Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Michigan
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 03-27-2011, 01:08 PM
 
1 posts, read 3,440 times
Reputation: 10

Advertisements

I have just been made a job offer which would have me moving to the Hancock/Houghton area of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I live in Upstate New York now, so the snow is not a problem for us. Does anyone have any ideas of what life is like there for a family? I have three young children and am worried that there will not be much for them to do there. I am also concerned with some of the posts that I have read which make it sound like outsiders may find it difficult being accepted in that area. Any comments on what life is like in that area would be greatly appreciated. However, I am particularly interested in comments relating to the quality of life, safety, and activities for young families in the area. Thanks in advance to anyone who takes the time to reply to my post.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 03-27-2011, 04:45 PM
 
67 posts, read 213,926 times
Reputation: 29
There is Michigan Technological University there..... I attended it...l There is also a smaller univseity over in Hancock called Finlandia University. It is small town life. The downtown of houghton is unique. There is lots to do outdoor wise. There is a ski hill ran by the university and there is an even biggger ski hill within an hour drive. There is the lake and lots of hiking trails. There is plenty for a kid to do outside. There's not a lot of nightlife there, and the bars are dominated by the college kids. But is a nice safe little town. I am of Mixed race, and didn't find it hard to fit into the college or the town itself. Like any small town, outsiders are not trusted right away, but they are very welcoming and open up there. Green Bay is a matter of a couple hours away, and you have a direct shot to Chicago, about 5 hours straight south, going through Wisconsin. It is a lot of SNOW.

If you are alright with a small town life. Its a nice place to live.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-27-2011, 05:04 PM
 
7,072 posts, read 9,625,231 times
Reputation: 4531
Quote:
Originally Posted by jackjack219 View Post
I have just been made a job offer which would have me moving to the Hancock/Houghton area of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

You lucky dog. I have been trying to do what you did for 15+ years.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-27-2011, 06:40 PM
 
Location: Loving life in Gaylord!
4,120 posts, read 8,903,538 times
Reputation: 3916
Lucky you! We went there for the first time last year and were very impressed. What a beautiful area, and it seemed like it would be a great place to live! If your into outdoor activities...your choices are endless!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-27-2011, 06:43 PM
 
Location: At the end of the road, where the trail begins.
760 posts, read 2,441,828 times
Reputation: 353
The U.P. is one of the best places in the country to raise children in our humble opinion (we also have 3 young kids thus far). It's one of the reasons we moved up here. We left once and moved right back up here within 11 months because we quickly realized our mistake (we have no family ties up here, this is all our doing after much research/traveling/exploring).

Just about any outdoor activity you can think of can be done in the area.
I have yet to find unfriendly people up here, I'm sure y'all would fit in without to much trouble. Much of it depends on how much you yourselves are willing to put forth tho. I've seen standoffish people come up here, then leave within a couple years declaring everyone up here as unfriendly. You get what you give.

Anyhow I can't help you with specifics of what organized activities there are for kids in Houghton. We actually live 90 miles east of there in Marquette county. We've only been to Houghton for various events and to play tourists at the area attractions, but we have thought seriously about transferring there from Marquette if the opportunity became available (realestate is much cheaper in the Houghton area).

As I say with everyone who inquires about the U.P. .... you must love the outdoors to be happy here. You must be aware of the isolation factor. You must be able to handle long drawn out winters. Other then that, this is heaven

Good luck
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-04-2018, 07:53 PM
 
Location: Aishalton, GY
1,459 posts, read 1,404,014 times
Reputation: 1978
Jeeg: did you rent or buy? How are taxes now compared to 2011?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-05-2018, 07:57 AM
 
Location: Michigan
2,745 posts, read 3,019,718 times
Reputation: 6542
Quote:
Originally Posted by OneDawg View Post
Jeeg: did you rent or buy? How are taxes now compared to 2011?
He hasn't posted in 5 years, so you might not get an answer from him.

That area suffered an absolutely devastating flood last year, and it will take many years before they can rebuild all the roads and such that were destroyed. I don't know what that did to taxes, but I'm sure the economics of the area are likely really messed up right now.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...gan/713059002/
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-05-2018, 09:32 PM
 
Location: West Coast U.S.A.
2,911 posts, read 1,360,787 times
Reputation: 3979
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeBear View Post
He hasn't posted in 5 years, so you might not get an answer from him.

That area suffered an absolutely devastating flood last year, and it will take many years before they can rebuild all the roads and such that were destroyed. I don't know what that did to taxes, but I'm sure the economics of the area are likely really messed up right now.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...gan/713059002/
Sad that this happened to such a nice place. I wonder how they are dealing with the clean up too, on top of the bad economy there. One quick disaster on top of a slow moving one.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-07-2018, 04:13 PM
 
Location: Aishalton, GY
1,459 posts, read 1,404,014 times
Reputation: 1978
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeBear View Post
He hasn't posted in 5 years, so you might not get an answer from him.

That area suffered an absolutely devastating flood last year, and it will take many years before they can rebuild all the roads and such that were destroyed. I don't know what that did to taxes, but I'm sure the economics of the area are likely really messed up right now.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...gan/713059002/
We had considered properties in Ontonagon and Eagle Harbour but decided against it. One road in/out killed it. Beautiful area.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-14-2018, 10:43 AM
 
Location: SE WI
747 posts, read 840,340 times
Reputation: 2204
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeBear View Post
That area suffered an absolutely devastating flood last year, and it will take many years before they can rebuild all the roads and such that were destroyed. I don't know what that did to taxes, but I'm sure the economics of the area are likely really messed up right now.-

Simply not true. All but a few roads were open with 2 - 3 weeks. A horrible flood but for most it was quickly cleaned up and life was back to normal. Houghton / Hancock are college towns and doing well economically.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Michigan

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:00 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top