There are so many great city neighborhoods for families with young children - Riverside Park, Mulick Park, Alger Heights, Wilcox Park, Marywood, just to mention a few. These neighborhoods are all affordable (great homes for under $125,000) and charming but feed in the GRPS district. Great if you want to send your kids to private schools or move into a better school district when the kids get older. East Grand Rapids, Forest Hills and Rockford all have great, kid friendly neighborhoods (you just have to look a little harder in FH and Rockford than EGR) and the best public schools in the area. The downside is that homes cost more in these neighborhoods. Resale in EGR is going to better than anywhere else and people live there for the school district and the sense of community for both kids, teens and adults.

Tue Jun 17 2008, 11:08

East Grand Rapids. You'll pay more for your home and pay higher taxes on it, but you won't regret raising a family there, especially if you like to get involved in your community. Schools are excellent, crime is low, and maybe best of all in this era of $4 a gallon gas, you can walk to everything....schools, churches, ballfields, ice cream shops, and the lakefront park.

If EGR is a bit spendy, consider Wilcox Park. It's just across the EGR city line, inside Grand Rapids proper, It's a great little neighborhood near Aquinas College on one side and the Farmer's Market on the other. Wilcox Park is a perfect place to play with your kids, or walk your dog, and there's a good Catholic elementary school on Wilcox Park Drive. You can walk to everything from the Post Office to the market to the bakery. And there's 3 different bus service lines within two blocks in any direction that will take you all over town, cheap.

Wed May 28 2008, 21:01

Each of the city neighborhoods has it's own unique appeal. It really depends on what you are looking for, and the neighborhood attributes that you are looking for as well as the school system. We have several great neighborhoods to choose from and like someone mentioned before, one of the best ways to find a neighborhood is to drive it and the surrounding areas. There are also several publications that talk about the Grand Rapids neighborhoods, give some demographics and their best features. If you would like a copy, I would be more than happy to send it to you.

P.S. Once you find an area that you may want to live in, research it on the web. There is a ton of information out there for you to take advantage of.

Mon May 26 2008, 15:56

I've lived in GRR for most of my 40+ years. We have owned a home in Eastowne (city of Grand Rapids) for 18 years. This is a great walking community, close to downtown, with restaurants, bars, grocery stores all in walking distance. If schools are important, you may want to look at East Grand Rapids, adjacent to Eastown. The taxes are very high, but the schools are highly rated. Also a great walking community, though less diverse.

Fri May 23 2008, 06:39

Take a Saturday and drive through various neighborhoods until you see what you like. That is the best due diligence that can be done. One person's opinion on good might be another person's outlook on bad. Keep that in mind as you drive around

Thu May 22 2008, 19:50

Jonathan,

My website has many of the amenities that are available for families in Grand Rapids. Check out the Community Links and Grand Rapids Living links on the site and see what is available for families.

Fri May 16 2008, 19:39