-A variety of homes incl. new construction/all new subdivisions ranging from 200k - 1mm+, latter getting you a mansion on Lake Michigan, with beaches that rank in the country's best. -65 min non-stop Amtrak to the Chicago Loop, 30 min drive to downtown Milwaukee. -25 min drive to MKE, 55 min to ORD. There's also a cheap bus service connecting the two with stops in-between. -5.5% sales tax, 2.5% property tax (1/2 of Milwaukee County, immediately to the north). -Easy and cheap to get to remote areas for hunting, fishing, etc. -Region is growing rapidly with Amazon, Uline, and yes even Foxconn (and many others), with many businesses moving from IL or expanding their presence here, since the overall cost and QoL vastly exceeds that of being in a Chicago exhurb like Plainfield, Aurora, Elgin, Joliet, or Merrillville, and a much more business-friendly environment than IL. -Yes there's snow but conversely it's almost never 100 degrees, northern latitude gives more Summer light than Texas/Socal per day (and also no hurricanes or power outages or California-style gridlock or wildfires). -RUSD schools aren't great but you're going to send your kids to private anyway, and can afford it here. Embrace flyover country!
The weather will get better because of climate change, get in when you can
Wisconsin is an average state like Ohio. Schools are subpar. Weather is terrible. Many core industries have still not recovered. Why would anyone want to live in rust belt state of Wisconsin when there are better, cheaper states with a higher quality of education and better QoL like North Carolina?
NC is pretty good, but hurricanes, corrupt government, homes in Raleigh are 2x Milwaukee and Milwaukee is more than where I'm talking, where you get the best out of both Chicago and Milwaukee metro areas. WI has way more natural beauty than OH and is way better in every way, I find it hard to believe you've been to both/either. I provided many other reasons which you ignored, and "WI industry" is not a concern when you can take the train to Chicago if you insist on office work, fly anywhere on earth onsite, or work remote.
I have been to Milwaukee and it is a rubbish city.
I suppose if you don't like music, sports, arts, or the beach, it is terrible.
Or I don’t like bad weather, bad infrastructure, subpar schools and high crime rate.
I used to live in the city of Racine for a couple of years and worked there for over 12 years. Moved to the Bay Area a few years ago and if I was to to leave SV in the future, Racine county would the last place on my list to consider moving to. Yes, houses are cheap, the lake is pretty and there are a few fun things to do in the summers. But, RUSD schools are terrible (nearby Kenosha schools are equally bad), winters are brutal, unemployment is high and so is crime. I admit that the southern suburbs of Milwaukee are fine and family friendly. But, you'll find equal or better quality of life in the Chicago and Minneapolis burbs (I've lived in both places and prefer them over Milwaukee burbs).
Why not just send your kids to private? The area (Kenosha/Pleasant Prairie too) is at the beginning of a huge upswing because of the migration out of IL and investment in infrastructure that was unlocked since the Foxconn deal, plus the arrival of Amazon (3 DC's in Racine/Kenosha County). It seems crazy to me to spend 5x on a house just to send kids to a better public school. Unemployment is not high and crime is not worse than SV (Milwaukee and Chicago certainly are in their worst areas but that's not where we're talking about). I've rented in the area for nearly a decade and just bought, was sad to pay 15% more than I would have a year ago but the interest was still great. TC: 250k
To me personally, public schools offer a greater sense of community than private schools. Moreover, specific to SV, my kids walk to school here throughout the year with other kids in the neighborhood - something that's not an option in most of the Midwest or the Northeast Also, there's no point comparing housing in the Bay Area and a place like Racine county. Obviously the tech industry leads the way, but even outside of tech, there are plenty of high paying jobs - these drive the housing market. Racine (and the greater SE Wisconsin area) has a few manufacturing and consumer goods companies, but the heavy machinery and industrial companies are closing up or have moved out - there are just not even high-paying jobs to significantly affect the housing prices. Amazon opening a few distribution centers won't change things much, besides maybe attracting a few people from bordering countries from IL. And that Foxconn thing is a big blot to the whole Wiscon Valley narrative. I remember how much Walker and Trump raved about it - ended up being a giant disappointment for the locals especially the folks that had to move out of their property to support the eight wonder of the world.
If you are well-heeled enough to live in your company's town or nearby - Palo Alto, Cupertino, Mountain View, San Francisco, etc. - then sure. But the majority can't, and the cost is insane even if you can. Pre-COVID I spent the majority of my time as a consultant on clients up and down SV and most people were spending significant commute time on BART and CALTRAIN, which is comparable to a 65 min non-stop to the Chicago Loop (and the commuter rail goes as far north as Kenosha). I agree Foxconn sucks, I only bring it up in the context of the infrastructure projects it spurned (which were already supposed to happen, but Walker delayed). Whether it's that or Amazon or everything else I mentioned, SE Wisconsin is as hot as other metro areas are, with prices up like 15% in the last year and listings getting 20+ offers and selling over list. Yet despite that, it's still reasonable to get a nice house with a decent sized plot of land under $400k no problem. And there are great public schools just as there are bad ones, but it is of course an option to go private when it doesn't cost $1.5mm just to play. I have no idea why you think kids can't walk to school together in the midwest - that was my experience growing up. As for jobs, this again is targeted for people who can be fully remote, as more and more are. Obviously if you are a SWE who wants to work in an office, there are more of those jobs in SV. But there is a lot of tech in Chicago, and jobs to be had up and down the CSA which allow one to do what they like without being a part of the SV rat race. So many people are moving out to Seattle and Austin which aren't much cheaper, and particularly on the Texas end, could get a similar end result by moving to SE Wisconsin (and without the stifling heat and continued gridlock).
You are not doing a good job of selling when the whole premise is “look how quickly you can go to Chicago or an airport”..lol
There are very few truly desirable places to live and none of them are affordable. If you're working remote and looking to escape SV or would otherwise have a lengthy commute in that area, then SE WI is a place where you can get a lot of house for your dollar and free up cash to do anything you want, with easy access to doing it. I did mention a few things that are attractive about living here, though :)
Racine is a shitty place. Just bad schools. Close to bad neighborhoods and gangs (Kenosha). Wisconsin is pretty but Racine and Kenosha are more like shitholes tbh! Take Madison, Janesville or Green Bay over Racine. Property taxes are lower than in Illinois but State income Tax is significantly higher than in Illinois.
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Minnesota/Wisconsin/Illinois can be great areas to raise a family without paying absurd prices for a home as long as you tolerate the weather. There's definitely jobs out there but you definitely have more career opportunities in SV or other real tech hubs.
Yeah, the assumption is someone has a work-from-anywhere job to bring with them.
Illinois is more politically corrupt and governed even worse than California though. That’s not a stab at any particular party either, back when I lived there we had a Republican governor who was sent to prison get replaced by a Democratic governor who was also sent to prison.