we are selling our home in VA and thinking about moving to Detroit any advice?

[angstlessk]

we have no ties here now, since my mom died and are looking to relocate somewhere we can afford to live and Michigan seems to be an affordable community. Some great historic neighborhoods and some great prices for homes. How is the job market for say a bookkeeper?

[GreenEyedLefty]

1. It's a buyer's market!

The job market is tight, but jobs are available. Welcome in advance!

[angstlessk]

2. thank you, Yes we are truly amazed at the prices and since we no longer

have any connection to VA and the prices are SOOO high, we decided to relocate, first we looked at near Pittsburg and then at Detroit and we LOVE the old historic districts and we can afford to purchase there too! We are getting excited. We are closing this week and are 'looking forward' to packing and moving (as if!)

on edit: my husband says after we get there and get into the home we want, he is going to try to convence EVERYONE in Norfolk to move to Detroit...a reall PR man he is!!

[IdaBriggs]

3. Detroit schools rank terrible -- one article a bit ago said something

like 50% drop-out rate? Or was it 25%? Either way, it was shameful. You may want to check out a websitelike www.greatschools.com to find where you want to live. If you don't have kids, you probably only want to worry about resale value of your property (as neighborhoods with good schools command better prices).

ON EDIT: Here's the link -- http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.co.schools05jun05,0,6802233.story?track=rss

And here's the money quote: "Detroit was the lowest-ranked large school system, with a 37.5 percent graduation rate."

Full report here -- http://www.edweek.org/ew/toc/2008/06/05/index.html

[angstlessk]

7. no kids in school, we are looking at the Boston/Edison historic district.

That is alot like Ghent here in the Norfolk area!

[SharonRB]

8. There are some beautiful old homes in that area

Just be aware that you'll probably have to travel a distance to the 'burbs for any decent shopping.

[angstlessk]

9. that's amazing...shopping never occured to me, I figured Detroit...gotta

have alot since it is a big city not like Norfolk...thanks for the heads up on that one!

[SharonRB]

10. Things are starting to come back in pockets, but

there's no good central shopping area and no decent malls or typical downtown shopping area like you find in other major cities of any kind. Detroit is not like most other major cities. There is a lot of new development, but it's happening very, very slowly and there are decent areas right next to slum areas that stretch for miles. I don't mean to paint a bleak picture, but the city has never really come back completely after the 1967 riots.

Boston-Edison is a beautiful area, but there are bad areas right around it, and you'll find that you'd be better off going to the suburbs for shopping, movies, etc. The casinos, theatre, museums, ballpark, etc. are in the city proper and convenient to Boston-Edison.

[Royal Oak Rog]

4. Welcome, but

be aware that you will have to downgrade your expectations in professional football pretty substantially.

[JNelson6563]

5. But on the upside

:toast:

[angstlessk]

6. Virginia has not a single professional ball team of any sort...

Redskins belong to DC or are they now the Nationals?

[Royal Oak Rog]

11. Virginia is Redskin Country

Their headquarters and training facilities are even located there, but even if they weren't how could the Lions be considered an upgrade to having no team?
:banghead:

[GigiMommy]

12. Hello there from a Detroiter born and raised...

:hi: I agree with what's been said about The Boston/Edison district. There's also the Indian Village area. Here's some info, http://www.historicindianvillage.org/homeandgardentour.html. There's the Palmer Park area too, http://www.palmerwoods.org/. Detroit IS slowly coming back but in terms of shopping (groceries, malls, etc.), you'll have to hit the suburbs. Good luck.

Here's another area in Detroit (historic Midtown), not houses but lofts in one of the re-energized areas. http://www.ellingtonlofts.com/home.html Again, good luck.

[angstlessk]

14. I saw Indian Village what a GEORGEOUS location...the homes are truly mansions

I was looking at the more modest homes..the "daddy knows best" (showing my age here) sort of classic colonial at real bargain prices..not the humongous mansions...would be nice, though!

With google maps I walked around those lofts, looks like a cool place to hang around!

My husband told me that last night on Larry King a woman was on telling everyone to move to Michigan cause the housing was cheap...I better hurry up or my home will be gone!

[1gobluedem]

16. Indian Village is fabulous

My mother grew up there. And there is good shopping in the Grosse Pointes which are pretty close.

But those huge old houses take a ton of money to keep them up.

[PassingFair]

22. Boston Edison is also primarily filled with HUGE mansions.

And surrounded by swaths of really
dangerous territory...

If you're looking for classic colonials, go for
Huntington Woods (with SharonRB as a neighbor,
or the Grosse Pointes).

I don't know about Huntington Woods, but
the Pointes have FANTASTIC deals on homes,
due to forced relocation of the auto execs
that used to populate the area.

[SharonRB]

23. Same here in the other Woods in Oakland County

I was going to suggest that she look here as well (Huntington Woods). There are tons of houses on the market. They used to sell before the signs even went up. Now? Not so much and for the last two or three years there have been 60-80 houses on the market at any given time. I'm sure there are some really good deals and it's a wonderful community to live in. In addition, it's convenient to Detroit as well as most of Oakland County, including excellent schools and shopping.

[PassingFair]

24. Plus...

Sharon and Dave live there!

[SharonRB]

25. Awwwww. thanks!

Are you going to the rally Monday?

[PassingFair]

26. My friend from work is going with her kids...

Joe Louis at 6:00 sounds like SUCH a hassle, though!

Have you heard anything about the second appearance
in Wayne County?

[SharonRB]

27. No, I haven't

I'm going to be volunteering. A friend of mine passed my name along to the field manager and she called me on Friday. I've got to be down there at 4, which is when I probably would have gotten down there anyway to get in line, and there's a training tonight at 7 at the Joe.

[butterfly77]

43. I was just at that starbucks yesterday...

I didn't even notice the lofts I was looking at some type of art gallery across the street..

[Festivito]

13. Welcome. Lots of water here.

It's amazing now. Hurtfully so. You can find some motivated sellers with fantastically kept homes and virtually steal them.

I'm on the far west side. Lower middle class neighborhood, many empty bungalows. If you want bigger, there is Rosedale park area as well. Good luck and good fun.

[angstlessk]

15. I almost cried looking at the prices they are asking for some of those homes

and you could see all the care over the years those people put into those home only to lose them because some old fart failed to see the future of automobiles and stole their future! It is indeed sad and I wonder where everyone has gone???

[1gobluedem]

17. More like some old fart allowed the mortgage industry to deregulate

And suck money from people who never should have been able to get them.

[Strawman]

18. Get a quote for home and auto insurance in each neighborhood you're looking at

http://www.insure.com/articles/carinsurance/detroit-auto-insurance.html

Auto insurance is ridiculously high in Detroit. I think homeowners insurance is substantially higher also but I'm not as certain on that.

I'm amazed at what people I know who live in the city have to pay in property taxes and insurance. I think Boston-Edison is an area where you get tax breaks but I'd make sure. Those "savings" on lower home prices can disappear quickly and none of that money you pay in property taxes and insurance is converted into any sort of equity.

[angstlessk]

19. holy cow! the auto insurance is legalized theft sounds like...they just shifted

the income from the lawyers to the CEO's of the insurance companies I recon?

[bif]

20. You might consider the Grosse Pointe area

Beautiful old homes and you're right near Lake St. Clair

[angstlessk]

21. Indeed they ARE beautiful and about $200,000 at the cheap end of the scale

we are not in THAT market!

[Lefty48197]

28. Welcome to the hood!

....ER, I mean NEIGHBORHOOD! Detroit needs new residents. The neighborhoods mentioned earlier: Boston-Edison, Palmer Park, and Indian Village are all excellent neighborhoods. B-E may be the only place in the country where you can get a 10K sq ft home for under $500,000! I would love to live there myself. Unfortunately, there is NO shopping nearby and the area is surrounded by bad neighborhoods.
Palmer is a much larger neighborhood, and would probably be my first recommendation for anyone who wants to move to the city. I would never recommend anything in Oakland County. It's the worlds biggest traffic jam. You'll spend all your life savings on gas in an idling car in the middle of a traffic jam.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

29. Don't overlook Oakland county.

Oakland county traffic seems bad to Wayne county residents. To someone moving from northern VA (Arlington) or DC, Oakland county traffic is nothing.

Ferndale, Royal Oak, those are worth a look. Nice old houses, and restaurants/bars/shops that are close. Heck, you can even walk to some of them. "Walking" is generally an unheard-of form of transportation in the Detroit area, but those little old towns seem built for it.

Still, moving without first getting a job is gutsy. And risky.

[SharonRB]

30. I agree

The south part of Oakland County is excellent -- Ferndale, Royal Oak, Huntington Woods, parts of Berkley. The traffic really isn't bad in our part of the county and we're still only 20 minutes from downtown, so if you want to take advantage of sports, theatre, etc., it's easy to do. There are definitely some beautiful older homes and many bargains right now. Excellent shopping and restaurants are within easy reach; both smaller neighborhood stores and malls like Somerset (high end) and Oakland Mall (not my favorite, but convenient). It's also easy to get to Macomb County. Only 45 minutes from Ann Arbor and anywhere from 20 minutes to 45 minutes from the airport, depending on traffic and time of week/day. As I stated in another post, it's very convenient to just about anywhere you might want to go.

[GigiMommy]

31. There's Pleasant Ridge too!

Lovely homes, quiet neighborhoods. It always seemed hidden behind Ferndale and Royal Oak to me.

[SharonRB]

32. Absolutely! n/t

[sarcasmo]

33. 8.5 percent unemployment, IMHO not a smart move.

[angstlessk]

34. okay now I feel like a smuck...we will probably move to Cleveland OH

we LOVE the homes in Detroit and still might move there..and I say Detroit should be called BRICK CITY cause most of the homes are brick...totally desirable!..but .. my husband is black and my fear is not for me or my friend who is also white, but for my husband...so Cleveland seems to be our destination??? Cleveland should be called the one bathroom city..cause no matter how big the home is they ALL have exactly one bathroom (the older homes which we LOVE)....fear of water??? dont know the answer to that riddle!

[SharonRB]

35. Why would you fear for your husband?

You really should check out some of the older suburbs mentioned in this thread.

[angstlessk]

36. black on black crime is more predominate than any other crime

and if Detroit has the highest rate of crime ...his chances of being killed in Detroit is probably greater than any other city...my fear is for him

[SharonRB]

37. The suburbs are very safe

[GigiMommy]

38. I grew up in Detroit

while it was called the "Murder Capitol of the World". I remember hearing the body count on the news (practically daily). My Dad worked in Detroit/Highland Park for over 30 years. My Brother went to school from Kindergarten through College in the city. So did I. Most of my family (on BOTH sides) lived in Detroit. What happened to US? I had my car battery stolen while going to Wayne State Univ. My parents had 2 cars stolen total out of (I don't know how many we had). They got the cars back. My Parents' house was broken into only once. They've lived there since 1956(my Mom lives there still). We visit every week.

Now, do I know anyone who was murdered? Yes. One was a THUG ever since he was in Kindergarten. He dropped out of Elementary School. We weren't surprised to hear about him. Another also ended up with the wrong kind of people (sadly).

I have friends and family who still live and work in Detroit. Is it the safest city? NO NO NO but they're all black and they call it home.

[angstlessk]

39. I personally prefer Detroit, it is truly beautiful and the planning that went

onto designing the neighborhoods is EXCELLENT...look at Cleveland and it seems there is no rhyme nor reason for (some) of the homes to be built where they are except there are 2 million folks and maybe not enough land...a 40 x 100 foot lot is HUGE in Cleveland in Detroit the average is 40 or 50 x 160+ so I am really a fan of Detroit..truly and wish we could move there, but I really do fear for my husband. We do not do drugs, do not party, do not go out at night, I think we will be safe, but he could get mugged going to the store or shot in a robbery so we have agreed that Cleveland will be our town.

To tell you the truth, here in Norfolk, VA he was mugged and his friend (my sisters boyfriend) almost got killed when he was beaten with a tire iron. Luckily the thugs did not have guns. They came home with Oscars head bleeding profusly and we rushed him to the emergency room and he got about 50-100 stitches in his head, so there is really no SAFE city. but hubby is the 'decider' and who am I to tell him he will be safe when he does not think so?

[GigiMommy]

40. Oh well, I tried...

I wish you and your Husband all the best. Good luck with your move. I hope you find a beautiful house that you can truly call your own.

[angstlessk]

41. in fact we are looking at East Cleveland and everyone says..it is ohhh soooo dangerous

We love old homes in old neighborhoods seems they are the ones falling first..how that can happen is really a sin...the mcmansions should be the first failures..but they are truly failures in waiting..and the old homes in the URBAN setting will be the future of the country...thanks and I will miss Detroit even having never lived there!

[sarcasmo]

42. I am from Michigan and if I were moving it wouldn't be to Ohio or Michigan.

Do your research on the employment figures first.