Wanting to move to Alaska...thinking of Wasilla/Palmer area (Anchorage: real estate, houses)

[Katie_girl]

Hi!
I'm a loggers daughter from Oregon and have dreamed my whole life of living in Alaska. I think I have finally talked my husband into considering moving up there he is just worried about how we are goin to support ourselves once we get up there. He is a surveyor and I work for Wal-Mart/military. So I have a few questions...what is a living wage for that area? What is a good way to actually move there. We were thinking of driving, pulling our old truck on a trailer and putting our four-wheelers in the beds and shipping our stuff. Is this normal or is there a better way? I love seeing the pictures they just make me almost homesick and feel that I'm missing out on so much. If anyone can give me any information I'd be so gratefull!

[VaLeeSou]

I am not just wanting to move to Alaska, I am doing it. I will be drinving from the Puget Sound area of Washington state to Palmer AK. Also making a stop in Sooke B.C. to see family, then off to Alaska. Visited there last year and fell in love with what I saw.

My 2 cats, Bissie and BrokenTail, are going to ride along. Should be fun.

[ysr_racer]

Originally Posted by Katie_girl

Hi!
If anyone can give me any information I'd be so gratefull!

Go for a vacation in AK before you consider moving up there.

[Marty Van Diest]

I live in Palmer and work in Wasilla...and Palmer. You both should be able to get work. Things are a little slower here, economy wise, than they were a few years ago, but still not bad.

Obviously, its a good idea to visit first.

Do you like snow? If not, you might rather live in South East Alaska. It's a lot like Oregon rain wise.

[Katie_girl]

LOL one of the great misconceptions of Oregon is that it rains all over thats only in the west. I grew up in the mountains on the east side in a town with a pop of 350 people and that's including surrounding farms and dogs! Lots of snow no rain, in fact, now I live in a desert in Oregon. I like cold and snow.
I have been looking at real estate and pictures and maps of Wasilla and Palmer and like what I see. I'm looking forward to visiting. My husband's company is based out of Anchorage so I'm hoping he can just transfer locations and I can transfer to the Wal-Mart in Wasilla. Houses seem to be double what they are here but I love the way they are set up it looks like some of them are just in the forest no lawns or anything.
I read that 20,000 people commute to work in Anchorage from the Valley is that an accurate number? It seems really high and if so how long does that make the commute?
I was also wondering about child care, what the prices are and if there is a variety in that area.
Thanks for the info!

[Glitch]

I live in Wasilla and work in Anchorage, and Marty Van Diest is right, you should be able to get work in the Palmer/Wasilla area. Your best bet on finding work would be in the Anchorage area. So you might want to consider moving to Anchorage first, spend a winter and see if Alaska is really your cup-of-tea, then move into the Matanuska Valley the following year.

It isn't the snow that new-comers have a problem with, but rather the lack of sunlight during the winter. If you aren't careful, and add a few extra lights around the house, it can cause depression.

Wasilla only has a population of 7,860 and the unemployment rate is currently 6.2% with a job growth rate of 4.9%. The average cost of a home has increased to around $250,000 in the Mat-Su Valley, but that is still $50,000 less than the average home in Anchorage. With a Cost-Of-Living Index of 121 (100 is the national norm) it can be an expensive place to live, but salaries are typically higher as well. Despite the housing slump, people are still moving to the Mat-Su Valley in large numbers, just not as large as they were 2 or 3 years ago.I moved from Anchorage into the Mat-Su Valley (Settler's Bay area) in 2003 and only paid $67/sq. ft. on an acre of land. Prices have more than doubled since then. In my opinion the property values are over-inflated currently and will eventually drop to a more reasonable rate in the next couple years. Property taxes are also very high now. I'm currently paying 15.8 mills, when I moved in 2003 they were only 11.2 mills.

[Katie_girl]

Thanks for the reply. Lots of good info. I'm also in the National Guard and haven't looked to see if there is an armory anywhere near Anchorage, does anyone else know?
Me or my husband are not really a city people and Anchorage seems pretty big, so moving there first might not be a good idea, in fact, we'd probably hate it. Right now he drives over an hour commute just so we don't have to live in a city. Maybe by the time we get up there prices will have gone down some.

[Rance]

Yes Anchorage has an armory. Well they used to have one near the airport on Spenard. Not sure if it's still there. And they have Camp Carrol out at Fort Richardson. Kenai also has an armory right in town.

[daughter]

Hello.I also am from Oregon and have talked my husband to also move to actually around the same area.I was born in Sitka and when my parents went to Alaska,they sold all belongings and went.Sounds good to me.Thankful for the internet,back then it must have been really a true adventure to do what they did.Suzanne from Oregon.NORTH TO ALASKA!!!!

[Classic Satch]

Lol, I was reading this thread and thinking wtf? And then I noticed that it was started in 2007. Jobs in this area stink right now.