From California to Indiana? (Indianapolis, Fishers: school district, living in, restaurants)

[EricSteph]

My cousin moved to Plainfield, IN from Southern Cali about 9 years ago. My aunt, who also lived in So. Cal, moved to Avon, IN about 6 years ago because she loved it there so much. My parents and siblings moved to Avon about 3 years ago and my husband and I are moving there Oct. 1st. We have been to many different places in the US: Florida, Kentucky, Ohio, Nevada, Seattle. We are so excited about the change of pace from So Cal. We have lived in the Orange County/Inland Empire part of California our whole lives (we are now 26) and welcome the change. There is NO traffic like the traffic here. People are rude. They can't drive and don't care. They are inconsiderate. They don't care whether they can speak English or not and now it has become OUR fault if we can't understand them. The housing prices are OUTRAGEOUS! We pay $1700 a month for a one bedroom apartment. We are newly married with no children and our desire is to make the move to a slower paces environment before we do so. In Indiana we can buy a house, finish college, and have a lot less stress than we have here. If anyone says to stay in California because the price of living is worth it, then they are a minority. My family that currently lives in Indiana have never once regretted making the move. The embrace everything that comes with living in Indiana. My parents live in Avon, IN down the street from Avon High School (one of the best in the state) and paid $175,000 for a 3,000 sq. ft. home on about half an acre in a very nice neighborhood. I would not say that Avon is pricey. They have great schools and lots of shopping without the traffic of Carmel. Carmel is also very nice, but much more expensive. Those of us from California jokingly refer to Carmel as "the Orange County" of Indiana. Anyone who has lived in So Cal knows what I mean.

[domergurl]

When we were trying to choose between Carmel and Fishers, our realtor referred to it as Carmel by the Corn, as opposed to Carmel by the Sea.

[twixcookie]

Carmel is a nice area. Expensive though.The Greater Indianapolis area should have a lot of things you want. It is NOT San Francisco. But it is a good place and you can find a lot to do. It is very affordable. The 500K you'd spend in California will buy you a mansion and more here.
Carmel schools are good. I hear Westfield and Noblesville are nice too.
I am not liberal nor conservative. I am convinced that if you have a good income, you can be happy almost anywhere.

[Blondeone]

Bloomington a good town to raise a family??? Its a typical college town! We live in Aboite just outside of Fort Wayne...Southwest Allen County schools are also top notch year after year...there are lots which are quite large...we have a lot which is almost half an acre..so we cant reach out and touch the next house...Compared to California the home prices are dirt cheap as are the taxes...Id love to move back to North Carolina myself..(we call NC the east coast California without all the fruits, nuts and flakes )...however, the fort wayne area is nice with things to do and only 90 miles from Indy

[gemstone1]

It seems that anywhere north of Seymour is gonna get a bunch of snow, and Indy is 10 degrees colder than So Indiana....zero and below is no stranger to Indy. If you're from N of SF, I doubt that you're ready for that kind of a change. Maybe you could look at S Indiana...Louisville, KY metro area is about 1 million, and is easy an commute from Scottsburg, IN, which has cheap Broadband wireless for telecommuters. I lived in the country 7 miles east of Scottsburg for ten years.

[sheasway]

My husband and I moved to Indy 4 years ago. The job market was crashing and things were so expensive we decided to try the midwest. I have family here who moved from CA 13-14 years ago. I will say it took them years to like Indy (now the love it) and even coming up on 4 years here, I cant say that I have grown to like it. There are nice, wonderful people here and then there are the others (same issue everywhere). I think the fact that my husband and I are not Christians plays a part in that. My husband is a Buddhist and the Sanga (Sangha) community is very small here. My husband has been treated very hostile (has actually been called names from coworkers) here from those that follow the bible. I think maybe the difference of opinion is too scary for those that believe in the bible. The main reason we are moving is I am raising a son and since my husband has been treated so badly, I am concerned about some will treat my son when his parents are not around. I have to say though, we have met some wonderful people here, political and religious views aside. Of course the ones who are judgemental and close minded are everywhere. We lived in Fishers, an affluent community and now we live on the east side. Anyone who says crime isnt bad, doesnt pay attention. Crime is bad here but I think its fair to say crime is bad most places. Taxes are cheap? That must have been before the new tax hike. I have friends whos property taxes went from 2500 to 9000. In fact, the govt here is now making provisions because the tax hike will push people out of their homes. If you are conservative and a church goer, I think you would like Fishers, Carmel, Noblesville. Carmel donated 1 million to the Bush campaign and $100, 000 to Hurrican Katrina (according to a close friend is attends all Carmel City meetings and is an active member in the community). I also think coming from California you will be surprised and saddened about the racial tensions here. We are moving back to the west coast in 2 months and are grateful for what we have learned here and are more grateful to be leaving. Good luck!

[domergurl]

I wish your family peace back in California. Just wondering why you wouldn't consider another midwestern city like Chicago or Minneapolis (more on the liberal spectrum and just as expensive at California ... weather maybe?).

[syntaxburn]

if you visit Indiana in the summer, keep in mind it is very different season to season, as much as any state in the country....cold winters with some snow, stormy spring with tornados and hail, autumn with wonderous colors...Indy has more crime than some think...I hate urban environments, so of course I wont endorse Indy or its suburbs...outside of Indy, Indiana is almost exclusivley rural in every aspect...cost of living is low, especially compared to Cali, and I would not expect to work from your home here, things arent that "connected"...if you want a Christian environment, or at least a stable environment to raise kids and grow a nest egg, then Indiana is a good choice...excitment is a premium here, at least in the way of societal offerings: performance art, affluent restraurants, etc....the outdoors provides the bulk of entertainment in this section of the country: fishing, hiking, biking, boating, hunting, mushroom hunting, etc...if you are not an outdoors person and you plan on living in one of Indiana's smaller communities, you might want to think twice...unless your a hopeless urbanite, you will probably come to enjoy and appreciate those things if you dont already....oh yeah, and liberal ideology is restricted to a few places: Indy/Bloomington/Lafayette/Evansville/Nashville...everywhere else is as conservative as you will find anywhere...good luck

[Seekeraftertruth]

Originally Posted by Jonesvillian

One place I suggest to NOT go is Seymour quite a few miles south on I-65. That place is just messed up. I have been there and I dont like it at all

It would be helpful if you stated what you didn't like when you visited. Of course visiting a place and living there are two different things. It's not really a tourist venue. It's where you go to raise a family. I find it remarkably sane in an insane world.

Seymour, like many Indiana towns, is in transition. You can see that as a negative or you can see it as a positive. I find it exciting. The Seymour of today isn't the Seymour of yesterday or of tomorrow, and I'm contributing to what it will become. I wouldn't have liked this town thirty years ago. I moved to the area in the mid 80s when Seymour's library was so small if you bent over incautiously to look at the lower shelves there was a good chance of backing into the shelves behind you! The genealogy librarian was in the basement down a set of steep dark stairs like a troll. I was glad at that time I lived in Bartholomew County and could use the Columbus library. Today the Seymour library has caught up.

Another transition we are all enduring is property taxes. It looks like that might end up to be a county by county decision of whether we lower property taxes by raising income taxes or what. But it might not. People are pretty upset about the new rates right now and some have said they can't keep their rental properties because they don't get a homestead exemption on those and the taxes have gone up so high.

(I lived near Jonesville for three years. Did you lose your post office? I didn't see it last time I went by there.)

[bioteacher]

Lived in SF for 8 yrs (before that, STL for 4 and Btown for 11). Grew up in Evansville. Moved to Indy 3 months ago to Broad Ripple and we love it. We love CA but it is so expensive and so many people don't have time to develop close relationships because they are so busy working to make ends meet. I miss my view (Mt. Tam) and the ocean, which I used to swim in, but I don't miss being able to barely make my mortgage payment. My neighbors are GREAT! and the opportunities for children are great. Largest Children's Museum, great zoo, State Museum, great minor league ballpark etc etc. And there is culture here (although there is a lack of diversity) but we knew all of that coming in. Sold my house in CA and bought a house for 1/4 of what I sold my house for in CA. We were lucky and got out before real estate really tanked.
Broad Ripple for some is too many bars etc, but if you like SF you will like it. Plus you have the Monon Trail and Canal Path a few blocks away. Absolutely wonderful. We walk and ride our bikes everywhere. Of course you could do this in SF but not if you needed to work or live anywhere else in the Bay Area. We can trailer the kids to preschool, to the store, to get a coffee...
This life is not for everyone, but I have to say...living is EASY in Indiana. And people are abundantly friendly.
Cheers!