skip to content link

Pros and cons of moving to Bloomington

It is that time of year when people take vacations and make plans for summer. Reading this article probably means you are searching for pros and cons of moving to Bloomington. As with every city in the world, there are a lot of ups and downs. Although Bloomington MN is not a big city like New York, for example, it has its own beauties that only small cities can have. In this article, we will discuss all the pros and cons of living in Bloomington and what can you expect from this city.

Housing in Bloomington 

First things first, when thinking about pros and cons of moving to Bloomington you should check the housing market. Like in every place, there are certain criteria that affect the price of real estates, such as:

  • Available parking space
  • Proximity to educational, medical and other facilities
  • How close your house is to a crowded street or a bus station
  • Overall real estate prices of the designated area

When it comes to median home cost in Bloomington, the price revolves around $230,000. Which can be a lot. But not in the case of a small town. Larger cities require more money for maintaining. Smaller cities maintaining is less expensive and more productive. Which means your new house will be fully functional without any problems.

The housing can be expensive in Bloomington

Pros and cons of moving to Bloomington – finding a job

Sometimes, searching for a job requires a lot of time and energy. At that moment you surely can not allow yourself to be overwhelmed with the stress relocation can cause. All the things you have to do, plus thinking about the moving can lead to serious burnout. To avoid such things, it is often a smart idea to just leave it to your moving companies from Bloomington to do all the work, while you are searching for that new and better job. As for unemployment rate, Bloomington stays at 3.60%, with a good job growth of 1.30%. It is estimated that future growth in the period of 10 years will be around 37%.  Sale tax rate is 7.28% while income tax is 7%. When it comes to income per capita, Bloomington IPC reaches as high as $37,000, including all children and adults. And median household income is around $64,000.

People earn around $64.000 a year

Population’s occupation is based on these numbers:

  • Social assistance and health care around 13%. So, one of the pros and cons of moving to Bloomington is finding it easier to get a job as a medical worker.
  • Retail trade 12%
  • Various manufacturing 12%
  • Technical, scientific and professional services 9,04%
  • Food services and accommodation 7.57%
  • Education 7.30%
  • Finance and insurance 7.30%

So, according to the latest results in job market research, you will notice that Bloomington is seeking workers eligible for medical and social services, manufacturing and professional workers. While there is no need for more workers in educational and financial fields.

Bloomington seeks professional workers

Education in Bloomington 

Sometimes relocating to Minnesota requires a lot of preparation, especially when if you are moving because of education. You can get caught in all the little problems a regular student sometimes cannot comprehend. Before moving to Minnesota for education, consult with your movers what you can do to make your relocation easier. While they are helping you move, you can focus on researching more about education in Bloomington. It is good to know that their schools spend roughly around $15.000 a year per student. Every teacher is responsible for 15 students, librarian for 700 and counsellor for 715. Notice, that is pretty much high amount of money invested in Bloomington students. On average, Bloomington spends more than the average spending of USA, and almost $3000 more.

Bloomington schools spend around $15.000 a year per student

Costs of living in Bloomington

Although the cost of living can be a bit higher than usual, don’t let that discourage you from choosing Bloomington as your new home. On this scale, the costs of living indices are based on a  US average of 100. With any score below 100 means, Bloomington MN is cheaper than the average US city. And vice versa. Currently, costs of living in Bloomington MN is 110.80. In the chart below you can see the comparison between Bloomington and the rest of the US:

  • Miscellaneous: 111
  • Transportation: 101
  • Utilities: 99
  • Housing: 122
  • Health: 100
  • Grocery: 105.4
  • Overall: 111

While prices of utilities, health care, transportation and groceries remain around the value of 100, housing in Bloomington remains higher than average in the USA. Makin the overall cost of living index 111.

Price of groceries is a bit higher than average

Transportation in Bloomington

There is an average one-way commute in Bloomington, that takes around 20 minutes. As for people who drive their own car, 80% of the population drives their own car alone. 8% carpool, 5% uses the mass transit system, and the last 7% works from home. According to these numbers, you can deduct that most of the population use their own means of transportation, which is not such a surprise for a small town such as Bloomington. This is a great plus on our list of pros and cons of moving to Bloomington, in a way that you won’t be caught by a surprise should you use your own car or not. Because of its bus and rail system, it is very easy to get around Bloomington. But, people still prefer to use their own cars. But, one of the best ways to teach your kids some independence is through the cities small and reliable transportation system.

People use their own cars more after moving to Bloomington

Settling in the new environment 

Setting in a small city such as Bloomington can sometimes prove to be rather difficult. People who mostly come from big and urban cities find it hard to adapt to such a cosy and slow way of life. There are certain guides on how to adapt to a new place, but the most popular advice is to take your time in adjusting. Explore, learn and see what Bloomington has to offer you as a newcomer. Certainly, there are some sights to see and things to do. Befriend someone and try to ask them as much as you can about your new home.

Settling in can take time

Bloomington, as a small city as it is, can actually provide you with a lot of things no other place can. Among good nightclubs and peaceful places to spend your time, there is a good job market and overall average prices. There are a lot of pros and cons of moving to Bloomington. Although housing can be high, so can your paycheck in Bloomington. There are easy ways to organize yourself and relocate to Bloomington without any problems. If you have anything else to add to our pros and cons of living in this city, please share them with us. We do appreciate your responses, and sure other people do as well!