Wisconsin Nesties
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Moving to Madison
Hi everyone! I'm new to the nest so I figured I'd take this opportunity to introduce myself and ask for some advice. My name is Dana and I'm 23. My fiance and I will be moving from Chicago to Madison in a month or so for his job and I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations on neighborhoods or areas. We are looking to rent for about another year until we get married but would like something with more space than what we have now (ideally a 2 or 3 bed + 2 bath). We are fine with the suburbs as well, as long as my fiance can get to Madison area hospitals fairly easily from wherever we are. I'd appreciate any input! Thanks so much!
Warning
No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
Re: Moving to Madison
I also like the east side better, but that could be because I live here
Actually I've lived on both the west and east side of town (and downtown when I went to school). The west side has more of a suburban feel to it and tends to be more expensive- everything from housing to shopping. The east generally has a more urban feel although there are still neighborhoods too. Downtown is of course the most expensive and the most crowded. And there's no where to park.
I definitely recommend the east side. I bought a house over here about 6 years ago and I love living over here.
We are living in an apartment in Sun Prairie (just northeast of Madison) and really enjoy it.You get the small town feel but are also just minutes from the interstate (90/94) and about 7 minutes from East Town Mall area. I would love to live right downtown but found it too expensive but it may be an option for you.?
I would suggest checking out www.madisonapartmentliving.com - You can search by area, price, and bedrooms, etc. We found it very useful when we were searching for a new place. We have been in the Madison area for almost 2 years and really enjoy it. Welcome!?
Honestly it really depends on where you will be working. Your FI will be working downtown but living down there is very expensive and it's mostly students so he will be driving a ways no matter where you live. Where you work would be the deciding factor for me. I know you might be used to traffic living in Chicago but trust me if you can avoid driving through the middle of the Beltline (Park St. exit through 151 exit) do it! It will save you a lot of headache and delays especially in the winter. I know 3 people who bought houses on the east side but worked on the west side. After a few years they have all sold their houses at a loss in this economy and bought new ones on the west side.
As a broad generalization the west side is more suburban, is more family oriented, and has better schools. But that equates to higher taxes and more expensive homes. Oregon, Verona, & Middleton are where many people move after they start a family for example. Middleton was actually voted the #1 place to live a few years ago.
For now you'll just be renting so it won't matter as much but you'll quickly learn to love either the east or west side more. You really can't go wrong just stay away from the near east side and near south side because they have higher crime rates.
just gonna have to say...
will add that I agree with fox!
Renting first will be a good idea, then you can figure out what areas you like and where you would like to buy a house. There are lots of suburbs (Sun Prairie, Fitchburg, Oregon, Middleton, etc) and also the east and west side of Madison. The people I know who live on the west love the west and vice versa. They are both nice.
Welcome to the area! We just moved here too.
I've always LOVED the west side (more than the east side). There are so many great apartments on the west side and in middleton. Middleton is a great area, and is practically Madison.
Meghan and Jonny- Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - May 1, 2010
Planning Bio My Blog
If you can afford it, I'd rent downtown. It's pricey, but perfect for a young couple without children. Then, you can determine for yourself which side of town is best for you. I lived on the east side for years and loved the location, but was not thrilled with the direction that my neighborhood was going and made a choice not to send my daughter to the Madison school district. We moved to Oregon and have been very happy here. But, I don't know if it would have been such a good fit before we had kids.
We have a bunch of friends without children who love living downtown.In particular, Das Kronenberg is a great building that consists of owned condos which are occasionally rented out. The rooftop terrace has an amazing view of the city, easy access to the beltline and any of the major hospitals.
Check out http://www.downtowncondos.com/condo-rentals.asp
Hi! I see that you post was in July so you have probably already moved here... I have lived in the Madison area for over 10 years and am originally from this area too. If you guys have any questions about anything, feel free to contact us www.facebook.com/keithandkinsey . We donate 10% of our commission for our client (the buyer or the seller) to charity of their choice.
I prefer the West side as that is where I have spent all my time living and working. Everything in Madison is pretty close by compared to Chicago traffic. Good luck and please let us know if you need anything!
Kinsey
www.keithandkinsey.com