Moving to Michigan...I have questions, can you help?

I have lived here all my life. Don't be scared, its not that bad. You can get mad deals on a house right now. Make sure u like the house tho, because selling it might be a little rough for the next five years! I have several suggestions for you to check out. It would help if you told us where exactly your husbands new job is located because traffic can be an issue (less lately now with all the unemployed people). My first suggestion is Ann Arbor. Only 45 mins from down town Detroit, Its a college town, but filled with all kinds of fun sophisticated things to do. I think if you go visit Ann Arbor you will fall in love. There are some great little communities in the outskirts of Ann Arbor as well such a Saline, Dexter, and Pinckney. Chelsea is west of Ann Arbor, but I am sure it will be a heck of a commute for your husband! The population of Ann Arbor is higher than your requirements, but you can settle in a place that feels less congested. Just watch out on Michigan football sunday!! The Huron River runs thru the city and there are lots of lakes and ponds nearby. Pretty much anywhere you go in Michigan, you are near lakes. Another AWESOME artsy fun place is Plymouth which is significantly closer to Detroit and a pretty cool little town. Its not small in population, but definitely fits a lot of your criteria!! Other suggestions I have for you are northern Oakland county (like North Rochester, or Oakland Township). These are pretty ritzy areas tho, but downtown Rochester is a hoot. I love Rochester! Its much more crowded tho again, but very artsy fartsy. Beware of traffic in Rochester... its heinous during rush hour. You could also try Bloomfield Hills (great little country type neighborhoods give a nice quiet feel in the burbs). You could go farther north than Rochester as well too, but you will get less of the Artesian feel and longer commute. Another interesting town is Harrison Township. Not so Artsy, but its right on Lake St Claire and lots of the houses have canals and private docks. West Bloomfield and the towns up along Orchard Lake Rd are all on water, but they are not artesian. If you want anymore advice, just email me! I think Ann Arbor, Plymouth, Rochester or Saline sound like your kind of fit. I think you should first look at the location of your husbands work, and then visit the places that have acceptable commutes. As for commuter trains, these do not exist in Detroit (however there have been talks of building a lightrail between Ann Arbor, Detroit and the Airport). If one ever does exist, I think Ann Arbor will be connected first! I would highly discourage taking a bus down to Detroit (EEEEEW). The AA bus system is great tho!! I hope you feel better about your move! I am jealous of anyone who lives in Ann Arbor/Plymouth area! PS All of these towns have festivals and art fairs and stuff. Ann Arbor has the hugest Art Fair I have ever seen. its unbelievable. If you can... move to Ann Arbor. You will LOVE it.

You need to edit your question and add the name of the town where the job is located, otherwise you are asking a lot of folks to give up their valuable time to help you find the perfect place that may be quite impractical. I may suggest Traverse City, but if the job is in Grand Rapids, hubby would face an 8 hr commute. Or maybe Birmingham has the right mix, but if the job is in Monroe, he'd be in the car 3 hrs everyday. In short, if I had a job in Sheldon Washington, I wouldn't want to live in Ellensburg. Get it?

WELCOME to Michigan! I don't know WHERE you're moving to in Michigan (it's a big state), but the first place I thought of based on your description was Traverse City (Interlochen, Traverse City Film Festival, Gwen Frostics, Sleeping Bear Dunes, Traverse Bay, Crystal Mountain, TONS of unique shops, etc.) If you need to be more closer to the Detroit Metropolitain area, I would recommend Saline, Michigan (a suburb of Ann Arbor) or Bloomfield Hills (in Oakland County). There is TONS of nature, hiking/biking, etc. in Michigan no matter where you live. And in Michigan, you're never more than a few miles from a body of water. It would help if you could give us a little more info. about WHERE your husband's job is located.

I feel sorry for you. God i hate detroit. Dont really care for the state myself. I live in ohio and im from out west also. I miss the west.

I live in Fenton which is about an hour north of Detroit. The population is about 12,000 its a nice city and crime is almost unheard of. I recommend looking at cities like Fenton, Brighton, Howell, Plymouth, Northville. All these cities are within an hour of Detroit, low in crime, lots of wooded areas, lakes and parks. I really suggest you visit them! Good luck!

You said that you are moving to Michigan because of your husband's job and I have to assume HE needs to be in a particular part of the state. It would help YOU to get better answers if you could at least narrow down what part of the state you will be going to.

I'm sorry that you have to move here. I have lived here (Traverse City)my entire life (35 yrs.) Hopefully your hubby has a decent stable job already, because the job force in this state is a joke. Its #1 in the nation for unemployment (15%). Anyway, Traverse City is a decent sized city ( 15,000 approx) Many lakes to choose from, low crime, most people leave their doors unlocked. Very pretty in the summer, Very cold and lots of snow in the winter. Everything that you are looking for can be found in and around the surrounding area. Hope this helped you.

It really depends which area of Michigan your husband will be working in. I am assuming the lower peninsula, but it is still a large state. Most of Michigan is not urban at all. Detroit is, and Ann Arbor sort of is. I have lived in Michigan my entire life. The most beautiful town I have been to is Ludington Michigan. A small town on lake michigan with beautiful homes. There really isn't a lot of job opportunities there though. If his job is near Ann Arbor you might like Dexter, Michigan. A very small town near Ann Arbor which is a great city. Brooklyn/Irish Hills is a gorgeous area as well. Trust me Michigan is full of small towns. Just find an area you like when you get here. Here is some websites: http://www.villageofdexter.org/ http://www.visitludington.com/ http://www.brooklynmi.com/

Its going to be tough moving into a new place, it always is, whether its a big city or a small city. Two Months ago I moved into the Detroit area as well for work, its only temporary, but I will be here for a significant amount of my time. Coming from the North-East area bordering the Atlantic Ocean, My first thought of Michigan was that its a rural state, and by goodness it sure is a rural state compared to New Jersey and New York. Theres not that many people on the roads ever, unless there is a game going on, and that too is the only time you will see people. All of Michigan has a very low population, there biggest city is Detroit, which has less than a million people in the city, and compard to NYC or Chicago its not that populated and has a small town feel. I dont recommend living in Ann Arbor unless your in your late teens or early 20s, because thats just a college town, plain and simple, its a good place to hang out, and thats it. Not to live permanently or have a family, because its full of college students who party and do not take care of their property and will be very disturbing in the night time. With that said, Eastern Michigan is more populated than Western Michigan. Michigan has its problems but your going to like living here, you will get used to it, honestly, the Mid-West/North-East region of the United States is much better than the West, its a lifestyle and you have to live it really feel it. Who knows you might just start to hate the West, and like the East! Welcome to Michigan! Great Lakes, Great Times!