where to rent a house inexpensively?

[wamer27]

$700 is going rate to rent a house in Silver Bay. When I learned that from people I know there, I quit looking at buying and renting.

[601halfdozen0theother]

Well, my goodness, it isn't as though I haven't been saying exactly the same thing about the Twin Cities on City-Data for the past 6 1/2 years!

When someone new posts in this forum asking for information about where to live in Minnesota, they deserve to receive the full story and a variety of opinions. Those of you who live in and love the Twin Cities should express your opinion that it is the best place ever and of course everyone wants to live there, while I should express my opinion that the Twin Cities are awful in many areas of quality of life, and that there are many other wonderful places in Minnesota that should be considered.

I first visited the Twin Cities back in 1976. That's, hmmmmmm, 42 years ago! And I was a grown human being then. Since then, though I've lived in 15 different states, I've traveled through Minnesota pretty extensively. I also lived in Minnesota for 10ish total years. I lived in Rochester in the 80s, and more recently on the Iron Range and in a small town near the Iowa border. I've never lived in the Twin Cities. But sadly, in Minnesota the Metropolitan area casts a huge shadow over the rest of the state. It's nearly impossible to drive North or South without driving through some part Tha Cities, and even going E/W can be difficult without passing through the megalopolis. Professional meetings are in Tha Cities. Special events are in Tha Cities. I don't think one could live anywhere in Minnesota without having to travel to or through the megalopolis several times a year.

When in comes to threads like this one, about cost of living, the reality is that people who are unskilled laborers will have a tough time of it, no matter where they live. Those of us who are professionals will find life much easier in purely financial terms, no matter where we live. My opinion, based on living many different places and on being someone who obsessively reads newspapers and websites about places in America, is that that the Twin Cities are shockingly expensive for those who don't come from any other urban area. People who move there from other urban areas may find it all quite normal.

I still remember someone who posted on the Minnesota forum a few years back, asking questions about where in the state they should move for new opportunities. He was encouraged by many posters on this forum to bring his family to the Twin Cities area. They came, and tried to find affordable housing and jobs in the Stillwater area. They couldn't find either jobs or affordable housing, and they left to go back to whatever sad Southern state from which they had come. I still feel bad for that family. If they had looked in someplace like Albert Lea or Worthington or Thief River Falls instead of the Twin Cities area they probably would be happily living and working in Minnesota right now.

It's natural that those of you who live in the Twin Cities want to defend and praise the place where you choose to live. It's also natural that since I have lived all over America in a real variety of places (including NYC and LA) I have developed a different, and mostly negative, opinion of Minneapolis/St. Paul. It really IS hard for me to fathom why anyone would voluntarily choose to live there.

I really hope that the OP of this thread will give ALL of Minnesota a serious consideration. Statistics on and information about the great variety of towns and cities in the state can be found on www.city-data.com.

[Thedosius]

But you're rude, bitter, obsessive and needlessly inaccurate about it. That's different than 'offering an opinion'. You've got a major hangup about the Cities and need to chill out and get some perspective.

[601halfdozen0theother]

Originally Posted by Thedosius

But you're rude, bitter, obsessive and needlessly inaccurate about it. That's different than 'offering an opinion'. You've got a major hangup about the Cities and need to chill out and get some perspective.

Well, that's a matter of perspective, too. Based on the upvotes and encouraging comments I get, there are a lot of people who agree with my posts. My perspective is that many of the posters who live in the Twin Cities are completely insufferable, and, sadly, totally ignorant about the rest of the state. I'm sorry you think I'm rude, though. I mostly try to be funny. Saying "sucks to be you, urbanites", makes me (and all the people who give me upvotes) laugh!

Don't chase me off of here like you did poor Golfgirl who loved Marshall!

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Originally Posted by 601halfdozen0theother

Well, that's a matter of perspective, too. Based on the upvotes and encouraging comments I get, there are a lot of people who agree with my posts. My perspective is that many of the posters who live in the Twin Cities are completely insufferable, and, sadly, totally ignorant about the rest of the state. I'm sorry you think I'm rude, though. I mostly try to be funny. Saying "sucks to be you, urbanites", makes me (and all the people who give me upvotes) laugh!

Don't chase me off of here like you did poor Golfgirl who loved Marshall!

We didn’t chase her off. She re-located out of state and I’m fairly certain that she still posts on these forums under a different handle.

Also, I’m not sure I’d be so eager to pat myself on the back after getting 17,000 upvotes from the same Russian troll