Moving from CA to MI. Job in Farmington Hills. Single early 30s. Where to live? (Detroit: for rent, neighborhoods)

[rickla]

Hi folks,

I've been reading this forum for days trying to get an idea of the area. My job will be in Farmington Hills. I've lived in San Diego most of my life so I don't know anything about that region.

I'm making good money in this job (low six figures) but I'd like to save so I'm thinking max 1500 a month for rent. A loft, 1 bedroom would work. I want to save money but maybe its better to pay more to try to make the transition easier; i don't know.

I enjoy going out dancing, bars, sometimes a club... everything I did in my 20s I'm single. One weird thing with me is that I'm not really attracted to white american women. I don't know why. This worries me as I hear there isn't a lot of diversity up there compared to here, at least from the forums.. i don't know actually. My girlfriends have been persian, latina, asian, indian, and black.

From my reading it seems like Ann Arbor and Royal Oak would be good candidates. Both seem to be 35 minute commutes which is on the high side but I'd bear it if it's worth it. Apparently Ann Arbor is more ethnically diverse which is good but people tend to be younger.

Where would you recommend I look for housing? I'm worried about feeling isolated and alone with the winters I'm not used to so I want to be in a place where there is some activity to keep my spirits up.

[zthatzmanz28]

If you want to step out during the week days, then you will want ot be closer to areas like Royal Oak or Ann Arbor. If you do your clubbing on weekends, living in the Novi / Farmington Hills area would work---drive to the hot spots on the weekends. Also there are some clubs in the area of Novi / Farminton Hills that might be nice. Also it is a short drive out Northwestern Hwy to Southfield for some diverse crowds.

[MS313]

Affordable decent areas with places for rent to live with good nightlife nearby would be.

The city: Downtown Detroit, Midtown, Corktown, Woodbridge, Lafayette Park, Elmwood Park, Some places along Jefferson Ave, Hamtramck.

West Suburbs: Ann Arbor/ Ypsi. Outside of that there isn't much hot spots west of the city. Just a few clubs/ bars here and there.

North Suburbs: Royal Oak, Ferndale, Madison Heights, Southfield, Pontiac has a couple of spots so around there you could look into Waterford. Most other things around there is pretty expensive.

Windsor: I can't tell you much about there as far as living goes but there is an active nightlife scene there.

If I were you I wouldn't worry about living in areas that has active nightlife scenes. Alot of things are spread out in Metro Detroit. So get used to the freeways.

Metro Detroit is a pretty fairly diverse place, but I wouldn't compare it to any place that borders Mexico lol. But seriously I believe we have the largest middle eastern population in America (or the world?), a HUGE black population, and Latinos have there areas too like Mexicantown in Southwest Detroit. It's decently diverse but probably not in CA league.

[snoopygirlmi]

Stick to Oakland County - if your work is in Farmington Hills.

Rent something close to work, then look for something more permanent. There are a lot of great neighborhoods in Metro Detroit, but you need to spend time getting to know the area before making a more permanent decision about where to live.

Also, you probably don't want to go north of Birmingham or Troy.

I really can't believe that someone actually recommended Waterford? Seriously?

It's one thing to go clubbing in Pontiac on the weekend, but I don't know of anyone up here who would willingly drive from Waterford to Farmington Hills everyday for work.

We've got some nice areas up here (I really don't mean to sound like I'm anti-Waterford because I'm not), but after a certain point rickla is gonna wanna have a life outside of driving - especially since he's talking about wanting to find a lady and going clubbing.

Just getting to Waterford from Rochester Hills is a hassle because M-59 isn't a 'highway' once you hit Pontiac, so you have to deal with traffic lights and regular traffic all up and down that stretch.

I'm in Rochester Hills and I dread the idea of driving out to Farmington Hills because it's 45 minutes to an hour one way.

I get why my mommy friends from Royal Oak/Madison Heights find Farmington Hills a nice alternative to some of our other play date locations because it's about 20-30 minutes for them to drive there. However, I'm not in those areas and it's not appealing to me to spend 2 hours in a car (total trip).

I definitely wouldn't want to drive from Waterford to Farmington Hills everyday (add about 10-15 minutes to the estimated drive times above).

Finding non-white girls isn't a problem.

[YoungTraveler2011]

Originally Posted by rickla

Hi folks,

I've been reading this forum for days trying to get an idea of the area. My job will be in Farmington Hills. I've lived in San Diego most of my life so I don't know anything about that region.

I'm making good money in this job (low six figures) but I'd like to save so I'm thinking max 1500 a month for rent. A loft, 1 bedroom would work. I want to save money but maybe its better to pay more to try to make the transition easier; i don't know.

I enjoy going out dancing, bars, sometimes a club... everything I did in my 20s I'm single. One weird thing with me is that I'm not really attracted to white american women. I don't know why. This worries me as I hear there isn't a lot of diversity up there compared to here, at least from the forums.. i don't know actually. My girlfriends have been persian, latina, asian, indian, and black.

From my reading it seems like Ann Arbor and Royal Oak would be good candidates. Both seem to be 35 minute commutes which is on the high side but I'd bear it if it's worth it. Apparently Ann Arbor is more ethnically diverse which is good but people tend to be younger.

Where would you recommend I look for housing? I'm worried about feeling isolated and alone with the winters I'm not used to so I want to be in a place where there is some activity to keep my spirits up.

1,500 for rent lol.

welcome to michigan bro. for 1,500 you'll probably get a 3-4 bedroom mansion. LOL.

i just left michigan (novi area) and moved to NYC.

if only i could find something for 1,500 here that wasnt a complete dump

[one is lonely]

Novi and Farmington Hills actually have plenty of things to do if you're single. It just comes down to a simple question: do you mind driving to places that have small clusters of swanky bars, clubs, and restaurants, or do you want everything grouped together in a more downtown environment?

Obviously, Royal Oak and Ann Arbor have downtowns (although neither compare to a big city), while Novi and Farmington Hills don't (although the actual city of Farmington has a small downtown).

Personally, I'd recommend Berkley. It has it's own mini-downtown along 12 Mile just a ways west of Woodward, and taking 12 Mile to Farmington Hills would probably work out better for you than trying to take I-696 West to work during peak traffic times (expect a 20 minute drive with my directions). You'd also be smack dab in the middle of Birmingham, Royal Oak, Clawson, and Ferndale, all of which have lively downtowns of varying sizes.

But again, if you really value a short commute, there are many high quality entertainment and dining options in Novi and Farmington Hills - even some faux-downtowns - it's just very much car-centered. But you're coming from San Diego, so you're probably used to that.

[boxster]

Hi, I work for automotive industry. I grew up in Seattle and lived in Downtown Detroit & Troy, NYC (Brooklyn) currently Torrance California. All of theses cities had different pros and cons. Also, there are huge differences in West Coast / Mid West/ East Coast in diversity, atmosphere and lifestyle. Comparing SoCal and Metro Detroit is very hard to compare. Diversity and entertainment wise. SoCal offers so much. However, living cost / housing price and income tax. California is insane. I am paying 9.3% of state income tax here. Most housing price in good neighborhood(O.C or like San Diego) SoCal is almost triple to Metro Detroit proper (Novi, Farmington Hills,Troy,Warren,Gross pointe, even Ann Arbor) price. I mean there are pros and cons. You will get so much in Michigan for saving money (paying much less Tax, bigger property, more affordable lifestyle with your income and etc... but the surroundings would not be interesting or amusing like in SoCal. Also, you have to drive a lot in Michigan. Buildings are much spread out compare to SoCal no walking almost...) If you are a single, can you find the same industry job in Seattle, Portland, Boston, Philly or Chicago? Michgan is a great place to raise family. They have nice suburbs for the value. However, there are big seperation from downtown to suburbs. In downtown Detroit, you won't find nothing like Downtown L.A. or relaxed feel
like San Diego. Downtown Detroit seems its development stopped since seventy's there are no newer style buildings and the surroundings are quite depressing. Think it is more like a big scale of Compton, CA. Also you won't find any mountains or hills like West coast.

[Arthur Digby Sellers]

Novi would be the place to meet Asian women. They have a very large Asian community.

[MS313]

Originally Posted by boxster

Hi, I work for automotive industry. I grew up in Seattle and lived in Downtown Detroit & Troy, NYC (Brooklyn) currently Torrance California. All of theses cities had different pros and cons. Also, there are huge differences in West Coast / Mid West/ East Coast in diversity, atmosphere and lifestyle. Comparing SoCal and Metro Detroit is very hard to compare. Diversity and entertainment wise. SoCal offers so much. However, living cost / housing price and income tax. California is insane. I am paying 9.3% of state income tax here. Most housing price in good neighborhood(O.C or like San Diego) SoCal is almost triple to Metro Detroit proper (Novi, Farmington Hills,Troy,Warren,Gross pointe, even Ann Arbor) price. I mean there are pros and cons. You will get so much in Michigan for saving money (paying much less Tax, bigger property, more affordable lifestyle with your income and etc... but the surroundings would not be interesting or amusing like in SoCal. Also, you have to drive a lot in Michigan. Buildings are much spread out compare to SoCal no walking almost...) If you are a single, can you find the same industry job in Seattle, Portland, Boston, Philly or Chicago? Michgan is a great place to raise family. They have nice suburbs for the value. However, there are big seperation from downtown to suburbs. In downtown Detroit, you won't find nothing like Downtown L.A. or relaxed feel
like San Diego. Downtown Detroit seems its development stopped since seventy's there are no newer style buildings and the surroundings are quite depressing. Think it is more like a big scale of Compton, CA. Also you won't find any mountains or hills like West coast.

I have been to SoCal. You do just as much driving there as you do in Metro Detroit if not more. LA is one of the most spread out regions in the country with a few business hubs here and there. And downtown LA is NOT all of that. Especially for a city the size of LA. And there are developments happening all over downtown Detroit AND surrounding areas.

[Jwo85]

Don't move anywhere north of 15 mile rd if working in farmington or Novi. Traffic is a nightmare. I don't know why the city officals thought it be a good idea to build millions of subdivisions and not update the roads from two lanes to multi-lanes or install a center turn lane on some roads.