Boardman, Poland, Canfield, or Austintown??? (Youngstown, McDonald: for sale, real estate, renting)

[CortlandGirl79]

Originally Posted by 000000

there are more things going on in a mcdonald's hamburger than in mcdonald, ohio. you may or may not like how rural that would be. you would almost certainly get a big yard.

I would agree that there isn't a whole lot going on in McDonald, but i wouldn't even begin to call it rural. It's an old steel town, just like a lot of old towns in the Mahoning Valley. Most of the homes are very close together on small lots.....i've yet to see a big yard there. I would say McDonald is tight knit and blue collar with a small town feel. I would consider Canfield much more rural than McDonald. It also doesn't really matter if nothing is going on there considering it is surrounded by cities like Niles, Girard, etc. Granted those cities aren't "big city", but Niles does have the mall, a ton of restaurants, etc. and Girard has a few things going on as well. Also, McDonald has a great little park in the center of the Village.......when i ran cross country in high school they held our meets there.

http://www.mcdonaldvillage.com/

In fact the pop. density of McDonald is greater Canfield, Austintown, Boardman, and Girard.

The population density was 2,072.4 people per square mile (800.0/km²). There were 1,352 housing units at an average density of 804.9/sq mi (310.7/km²)

McDonald, Ohio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Mahoning River Watershed - McDonald, Ohio

[000000]

speaking of trumbull country up north of the university, niles is like a trumbull county boardman, liberty is like a trumbull county austintown, and girard is like a trumbull struthers. obviously, these are little unfair, but they are starting points to ponder if the man finds a job north of youngstown.


well, cortlandgirl you are right in that it isn't really rural. i shouldn't have used that word to describe mcdonald's population density. it does describe the pace of life there, though.

the size of the yards are also not that small in mcdonald. actually, the yard sizes around that area are not that bad considering. nothing like san francisco or any true urban setting. i feel that i must defend youngstown yard size. i shall erect a large statue of a landscaper in some random person's yard as a symbol of recent employment trends in the mahoning valley.

[lovetheheartland]

There's so much to think about when moving to a completely new location! Should we rent for a year and then buy? What if we buy and then don't like it? Argh!

[000000]

renting likely will be safer than buying. when i said buying to own, i meant more that if you do buy to be sure to not expect to be able to sell quick or for profit. no matter where you are at in the area, do make sure to lock up your doors at night. there are only going to be more desperate people around the mahoning valley as the economy gets worse.

[JR_C]

Originally Posted by 000000

renting likely will be safer than buying. when i said buying to own, i meant more that if you do buy to be sure to not expect to be able to sell quick or for profit. no matter where you are at in the area, do make sure to lock up your doors at night. there are only going to be more desperate people around the mahoning valley as the economy gets worse.

Your advice is good, but it holds true for most of the country, not just the Mahoning Valley.

OP, I would definitely rent first. That allows you to get to know the area. You will get a better idea of whether the commute (for you and your husband) is comfortable. And, you can make a better decision about where to buy based on the amenities you want to be close to.

[familyman94]

Hello,
I grew up in Poland, went all through the school system, I currently live in Boardman, the little lady is from here, born and raised. I didn't read all the other posts, tooooooooo longggggggg! but very informative..the one's I did read. Poland is a very historical town, all the buildings are built to the styles of the originals when they were tore down. I have been told, anyone living in one of the tagged historical houses cannot make inprovements with out following some rules. I think Poland is one of the best communities in the Mahoning Valley. My opinion is people in Poland like things the way they are and will do what is needed to keep it that way. Boardman is very nice, every thing is 10 minutes away..little crowded now during the Holidays. Canfield is also nice, I would and do live in these areas..my opinion..boy I have a lot of those anyway,these are the best in this area to raise a family and the best schools. Youngstown is rough, but all cities have their problems, YSU is nice. I used to live next to the Glen and have moved further south towards the Highschool.

If you have any specifics I would be glad to help

Familyman94

[Ianacek]

Wait ! Poland & Canfield no longer have a monopoly on nice libraries .

In 5 weeks time, 2 very nice state of the art libraries , with cafes , will open - on the corner of Market & Midlothian in Newport Central; and On Early Rd / East High Rd, on the East Side.

[000000]

ah, but they are not open yet. no matter how nice the library on the east side will be it still is in the east side. canfield's library isn't all that nice, you are thinking of the libraries in poland and austintown.

[lovetheheartland]

Based on some new information (i.e., I just got the statement from my student loans that tells me how much my monthly payment will be...YIKES!!!!), we've changed our search criteria a bit. We've now lowered the amount we're willing/able to spend on a house, and we're looking at smaller houses. The more I read about Poland (and I went there when I was in the area), the more I like it. My husband is concerned about how far it is to a Wal-Mart, the mall, big movie theater, etc. from the smaller towns surrounding Youngstown. I told him I thought Canfield had a Wal-Mart...is that correct? We're driving up that way in a few weeks to start looking for places. We're still unsure on the renting vs buying thing. It feels so wasteful to rent. But we've been doing it for years, what's another year?

[CortlandGirl79]

There's a Walmart in Poland, Austintown, Warren, Salem and they are building a new one in Liberty. Most areas in the Valley are no more than 15 minutes from a mall or Walmart, i don't think he has anything to worry about.