[michiganbob]

Originally Posted by ChicagotoMSU2007

Have a similar question about Lansing neighborhoods. Hard to tell when you don't live there and aren't around to observe day/night before buying a place. ...

I'm preparing to move from Chicago to Western Michigan to work on a PhD at MSU. Have looked at homes in Lansing area: Okemos (nice, but too expensive), East Lansing (OK, but don't want to live in or too close to student area and looking for better value for dollar). Realtor has shown me a number of homes on Tecumseh River Road (nice park along the river) and Cumberland Drive. Seems like decent value for dollar and neighborhood folks with whom I've talked seem nice. But, the overall neighborhood seems to be transitioning economically, and not sure how it will go or what to make of it. Seems to have a lot of long-timers who are now too old to keep a home themselves and are therefore moving. Otherwise, neighborhood seems OK. Anyone have any insights? Many thanks!

I didn't see it in your message (or an earlier one if you posted it) but if schools are important, you may want to move just a little further west into the Waverly or Grand Ledge school district.
One thing I have noticed about this part of town (I live just West of that area) is that people there either send their kids to private school or move before the reach middle school . . . just to keep them out of the Lansing Schools. I'm not bashing the Lansing School District, just telling you what the trends are and that the public perception is that almost anything outside Lansing is better.
Also, I have been watching home prices in this area for several years and they are definately on the way down, so you may still be buying at the high end, unless you get yourself a real steal. My personal opinion is to rent for a while (many nice houses are no the market because they owners can't sell them) and if you like the area and find a job, you can always buy then. If not, and you want to sell, you might have a tough time. To say the Lansing area is "transitioning economically" is putting it mildly. Things will get worse here before they get better.

If you are still want to buy, you might want to look in the Northeast area, near 127 and Lake Lansing Road, just south of the new Eastwood Towne Center. It's a great outdoor mall with the best movie theaters in town, several great restaurants and good shopping. It would also be closer to MSU (East Lansing is just on the other side of 127) and from my experience (both the wife and daughter went to school there) you will spent a lot of time looking for parking on campus, so a short commute might be helpful.

Oh, and technically, Lansing would be considered Central Michigan and not Western Michigan.

If you need more info, send me a message. I would be glad to assist!

[conovercourt]

One reason I left Michigan was because of blah days. Now I couldn't care less. I lived on the California Coast for many years, and have had many crappy days under gorgeous California sunshine. After living in the Central Valley, with 300+ clear days, I would have given anything for gray day in June!

If you have heat and A/C, don't worry about the weather! Go home, and keep us other jealous ex-pats posted ...

[JimmyInGreatLakes]

Honestly, there may not be as many blah days as advertised. This summer has been spectacular. Except for a couple intolerable days (high heat and humidity), we've had VERY nice weather. I'm sure the golf courses must be pleased (although the economy may be hurting discretionary spending). And one of the months of winter (February?) this year was sunny most of the way. '06 had a lousy fall around here but that was the exception rather than the rule.

[ChicagotoMSU2007]

Biggest priority is overall value for dollar and a decent neighborhood -- where I don't have to be worried about a constant threat from robbery, burglary or other crime. While sections of the Tecumseh River neighborhood seem a bit "transitional," the location is very good for my needs (proximity to airport, MSU, city center, and parks near the Grand River). Just wondering weather the neighborhood is going into a slide downward or holding its own.

Looking at homes on Tecumseh River Road and Cumberland Road. The two properties that have my attention are within an area bounded by Westbury Road and North Grand River Road. One's sitting on an acre on the river and the other is on a nicely wooded lot (about 3/4 acre) and is a good size home.

Again, I don't need to live in a high-end neighborhood -- but want to have some confidence that I'm not buying into gangland or an area slipping quickly into decline.

Again, many thanks.

[ByeByeMI]

Keep in mind that the property taxes out here are OUTRAGEOUS!!!!! Yeah you might be able to get a decent home as housing prices are falling but you will more than pay for it in your property taxes. Our house we just sold was a 1340 sq foot three bedroom ranch, on a postage stamp lot, our taxes were over $4,000.00 per year.

[jaycheryl]

Biggest priority is overall value for dollar and a decent neighborhood -- where I don't have to be worried about a constant threat from robbery, burglary or other crime. While sections of the Tecumseh River neighborhood seem a bit "transitional," the location is very good for my needs (proximity to airport, MSU, city center, and parks near the Grand River). Just wondering weather the neighborhood is going into a slide downward or holding its own.

Looking at homes on Tecumseh River Road and Cumberland Road. The two properties that have my attention are within an area bounded by Westbury Road and North Grand River Road. One's sitting on an acre on the river and the other is on a nicely wooded lot (about 3/4 acre) and is a good size home.

Again, I don't need to live in a high-end neighborhood -- but want to have some confidence that I'm not buying into gangland or an area slipping quickly into decline.

Again, many thanks.

My husband and I have lived in Holt (just south of Lansing) for 4 years and we love it! It's still only about 10-15 min from MSU's campus, but it's just a little bit rural and VERY SAFE. We have 2 children, so being away from the crime is incredibly important to us. The school system here is great but the property taxes are a little high. We have a $190K house and we pay about $4000 in property taxes a year. But there are many homes that are not as high as the upper 100's and they are nice and in safe places, too. HTH.

[strammy]

I spent 4 years in Lansing for work - just moved back to Metro Detroit 2 years ago. The nighborhood you talk about is pretty solid. It's not the greatest part of Lansing (that's probably the area around Forest/Aurelius on the east side), but it's been pretty solid when I was there. Lansing really doesn't have a "bad area" like parts of Detroit. The town for the most part is very safe. The only bad spot is the square mile between MLK/Pleasant Grove/Jolly/Holmes on the SW side - and even that's not bad.

If you're going for a PhD at MSU, the Forest/Aurelius area I mentioned is about a 10 minute drive to campus. I'd recommend that. Holt/Grand Ledge/Delta Township are all nice places too. When i was out here

Also, so you know, there is very little in the way of traffic problems in Lansing, but the one problem spot tends to be up near Lake Lansing/127. Lots of traffic in PM peak, area is nice otherwise.

Would have stayed in Lansing area, but missed the Detroit area too much and had a better offer down here.

[michiganbornandproud]

I just wanna come home and have my kids finish school and grow up in a better environment than here.Hubby would pack and leave tomorrow if he had a job to go to when we get there...that's why I started the thread..
He is certified structural welder with TONS of experience and would be a serious asset to any company that would give him a chance.The company he works for now is very good to him,but the cost of living,crime, and urban sprawl are making this city impossible to cope with.We have rented our entire married life because we cannot afford to buy here in CO...and the only reason I'm here is because I didn't have a choice when I was a kid...LOL
I get mauled on the CO boards for expressing my opinions about my area of town...and I am tired of CO as a whole as it to me has become a tourist trap for the rich and elite.Anybody got any pointers for hubby to talk to somebody about gettin in on a welding industry job in MI?At this point,kidneys may be up for sale to go home and stay there!...LOL Thanks!

[Orwelleaut]

Greater Lansing is a good area. I moved to Lansing from Ashtabula, Ohio, and lived there a couple years and liked it very much. Coming from a rust belt town, I found the job market pretty good. Weather is also pretty decent. Not much snow for a Northern locale, though damn cold in the winter!! Summer is beautiful.

Avoid East Lansing due to expensive rents. Haslett, just East of East Lansing, is less crowded and cheaper. Some nice smaller towns in this part of the state are Owosso, Ionia and St. JOhn's.

A couple of general things about Mid-Michigan:

1) Have the jobs lined up and ready to go before you move. Lansing is prosperous compared to a place like Pittsburgh or Youngstown, Ohio, but is certainly no Phoenix, Arizona. This is an old industrial city.

2) If you want down home, earthy, friendly people, this is the place. This is the home of the Northern country boy, and many folks here have Southern roots. Folks here tell it straight, and will give you the shirt off of their back.

[dentedvw]

Unfortunately, I agree. Welding jobs are scarce, as our economy in lansing has mainly depended upon GM for a long time. Olds is gone, and there isn't anything replacing it.
It's very depressing to watch every day the factories being torn down. All that will be left soon is miles of concrete where buildings used to stand.
Finding a house won't be a problem either, with thousands of them in foreclosure. My mother is a realtor, and has been for a long time. She has made less in the last three years combined than in any one year prior. Think about that. Her primary income now is doing Broker Price Opinions for banks that are repossessing homes. These aren't homes being repossessed in okemos, these are in working class neighborhoods like mine.
Whole neighborhoods are emptying. People are moving out, leaving their lives behind because they can't afford to take it with them.
A most lucrative business right now is trash removal, some streets are covered with dumpsters from homes being cleaned out. It's a business I used to be in, but it was too depressing. Now, I am a subcontractor for the state of michigan, which used to be a pretty good gig. They are cracking down on single sourcing, which means that I too may be joining the ranks of the unemployed soon. Low bid always wins, even if that means reduced quality and service.
Overall, I would not recommend anyone move to lansing who isn't independently wealthy or retiring with a large sum of money saved.
It's a real drag, our family is all here, but I don't know how much longer we can stay. We live in a modest but nice home on a small lake, it's quite nice. I don't think we will be able to sell it for what we paid for it. Honestly, we only paid about $115k for it four years ago. I am afraid we will have to pay to move out of it. We only have a ten minute commute to work, I could ride my bike if I didn't have so many tools to carry. Where else can you live on a quiet lake and claim that?
I will miss michigan for sure, but it's on it's way down, and this is only the beginning.