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Hi, I'm looking to move from Southern California (Santa Monica) to Michigan and searched the top wealthiest or safest cities and West Bloomfield and Novi seemed the most appealing with their proximity to corporate jobs.
I'm looking for an apt 1-2 beds max rent $1700. I searched Trulia for rentals and I like how Novi has a lot of townhomes in newer developments, but the prices aren't as cheap as I expected Michigan prices to be (I know I'm lumping all of MI, but I don't know much about the different towns, like what's considered dangerous or low-income, middle class etc.. so came to my fave site for all your kowledge)
West Bloomfield had more older homes for rent and whatever apartment complexes listed all had bad reviews, with some reviewers calling them "ghetto" which I was shocked to hear for this town.
When I see things I can get for $1700 there compared to what I have in Santa Monica, CA it makes me so depressed I'm spending $1750 for a studio (375sq ft) in a busy area & loud rundown complex. However the pay here is higher; I'm an Executive Assistant.
So 2 questions:
Which town best for rentals? I like quiet areas not near main roads or stores
How's the job market for Executive Assistants near these areas to be able to afford the $1700
I would strongly recommend testing out the job market first, and then figure out where to live.
I live in Novi and it is very nice and safe. It's a family-oriented suburb. Unfortunately I don't know much about the rental market here, but am familiar with some of the towhnouse rentals you mentioned. Novi is a high-end suburb, so I'm not surprised at the high rental prices. $1,700 for a one bedroom townhome does seem steep. You should expand your search to include rental homes as well.
However, if you moved to Novi and ended up with an executive assistant job in the northern suburbs, you would be staring at commuting hell.
It will depend on where you work. Most of the suburbs are very nice and very safe. There are maybe six subrubs you want to avoid, another ten that you have better options for the same cost or a small amount more. Many of the suburbs are very quiet. Nothing is much like Santa Monica if you are anywhere near the 4th street promenade. Maybe Birmingham a tiny bit.
I am not sure about Executive Assistant positions, but Legal Assistants (Secretaries) usually come in the $34,000 - $50,000 range with at least some experience. California most area run considerably higher, but so does rent. At $1700, you could rent a small house or town-home/condo in many nice cities. However I would be surprised if you can earn enough as an EA to afford a $1700 rental with other expenses. Do you really want to spend most of your money on rent? How will you afford weekend getaways up north?
Many of the "nice" places, what you are paying for in large part are exceptional schools. If you do not have kids, you do not need that. You can easily step down a bit to less popular (and therefore less expensive) locations that do not have great schools. Even Neighboring South Lyon should be cheaper than Novi (and it was the number 2 safest place in Michigan according to some recent BS article), still really good schools but not quite as highly rated.
Novi is shopping and chain dining heaven. If that is what you want, it may be your best option. Royal Oak is more happening lots of places to get drunk at night. Birmingham is the high end new money place with lots of snob appeal, bt it is also a pretty neat little city. Bloomfield Hills is true blue-blood rich people. No real town though. West Bloomfield is a middle/upper middle class suburbia. I know you can live there on $40K a yer because a family member does it (two people too, they struggle a bit though).
Basically you have different areas to look at depending n where your job is. Northwestern Oakland County tends to be higher end Novi, Northville (partly in Wayne County), South Lyon, Walled Lake, West Boomfield, Milford, New Hudson, Wixom, Salem, Canton. Some parts of Downriver are nice Wyandotte is a fun city with some very affordable housing on or near the waterfront and downtown. Grosse Ile is nice and very safe/quiet, but very little in the wya of rentals (no complexes, plus you are paying for the school thing there). In close to the City you have The Grosse Pointes which are very very nice and nestled right in the corner of the City, Royal Oak, Ferndale, Birmingham and Troy (Out a bit more). The east side is generally cheaper and not as nice (Fraser, Warren, St Clair Shores) Then you can get up into Macomb County further or over to Rochester Hills (awesome but distant for many areas). All of these areas are nice. Downtown and Mid-town Detroit are also nice, but will not find a lot for your budget. It is pricy. Ann Arbor and its minions are also very nice places to live (Saline, Plymouth, Dexter, Chelsea) but may be impractical depending on where you work. IN the mid-level that is sort of a middle area that is filled to the brim with apartments (Livonia, Westland, parts of Farmington).
You need to figure your general area, then your wants and preferences, then we can be more help. Telling you that Rochester is wonderful is of little help if you end up working in Flat Rock.
I would strongly recommend testing out the job market first, and then figure out where to live.
However, if you moved to Novi and ended up with an executive assistant job in the northern suburbs, you would be staring at commuting hell.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coldjensens
It will depend on where you work. Most of the suburbs are very nice and very safe. There are maybe six subrubs you want to avoid, another ten that you have better options for the same cost or a small amount more. Many of the suburbs are very quiet. Nothing is much like Santa Monica if you are anywhere near the 4th street promenade. Maybe Birmingham a tiny bit.
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Many of the "nice" places, what you are paying for in large part are exceptional schools. If you do not have kids, you do not need that. You can easily step down a bit to less popular (and therefore less expensive) locations that do not have great schools. Even Neighboring South Lyon should be cheaper than Novi (and it was the number 2 safest place in Michigan according to some recent BS article), still really good schools but not quite as highly rated.
Rock.
Thanks to you both for this info. I'm going to look into those other cities. I looked up the wealthiest cities of MI to narrow down an area I know is safe and more to my style of living. Those 2 seemed the most appealing. I don't have kids but I like the way you said novi is with chain food places. I don't care about the nightclub/bar scene just want to be in a town that still has all the store conveniences but without the big city vibe. I want quiet neighborhoods
Most of the jobs I've seen that pay 50-60k for Executive Assistant are in Southfield, Farmington, Detroit, Troy, Bloomfield Hills, Auburn Hills, Birmingham, Lansing, Ann Arbor. Id prefer a 30-40 min commute or less.
It's going to be difficult getting the job first then moving. But then it's also impossible to get an apt without a job lol
I'm open to of course spending less than $1700, $1000-$1500 would be ideal but since I only looked in novi & west Bloomfield you don't get much for that.
Also thanks for the idea of looking at rental homes being affordable. I'm so used to CA home prices & forget other areas have reasonable pricing
Thanks to you both for this info. I'm going to look into those other cities. I looked up the wealthiest cities of MI to narrow down an area I know is safe and more to my style of living. Those 2 seemed the most appealing. I don't have kids but I like the way you said novi is with chain food places. I don't care about the nightclub/bar scene just want to be in a town that still has all the store conveniences but without the big city vibe. I want quiet neighborhoods
Most of the jobs I've seen that pay 50-60k for Executive Assistant are in Southfield, Farmington, Detroit, Troy, Bloomfield Hills, Auburn Hills, Birmingham, Lansing, Ann Arbor. Id prefer a 30-40 min commute or less.
It's going to be difficult getting the job first then moving. But then it's also impossible to get an apt without a job lol
I'm open to of course spending less than $1700, $1000-$1500 would be ideal but since I only looked in novi & west Bloomfield you don't get much for that.
Also thanks for the idea of looking at rental homes being affordable. I'm so used to CA home prices & forget other areas have reasonable pricing
I would look into Troy. It is an upscale community on par with West Bloomfield, but not quite at the level of Northville. However, it does have the most upscale mall in the State of Michigan, and has many of the more rarer chain restaurants like Ruth Chris, Morton's and Bahama Breeze.
It is more centrally located within the northern suburbs than West Bloomfield and Novi, and has better freeway access, and is also not a far drive from Southfield, Farmington, Detroit, Bloomfield Hills, Auburn Hills, and Birmingham - all cities you mentioned as potential job locations. A ton of retail options are in the vicinity. There are no crime issues whatsoever.
I would look into Troy. It is an upscale community on par with West Bloomfield, but not quite at the level of Northville. However, it does have the most upscale mall in the State of Michigan, and has many of the more rarer chain restaurants like Ruth Chris, Morton's and Bahama Breeze.
It is more centrally located within the northern suburbs than West Bloomfield and Novi, and has better freeway access, and is also not a far drive from Southfield, Farmington, Detroit, Bloomfield Hills, Auburn Hills, and Birmingham - all cities you mentioned as potential job locations. A ton of retail options are in the vicinity. There are no crime issues whatsoever.
Troy also has Somerset collection (fancy mall). If you are into high end shopping, that is our best AFAIK. That is where I send shopper type guests form out of state so they can be impressed that we are not a bunch of yokels. Troy is a step up the scale from west Bloomfield IMO. It is more upscale in a new/trendy way than Northville City which is more of a historic small town, but the masses of subdivisions surrounding Northville are much like Troy.
It may be best to stay at an extended stay hotel for a few weeks or a month and look around and check out housing options before signing a lease. You possible job locatins are kind of all over the place.
In mid level places, you can get 1 BR for $600 - $700. My Daughter and her roommate rent a 2BR in Westland for $780 (total - not each). Westland is nothing special, but it is fine and they have a Meijers Costco Wallmart and lots of chain restaurants nearby. Probably not a lot of fancy places there. In Livonia, Laurel Park mall is pretty fancy but small. I think you might be able to live right in the mall or right next door. Novi has 12 oaks the busiest and maybe largest mall around. Also tons and tons of strip mall type places. Name a chain store or restaurant, you will likely find it there. Some of the more homey towns like Northville and Milford are more independent local businesses. Many people prefer that now, so you pay a premium for that too. Personally iI would go there and use the extra $ to do stuff. Maybe buy a boat or snowmobile - or just travel. Northern and Western Michigan are particularly pretty. Ohio has some cool stuff (Cedar Point, Ohio Caverns, Hocking Hills, and a neat Combine Demolition Derby at Bowling Green). Even Pennsylvania is worth visiting.
You may like Canton too. Much like troy IMO, not quite as fancy, more rural, less exspensive.
Are you looking for sleepy suburbia where fancy dining consists of your favorite sit-down chain? Are do you prefer a more "Main Street" appeal with more going on, but still all the safety of the suburbs?
Neither answer is wrong, but you should figure out what appeals to you more.
If you like shopping at the fancy indoor mall, availability of big-box stores, and eating at Red Lobster or PF Chang, I'd highly recommend Novi, Troy, Canton, West Bloomfield, Macomb Township, and a number of the other cities being thrown out in this thread.
If you prefer something with more of a walkable streetscape with charm and character with quirky restaurants and shops in a suburban "downtown" I'd recommend looking into towns like Birmingham, Royal Oak, Berkley, Plymouth, Rochester, and Grosse Pointes.
Naturally where you work is going to play into this. If you are working in Novi you probably don't want to live in the Grosse Pointes (and vice versa), but any of the above mentioned towns are going to have a sufficiently upscale feel while offering low crime and a reasonably well cared for stock of rentals. I will warn that the more "charming" suburbs also tend to be older suburbs, but older doesn't mean poorly cared for.
Are you looking for sleepy suburbia where fancy dining consists of your favorite sit-down chain? Are do you prefer a more "Main Street" appeal with more going on, but still all the safety of the suburbs?
Neither answer is wrong, but you should figure out what appeals to you more.
I like areas that have the big box store & casual chain restaurants nearby. The quirky Main Street type is not my thing lol. My main concern is having my apt in a sleepy surbirbia type setting but still having the advantage of not having to travel too far for the big box chains/ strip store mall type places.
After researching all the places I always end up coming back to Novi, west Bloomfield or Bloomfield hills.
As far as living accommodations I like the newer/updated townhome/condo complexes as opposed to the quaint/small/older single family homes that would be in my price range.
About Troy, it seems like such a huge city. I'm shocked it's considered quiet suburbia. With it being so close to Detroit. I assumed the closer to Detroit a place is that the more unsafe or big cityish type feel it will have? Is that true?
Last edited by brandy76; 09-15-2017 at 04:49 AM..
Reason: Adding preferences
I have to also add the few times I visited I stayed in Auburn Hills at the hotels on N Opdyke Rd and that area seems too remote with not many big box stores closeby. However, I didn't get a chance to explore the other areas of Auburn Hills as I just used it for a place to stay while visiting friends in Davison....even though not on topic, Davison was way too rural for my liking (just to get an idea of what I prefer)
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