Where should I move? (Does this place exist?)

[Greta]

The cost of living in Boise is pretty reasonable...

 

To be honest, I really hadn't thought about Idaho much before starting this thread, but everything that you and 23dn have said about it makes it sound really nice!

[ElizabethB]

To be honest, I really hadn't thought about Idaho much before starting this thread, but everything that you and 23dn have said about it makes it sound really nice!

The cost of living in Sun Valley is not! But, the rest of Idaho is reasonable and the Sun Valley area is beautiful, it is just not reasonable to actually live there for 99.9 percent of people.

 

Family has a small cabin on Lake Cascade, 2 hours north of Boise. It is really beautiful there. There is a family reunion every year with tenting at the cabin property, it is a fun, cheap vacation, we go when we can make it, usually about every 2 years.

 

The entire state has less people than some major cities so not a lot of people think about it or know anyone from there. Half of the family has shirts that say "Where in Iowa is Idaho," LOL. There is also a book with this title.

[TheDairyQueen]

Boulder?

 

Second. OMG, love Boulder so much. 

[Greta]

Half of the family has shirts that say "Where in Iowa is Idaho," LOL. There is also a book with this title.

:lol:

 

Would you happen to know the name of the neighborhood(s) near the university? I love looking at houses online, and I'm just curious what we might be able to afford there.

 

By the way, I have the same question for the other cities that have been mentioned. I would really like to live near campus, if possible.

[Greta]

Second. OMG, love Boulder so much.

Do you live there?

[isaac_megan]

I completely get where you are coming from. Little Rock has many of the same problems-could be an amazing place, but... high crime everywhere, poor education, cultural divisiveness that is similar to ABQ although for different reasons. It seems petty to mention lack of museums and such with the aforementioned issues. The biggest problem for me, though, is the weather- a lot of self-medicating and drinking going on to make it through an evening thunderstorm here. My insane anxiety has FINALLY prompted DH to start looking elsewhere for a transfer. I sorely miss Texas, but there are not very many opportunities for him there. We spend a bit of time on and off in Boulder and we love it. It is expensive, but there are college students making it work, so I would imagine that retirees with few material needs would mange just fine. The closest we can get is CO Spgs so that's hopefully what will happen for us. Right now, I'm thinking of packing up school and heading down to my parent's house outside of Houston for the month of April.

[isaac_megan]

Also, my brother and his family live in SLC. They like it there, but not love. They are not LDS and that is a factor in how much they fit in. They have a great circle but nothing really keeping them there. When they retire, they intend to head north to Idaho :)

[AndyJoy]

Another vote for Boise :). We're nearby.

[AndyJoy]

:lol:

 

Would you happen to know the name of the neighborhood(s) near the university? I love looking at houses online, and I'm just curious what we might be able to afford there.

 

By the way, I have the same question for the other cities that have been mentioned. I would really like to live near campus, if possible.

I know on Zillow you can search housing near an address. If you plug in Boise State University on their site you should be able to get an idea.

[PinkTulip]

Salt Lake City hits every one of your requirements.

[AmandaVT]

ooh - come to Vermont. Burlington is a good sized town (we call it a city here, but it's pretty small). Great skiing and you'll get your winter for sure. Summer and fall are gorgeous and it doesn't get too hot here - it might hit 90 a couple of times in the summer, but that's about it. I'm in VT - have lived in Burlington and we're now about 1/2 hr south of there, so feel free to PM me if you have any questions about the area.

[imagine.more]

Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN   :)   Duluth is a great area too if you prefer a smaller city.

 

Mineapolis is #3 in terms of biking cities.  My DH bikes everywhere!

http://www.bicycling.com/ride-maps/featured-rides/2014-top-50-bike-friendly-cities/3-minneapolis

 

I was thinking the same thing aside from the winter maybe being too cloudy. But Summer is absolutely beautiful and Spring/Fall, while brief, are very nice as well. Twin Cities hit all the lifestyle marks on your list. We lived there for 1.5 years and really enjoyed it. Another nice thing is you can have an affordable house (not super low but reasonably priced) with a suburban feel and yet be right inside the cities. Lots of walking, biking, running. 6 months out of the year everyone is outside 24/7. 

[Hikin' Mama]

Greta, I pm'd you. :)

[ElizabethB]

I know on Zillow you can search housing near an address. If you plug in Boise State University on their site you should be able to get an idea.

The University is fairly close to the river, which has a cool bike path that goes for miles. They are working on expanding the bike path network, but it is already really good. So, you don't have to live right near the University to be within biking distance.

 

I don't know the neighborhoods around BSU well, most of the relatives live in other areas of the city. Traffic is way better than Albuquerque, so family members that work at BSU chose their neighborhoods for other reasons and drive to work.

[ElizabethB]

The bike path along the river in Boise is called the Greenbelt. It is 25 miles long. It is beautiful and safe, but it lacks water fountains. The last time we visited my husband was training for a marathon. He was sure there would be water fountains along the Greenbelt. At the 6 mile point, he had to break down and ask a family for some water, LOL. The next time he ran he brought his own water and did not have to ask a random family outside in their backyard for water.

 

http://www.idahostatesman.com/2014/09/13/3365309_celebrating-45-years-of-boises.html?rh=1

 

The article has a link to a map of the Greenbelt.

[Greta]

Thank you all so much for all of this great information! I don't have time at the moment to reply to each post, but I have read and appreciate every one. I'll try to write more tomorrow. Thanks again! You've given me lots of good info to discuss with my hubby over dinner tonight. :)

 

The Boise Greenbelt sounds so nice! My husband would especially love that, and I would really enjoy it too.

[Guest]

Columbia, MD, or Annapolis, unless Maryland is too far south in your mind. You can travel to DC for all the museum action you could ever want. Head west for hiking and "mountains" (don't think Rockies); head east for Ocean City beaches. Good public universities - University of Maryland College Park, UMBC, St. Mary's College of MD. The USNA.

[Guest]

ooh - come to Vermont. Burlington is a good sized town (we call it a city here, but it's pretty small). Great skiing and you'll get your winter for sure. Summer and fall are gorgeous and it doesn't get too hot here - it might hit 90 a couple of times in the summer, but that's about it. I'm in VT - have lived in Burlington and we're now about 1/2 hr south of there, so feel free to PM me if you have any questions about the area.

I really love VT...we're heading there for spring break skiing. (Which people constantly do say that is NUTS; most people are happy to leave the cold and snow behind now, but we'll drive 8hours north to get to it! Lol!

[hellen]

I grew up in a 265 sunny days per year location. My current location has 220. I really notice the difference. This December there was a stretch of three weeks with maybe two days of sun.

 

I think somewhere in the Denver area would be a good fit. The area is very outdoor oriented with lots of open space and bike trails. The sidewalks are wide which makes walking better. There are pedestrian tunnels under some roads. There is public transport. Skiing, hiking, and fishing are nearby. There is snow but it melts fast because it is sunny the next day. University of Colorado is a good school. You could also look at Fort Collins. I'm not familiar with that area.

 

www.colorado.edu/pts/node/265

This is a link to the CU bus info. Boulder is expensive but the surrounding area is more affordable. There is bus service to the surrounding towns. In Dnver you can take your bike on light rail or bus. I don't know about Boulder.

 

www.bouldercounty.org/roads/transit/pages/bikeprogram.aspx

This is a link to the bike trails in Boulder County.

[AmandaVT]

I really love VT...we're heading there for spring break skiing. (Which people constantly do say that is NUTS; most people are happy to leave the cold and snow behind now, but we'll drive 8hours north to get to it! Lol!

 

What week are you heading up? You guys should get some good spring skiing this year. We've had a very cold, even for VT standards, winter this year and all my skiing friends have raved about the conditions. Really cold winter.....our weather guy was giddy to report that one day this week would max out near normal temps. I still have almost 2 feet of snow in my yard.....so ready for spring!

[AmandaVT]

I grew up in a 265 sunny days per year location. My current location has 220. I really notice the difference. This December there was a stretch of three weeks with maybe two days of sun.

 

I think somewhere in the Denver area would be a good fit. The area is very outdoor oriented with lots of open space and bike trails. The sidewalks are wide which makes walking better. There are pedestrian tunnels under some roads. There is public transport. Skiing, hiking, and fishing are nearby. There is snow but it melts fast because it is sunny the next day. University of Colorado is a good school. You could also look at Fort Collins. I'm not familiar with that area.

 

www.colorado.edu/pts/node/265

This is a link to the CU bus info. Boulder is expensive but the surrounding area is more affordable. There is bus service to the surrounding towns. In Dnver you can take your bike on light rail or bus. I don't know about Boulder.

 

www.bouldercounty.org/roads/transit/pages/bikeprogram.aspx

This is a link to the bike trails in Boulder County.

 

VT may be too overcast for you - after reading hellen's post, I looked up Burlington. Only 157 days of sun on average and I feel like most of them are spring-fall. Winter seems to be really gray.....

[CAMom]

Portland, OR. :)

 

They claim it's grey and rainy for 9 months out of the year but it's all lies. ;)

 

There's not really any snow in and around town but it's a short drive to Mt. Hood.

 

The fall colors are lovely!

 

It is a very bike friendly place, has Portland State University, has good public transportation, and is pretty safe.

 

It's just over an hour (through a gorgeous drive) to the coast. The Oregon Coast is beautiful.

 

There is lots of sun to be had in OR. A drive to Bend will give you that.

 

It basically meets all of your criteria. :)

[SJ.]

My first thought was Boulder too! Other spots: Ft. Collins, Golden, or Colorado Springs. 

:iagree:  :thumbup1: 

[catz]

I was thinking the same thing aside from the winter maybe being too cloudy. But Summer is absolutely beautiful and Spring/Fall, while brief, are very nice as well. Twin Cities hit all the lifestyle marks on your list. We lived there for 1.5 years and really enjoyed it. Another nice thing is you can have an affordable house (not super low but reasonably priced) with a suburban feel and yet be right inside the cities. Lots of walking, biking, running. 6 months out of the year everyone is outside 24/7. 

 

:iagree: If your crazy like my DH you can bike 12 months a year!  :)  The ski hills are not super amazing here, but people do downhill and x-c ski here too a bunch.  We have an excellent culture (arts/entertainment/theater/museums) scene for a metro this size.  We actually live right in the city in a lovely neighborhood and feel very safe.  There are places to avoid but those places are pretty clear (ahem ... North Mpls).  There is decent public transit and the light rail is ever expanding.  This is a very outdoorsy state.  Sorry to elaborate here, I was on a mobile device earlier and needed to talk it up a little more.

 

I have to admit, I really like Denver or Boulder too!

[Hikin' Mama]

Portland, OR. :)

 

They claim it's grey and rainy for 9 months out of the year but it's all lies. ;)

 

There's not really any snow in and around town but it's a short drive to Mt. Hood.

 

The fall colors are lovely!

 

It is a very bike friendly place, has Portland State University, has good public transportation, and is pretty safe.

 

It's just over an hour (through a gorgeous drive) to the coast. The Oregon Coast is beautiful.

 

There is lots of sun to be had in OR. A drive to Bend will give you that.

 

It basically meets all of your criteria. :)

I agree! Portland is a nice city. I love visiting. Corvallis and Eugene are also nice and are smaller. In fact, I wouldn't mind retiring in Corvallis, but I have family elsewhere that I want to be close to. They both have universities and are both close to the coast.

[Greta]

I completely get where you are coming from. Little Rock has many of the same problems-could be an amazing place, but... high crime everywhere, poor education, cultural divisiveness that is similar to ABQ although for different reasons. It seems petty to mention lack of museums and such with the aforementioned issues. The biggest problem for me, though, is the weather- a lot of self-medicating and drinking going on to make it through an evening thunderstorm here. My insane anxiety has FINALLY prompted DH to start looking elsewhere for a transfer. I sorely miss Texas, but there are not very many opportunities for him there. We spend a bit of time on and off in Boulder and we love it. It is expensive, but there are college students making it work, so I would imagine that retirees with few material needs would mange just fine. The closest we can get is CO Spgs so that's hopefully what will happen for us. Right now, I'm thinking of packing up school and heading down to my parent's house outside of Houston for the month of April.

I did not realize that Little Rock suffers from many of the same problems as Albuquerque. I know what you mean about museums and such because it is a symptom of the same underlying problem. We do have a few museums here, but they're so small that they're not fun to go back to more than once. I've only visited Boulder and Colorado Springs, never lived anywhere in Colorado, but they both seemed nice to me. I hope that Co Springs works out for you!

[Greta]

Also, my brother and his family live in SLC. They like it there, but not love. They are not LDS and that is a factor in how much they fit in. They have a great circle but nothing really keeping them there. When they retire, they intend to head north to Idaho :)

I'd heard that not being LDS can make it extremly difficult to fit in in the smaller towns in UT. I thought that perhaps SLC would be diverse enough that it wouldn't be a problem. Perhaps I was wrong.

 

So hubby and I are not the ONLY ones who want to head north when we retire! :D We kind of laugh at ourselves about it because it's certainly the opposite of what most people want to do.

[Greta]

I was thinking the same thing aside from the winter maybe being too cloudy. But Summer is absolutely beautiful and Spring/Fall, while brief, are very nice as well. Twin Cities hit all the lifestyle marks on your list. We lived there for 1.5 years and really enjoyed it. Another nice thing is you can have an affordable house (not super low but reasonably priced) with a suburban feel and yet be right inside the cities. Lots of walking, biking, running. 6 months out of the year everyone is outside 24/7.

This idea really appeals to me, because I would prefer to move to a bigger city (Albuquerque has a population of about 400,00). My husband, however, would prefer to move to a smaller town or even a rural area. But he knows I would go stark raving mad, and that just isn't an option. :) But I think he could really enjoy living in a city with a very outdoorsy culture.

[Greta]

Columbia, MD, or Annapolis, unless Maryland is too far south in your mind. You can travel to DC for all the museum action you could ever want. Head west for hiking and "mountains" (don't think Rockies); head east for Ocean City beaches. Good public universities - University of Maryland College Park, UMBC, St. Mary's College of MD. The USNA.

Living close to DC sounds really fun to me! I don't think it would be too far south for me personally, but probably would for dh if there's no skiing nearby.

[Greta]

I grew up in a 265 sunny days per year location. My current location has 220. I really notice the difference. This December there was a stretch of three weeks with maybe two days of sun.

Yeah, this concerns me a bit. I don't think there's anywhere else I can move besides other locations in NM, or to AZ (or maybe FL) that's going to have an amount of sun comparable to what I'm used to. And there are other reasons that these places don't really appeal to me, plus my husband hates this amount of sunshine! :lol: (He grew up in Pittsburgh, so I'm sure that has a lot to do with it.)

 

I think somewhere in the Denver area would be a good fit.

I do too. That way we would have the mountains that he loves, but still a considerable amount of sunshine for me. He likes the idea of Ft. Collins. I think it's too small for my taste, though I'll try to be flexible and open-minded. :)

[Greta]

I guess we just need to travel more and check these places out ourselves, because you guys make them all sound very appealing!

[Hwin]

If you end up in NY, Saratoga is nice. It's a bit hoity-toity and gets plenty of winter, but there's culture and good food.

 

People don't typically migrate to NYS, though.

[Carol in Cal.]

 

So, oh great and wise hive, where would you send me? :)

Davis, California, definitely.

 

VERY bicycle friendly--more so than any other city I have ever seen.

 

Sunny most of the time, mild to rather warm climate, no humidity, no bugs so you can play outside all summer, major public university in town with attendant cheap but good restaurants, some of the best farmers' markets I have ever seen, only 2 hours to the Sierras, in easy cruising range of both Lake Tahoe and the Pacific Ocean.

[Greta]

If you end up in NY, Saratoga is nice. It's a bit hoity-toity and gets plenty of winter, but there's culture and good food.

 

People don't typically migrate to NYS, though.

A couple years ago my husband got a very good job offer from Global Foundries in Malta (very close to Saratoga, if I remember my geography correctly). We came VERY close to accepting it! The main thing that kept us here was knowing that if he held out for just a few more years at his current job, he would receive a pension. That pension is now only one year away. Overall I think we made the right choice, but sometimes I do wonder. I have heard such good things about that area!

[Greta]

Davis, California, definitely.

 

VERY bicycle friendly--more so than any other city I have ever seen.

 

Sunny most of the time, mild to rather warm climate, no humidity, no bugs so you can play outside all summer, major public university in town with attendant cheap but good restaurants, some of the best farmers' markets I have ever seen, only 2 hours to the Sierras, in easy cruising range of both Lake Tahoe and the Pacific Ocean.

 

It sounds wonderful! You bring up a good point - the low humidity and lack of bugs are two other things I've gotten spoiled to here! I thought the mosquitoes in upstate NY were going to eat me alive. :(

 

Lakes and oceans don't really mean anything to my dh, but I would LOVE that!

[Carol in Cal.]

It sounds wonderful! You bring up a good point - the low humidity and lack of bugs are two other things I've gotten spoiled to here! I thought the mosquitoes in upstate NY were going to eat me alive. :(

 

Lakes and oceans don't really mean anything to my dh, but I would LOVE that!

 

Bugs in the summer are more the norm than the exception in much of the US.  Beware.  They are so common that people don't always think to mention them.

 

And Lake Tahoe is a high altitude lake, so it's surrounded by gorgeous mountains.  There is tons of hiking and rock climbing around there.  If your DH loves the mountains he will adore the Tahoe Basin area.

[chiguirre]

Thanks!  Hubby grew up in Pittsburgh and we've talked about it as a possibility.  I will mention these others to him as well.

The problem with the burgh is the number of overcast days. It doesn't rain all of the time but it's cloudy a lot.

 

Here's a link to the most overcast cities:

 

http://www.currentresults.com/Weather-Extremes/US/cloudiest-cities.php

 

If you can deal with white skies instead of blue, Pittsburgh would be an excellent choice. I grew up there too and appreciate all of its positives.

[Greta]

Bugs in the summer are more the norm than the exception in much of the US. Beware. They are so common that people don't always think to mention them.

Yes, I was used to that at one point, so I suppose I could get used to it again!

 

And Lake Tahoe is a high altitude lake, so it's surrounded by gorgeous mountains. There is tons of hiking and rock climbing around there. If your DH loves the mountains he will adore the Tahoe Basin area.

Yes, he's been there for, hmm, I think it was a marathon that went (partially?) around the lake. Can't remember for sure now. Anyway, I know he likes the area. I've only spent one day there, for his brother's wedding, but I thought it was gorgeous.

[Greta]

The problem with the burgh is the number of overcast days. It doesn't rain all of the time but it's cloudy a lot.

 

Here's a link to the most overcast cities:

 

http://www.currentresults.com/Weather-Extremes/US/cloudiest-cities.php

 

If you can deal with white skies instead of blue, Pittsburgh would be an excellent choice. I grew up there too and appreciate all of its positives.

From what I've seen, Pittsburgh seems to offer a lot of the things that I would enjoy about city life, while still having a very reasonable cost of living. So for those reasons, it really appeals to me. After all these years of intense, vibrant blue skies, white or grey ones might be hard to take. But you don't get *everything* you want! So I need to really think about what's most important to me.

[PinkTulip]

I'd heard that not being LDS can make it extremly difficult to fit in in the smaller towns in UT. I thought that perhaps SLC would be diverse enough that it wouldn't be a problem. Perhaps I was wrong.

 

So hubby and I are not the ONLY ones who want to head north when we retire! :D We kind of laugh at ourselves about it because it's certainly the opposite of what most people want to do.

 

Not being LDS may be an issue in most smaller towns and bedroom communities, but not in Salt Lake City proper, nor Park City and surrounding areas (Jeremy Ranch, Kimball Junction). The majority of Salt Lake City proper residents are not LDS. Other communities like Holladay, Draper, South Jordan, and much of Davis and Utah Counties will have higher LDS populations.

[BrookValley.]

Thanks! Hubby grew up in Pittsburgh and we've talked about it as a possibility. I will mention these others to him as well.

A friend who lives in Pittsburgh told me they average less sunny days than Seattle, so you might want to check into that. I could, of course, be wrong about that.

 

(Whoops, didn't see the recent posts about this very thing)

 

I second what Quill said about Maryland. You wouldn't be too far from skiing, especially in Columbia, though I cannot attest to the quality of the resorts/slopes/average conditions because I'm totally not a skier. Lol

[Greta]

Not being LDS may be an issue in most smaller towns and bedroom communities, but not in Salt Lake City proper, nor Park City and surrounding areas (Jeremy Ranch, Kimball Junction). The majority of Salt Lake City proper residents are not LDS. Other communities like Holladay, Draper, South Jordan, and much of Davis and Utah Counties will have higher LDS populations.

Thanks for clarifying!

[chiguirre]

If you move to Pittsburgh, I'd try to live in Plum near Boyce Park. Your dh could ski everyday right in the burbs. I didn't realize how unique that was when I lived near it.

[Greta]

A friend who lives in Pittsburgh told me they average less sunny days than Seattle, so you might want to check into that. I could, of course, be wrong about that.

 

(Whoops, didn't see the recent posts about this very thing)

Yeah, there's a lot about the northeast that appeals to me, but I'm thinking overall I'd be happier in the west.

 

I second what Quill said about Maryland. You wouldn't be too far from skiing, especially in Columbia, though I cannot attest to the quality of the resorts/slopes/average conditions because I'm totally not a skier. Lol

It does sound nice!

[Greta]

If you move to Pittsburgh, I'd try to live in Plum near Boyce Park. Your dh could ski everyday right in the burbs. I didn't realize how unique that was when I lived near it.

He'd love that. He lived in Bethel Park, if I remember the name correctly. I'll have to ask him about the areas you mentioned. Thanks!

[KungFuPanda]

Be prepared to develop allergies when you move from the dessert :-(

[Greta]

Be prepared to develop allergies when you move from the dessert :-(

Oh, I already have them! This is the worst time of year, in fact: juniper and a couple others all at once. Late summer is pretty awful too. I'm sure wherever I move I will develop allergies to the pollen there too :(

[Carol in Cal.]

I lived near Burlington, VT for a couple of years, and although I really liked it, the winters are so long that you sort of forget that spring can even happen.  It's hard to imagine living with that as an elderly person.

[Guest]

I'll give a third vote for Boise :) (or surrounding areas)

[Guest]

What week are you heading up? You guys should get some good spring skiing this year. We've had a very cold, even for VT standards, winter this year and all my skiing friends have raved about the conditions. Really cold winter.....our weather guy was giddy to report that one day this week would max out near normal temps. I still have almost 2 feet of snow in my yard.....so ready for spring!

Heading up next week. I was assuming it will be good skiing weather, despite being April. It has been remarkable cold and snowy in MD, so it's a safe bet it's not toasty up north. :) We have gone for spring break before and it was perfect - uncrowded, less expensive, and plenty snowy.