in a given area duplicated, then it might be more worth your time to check those out.

Best of everything to you in your move!
Peace ~

[JustT&Me]

By the way... I'm actually considering leaving WI and looking at PA! Any tips?

Oh... also, check this out:

Best Places to Live: Compare the Best Cities & Small Towns for You!

God bless!

[MCRBLR]

Thanks for all the tips on the various areas; I know that we'll find the area amazing. Even though I'm a Steelers fan I hope I'll still be welcome.