# moving to Northern Michigan



## jbrewer7911 (Jun 16, 2013)

Hello everyone, somewhat new to the forums and not sure if this is the correct forum to ask these questions but here we go. I am currently in northern ohio. I have a family of 5 and I am a semi driver and my wife is a hairstylist. We have sold our house in Ohio and are currently living with my parents just for the time being between homes. It has been a dream for many years for us to move to lower northern michigan. My question is with this economy and not a whole lot for jobs or so it seems from an outsider like myself is it possible to make a comfortable living with our professions? I know cost of living is low but my main concern is jobs. We have money saved to make the transition if we can we also don't care which side east or west. Is this a real possibility or not and just wanted to get some insight from those who live in this amazing state. Any help is greatly appreciated thanks!


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## n.pike (Aug 23, 2002)

The west side is much more stable, and offers more for the family. We have been on the east side for 15 years, and the decline is continuing. While natural resources here are beautiful, job opportunities are scarce. Traverse City is the best chance for economic success, and still has good access to hunting and fishing.


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## jbrewer7911 (Jun 16, 2013)

Thanks for the reply. That's what I'm gathering from the pricing on the east side. Leaning towards kalkaska. Home prices seem affordable and also close to traverse city. I have been a delivery driver for food distribution companies for the last 13 years and even spent 3 months working for up north covering Petoskey Charlevoix traverse and loved it. A week after I told them I would take the route and move up there the company sold and the deal w as void. Still hoping there is a chance though


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## kingfisher 11 (Jan 26, 2000)

I grew up in the East Jordan/Mancelona area. Housing away from the lakes is reasonable but, by no means is the cost of living cheaper. I am heading up there for a 10 day vacation to deer hunt. I will bring as much food as I can... so I won't have to buy much. I was shocked at the price of food up there. My parents live in Mancelona and its a struggle for someone who has no good source of income. You would be best to ask locals up there about how tough it is. Not to slam anyone but most of the guys that vacation up there don't have a clue. I moved my family up to Charlevoix in 1993 or 1994? We lived there for a year and moved back to Saginaw County and bought a house. I know we like it up there but the schools are not as good and the cost of living is high. I may move up there once my kids are gone and I am retired but I will make sure I have planned well for it.


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## goinsfishin (May 27, 2013)

The cost of living is definitely higher. I lived in Frankfort for 5 years. Whenever we would come to Lansing to see family we made a point to stock up on things to take back. I commuted to traverse for work and my wife was the general manager of a hotel in Beulah. I loved it there, it was a dream of mine as well. But in the end we came back to Lansing. Traverse is your best bet for jobs, but a lot of the time its a who you know not what you know kinda thing. I tried it with absolutely no regrets, and will one day go back. You will definitely enjoy the area you're looking at, Cadillac might work as well. What ever you do, enjoy and good luck 

Sent from my XT907 using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## Downriver Tackle (Dec 24, 2004)

I agree with the east west comparison. Much better off overall for jobs on the west side. You sacrifice a little with it being more city like in that area, but jobs come along with it. But the higher cost of housing also. If you can make it on the east side, I'd go for it. MUCH cheaper housing market right now. Absolute steals out there! Probably 100-200%+ more buying power over here. Much more rural out in the wilderness feel also. Given your' two professions, I'd say you have a good shot at making it over here. The two most and very common job postings I see for this area are hair stylists and truck drivers. If you want to drive a logging truck, you should have no problem finding work. Harder job to find, but if you can snag a job driving a propane truck, even better.


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## cmatts12 (Jan 4, 2012)

I'm smack dab in the middle of northern lower born and raised. I thank god everyday I get to live where I do. My wife and I always say, "we live where people vacation." Your wife should have no problem getting stylist job. I can't believe how many shops my town alone has and more are opening. As far as your truck driving job. I don't think you'll have a problem. There are always postings for truck drivers. Might not be ideal but gets you up here and look for something better if need be. If things ever pick back up in the oil and gas industry that's the one to be in up here. I know quite a few families that make it on very little up here. It's pretty easy to simplify your life up here and enjoy everything it has to offer.


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## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

Downriver Tackle said:


> I agree with the east west comparison. Much better off overall for jobs on the west side. You sacrifice a little with it being more city like in that area, but jobs come along with it. But the higher cost of housing also. If you can make it on the east side, I'd go for it. MUCH cheaper housing market right now. Absolute steals out there! Probably 100-200%+ more buying power over here. Much more rural out in the wilderness feel also. Given your' two professions, I'd say you have a good shot at making it over here. The two most and very common job postings I see for this area are hair stylists and truck drivers. If you want to drive a logging truck, you should have no problem finding work. Harder job to find, but if you can snag a job driving a propane truck, even better.


I'd certainly consider the school district here on the east side (Sunrise Side) for the kids. From what I know about the area, Alpena would be the area on the east side. Lots of rural areas but, consider travel to and from work. Its a 45 mile round trip into town for us. Alpena is slowly growing but, like every place else up here, it is slow. They're building a new Meijer store this next summer, which will add competition and hopefully lower prices. WHICH NEEDS TO HAPPEN. Example: Wal-Mart in Alpena may have the same product as the Wal-Mart in Oscoda but, for $1 more. I believe the new Meijer store will fix that.

I'm not trying to discredit any of the other communities on the east side but, when you consider opportunities and the school system, I believe I'd go with Alpena.

Look this over, maybe book mark it and check the classifieds.
https://www.thealpenanews.com/


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## wannabapro (Feb 26, 2003)

I lived in SE Michigan for 10 years. Just sold and moved up to the Northern Lower. Been up here now for 2 years. We love it and are very happy and I'm not complaining but there are two things you must be prepared for...

1. Cost of living is MUCH more. We spend at least $3,000-4,000 more per year just on gas and groceries alone. Try going to the hardware store and take a look at what you will pay for basic supplies... Real Estate is about 300% higher than in SE part of the state. If you can settle near a Meijer or something it's for sure better but you will still pay much more than you are used to. Unless you want to live in town, it also may be very difficult for you to find a home you are happy with. There is very little middle class income up here so most homes are either trailers or vacation/retirement homes which never went down much in price unlike the rest of the state.

2. Again, unless you settle in a "bigger" city like Traverse or (maybe) Ludington, there ain't much to do up here in terms of "going out". You had better have a low-maintenance wife or she'll be unhappy.

This being said, we are very happy. No traffic, no mud, no crowds, no big-city problems... Good luck if you make the change!


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## Downriver Tackle (Dec 24, 2004)

ENCORE said:


> I'd certainly consider the school district here on the east side (Sunrise Side) for the kids. From what I know about the area, Alpena would be the area on the east side. Lots of rural areas but, consider travel to and from work. Its a 45 mile round trip into town for us. Alpena is slowly growing but, like every place else up here, it is slow. They're building a new Meijer store this next summer, which will add competition and hopefully lower prices. WHICH NEEDS TO HAPPEN. Example: Wal-Mart in Alpena may have the same product as the Wal-Mart in Oscoda but, for $1 more. I believe the new Meijer store will fix that.
> 
> I'm not trying to discredit any of the other communities on the east side but, when you consider opportunities and the school system, I believe I'd go with Alpena.
> 
> ...


Excellent point. Once of our reasons for moving here from SE was the school districts down there and was really worried we might end up with worse up here. It has worked out pretty well in the Hillman district. Much better than I ever anticipated. The hard part about making a choice in school systems up here is skewed data. Let's face it, you've got allot of kids from the back woods, coming from parents with little education themselves and do not see the value of an education, so those kids rarely excel or do much education-wise. The quality of teachers here is excellent though and do a very good job with the very culturally and priority diverse classrooms they have. That's Hillman though. There definitely are a few smaller school systems up here that are very questionable. 

And yeah,the drives to get anywhere do get tiring at times, especially if you're in a hurry. 64 miles round trip to Gaylord or 50 miles RT to Alpena for me. Definitely lost a few pounds moving up here though with it being 50 miles RT for the nearest fast food. My biggest complaint would probably be the pizza prices up here!!! :lol:

Can't wait for that Meijer to open up either!! Walmart can kiss my........


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## swampbuck (Dec 23, 2004)

I live at Higgins lake, about dead center of the NLP. lots of public land and water. The economy is in bad shape. BUT, quite frankly I would rather starve here than live in the SLP. If you have the drive and ambition you can make it anywhere.........

I would recommend somewhere within a 20 mile radius of Traverse City, if you want to be close to the action. Its hard to find any negatives, when it comes to the TC area.


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## cityboy2977 (Jul 27, 2009)

missed this thread
we just moved up to Mancelona/Kalkaska area this past April. i can not put into words how much i love it up here versus Wayne county.
the cost of living is higher up here because every business depends mostly on vacationers and price things for them instead of the folks living here.
plenty of jobs within 50 miles of Traverse City. 
we were here for 2 1/2 weeks and i landed a job(carpenter).

i suggest shopping around. might find something on the cheap that needs a lil work. this is what i do for a living so it isnt an issue with me. its actually what we looked for.
there are still some good deals to be had out there. house, garage, on 7 acres down the road from me...not sure on price. 
i can give you a number for a local agent if you need. he is out of TC. we did not buy through him, i worked for the man and he is always busy. which means he isnt a lazyass and working for his clients. 
just make sure you get a garage. because by the time you get a boat, snowmobiles, 4 wheelers, a snow moving machine and a 4x4 you will need the extra storage.

i will gladly pay a higher cost of living here than worry about all the crap that goes on down state.


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## Greenbush future (Sep 8, 2005)

wannabapro said:


> I lived in SE Michigan for 10 years. Just sold and moved up to the Northern Lower. Been up here now for 2 years. We love it and are very happy and I'm not complaining but there are two things you must be prepared for...
> 
> 1. Cost of living is MUCH more. We spend at least $3,000-4,000 more per year just on gas and groceries alone. Try going to the hardware store and take a look at what you will pay for basic supplies... Real Estate is about 300% higher than in SE part of the state. If you can settle near a Meijer or something it's for sure better but you will still pay much more than you are used to. Unless you want to live in town, it also may be very difficult for you to find a home you are happy with. There is very little middle class income up here so most homes are either trailers or vacation/retirement homes which never went down much in price unlike the rest of the state.
> 
> ...


I think you painted a good picture of what's going on and where the best chances are. North East side of state is as dead as it gets, and even places like Alpena are still really tight on the jobs market. Prop values are quite low and that's the only good thing regarding a new comer.


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## Downriver Tackle (Dec 24, 2004)

Greenbush future said:


> I think you painted a good picture of what's going on and where the best chances are. North East side of state is as dead as it gets, and even places like Alpena are still really tight on the jobs market. Prop values are quite low and that's the only good thing regarding a new comer.


 Yeah, but we're improving little by little! :lol: If you're a male with a CDL or good computer and/or ERP skills, you definitely stand a good shot at landing a descent job. Two things in very short supply up here. Males who know computers, and males with good driving records! :lol: I run the my employer's ERP system in Chicago from up here and can't believe some of the NE MI offers I've seen. Just can't see driving to work when I can walk to my home office.  He has a CDL I assume, so he's probably got a damn good shot over here. Our haz mat driver just got a job not long ago in Iron Mountain of all places driving a propane truck for good $$$. 


As far as real estate prices, I think you're right on. What wannabapro stated is indicative of the west side. Totally different story over here. Biggest thing I see is to shop the private sale market, or certain listing agents. Allot of agents up here are trying their hardest to overprice houses to keep the market up. Cabelas real estate especially!!! They're are ridiculous with their prices. My place was originally listed for $70k and sat for 3 years on the market. Got it for $17,500 in a private sale when the listing expired, 3 beds, land, and fully furnished. Same thing down the road. On the MLS for 13 years now! Listed for $89k, but really worth about $25-30k.


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## wyldkat49766 (Apr 21, 2007)

Alpena has much better schools than Grand Rapids city schools. But you may want to try the outskirts of Gaylord. Living in Alpena, its at min an hour to the freeway. Lots of things to keep the kids busy like skiing and such.


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