MSP metro on 70K w/2 kids.....doable? (Rochester, Maple Grove: fit in, house) - Minneapolis - St. Paul - Minnesota (MN) -Twin Cities - City-Data Forum

Tyryztoll · 07-04-2011, 09:53 AM

I love the Twin Cities metro, and am considering moving my family there. We currently live in northern Michigan, but the hospital I work at (x-ray tech) is in serious financial peril, and I want to raise my kids in or near a major metro so they can have better access to medical care, plus ample opportunities when they get older. Northern Michigan is beautiful, but we have to drive 3 and 4 hours for the kids medical care, and there aren't many successful career people here that don't either work at the hospital or are wealthy retirees from downstate.

Anyway, my wife and I make a combined 70K or so right now, and I'm not certain that would get us by in the TC metro area based on the research I've done. The housing in particular seems to be much more expensive than I would have thought. I've singled out MSP because the latitude and terrain is similar to where we live now, but gives us all the ammenities of a major metro on top of that. It's exactly what we're looking for.

Can anyone living there on a similar income relate your experiences to me? Thanks!

ram2 · 07-04-2011, 09:56 AM

Why not Ann Arbor - 2 major hospitals there.

Tyryztoll · 07-04-2011, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ram2

Why not Ann Arbor - 2 major hospitals there.

We've decided to leave Michigan. My wife has lived here all her life and wants a change, as do I. The kids medical needs are only one of the reasons we'd like to move.

uptown_urbanist · 07-04-2011, 10:15 AM

Depends on what you want in a house. What kind of lifestyle do you want to live? It's definitely doable, and you can lead a nice life, but if you're looking for, say, a huge house on a lake, then it could be tough. But yes, many, many families do just fine on that salary. Have you checked x-ray tech salaries around here? It could be that they're higher, too. I only know one person in that field (and don't know her well enough to be able to guess at their overall family finances), but they own a beautiful house and have two children.

golfgal · 07-04-2011, 10:22 AM

Possible, but more likely in outstate MN where jobs may be in better supply in your field as well. It is also possible you may make more here than you do in MI. I know that Ultrasound techs start in the $60K range--not sure if x-ray techs are in the same pay range though.

You could also try living around the Rochester, MN area with the Mayo clinic there you can't get better medical care, great job prospects and less expensive then the TC Metro area.

Another consideration would be Sioux Falls, SD. Again, less expensive, extensive and very, very good medical community. Schools there are no where near as good but the Catholic school system is superb.

Tyryztoll · 07-04-2011, 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

Depends on what you want in a house. What kind of lifestyle do you want to live? It's definitely doable, and you can lead a nice life, but if you're looking for, say, a huge house on a lake, then it could be tough. But yes, many, many families do just fine on that salary. Have you checked x-ray tech salaries around here? It could be that they're higher, too. I only know one person in that field (and don't know her well enough to be able to guess at their overall family finances), but they own a beautiful house and have two children.

No, UU, we don't need to be on a lake or in a 3 or 4,000 sq. ft. home......anything like that. A 2,000 sq. ft. 4 bedroom, 2 bath home in a decent neighborhood would do fine. We would like fairly new to new construction if we can find it, though, because we've been renovating the 20 year old home we're in now, and do not want to have to deal with that again.

I have interviewed in the Twin Cities before (before I was married), although I have specialized in my field (CT tech) since then (2006). The hospital I'm at now pays well for a remote region, but as I said, has become very financially unstable, and has been laying people off on a routine basis. Problem is, if I get laid off up here there is no other work within a reasonable distance from our house, and we would certainly have to move anyway.

Tyryztoll · 07-04-2011, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfgal

Possible, but more likely in outstate MN where jobs may be in better supply in your field as well. It is also possible you may make more here than you do in MI. I know that Ultrasound techs start in the $60K range--not sure if x-ray techs are in the same pay range though.

You could also try living around the Rochester, MN area with the Mayo clinic there you can't get better medical care, great job prospects and less expensive then the TC Metro area.

Another consideration would be Sioux Falls, SD. Again, less expensive, extensive and very, very good medical community. Schools there are no where near as good but the Catholic school system is superb.

We've looked at Rochester, and were impressed with the affordable, new construction homes that seem to be available there. Not sure if I want to be a full 90 miles from the TC, though. We would prefer to live within 30 to 45 minutes of MSP so we could take advantage of the town routinely without having to plan a trip around it, which is what we do now when we want to go to Detroit, Grand Rapids or Chicago. I want to be able to take my kids to a ballgame or my wife to a show on a whim whenever I want to. Plus, isn't Olmsted County the only county in MN without a natural lake? We don't have to live on one, but certainly want as many as possible within easy reach for recreational purposes.

Kebinminn · 07-04-2011, 10:52 AM

Yes, you can make it and have money left over for fun. A lot of it depends on your ability to manage money and what kind of lifestyle you want to live.

Tyryztoll · 07-04-2011, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kebinminn

Yes, you can make it and have money left over for fun. A lot of it depends on your ability to manage money and what kind of lifestyle you want to live.

We're pretty reserved....don't go out partying or anything like that. Give me a beer and a ballgame on TV and I'm good to go. Ironically, I had many more problems with money when I was single than we do as a family now. I spent excessively to keep myself entertained. Married life agrees with me.

northstar22 · 07-04-2011, 11:12 AM

Northman, I'm also from Michigan, but I'm from "downstate." There are a lot of Michiganders here in Minnesota. Seeing as how you're married and have kids, you'll fit in perfectly to the MN social scene, which pretty much revolves around family. Some suburbs you may like are Prior Lake, Shakopee, Maple Grove, Chaska and Woodbury.