HannahHall

My children are moving to Ann Arbor, any suggestions on a nice area to live, good schools etc.

jlm_mi

I'm not sure what you're looking for - neighborhoods in Ann Arbor, or towns nearby. How far away is too far? Are you asking where they should live, or are you moving here to be near them?

Where will your children be working? Do they have children? How old are they? Do they want to live in a very small town, out in the country, or more city-like? (Not that Ann Arbor is a city, but moreso than neighboring villages.)

What is their budget for a house or apartment? Do they want to be able to walk downtown, or is driving everywhere OK?

How far are they willing to live from Detroit airport?

My first recommendation is to work with a good, local realtor to help them find what they are looking for, but with more input from you we can certainly suggest some ideas.

ewt

Why wouldn't they live in Ann Arbor? It has a great local flavor, is pretty diverse for a place of its size, and brings in a lot of attractions. I don't know why one would want to live in Dexter, Brighton, Whitmore Lake or the like when Ann Arbor is right next to it.

I do, however, understand that housing prices can be fairly high in A2. If that's the problem, perhaps they could look for something in an outlying area. I would recommend Dexter or Chelsea over Whitmore Lake and Brighton though.

HannahHall

The business where my son in law will work is not in downtown Ann Arbor. They are looking for something close to work. They have two sons, grade 2 and 5. They want to buy/build a home.
Lookin for nice neighborhood and good schools.
Thanks

indytravel

Friends of mine moved from the Dayton, OH area to the Ann Arbor area 2 years ago for a job change. Having come from Ohio schools with levees for school taxes (not property taxes,) kids in trailers in schools in wealthy suburbs and a "the lotto pays for schools why should I vote for more taxes" mentality, they hated Ohio schools.

They ended up in South Lyon just north of Ann Arbor. A school system that has turned itself around in the last 15 years. It's gone from a "rust bucket" frame of mind to an "education matters" philosophy.

2 years later they're still thrilled with the school system in S. Lyon. The school actually has a plan in place for splitting the high school in two as it grows. A plan in Ohio? Hardly.

By the way the South Lyon Inn has incredible pizza.

Willy123

We lived in Ypsilanti, near EMU, for 2 years (almost 30 years ago.) Don't know what it's like now, but it was a lovely neighborhood.

jlm_mi

HannahHall - I'm afraid that's not enough information. If they don't want to live in Ann Arbor, where do they want to live? Where is the work that they want to be close to? Many of the communities in Southeast Michigan have excellent schools, so that's less of a concern than it would be in some areas.

So, what else do they want in their hometown, and what type of house would they be looking for in what price range? Surely good schools aren't the only thing they care about, and there are a lot of options to choose from.

I definitely agree with ewt that Ann Arbor is a fantastic place to live, even if you don't work right in Ann Arbor (I commute 30 minutes each way to live in Ann Arbor), but if the prices are too high, or they want a very small town/country feel to their home, there are other options.

If you can expand on what they really want - they're whole dream list of where they want to live - you'll get lots of suggestions, even if no one place meets every single thing they think they'd like to have in a hometown.

HannahHall

His work in about 5 miles south of Ann Arbor.
Do you know anything about Saline?
Someone told them that was a good area.

jlm_mi

It is a good area. It's a very small town, about 20 minutes from Ann Arbor. If small town is what they want, it will work for them. If small town isn't what they want, they won't be happy there.

I'm thinking he really needs to talk to an area real estate agent to narrow down his options. We could simply provide a list of all communities in the area, but he could get that just as well from looking at a map. They need to think about what they actually want to have in the town where they live, and as I mentioned, good schools should be just one of many criteria.

It will not cost them anything to work with a buyer's agent to buy a home, and will help them determine where they want to be and also give them an experienced person when determining what a home is worth and how to be negotiate and write up the purchase contract.

ewt

I don't know what Saline schools are like right now. They used to be sub-par compared to Ann Arbor schools (my friend's family had their children going to Emerson for grade school). They may have improved since the town has a higher tax base now with all the developments and increased real estate prices. That's something to think about though.

I agree that its also a very small town, but lots of people live there and come into Ann Arbor on weekends for dinner and such. It all depends what they are looking for.

vgronek

michigan has some pretty spots but our govenor granholm is all about higher taxes and is ruining our states economy. vote for dick devoss!