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Hope you all have enjoyed my pros and cons. And maybe laughed a little. Any additional insights would be appreciated. I’m looking in the Eden Prarie area but the Lakeville area looks very nice too. In NJ, our commutes are so bad, 30 to 45 minutes is not unreasonable. I’d also be open to a more rural area with promise and a good school system. Cows and farms are fine. If I’m within a ½ hour of major shopping, that would be fine.
You may want to take a look at commutes. Depending on where you are going to some can be a big pain. We live in Prior Lake and when my husband had to drive through Eden Prairie to get to Plymouth, it took over an hour to go 15 miles. Traffic going up 169 crawls. Also from Lakeville up 35W moves even slower. If you are going to St. Paul it is ok, but getting to downtown Minneapolis from the Southwest suburbs is a nightmare.
Finding homes in rural areas are hard to come by without a lot of cash. Everyone wants to be in the country. And I am only about 8 miles from major shopping but because of the traffic it takes almost 1/2 hour to get there.
Good luck! We enjoy the southern suburbs, but this is the only place in MN we have ever lived, so we have nothing to compare to. Scott county has a lot of parks and lakes, but they get very crowded in the summer time. We don't care for the school system, but that is just a personal preference on our part.
Ok I've got to clear this up. Or at least explain something. The Twin Cities do have bad traffic. But it's also the 16th most populated metropolitan area in the USA, at about 3.5 million residents at over 6,500 square miles. That's a gigantic geographic area as well as a large amount of residents.
There is going to be traffic no matter how you look at it. It's a large area, with a lot of commuters. More funding should have been allocated in the 1980s for public and alternative transporation. Not now, which only since 2004 have the Twin Cities started the light rail revolution. Poor development and planning has made this mess. Nobody was saying a thing when developers were buying hundreds upon hundreds of acres of land in the early 1990s. This land would be subdivided into housing developments in places all over the Twin Cities, especially the most peripheral cities like Rogers, Woodbury, Prior Lake, Shakopee, Chaska, Eagan, Lakeville, Farmington, Andover, Ramsey, St. Michael....The list goes on...
To answer the forum question, I love living in Minnesota, or more precisely the Twin Cities. I dont live there now, but I have most my life. Minnesota in general is a state above many. The people have pride, are hard working, family oriented, tradional and have values. The state is large geographically, and has its range of georgraphy. To the rolling hills way south, to the flat prairies and cornfields to the southwest to the west, to the northwoods and lakes regions, to the northshore and down to bluff country in the east and southeast.
Its a clean state. A laid back state. Although busy at times, the Twin Cities are nice and quaint. Your city can feel rural and desolate, but be within a 10 or 15 minute drive into downtown St Paul or Minneapolis. There are four major sports teams, which gives entertainment and creates pride.
The state is beatiful, and has plenty of nature- deer, moose, bear, fowl, fish, pheasants, timberwoves, beavers...
The winters are awful, but if you make it fun then it can be fun. I dont do anything in the winter, so i think its horrid. But the cold isnt even that bad. Sure 30s and 40s sound bad, but in actuality its not bad at all, its Jan-March that is the worst- most subzero temps, and gray skies. But if you work all day, it doenst really matter that its cold or warm sunny or rainy out.
The summers are the best of anywhere, humidity and all. Nothing will ever, ever beat watching the sun go down from the dock or boat on the lake...or the sunrise at for that matter.
Taxes are high and its becoming harder and harder to purchase affordable property in the metropolitan area.
Here are my insights from reading the whole thread…
I am from Central NJ in a more rural/suburban area. I have lived most of my life here but am considering a move to MN in the next year or two because my husband’s main office is in the Minneapolis area and I would like to be able to live in a nice area with good schools and have the ability to take a break from working for a bit. I’ve been in IT for over 20 years and I’m a little crispy and I would like to find a way to survive on DH's income and not impact the kid’s education and not live in a shack.
Now, I am not a big fan of winter but it’s not like I’m out and about in NJ during the winter months anyway. And, I was in Minneapolis on business trip in the middle of January for a week years ago. It was in the early 90’s and it was cold, to the point I thought that people must be crazy to live there but my biggest problem was back then is that I smoked and had to go outside to do so – not a problem now since I lost that bad habit. And, I do remember the clear tubes between buildings… after a week I truly appreciated them. I also did the obligatory trip to the Mall of America. I did like the amusement park. Did I mention I’m a summer person?
Pros/No Difference
- Lower taxes – seriously from what I’ve been reading taxes are a walk in the park compared to what we are used to – no offense but I have half the house and property and pay at least twice as much in taxes. The economy stinks all over and all taxes are crazy.
- Good schools – we live in a town with a good school system (1260 average SAT scores) and I wouldn’t want to change the quality of education.
- People are people – it’s not like the East Coast is known for its friendliness although in Central NJ, before the onslaught of transplants, was a rural farming community which no offense to anyone in the city, had it’s own charm and I do miss it. Not to be mistaken for being close minded though because we are not.
- My husband’s parents are transplants from the N. Europe and most of his relatives are still live there so and I’m kind of used to the like. It’s an open closedness that is hard to describe but sounds similar to MN.
- We have nasty mosquitoes in NJ with West Nile disease. If you go out at night in the summer without spray with Deet you more than likely will be eaten alive. We also have a lot of ticks with lime disease. Do you have that in MN?
- Traffic? Okay, I do respect all of your pain but the only people who I think have it worse then my area are the LA’ers and DC’ers. My husband commutes to the NYC area. I do not live off an ‘exit’ but my husband works off of one and has to pay to travel on the highway both ways
- It is cold in MN but if you don’t like winter does it really matter if it’s 25 or 0 outside? Wet snow stinks worse then dry snow.
- I am from New Jersey and when I speak you really can’t tell right away I’m from New Jersey because most people from New Jersey don’t sound like the cast of Sopranos so perhaps we won’t stick out like sore thumbs.
- Minnesota has a lot of lake and recreation areas. We’d love to have a boat someday.
- Minnesota has the International Wolf Center in which my kids have an interest in. We adopt wolves for Christmas from there.
- Everyone thinks that everyone else’s driving stinks. Nothing is worse then city driving. Everyone should be more courteous and use their blinkers.
- Nice neighbors who help you with snow and pull you out of the ditch sounds delightful. If it takes awhile before they invite me over for dinner and I become their BFF, that’s okay. I’m patient. I’ll offer to cook for them first.
- We are between NYC and Philadelphia and we rarely go there. I am not a big city person. Feel like I need to bath after I am there.
- There are direct flights to Orlando – I am a big Disney fan.
Cons
- Dag it’s cold. But that’s why there is LL Bean and Lands End right and hey, everyone seems to have a finished basement in MN.
- No Jersey shore - I do love the beach and the smell of the ocean but we don’t get to really visit it much because I’m always working. It is cheaper for us to go Walt Disney World for a week than it is to rent a house down the shore for a week. For those of you not from the East Coast, the shore is the beach.
- Kids will be transplanted and will blame us for many ills in therapy in their adult years. Okay, no matter what this will probably happen.
- Dear Lord, are there any houses that don’t have golden oak kitchen cabinets in MN?
- How can you sell a house with a walk out kitchen to the outside with a walk out basement without a deck? There are sliding glass doors to no where.
- Lutefisk. I am not a fish eater and YUK.
- No real pizza or bagels. Pizza Hut or Pizzeria Uno is not pizza. Never ever will be in a million years.
- I am a Mets fan. But the Twins aren’t the Yankees so I could learn to like them – not love like the Mets but at least there is baseball.
- Any Indian food? Not really that big of a deal because I can send away for the spices and make my own - Speaking of which, we are really used to getting all kinds of food – what’s the variety like and how available are the ingredients. Don’t mean to be a snot, but being from NJ you get to have a big melting pot of places to either buy it prepared or but the ingredients to make it on our own.
Hope you all have enjoyed my pros and cons. And maybe laughed a little. Any additional insights would be appreciated. I’m looking in the Eden Prarie area but the Lakeville area looks very nice too. In NJ, our commutes are so bad, 30 to 45 minutes is not unreasonable. I’d also be open to a more rural area with promise and a good school system. Cows and farms are fine. If I’m within a ½ hour of major shopping, that would be fine.
My first question--where is your DH's office? The Minneapolis area for people out of state could mean Duluth or Rochester and everything in between? .
How old are your kids, what activities do they like. Most families with kids that are say 8th grade or older tend to look for areas with good programs for their kids. We have many, many great school districts around the metro so that is one way to narrow that down.
Comparing SAT scores from NJ to MN is a little harder. Most of the colleges around here use the ACT so not a lot of kids take the SAT. I think you will find that overall, schools here are going to better then most of what you find in NJ, even at their best schools. The average SAT in MN is 1776 compared to 1499 in NJ.
Yes we have ticks and mosquitoes, neither of which have been bad the past few years because it has been so dry but normally yes, you need bug spray on at night if you are out.
We are a long way from the ocean but there are MANY, MANY great lakes with nice sandy beaches so you can still do that. I have been to NJ a few times, traffic here is a walk in the park compared to the traffic around some of the major metro areas in NJ.
Yes, there are Indian restaurants all over the metro. There are also many specialty grocery stores around, maybe not as many but you can find what you need. Byerly's and Lunds are both larger, upscale grocery stores and they carry a wide variety of different things. I have always been able to find what I am looking for at one of those stores.
You won't be more then 1/2 hour from major shopping anywhere in the metro area. We have a lot of malls here.
We live in Rosemount and LOVE this area. It is a small town that is inching closer to the cities as the area grows. I can see corn fields from our back yard yet we are 15 minutes from the Mall of America. Getting to downtown Minneapolis is easier from Rosemount then it is from Lakeville--you don't have to go up 35W-pretty much your only choice from Lakeville. We have several ways to get to Minneapolis so if there is bad traffic on one road, you have 4-5 others to pick from. Schools here are excellent and you still have that small town community feel. Everyone goes to the football games, you run into friends at the grocery store, kids can be out and about and you don't have to worry.
Yes, there are houses without the golden oak cabinets but they were really popular here in the 90's . You are going to think you got a steal on a house/taxes here compared to NJ. Oh, and I saw dole whips for sale at the county fair last summer so you can get your Disney fix right here!!
Here are my insights from reading the whole thread…
I am from Central NJ in a more rural/suburban area. I have lived most of my life here but am considering a move to MN in the next year or two because my husband’s main office is in the Minneapolis area and I would like to be able to live in a nice area with good schools and have the ability to take a break from working for a bit. I’ve been in IT for over 20 years and I’m a little crispy and I would like to find a way to survive on DH's income and not impact the kid’s education and not live in a shack.
Now, I am not a big fan of winter but it’s not like I’m out and about in NJ during the winter months anyway. And, I was in Minneapolis on business trip in the middle of January for a week years ago. It was in the early 90’s and it was cold, to the point I thought that people must be crazy to live there but my biggest problem was back then is that I smoked and had to go outside to do so – not a problem now since I lost that bad habit. And, I do remember the clear tubes between buildings… after a week I truly appreciated them. I also did the obligatory trip to the Mall of America. I did like the amusement park. Did I mention I’m a summer person?
Pros/No Difference
- Lower taxes – seriously from what I’ve been reading taxes are a walk in the park compared to what we are used to – no offense but I have half the house and property and pay at least twice as much in taxes. The economy stinks all over and all taxes are crazy.
- Good schools – we live in a town with a good school system (1260 average SAT scores) and I wouldn’t want to change the quality of education.
- People are people – it’s not like the East Coast is known for its friendliness although in Central NJ, before the onslaught of transplants, was a rural farming community which no offense to anyone in the city, had it’s own charm and I do miss it. Not to be mistaken for being close minded though because we are not.
- My husband’s parents are transplants from the N. Europe and most of his relatives are still live there so and I’m kind of used to the like. It’s an open closedness that is hard to describe but sounds similar to MN.
- We have nasty mosquitoes in NJ with West Nile disease. If you go out at night in the summer without spray with Deet you more than likely will be eaten alive. We also have a lot of ticks with lime disease. Do you have that in MN?
- Traffic? Okay, I do respect all of your pain but the only people who I think have it worse then my area are the LA’ers and DC’ers. My husband commutes to the NYC area. I do not live off an ‘exit’ but my husband works off of one and has to pay to travel on the highway both ways
- It is cold in MN but if you don’t like winter does it really matter if it’s 25 or 0 outside? Wet snow stinks worse then dry snow.
- I am from New Jersey and when I speak you really can’t tell right away I’m from New Jersey because most people from New Jersey don’t sound like the cast of Sopranos so perhaps we won’t stick out like sore thumbs.
- Minnesota has a lot of lake and recreation areas. We’d love to have a boat someday.
- Minnesota has the International Wolf Center in which my kids have an interest in. We adopt wolves for Christmas from there.
- Everyone thinks that everyone else’s driving stinks. Nothing is worse then city driving. Everyone should be more courteous and use their blinkers.
- Nice neighbors who help you with snow and pull you out of the ditch sounds delightful. If it takes awhile before they invite me over for dinner and I become their BFF, that’s okay. I’m patient. I’ll offer to cook for them first.
- We are between NYC and Philadelphia and we rarely go there. I am not a big city person. Feel like I need to bath after I am there.
- There are direct flights to Orlando – I am a big Disney fan.
Cons
- Dag it’s cold. But that’s why there is LL Bean and Lands End right and hey, everyone seems to have a finished basement in MN.
- No Jersey shore - I do love the beach and the smell of the ocean but we don’t get to really visit it much because I’m always working. It is cheaper for us to go Walt Disney World for a week than it is to rent a house down the shore for a week. For those of you not from the East Coast, the shore is the beach.
- Kids will be transplanted and will blame us for many ills in therapy in their adult years. Okay, no matter what this will probably happen.
- Dear Lord, are there any houses that don’t have golden oak kitchen cabinets in MN?
- How can you sell a house with a walk out kitchen to the outside with a walk out basement without a deck? There are sliding glass doors to no where.
- Lutefisk. I am not a fish eater and YUK.
- No real pizza or bagels. Pizza Hut or Pizzeria Uno is not pizza. Never ever will be in a million years.
- I am a Mets fan. But the Twins aren’t the Yankees so I could learn to like them – not love like the Mets but at least there is baseball.
- Any Indian food? Not really that big of a deal because I can send away for the spices and make my own - Speaking of which, we are really used to getting all kinds of food – what’s the variety like and how available are the ingredients. Don’t mean to be a snot, but being from NJ you get to have a big melting pot of places to either buy it prepared or but the ingredients to make it on our own.
Hope you all have enjoyed my pros and cons. And maybe laughed a little. Any additional insights would be appreciated. I’m looking in the Eden Prarie area but the Lakeville area looks very nice too. In NJ, our commutes are so bad, 30 to 45 minutes is not unreasonable. I’d also be open to a more rural area with promise and a good school system. Cows and farms are fine. If I’m within a ½ hour of major shopping, that would be fine.
Oak cabinets seem to be the default for most builders. Probably because oak is available and affordable and it stands up to wear and tear. You can find homes with upgrades, and many remodels will go with another wood. Birch, Maple, alderwood, and Cherry are popular alternatives.
Good pizza can be found. I agree that the the garden variity chains have below average pies. I preffer the thin crust with real cheese and a spicy sauce with peperoni or sausage. I can give you a few places that tend to be small, but pretty good. Not sure how it would compare to the eastern pies though.
There are some indian resturaunts, and you should be able to find spices and other stuff at a number of markets with out a lot of issues.
You will find some good schools are available in fact most schools are very good.
MN is in the top 10 for taxes. We used to be top 5 but we have held steady where other states have recently raised taxes. You should look at all the taxes and then decide what is good or not good. Sales, Income, and Property. Seems some states have low income, but high property taxes. MN income tax is substantial (6.5 percent on average).
Location: Mableton, GA USA (NW Atlanta suburb, 4 miles OTP)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by golfgal
Comparing SAT scores from NJ to MN is a little harder. Most of the colleges around here use the ACT so not a lot of kids take the SAT. I think you will find that overall, schools here are going to better then most of what you find in NJ, even at their best schools. The average SAT in MN is 1776 compared to 1499 in NJ.
Keep in mind, though, that many states require ALL of their students to take the SAT, not just those who are college-bound. That will skew the averages for those states. GA is one of those -- I don't know about NJ.
If you enjoy living around computer illiterate, self serving, lazy jerks move to St. Cloud. We sold our house and luckily are out of there. Look out for some of the realtors - they serve only their own interests. We dealt with 2 companies getting our house sold one (with yellow in its sign) gives great service until they have the listing, The other, gave service until the offer was written and then has done nothing but sit on their butt and expect us to do the leg work (while in the process of moving). I can't wait to leave this town of lazy self centered idiots.
Thank you all for your input. ‘Dang’, I appreciate it!
My husband's office is in Eden Prairie. Any recommendations based upon this location are very welcome. Our kids are 10 and over so I'm looking at Jr. High and High School by the time we would move. What is the typical school year? In my town it’s after Labor Day to about the third week in June.
NJ does not force their students to take the SAT. Besides test scores, I'd also like a school system that takes care of the whole person. Don't know if that makes sense but I want my kids to be happy with whatever they want to do; working with their brains, hands, and people; all of the above is fine with me. As long as they leave the house and pay there own bills within in a reasonable time .
I am glad to hear that there might be some hope for decent pizza and Indian food. I apologize if asking if there is a variety is insulting – I’ve been to some parts of the country where this wasn’t the case.
I think there is good and bad no matter where you are. I do love New Jersey for many things; it is a state that gets a bad rap when it does have a lot to offer however the price of living stinks and overcrowding in a problem. Minnesota looks like a beautiful state and I think I can overcome the cold weather. I am also very attracted by all the lakes. I do love being on a boat.
If you don't mind a very large high school Eden Prairie has excellent schools. If you want a smaller town/schools, Chaska would be my next choice on that side of the cities. Chaska is a little more down to earth the Eden Prairie, slightly more 'rural' but has pretty much everything you need there. I am more of a smaller school person so I would pick Chaska over EP. If your kids are in band, go to EP vs Chaska though. What about sports--high competition or good programs where your kids will have a chance to participate? If you have Divsion II or Division I caliber athletes-EP, if you have good athletes that want to play high school sports-Chaska.
- Any Indian food? Not really that big of a deal because I can send away for the spices and make my own - Speaking of which, we are really used to getting all kinds of food – what’s the variety like and how available are the ingredients. Don’t mean to be a snot, but being from NJ you get to have a big melting pot of places to either buy it prepared or but the ingredients to make it on our own.[/color]
Lutefisk isn't fish. They take fish and transform it into something else.
Lots of Indian food. Chapati in Edina is IMO the best North Indian food around. Clean, gas tandoor, lamb AND goat on the buffet, $10.61. Kids eat free (unless you're a nuisance).
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Stay south of the Twin cities
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