[Stuart]

Originally Posted by The Champ

We'll be moving east on I90, just across the Mississippi River to the greater La Crosse, WI area.

I like the La Crosse area, it's really pretty around there and the town itself is nice. Lots of hills and valleys, plus of course there's the river.

[The Champ]

We won't actually be in La Crosse proper, but one of La Crosse's northern "burbs"...

We had found a lot we really liked in La Crosse but there turned out to be some very serious legal issues with it so we walked away. Because of the river to the west and the bluffs to the east, La Crosse has a very limited supply of buildable lots over .25 acre.

For those familiar with the area, the northern burb's are like crossing a street and all of a sudden you're in a different town.

La Crosse has a population of a little over 50,000. Our burb is about 10,000 and the burb between is about 20,000.

I'll get a photo of our "land" when we're over there on Wednesday

[67drake]

Originally Posted by The Champ

We won't actually be in La Crosse proper, but one of La Crosse's northern "burbs"...

We had found a lot we really liked in La Crosse but there turned out to be some very serious legal issues with it so we walked away. Because of the river to the west and the bluffs to the east, La Crosse has a very limited supply of buildable lots over .25 acre.

For those familiar with the area, the northern burb's are like crossing a street and all of a sudden you're in a different town.

La Crosse has a population of a little over 50,000. Our burb is about 10,000 and the burb between is about 20,000.

I'll get a photo of our "land" when we're over there on Wednesday

Beautiful area and there’s a lot to do and see there IMO, and without the drawbacks of a place like Madison. My wife and I are staying at a nice B&B up there in December to check out how the winter is.

[The Champ]

Had to look up where Avoca was. I was the first membership VP in the WI Jaycees many years ago and have been to almost everywhere in WI. I must have been through it though, because I've taken 14 all the way to Madison before. I must have blinked when I drove through...

Weather shouldn't be much different than where you are. Only about 75 NW on Hwy 14.

One of the draws for me to La Crosse was Mt La Crosse for downhill skiing. I may be old, but I'm still active....

[67drake]

Originally Posted by The Champ

Had to look up where Avoca was. I was the first membership VP in the WI Jaycees many years ago and have been to almost everywhere in WI. I must have been through it though, because I've taken 14 all the way to Madison before. I must have blinked when I drove through...

Weather shouldn't be much different than where you are. Only about 75 NW on Hwy 14.

One of the draws for me to La Crosse was Mt La Crosse for downhill skiing. I may be old, but I'm still active....

Yeah, if you blink you’d miss it.
I was meaning just exploring the area in the winter, as opposed to the summer. I like exploring the outdoors in the winter even more than the mosquito season.
I also still downhill ski. Not as much as when I was younger, but the younger generation doesn’t seem to get into it around here as compared to years ago. My kids will go if I drag them there, and it’s not as fun going by myself.

[MUSLCAH]

What’s the Elevation of that hill in Wisconsin ??

[Stuart]

Originally Posted by MUSLCAH

What’s the Elevation of that hill in Wisconsin ??

Per their website:
18 slopes & trails
516′ Vertical Drop
5300′ run

[bird72]

I bought something I wasn't planning. Have the 10 acres in SW New Mexico I bought a couple months ago to build on. Drinking coffee a month ago I found a deal I couldn't not get. 2 miles from the 10 acres, just down the road a ways. 3 acres with a newer manufactured home. Well, solar sufficient, carport, 2 sided deck, and additional water rights. Also back line borders on Gila National Forest land. It wasn't an easy buy, had competition, and 6 people inquiring the day we bought. This Reserve valley is 80% forest service land and 20% private, so it is limited and desirable options on buying. Here is a pic off the deck.

Put retirement money into this buy and it has good VRBO potential as this is prime elk country (people come from all over to hunt there), so beyond my part year living need for a few years, there is economic logic also, or could sell later, but I like it so (?).

It was built by a French survivalist 20 years ago and has a hidden concrete bunker underneath with ventilation from outside. How weird / cool is that?

I got it for the price of a nasty run down project house on a city lot here in NW Montana.

[MUSLCAH]

This ant hill is 28 minutes from my house…..770 verticle drop….everyone in the state ,learned how to ski here…..including me.

[The Champ]

770 vertical feet may be an "ant hill" in NH, but in MN or WI, it's a pretty big hill. We don't have any mountains.

I learned to downhill ski using skis with leather straps for bindings that my grandfather made - on the mining dumps near my home in northern MN. First time on an actual ski hill was Giant's Ridge in northern MN (about 500') skiing the expert slopes on cross country skis (I raced XC in HS) while watching our slalom team compete.

Spirit Mountain in Duluth is about 700' and Lutsen, MN's tallest is about 800'.

I skied the Zugspitze in Austria back in 1976 while stationed in Germany. Nearly 2400'....

[The Champ]

Went over to meet with our builder to start the design phase of our building project. That went well, but it's probably still a year before we can move in. After the meeting, we drove over and looked at the lot again and took this photo of what will be our view (approximately) looking east from either our kitchen window, rear open porch or screen porch....

Looking forward to watching the sun come up in the mornings with this as a backdrop.

[66sprint6]

Do you guys build basement foundations down there? That’s pretty much the standard around here. I believe that it’s because you have to dig down so far for the footings, that it makes sense to keep going a little further and get the usable space.
Also curious as to the $/sqft cost there. It used to be about 100.00/sqft here for the basic shell with drywall, etc. Now I believe that it’s triple that.

[SRR]

The 2600 square foot house on 1/2 acre across from me sold for $930,000. Insane!

[Ben M.]

Originally Posted by SRR

The 2600 square foot house on 1/2 acre across from me sold for $930,000. Insane!

Dude! But it is a nice house compared to some of the other houses in the area...

That's more than triple what prices were out there 10-11 years ago.

[The Champ]

Originally Posted by 66sprint6

Do you guys build basement foundations down there?

Just because you live in Canada, doesn't mean you are in the "north" country.... Toronto is in the deep south compared to 99.9% of Canada. Toronto is also in a relatively "warm" part of Canada.

I've spent time in Winnipeg and Churchill in Manitoba as well as Calgary, Banff and Lethbridge in Alberta in the winter, so I have some personal experience in areas much further north than the Tropical Paradise of Toronto...

Where I currently live and where I'm moving to are almost exactly the same as far as north/south goes (43.8138 N vs 43.6532 N) compared to Toronto.

I grew up about 300 miles north of Toronto in northern MN.

Average January temp (in F) is 19 low and 30 high for Toronto, where I'm moving to is 12 and 26 and where I grew up is -14 and 10.

Yes, most people have basements. I've never owned or lived in a house without a basement.

[Chris65LeMans]

Originally Posted by SRR

The 2600 square foot house on 1/2 acre across from me sold for $930,000. Insane!

All depends on where you are. That's a steal in La Jolla. It better be a palace if it's in Murrieta. (and probably still too expensive.)

[SRR]

Originally Posted by Ben M.

Dude! But it is a nice house compared to some of the other houses in the area...

That's more than triple what prices were out there 10-11 years ago.

That wasn't even the one with the monster RV garage. It was it's twin two houses up.

[SRR]

Crazy prices.

[Ben M.]

That's just crazy. That's similar to my house that was in actual San Diego, but considerably more expensive...

[Will]

A house my girl and I liked and that had an asking price we could afford just sold for $315K over asking. Listed at $985, sold for $1.3. Freaking bonkers...