Anyone else always wanted to move to Alaska? (Anchorage, Fairbanks: sale, house)

[GeorgiaPeach71]

I'm sure this question has been asked so many times and several other questions. Has anyone else moved to Alaska because they have always wanted to? How did it work for you? What plan did you have? How did you do it?

My husband and I have always wanted to move to Alaska. We were there in 1997 on a 10 day trip and LOVED it. My husband looked for a job while we were there and was offered a job, but did not take it since it was a BIG move for us and a scary one at that. But ever since then my husband keeps talking about it and won't let up. We are a little bit older than we were 16 years ago so we are don't know what the job situation will hold for us if we do decide to move. We really want to make the move next Spring, we're just a little apprehensive AGAIN about making the BIG MOVE.

Can someone please enlighten us on some of those questions above?

[takuriver]

We did. We planned it out for two years and had about 30 from the sale of some property to live in for a year in 1994. We didn't have any employment here, and I decided to go back to school. It worked out extremely well for us.

I gotta say those who make it are those with an incredible passion for Alaska, or develop one. If not, the things that make the state unique will turn on you and become old in a few years. I knew it was for me because it was consuming and felt like a calling of sorts. The community you choose is also very important because Juneau isn't like Anchorage, which isn't anything like Bethel, etc.... The various communities are very different IMO.

[soldn2slavery]

Takuriver's comments are spot on. Just realize that vacationing in Alaska in the summer is no where close to the reality of living in Alaska. There's only one way to know for certain, and that is to just do it.

[ysr_racer]

Originally Posted by soldn2slavery

Takuriver's comments are spot on. Just realize that vacationing in Alaska in the summer is no where close to the reality of living in Alaska. There's only one way to know for certain, and that is to just do it.

I was up last week. Are you saying it's not 80 and sunny year round ??

[GeorgiaPeach71]

Thank you! We really have the passion for it and I know we can do it. We were thinking Anchorage or Fairbanks. I think I would prefer around the Anchorage area since I do like water. And I would feel a lot better knowing that we would have more job opportunities there.
We are gonna do it!

[HEINZRX]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach71

We were there in 1997 on a 10 day trip and LOVED it. My husband looked for a job while we were there and was offered a job, but did not take it since it was a BIG move for us and a scary one at that.

Please don't look for a job up here unless you plan to accept one. That's why so many employers up here hesitate to even consider people from the lower 48; many of them aren't serious about following through with it.

I don't mean to be harsh but please don't waste anybody's time seeking a position you're not ready to accept.

Good luck with your plans.

Heinz

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach71

I'm sure this question has been asked so many times and several other questions. Has anyone else moved to Alaska because they have always wanted to?

No. I've temporarily entertained the idea, but whenever I've realistically look into it, I discover that Alaska probably isn't for me. Too cold, not enough sun during the winters.

[GeorgiaPeach71]

I completely understand what you are saying Heinz. My husband intends to take any job offers this time.
Last time we were there, it was a mixture of vacation and feeling out the place and looking for a job. We know that we will love it there. We both love the snow, the cold (we lived in Colorado for 10 years) we love the outdoors (fishing, hiking, hunting, boating, etc) The darkness may take some time to get used to, but I think we will manage.

We understand all the negative points that people bring up too, especially "It's too expensive to live there". We know it's going to be expensive. There are obviously people living and surviving there, so it can't be that awful and expensive, right? (I'm mainly talking about our friends and family who gives us all the negative aspects about Alaska).

We've been over all the pros and cons for many, many years now. We think our pros outweigh the cons. We have finally just came to the conclusion that we are going to do it!!

[Lunabell]

From what I understand, the cost of heating your house in Fairbanks is reallllllly bad and you might want to research that when deciding where to go.

I never had a burning desire to live in AK, life just sort of brought us here. I think that was a good thing for me. I didn't have a vision of what life was supposed to be like here so I just took it as it came. I started on the North Slope and now live in Homer, where life is relatively easy compared to some places in AK. Not as dark, not as cold. Just right.lol

[HEINZRX]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach71

I completely understand what you are saying Heinz. My husband intends to take any job offers this time.
Last time we were there, it was a mixture of vacation and feeling out the place and looking for a job. We know that we will love it there. We both love the snow, the cold (we lived in Colorado for 10 years) we love the outdoors (fishing, hiking, hunting, boating, etc) The darkness may take some time to get used to, but I think we will manage.

Again, I apologize for sounding harsh but my wife and I have been planning for years to make the move to Alaska and we both gave up stable well-paying careers to get here. We both ended up with decent jobs but we both still took a hefty pay cut to live in a more expensive locale. It also took a bit of convincing our (potential) employers that we really intended to make the change. As a result, we cringe every time we hear of people trolling for work up here with no solid intention of following through.

The payoff is the opportunity to live in a place surrounded by natural beauty. We have no regrets.

Good luck!

Heinz & Val