looking to move maybe to wisconsin (Milwaukee, Green Bay: fit in, for sale, real estate)

[negrito211]

but im have some questions im looking towards the town of Niagara or some where in that part of the state. but i have been seeing a lot of the property taxes in wisconsin are they really that high? like what kind of taxes are we looking more or less lets say on a 3 br 2 story home outside the city? im just looking for estimates so that i can have an idea.
and a few other questions

how is the job economy there? like would it be easy to get a basic/average low paying job there in general?

how is the over all weather? mostly storm wise and coldness? but over all in general?

since it is cold fairly often how much do people pay on there bill in general more or less to keep warm using gas or electric?

what small cities or (small)towns would you recommend?

since houses are older and weather is harsh do you run into needing a lot of repairs house wise?

and how are people of other races treated there?

basicly can someone explain the good and the bad?


thanks

[catfeathers]

I only have a moment, Niagara is a nice little town, but the economy is on the low side...one of the major employers has closed, so there is a lot of unemployment and houses for sale. At least that was true late last year, and I can't imagine it has changed much....

[freetohope]

I don't know much about Niagra, but we live in a small town 15 mins south of Green Bay. Our house has 3 bdr/2 bth and our tax bill is $4400/yr. The winters are loooonngg! It is pretty and green compared to AZ ( I used to live in AZ), but it gets really cold and a lot of snow. This will be quite an adjustment coming from AZ. WI has nice people for the most part, however I have witnessed more out in the open racism compared to AZ and I have heard the "n" word even in a professional setting, which shocked me. It's mostly white people of german/polish heritage that live in these parts. If you're looking for more diversity, you might want to consider some of the bigger cities. I hope some of this helps you. This is just my honest opinion based on my experience having lived here for the past 9 years. Good luck!

[EastSideMKE]

Originally Posted by freetohope

I don't know much about Niagra, but we live in a small town 15 mins south of Green Bay. Our house has 3 bdr/2 bth and our tax bill is $4400/yr. The winters are loooonngg! It is pretty and green compared to AZ ( I used to live in AZ), but it gets really cold and a lot of snow. This will be quite an adjustment coming from AZ. WI has nice people for the most part, however I have witnessed more out in the open racism compared to AZ and I have heard the "n" word even in a professional setting, which shocked me. It's mostly white people of german/polish heritage that live in these parts. If you're looking for more diversity, you might want to consider some of the bigger cities. I hope some of this helps you. This is just my honest opinion based on my experience having lived here for the past 9 years. Good luck!

LOL @ you. You're seriously going to pretend like WI is more racist than AZ? Really? AZ is quite possibly the most bigoted state in the Union.

BTW, what kind of "professional settings" exist 15 mins south of GB?

[bay2bay]

Originally Posted by jjacobeclark

LOL BTW, what kind of "professional settings" exist 15 mins south of GB?

I thought that was funny too. Must be Wrightstown or Kaukauna.

[EastSideMKE]

Originally Posted by bay2bay

I thought that was funny too. Must be Wrightstown or Kaukauna.

Hotbeds of corporate activity.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by jjacobeclark

LOL @ you. You're seriously going to pretend like WI is more racist than AZ? Really? AZ is quite possibly the most bigoted state in the Union.

BTW, what kind of "professional settings" exist 15 mins south of GB?

I grew up near Niagara, have family there, and visit often. I now live in Phoenix. The poster is correct. AZ is much less bigoted than that part of WI. I am part of a mixed race family. We have had no problems whatsoever in AZ. We get stares, some overtly hostile, and have even heard racist remarks from people in the U.P. and surrounding towns. I certainly don't want to paint everyone with the same brush, because most there are tolerant and it is a very tiny minority of people who have been ugly with us. Still, as much as I love it and it's in my blood, I would never even think about moving my kids to Niagara or anywhere in that part of the country. Not just because of the bigots, but because I think kids need to have someone who looks like them in their lives. The "mix" and the attitude are better in places like Wausau and I would consider that if I wanted to live in WI.

To the OP: Are you nuts! LOL. It's colder than a witch's you know what there. But the worst part is the sun rarely shines from about Nov to March. Dreary, cold, short daylight days with the wind blowing in your face no matter what direction you are walking. Ugh. Summers are to die for though and the seclusion away from the beaten path is just awesome.

[brewnik]

Originally Posted by jjacobeclark

LOL @ you. You're seriously going to pretend like WI is more racist than AZ? Really? AZ is quite possibly the most bigoted state in the Union.

Quoted for truth.

Originally Posted by jjacobeclark

BTW, what kind of "professional settings" exist 15 mins south of GB?

LOL... exactly what I thought. Maybe Manitowoc?

Although FWIW, Manitowoc is much cleaner and has a nicer downtown than Green Bay, despite being 1/3 of Green Bay's size.

[soldn2slavery]

I have lived in Arizona (Tucson) and now live in Wisconsin (Kaukauna). I work in Green Bay. I recently applied for, but didn't get, a job in Tucson. As part of the process, I started looking at home prices in and around Tucson. Real estate taxes there are much lower than here. When we moved to the Fox Valley, one of the major reasons we chose Kaukauna was lower housing prices and lower real estate taxes than in Green Bay or Appleton (yes, I know, there's a reason they're lower). However, as we just recently found out, our real estate taxes don't pay for any street improvements that are made on our street, so we're paying about $600 more per year in taxes for the next 10 years to pay for some major street and sidewalk work that was done. We have friends who have a house that is probably less than $70,000.00. They now have a $12,000 bill because of street/sewer improvements, which will not add one single cent to the value of their home.

I'd take Tucson's weather over Wisconsin's weather any day. Wisconsin winters can seem long. Spring is usually cold and windy. Summer is hot and humid. Autumn, IMHO, is by far the best of the seasons. Tucson has 3 months of really hot weather and the rest of the year is very pleasant. You want snow, drive up to Mt. Lemmon. In Arizona, you can, and I have, swim in an outside pool and go snow skiing the same day.

Yes, Wisconsin is green and has some beauty, but it looks the same just about every where you go in the state. In Arizona, you've got the Grand Canyon,the Catalina Mountains, Flagstaff, Oak Creek Canyon, the Painted Desert, Kartchner Caverns, the Sonoran Desert. You can be on the beach in Rocky Point or drive to San Diego in a single day.

I can't really speak on the racist issue, but I do know that a lot of people in Wisconsin have lived in or near the same city for generations, so it is very hard to ever fit in. To give you an example, when we moved to Kaukauna, we asked someone how long they had lived here and he said, "Not long. Only about 25 years." I thought that was an odd statement, but now I know why 25 years is considered not long. It's because a lot of people have been here 2 or 3 generations. One boy on my son's soccer team was actually a 4th generation. It's not that people are rude to you, you simply won't ever feel part of the community.

And, just so you don't think my Wisconsin experience is limited to Kaukauna, I've also lived in Milwaukee and in central Wisconsin and have family in western Wisconsin.

Given the choice, I'd be back in Arizona.

[asterisc]

Ok seriously people....just because someone lives 15 mins south of GB it doesn't mean they work where they live. One can live in a suburb and work "in a professional setting" in Green Bay. It's quite strange that this is what everyone is hung up on instead of addressing the racism issue.