Weighing Relocation (Detroit, Grand Rapids, Lansing: 2013, house, neighborhoods)

[mikeyyc]

Please humor me a bit.

We are a family of three, all Canadian, currently having lived in Houston for the last decade or so. There may be a potential opportunity to relocate to the Grand Rapids area.

Why would I want to do this? Personally I was hoping to be done with the cold. I'm sure there are infinite wonderful reasons to relocate to the mid-Michigan peninsula. I was hoping to hear some...

Thanks in advance.

[beachmouse]

It's a pleasant mid-sized metro area with reasonable housing costs by Can-Am standards. (Yes, it's not as cheap as five years ago, but there's still value to be found) There are a lot of entertainment, food, and recreational amenities in the area, and the core of the metro is compact enough that you can manage not to spend an insane amount of driving time to get there. Summers are generally lovely and mild compared to what you get in Houston. Winters are kind of gloomy and snowy but at least somewhat warmer than what you'd get in Minneapolis or Chicago.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by mikeyyc

Please humor me a bit.

We are a family of three, all Canadian, currently having lived in Houston for the last decade or so. There may be a potential opportunity to relocate to the Grand Rapids area.

Why would I want to do this? Personally I was hoping to be done with the cold. I'm sure there are infinite wonderful reasons to relocate to the mid-Michigan peninsula. I was hoping to hear some...

Thanks in advance.

Without knowing what your interests are, West Michigan is an outdoor enthusiast's heaven which you can enjoy year-round. And everything like Beachmouse said is very accessible and within an easy drive or bike ride.

Housing is still relatively affordable, but actually somewhat hard to obtain due to the influx of residents and the booming economy. Patience and timing is key.

Great selection of public schools with neighborhoods that won't set you back an arm and a leg.

Growth but not insane growth like Texas sized growth. There's only one 8 - 10 lane freeway through the city (131) if that gives you an idea of traffic.

A huge explosion of locally owned restaurants and breweries throughout the city and metro area.

Easy to get involved in the city or your community/local politics if you're into that kind of thing.

Hope that helps.

[mikeyyc]

That helps a great deal. Thank you. I purposely am being a bit vague, as I don't really want to salt the answers. I want to know what people think and love who are there every day, not what someone thinks I like, but what they really love about the place. If that makes any sense?

[mjlo]

Originally Posted by mikeyyc

That helps a great deal. Thank you. I purposely am being a bit vague, as I don't really want to salt the answers. I want to know what people think and love who are there every day, not what someone thinks I like, but what they really love about the place. If that makes any sense?

What I love about Grand Rapids is how it's always changing. By rights it has all of the ingredients to be a post industrial city that's struggling to find it's footing in a knowledge based economy. Instead new things are being built everywhere, and old buildings are being renovated, once almost abandoned neighborhoods are surging into some of the hippest in Michigan. Watching a place change and grow, and in a small way being a part of it is intoxicating. I've yet to have out of town friends come here and not be impressed.

[beachmouse]

Grand Rapids has really improved in terms of livability over the past 20 years- the true downtown housing and entertainment revival, the development of the beer culture and broader national interest in better food has led to a far improved restaurant scene, what was always a strong parks and interest in personal health and fitness has continued to thrive.

And it's all very accessible. Every city and metro area has their big list of things you can do and see in theory in the area, but the question is how often a typical middle class family can realistically hit items on the list, whether from a money or time perspective. Want to see live professional sports? Griffins hockey is not the NHL, but neither are the ticket prices and you see a lot of good players going on the I-96 shuttle run back and forth to Detroit. The pro baseball may only be Single A, but tickets are cheap, and it's still a fun way to spend a summer afternoon or evening hanging out with a group of friends. The beach season is not year-round, but I'll take Grand Haven or Holland over Galveston any day. And you can eat well on a reasonable budget. Health care is very good.

Housing is a little rough right now, but you can still find sweet spots in terms of nice house, good schools, reasonable commute for $300K or less if you don't need HGTV perfect out of the box.

Local leadership is pretty pragmatic, and typically more interested in solving problems and improving quality of life for residents than making a political point. Public-private partnerships are strong and one of the big reasons why the area does well. They try to buffer some of the Lansing stupidity with varying levels of success.

I couldn't wait to get out of GR in the 90s, but every time I go back to visit family there's something new and interesting happening there, and I'd gladly move back if the right opportunity came along.

[mikeyyc]

Thanks. This is exactly what I'm searching for. Now if there was only a way to ship out five months of winter...

[Lockdev]

FWIW: I moved there, then turned around and moved out a couple of years later.

My main reason for moving was the weather and the break-neck speed COL increase.

Housing costs have skyrocketed in the past few years.

Taxes are out of control in the "nice" places to live. My taxes were ~$4k/year in 2013. In 2018, they're well over $7k/year. The house has also gone up in value $120k in 5 years, so if you're entering the market today, good luck.

It used to have a great cost of living that made the 5 months of winter tolerable.

Now, I can't really see the draw.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Lockdev

FWIW: I moved there, then turned around and moved out a couple of years later.

My main reason for moving was the weather and the break-neck speed COL increase.

Housing costs have skyrocketed in the past few years.

Taxes are out of control in the "nice" places to live. My taxes were ~$4k/year in 2013. In 2018, they're well over $7k/year. The house has also gone up in value $120k in 5 years, so if you're entering the market today, good luck.

It used to have a great cost of living that made the 5 months of winter tolerable.

Now, I can't really see the draw.

Your property taxes couldn't possibly have gone up that fast. Michigan has a cap on property tax increases from Proposal A back in the 1990's. Rate of inflation or 5%, whichever is less, is all they can increase your assessed value while you're living there and claiming it as your primary household.

For our home, in 2011 we were $3396/year. In 2017 we were $4231. Part of that increase was for a millage request for upgrades to all of the schools, and an expansion of the high school where our kids go.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by mjlo

What I love about Grand Rapids is how it's always changing. By rights it has all of the ingredients to be a post industrial city that's struggling to find it's footing in a knowledge based economy. Instead new things are being built everywhere, and old buildings are being renovated, once almost abandoned neighborhoods are surging into some of the hippest in Michigan. Watching a place change and grow, and in a small way being a part of it is intoxicating. I've yet to have out of town friends come here and not be impressed.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. Every day it seems like there's something new being built or being renovated (which is really exciting).

The weather only bothers me for parts of the year, but I really hate hot weather and sweat (unless I'm working out). I bike a ton outdoors, probably 2000 miles a year on the road and mountain biking trails, and if it's over 80 degrees, it's pretty much unbearable for me.