For those of you who have moved to MSP from outside of the upper Midwest... (private schools, salary)

[max7418]

We moved to minnetonka last June from long island new york. We have lived in Manhattan, Queens, and long island for the first 37 years of our lives. The biggest pro is the col, the house we live in would easily be $200,000 more in long island, but that's not the real difference. It's the $800 oil fill ups every six weeks in the winter and the $300 a month electric bill and the lirr/subway ticket and parking of $450 a month. Worst of all are the property taxes, our former house was I believe $12000 a year, average houses in the school district were 15-$20000 a year. The col is a major difference, most calculators I have seen underprice the NY/NJ metro ratio vs Minnesota. I'd say costs are %30-40 more.

As far as min nice, I get it. I try to put myself in their shoes talking to me. I must come off as a fast talking sarcastic individual. They laugh when i say water or coffee. My wife dies laughing when we go through a caribou drive through and the person can't understand me. Ive been getting better though and normally if i slow down and watch my speech it only takes a few times for them to get my order.

Schools are good, we are in wayzata. I would rate them a little lower than the good long island, Westchester, northern Jersey schools, but your paying way more for those on the east coast.

I do find the people are sensitive about their state and i avoid telling people where I'm from unless they ask.

[Glenfield]

Originally Posted by max7418

We moved to minnetonka last June from long island new york. We have lived in Manhattan, Queens, and long island for the first 37 years of our lives. The biggest pro is the col, the house we live in would easily be $200,000 more in long island, but that's not the real difference. It's the $800 oil fill ups every six weeks in the winter and the $300 a month electric bill and the lirr/subway ticket and parking of $450 a month. Worst of all are the property taxes, our former house was I believe $12000 a year, average houses in the school district were 15-$20000 a year. The col is a major difference, most calculators I have seen underprice the NY/NJ metro ratio vs Minnesota. I'd say costs are %30-40 more.

As far as min nice, I get it. I try to put myself in their shoes talking to me. I must come off as a fast talking sarcastic individual. They laugh when i say water or coffee. My wife dies laughing when we go through a caribou drive through and the person can't understand me. Ive been getting better though and normally if i slow down and watch my speech it only takes a few times for them to get my order.

Schools are good, we are in wayzata. I would rate them a little lower than the good long island, Westchester, northern Jersey schools, but your paying way more for those on the east coast.

I do find the people are sensitive about their state and i avoid telling people where I'm from unless they ask.

You are going to fit in just fine here.

[malleesmom]

SoCalgurl: your post sums up my thoughts almost exactly.

[HoneyGrahams224]

Hey! A transplant thread! I am also a fellow transplant. Didn't come here to dish on Minneapolis, but I would like to meet some new people. I have been here for six years, and making new friends is soooooo hard. Any 20-somethings looking for a new chum?

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

Originally Posted by HoneyGrahams224

Hey! A transplant thread! I am also a fellow transplant. Didn't come here to dish on Minneapolis, but I would like to meet some new people. I have been here for six years, and making new friends is soooooo hard. Any 20-somethings looking for a new chum?

I'm certain there are....where do you live currently? Most transplants and younger people live in South Minneapolis (Whittier, the Wedge, Powderhorn, Uptown, West Lake, etc.). If you live in say Lakeville, I can see why it'd be hard to meet new people.

[chillwinston]

I've lived all over the Midwest, Columbus, Cleveland, Chicago, Des Moines, and now Minneapolis. I love it here. It's a large enough city that there is plenty of things to do but not so larger it's unaffordable to live in the city like in Chicago. There's so much to do here: great restaurants, sports, theater, music, tons of outdoor events in the summer, beautiful lakes dotting the city. Plus there are many places to see outside the city, like Lake Superior and the Boundary waters.

Another thing I appreciate here is that people actually value the city and want to improve it. Unlike many other midwest cities that have seen little investment since everyone fled to the suburbs. The MSPs great economy has something to do with that but also the city leaders that have consciously invested in transit and helping create a city that people can actually live in. The businesses in the region should also get complimented as they pay higher taxes that also contributes. Oh, but the weather... Weather and it's effects on happiness are overrated. I love the summers because it's not too hot to actually go out side and enjoy them. The winters while they can be frigidly cold are sunny. Think about it like this would you rather it be sunny and 10 F or dreary and 25 F (like in much of the Midwest). Both are cold!

Any place you go you will find similar types of people. I have not noticed much difference between people here versus Chicago, Columbus, or Cleveland.

[wushuliu]

Originally Posted by Socalgurl-stuck in-Mnpls

Hi, I am from Southern California (Lived in SD, OC, LA) and I moved here 2 years ago. I briefly lived in Boston/Portland Maine area and DC metro. By far and I mean literally by the furthest margin I absolutely hate living in Minneapolis. This area is unlike any other place I have been too and I am not talking about the weather either. Let's look at the cons:

CONS:

-The auto-accidents: I have seen more car accidents and wrecks here in 2 years then for the past 20 years of my life. You will see cars missing the front or back, and severely wrecked on the sides, even some have holes and people drive around in them like it's nothing. It so common to even see major accidents in small neighborhood roads- its unbelievable!! Again the reason-- people here don't know how to drive and bring their passive aggressive behavior to the road. Believe me when I say you will learn what it means to have road rage here.

As a recent transplant from Los Angeles this is absolutely TRUE. Minnesotans don't know how to drive. LA is in the top 5 for worst traffic in the world, with millions of people on the road at any given time and there were STILL less accidents than I see here in Minneapolis on a regular basis. How the heck you can have so many accidents while barely breaking 50mph (good lord they drive slow) is beyond me. My gf and I keep shaking our heads.

And yes the MERGE lanes SUCK. Worst I've ever dealt with.

As for Minnesota Nice, well everyone knows about that try as some may to deny it. Needless to say most of my friends here are from out of state. It's somewhat understandable in that Minnesotans have strong Scandinavian reserved roots and many of them live close to their families and areas they've never left in their entire lives (not a bad thing per se). I think a lot of them feel self-conscious with strangers and would rather be 'nice' than offend, which, you know, whatever.

I still love the Twin Cities because the people who aren't made in that mold are terrific and it's a very progressive area.

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

As for the "Minnesota Nice" thing that everybody seems to hate, would you prefer somebody call you an a-hole or flip you off when they don't like something you do, as opposed to burying it inside and smiling politely, like MNs supposedly do? I'm not sure why that's such a bad thing. The behind-the-back crap drives me nuts though, but it's definitely not unique to MN culture.

[mr roboto]

Minnesota Nice is phenomenal for community and civic purposes. It's less than helpful for deep meaningful relationships. We have a very warm, polite, welcoming feel that seems to disappear when a new person tries to make any deeper inroads. It's the dissonance that's most confusing. But I agree - I'll take polite restraint over blunt honesty any day of the week.

[treemoni]

Originally Posted by Min-Chi-Cbus

As for the "Minnesota Nice" thing that everybody seems to hate, would you prefer somebody call you an a-hole or flip you off when they don't like something you do

Yes, it's called honest communication and it's healthier than pretending you're not upset and harboring a grudge.