Any Michiganders here?

[scrapbookbuzz]

We are thinking about moving across the country to be closer to most of our families.

Anyone live in Michigan? Thinking more like SW part of MI.

How is it to homeschool there?

[Liz CA]

PM Faith Manor. I think she still lives in Michigan.

She also posted in the thread "If we move where to go?"

[Faith-manor]

SW Michigan is better than most other parts of the lower peninsula. Grand Rapids has a pretty good economy. You should know that services have been cut to the bone here, the infrastructure is falling apart and only now receiving some rather pathetic attention, winter heat is expensive, the state is ranked in the bottom five in the nation for education which is making it hard to attract companies to invest here because employees of these companies really don't want to move to Michigan, there are numerous municipalities with major water quality issues, lead only being one of them (in my area it is arsenic), and our state college tuition rates keep climbing unnecessarily. But hey, the legislature found 34 million dollars to give to the owner of the Pistons to build a new stadium! You have to be VERY careful where you move.

You might find that living across the border in Indiana is a better option. Just get within striking distance - decent drive - might be better.

My state is gorgeous. If you love the outdoors, you can't beat it! Our lakes our actually the size of seas and as such have wildly diverse ecosystems and their own weather patterns. We have all kinds of winter and summer sports, our state parks are amazing. We have Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Isle Royale National Park, and of course U of Mi is on some lists as the number one "public ivy". There is so much beauty here, so much to enjoy. I wish that our economy, schools, infrastructure, and political machine were good enough that I feel comfortable recommending this state, but I don't. Also, we have a ridiculous amount of violent crime. Between, Detroit, Flint, and Saginaw - often times for cities of their size in the top three nationally - it's a bit of a crime pit. On top of that, we have some of the highest automobile and homeowner's insurance rates in the nation, and you will fight the insurance companies tooth and nail until you are nuts because the lobby has a strangle hold on our state legislature. So you pay in and ungodly sum of money for years and years and years on end, then have a car accident and a permanently disabled child and they begrudge you a wheelchair ramp until you lawyer up! That's my state. From just a quality of living situation, despite Indiana and Ohio not having all that Michigan has, we were much happier during the times we lived in those two states than here.

If you take the leap, do a lot of research, be extremely careful where you move to in the state, and have a plan B exit strategy if you end up not being able to handle the negatives. Otherwise, come to Michigan and I'll take you to Sleeping Bear Dunes, and we'll hang out in some of the best landscape ever!

 

[TABmom]

I live in SW MI. It's awesome to homeschool here. The HS community is huge! There are so many great activities and programs, it's hard to choose. Summer is fantastic, but I don't do so well in the winter because I grew up much farther south. The housing market in my area is crazy. I know several people who bought/sold a house the first day it was on the market, with multiple offers! That's relatively recent and I don't know how long it will last. The public schools in my area seem good. I would highly recommend any of the areas surrounding Kalamazoo or Grand Rapids, though maybe not in the cities themselves. I know nothing about the rest of the state, but our area is wonderful- with the exception of winter weather. If you don't mind that, it's great. I always tell my husband that I want to move in the winter, but by the time the snow is gone ( which takes a ridiculously long time) I don't want to leave. And most of that is because we have such a great homeschool community.