Eau Claire MUST READ – Top 5 Pros and Cons of Living in Eau Claire

Living in Eau Claire – Top 5 Pros and Cons

Hi there,

I’m Dan Gjerseth. Local resident to Eau Claire for the past 10 years. I’m a local Eau Claire Realtor and have a deep love for this community. It's been good for me. My goal with my blogs is to share with you my personal experiences! 

You probably clicked on this blog to hear about the “cons” right? Everyone loves talking about the positives of where they’re from and whatnot. So if you want to skip past all the positives, scroll down! 

I did want to start off with some interesting facts about Eau Claire. In 2019- 2020 Eau Claire earned the award “Most Liveable Small Cities in the US”... If you don’t believe me... Here is a list of awards Eau Claire has received. https://www.eauclairewi.gov/our-city/eau-claire-awards-and-recognitions

Now let's dive in,

Pro #1 - Cost of Living

I did a whole other blog about this topic so I’m not going to dive too deep into this but I do want to cover this still. The cost of living in Eau Claire is relatively low compared to the national average. 

Let me show you an example, the average house to buy is $220k vs the national average is $290k. The Average 2 bedroom apartment to rent is between $850- $1,350 and the national average for rent (According to Rent.com) is $1,985. 

Wow! Do I need to say more? Considering that housing is usually the most expensive living expense, this is pretty dramatic. 

Pro #2 - City is Growing

Ok, so maybe growth doesn’t interest you particularly, however, economic growth is essential to our economy. In Eau Claire, its been steadily growing for years, and is primarily manufacturing/production and healthcare workers. 

Eau Claire has also been very focused on the revitalization of the downtown over the past 10 years which has had a significant impact on the businesses downtown. We also see projects for revamping some neighborhoods that have been hard-pressed. 

Pro #3 - Job Opportunities 

Pro #2 and Pro #3 are closely related but I felt like they should be two separate. The fact that the city is growing also leads to increased job opportunities and security. This leads to more recruitment for good help and more well-trained, higher-paying jobs that lead to a flourishing economy. 

Like I said before, Eau Claire’s major work areas are primarily manufacturing/production, healthcare, and administration work. These job sectors weren’t affected as much during the last economic downturn which makes me feel more comfortable about recessions. Another interesting thing about Eau Claire is that during the last recession we didn’t have the same amount of deflation on homes for sale as other parts of the country. 

The average income in Eau Claire is around $22 per hour vs the national average of $27 per hour. However, with the cost of living being much lower, Eau Claire actually has an advantage despite making less per hour comparably. 

Pro #4 - Outdoor activities 

This is my favorite part of Eau Claire. Since I’m a Realtor here in Eau Claire, I spend most of my days driving around searching for homes for my clients. When I’m off work, I run to the woods! 

My favorite activity to do in the summer is camping. My favorite campground near Eau Claire is Coonforks Campground in Augusta. This place is great and has a non-motorized lake so it's very quiet. 

My doggo Daisy also loves outdoor activities. We live nearby a dog park on House Road on the Southside of Eau Claire. 4503 House road is the address of this dog park! See you there :) 

A couple of our favorite places to hike are Lowes Creek and also Northwest park. Great for their single-track bike trails and groomed skiing trails in the winter. 

A few great lakes to go fishing, or boating on are Lake Altoona, Lake Wissota, or Lake Eau Claire.  Or go up north for the weekend! 

Pro #5 - Midwest Nice People

So I don’t have much to say besides we are nice people! Give me a call if you’re looking for a house here! 

Con #1 - Not very dog friendly

From experience living in other places like Austin TX, we are not very dog friendly. It's not normal for dogs to walk into shops/ stores. Not in other areas, you can’t just let your dogs come with you into restaurants however, in Eau Claire it's almost an unwritten rule not to bring your dog into places. Not sure why, who doesn't love a doggo?

However, the Brewing Project does allow you to bring your dogs in. Love it!

Con #2 - It's cold- Brrr

Yeah, it's cold. You can’t get away from it here. The past couple weeks of January were about -10 every day and was -1 degree when I checked the temp at 8 am this morning on February 19th.  

We get about 42” of snow every winter too. So if you like the cooler weather, you’ll get by easily. But if you absolutely can't handle this cold… stay away. 

If you do like snow and cold, then awesome. I love to go snowmobiling in the winter so that’s how I spend a lot of my time. We also have a bunch of downhill skiing and snowboarding skills peppered around the state.  Another fun thing about the snow is fat tire bike trails. I don’t have a bike for this, but it looks fun!

Con #3 - No professional sports teams

We have sports teams, just none that are major. Unfortunately, the Green Back Packers are about a 4-hour drive. The Brewers and Bucks are about a 5-hour drive from Eau Claire. This leaves the Vikings, Timberwolves, or the Twins to cheer for in Minnesota... No thanks. 

If you do need to get your professional sports team buzz in, head over to the Minnesota games which are only about 1.5 hours away from Eau Claire. 

I should mention we do have a few local minor league sports teams including the Predators football team, Cavaliers, and Express baseball teams, and plenty of clubs to join around town if you want to participate yourself! 

Con #4 - Eau Claire Nightlife

Alright, so if you’re from Eau Claire reading this and you’ve never been out of the city you’re probably pissed. Well, if you’ve lived somewhere else before like a bigger city, when you arrive in Eau Claire you’ll find your nightlife options pretty limited. 

There is the college area “water street” that has great dance bars. Honorable mention to my favorite college bar Shenanigans on Water Street. Most of the water street bars are for college aged 21-24-year-olds. 

If you’re not in the college-age bar scene you can check out some of the bars on Farwell Street. Honestly, I‘m not going to even mention any of these bars because then you’ll go there and be super disappointed LOL!  

If you’re looking for a classy bar in Eau Claire that is very chill - You need to check out the Red Mixer. I LOVE their peanut butter whisky old-fashioned. 

If you want some more classy bar suggestions for a great date night.. Go check out one of these three places:

• The Lakely
• Houligans Steak & Seafood Pub
• Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse

Ok… So there are options, just limited. And also we’re really missing a comedy club!

Con #5 - No national airport in town

Before you freak out… One, there is an airport. It's called the Chippewa Valley airport and does go to destinations but only makes frequent stops at O’hare in Chicago. So Check out their website if you’re wondering where they go and when. 

Secondly, there is an airport about 1hr 20 minutes west of Eau Claire in Minneapolis Minnesota. I love this airport. I’ve flown in and out of it many times and always have had a great experience. I know airports can sometimes be stressful and MSP airport is one of the best. 

Hope you enjoy this!

Best,

Dan Gjerseth