Royal Oak vs Birmingham? (Detroit, Ann Arbor: best city, real estate, rent)

[Abby2007]

Hi.. I am still researching where to call home in 2008! I plan to do my first house hunting trip mid Feb. Looking forward to having my first basement! I appreciate this board and the info - good and bad..

I like the charm of Royal Oak, Birmingham and Plymouth. Why is Birmingham so expensive? Can someone give me the tax differential? I have read it is over-priced and it appears that Royal Oak has the same charm, but for much less and nice quaint amenities.

Is there a specific preferred area of Royal Oak for resale? I plan to be in MI for at least 3-7 yrs. Thanks for any help you can offer.

[Cato the Elder]

Off the top of my head, I would guess that B'ham has such high prices because of their top-rated school district. The also offer the best services - leaf pickup, snow removal, public parks, etc. As a RO resident who lives across the street from B'ham, I can attest to their superiority in this respect, but it does come at a price.

I think resale in RO is more tied to the specific house more than anything. The next factor is probably proximity to downtown. The large houses along Vinsetta are probably among the most expensive though they are not that close to downtown. People are generally looking for houses with character that have been updated - simple as that.

[Dexterguy]

Birmingham has very good city services as were told, excellent schools. But this entire area in Oakland County is a nice area to live in with mostly good schools. For nice charm and schools look into Royal Oak. If you want to be in the more Western Suburbs look into Northville, Plymouth, or Novi. Novi has nice schools, but may lack the charm that you may be looking for. Happy house hunting!

[sugarbeet]

If you are set on being near Birmingham, there are options with lower priced housing but in Birmingham school district. Bloomfield village is one, but mostly quite expensive homes. Taxes are lower than b'ham, though. Beverly Hills is a great option - very residential. I think taxes are actually higher there, unfortunately. I lived in BH and they were outrageous. But my house was not that expensive so I feel like it evened out a bit...

If schools are not as much of an issue, Royal Oak or Ferndale are great choices. Not sure what your life stage is, but that can sometimes make a difference. I do think that you can get a good deal on a home anywhere in the Detroit suburbs these days and Birmingham is at the top of the prestige scale as far as this area is concerned.

Plymouth is not as centrally located to Oakland county's amenities and just has a different feel than B'ham or RO areas.

[Coldjensens]

Royal Oak is closer to Detroit and is more urban and is an older city. Royal oak is generally considered younger although the average age is the same as B'ham. Royal Oak is generally considered less high end (some would say less snooty). the average income is considerably lower than B'ham. Royal Oak has more traditional neighborhoods and more middle of the road subs.


B'ham is newer in most parts, it is more suburban and it is generally more expensive homes. You will find loads of subdivisions, particularly McMansion subs around Birmingham.
Birmingham has a very quaint downtown however much of it has been infected with modernization. Birmingham has better chain store shopping opportunities nearby (i.e. more and better malls, warehouse stores, big box stores and national restaurant chains).

Plymouth is very much a small town. Plymouth is quiet and very community oriented. the downtown is very quaint with loads of victorian homes and buildings. It becomes rural very quickly in many of the surrounding areas. It has the advantage of being close to Ann Arbor (probably Michigan's best City), but it is further from Detroit (45 minutes) than Royal Oak. Given normal traffic, I think that B'ham is about the same distance form Downtown as Plymouth is.

Plymouth and Birmingham both have excellent public schools.

You really need to either rent somewhere first and take time to get to know all of the areas or at a minimum spend three or four days in each place. If you jump and buy, you may end up wishing that you had looked first. If you buy now, selling and relocating will not be a practical option for a considerable time. real estate prices outside of Wayne County are still declining. (Wayne County is not designated as a "Declining market" but some parts are probably still in decline.

[Cato the Elder]

In the grand scheme of things, there is not THAT much difference between RO and B'ham. RO is larger so there is a bit more diversity in people and housing stock. You will find just as wealthy people in parts of RO (think Jeff Garcia, et al), but there are less percentage wise in RO so it defines the town less.

Both are older towns with downtowns that boomed once the railroad went through. In fact, I believe the oldest houses in the entire area are in B'ham, not RO - one is the historical museum now and the other is a private house on Pierce and Lincoln.

Driving from either city to Detroit takes less than 30 minutes if it's not stop-and-go. It's only 4 miles or so separating the two downtowns by Woodward Ave - 10 minutes tops by car. In fact, the northern boundary of RO borders the southern boundary of B'ham along 14 Mile Rd. People from both towns share all the same shopping for the most part - Somerset, Trader Joe's, Westborn Market, Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond, etc. When you have people driving in from hundreds of miles away to get to stores you can only find in Somerset, what are several miles?

Here's the biggest clarification of all - B'ham IS a historical/traditional town in many ways. Yeah, the guys driving Ferraris downtown stick out, but this is not your average resident - they are probably not even local but from Bloomfield. B'ham is not newer in most parts. There are chains, but there are still plenty of small businesses. There are McMansions being built over razed bungalows, but this happens in RO also, just not as often and aparent. I would say less than 5% of the houses are McMansions. The biggest McMansion is actually in RO - someone bought two corner lots and built a monstrosity that looks like a cathedral. Most houses in B'ham are quite old - if you drive in the Quarton area north of Maple, the area along Southfield, or the area along Adams, you'll see grand old houses. You will also see small, modest bungalows almost exclusively south of Lincoln.

Overall, to see and understand these things takes more than driving down Maple, Pierce, Woodward, and Southfield on some househunting trips. The "hip" downtown of both towns hardly represents the actual situation in the actual neighborhoods.

[Abby2007]

Thank you all very much for your insight!!! I will be taking several house hunting trips and my husband is there on and off until we relocate permanently. Luckily, we have always known exactly what we want and even agree!

[Cato the Elder]

Abby, I hope you were successful in your search. I was in Costco the other day and I stumbled across a book about historical Birmingham which is quite well done. It is put out by Arcadia publishing, which has produced quite a number of similar books on historical areas across the country. You can also order the book online. I imagine that a similar book on RO is either out there or in the works.

[Bluefly]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

B'ham is newer in most parts, it is more suburban and it is generally more expensive homes. You will find loads of subdivisions, particularly McMansion subs around Birmingham.
Birmingham has a very quaint downtown however much of it has been infected with modernization. Birmingham has better chain store shopping opportunities nearby (i.e. more and better malls, warehouse stores, big box stores and national restaurant chains).

Not to be rude, but this is probably the least accurate description of Birmingham I've ever seen. I guess if you define Birmingham as Bloomfield Township/Troy/Pontiac, then maybe you can get away with it.

[Cato the Elder]

Originally Posted by Bluefly

Not to be rude, but this is probably the least accurate description of Birmingham I've ever seen. I guess if you define Birmingham as Bloomfield Township/Troy/Pontiac, then maybe you can get away with it.

Don't worry, I think we straightened CJ out. CJ usually has good things to post but hits a rut for whatever reason when talking about the Woodward corridor. It might be some repressed anger against the area from some distasteful childhood experience.