Thinking of moving (Hope: to rent, assessor, credit card)

[oifoefvet]

Ok, been thinking about moving to Alaska. I want to buy a piece of land and either build a place or maybe a piece with a place. How difficult is it to live cheaply in Alaska? I am disabled veteran and recieve a check everymonth from the VA. If I bought the land and house could you reasonably live on a thousand a month? I am an avid hunter/fisherman and would try to live off the land as much as possible. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by oifoefvet

Ok, been thinking about moving to Alaska. I want to buy a piece of land and either build a place or maybe a piece with a place. How difficult is it to live cheaply in Alaska? I am disabled veteran and recieve a check everymonth from the VA. If I bought the land and house could you reasonably live on a thousand a month? I am an avid hunter/fisherman and would try to live off the land as much as possible. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Buy an RV instead and do work-camping during the summer months.

[keyman51]

Agreed. Also if you are not able to fish, there are possibilities of living in an RV and being able to park it cheaply if you want to caretake for a school property, park, or even somebody's house. I believe it would cost at least $1500.00 a month to live on your own and that is conservative, since it would cost some $ to hunt and fish - it isn't cheap - to do that, and find someplace that might be within driving distance of good fishing.

[Dakster]

First, Thank you for your service and sorry that you are out on disability.

My .02 and disclaimer: There are some additional qualifications and I am far from the person that can guide you effectively or correctly.

Looking at things for myself I noticed that there are some benefits you can get being a being disabled veteran. Since I am neither, I didn't bother to "read the fine print". Anyways, from what I recall, some are related to a credit towards the purchase of land through the state and others are related to additional tax exemptions. Purchasing land through the state has its own set of due diligence's you must do. As you probably want to be able to drive to the land and actually build on it - so even though the state is selling it read what the state assessor wrote about the land and step foot on it first. My cliche's: I trust, but verify. Or inspect what I'm expecting.

Assuming you had no outstanding bills (like credit cards or car payments) and were able to outright buy the land/house/RV, it could still be tight on $1k a month. You need to list out what you need so that people here can tell you what it costs. For example, I could careless what milk costs - I am allergic to it. But I do care about what a loaf of bread costs and what steak/bison, fish, and chicken cost per pound. None of us drink or smoke, so those don't matter either. (Some areas in AK are dry with no alcohol allowed at all, others are damp meaning you can bring but not buy it). Some areas that you could live in, you could grow a garden, while others this is a lot tougher.

Hunting and harvesting your own wood will help, I don't know the extent of your limitation, so is this something you can do? Both cost money, but since you say you already know how to hunt you probably already know that and probably already have the tools to hunt. Although people on this forum will tell you hunting/fishing in AK is much different than anywhere else. Stuff that works in the lower 48 doesn't in AK and vice versa.

If you could get a deal on a staying for free at a place as a "caretaker" - that would help the $1k a month stretch out further.

Maybe Keyman1 has some resources you can use to find those types of places?

[AKStafford]

I think a $1,000 wouldn't be enough. Food is more expensive here, gas is more expensive, an utilities are not cheap. Plus you have property taxes.

[keyman51]

Also for the first year here, you would be a non-resident, so you are limited for hunting and fishing, even if you want to get as much as you can. And make sure you change your driver's license once you are here so you can at least pay resident fees.

[HannahTravels]

I think living cheaply in Alaska is tough but doable after a period of time. Unfortunately, the first year I am not sure it would be very possible at all. Finding land and a house will take time and you may end up having to rent during that first year of your search. Rents can run $900+ for studios and one bedroom places. Keyman51 makes a good point about hunting and fishing licenses too. Until you've been here for one full year you can't register for in-state licenses and the non-resdient licenses are limiting and pricey. I think that living cheaply IS possible but not for the first couple of years and I think it would greatly depend in what area of AK you are interested in. Hope this helps a little!

[hippyman]

Originally Posted by oifoefvet

Ok, been thinking about moving to Alaska. I want to buy a piece of land and either build a place or maybe a piece with a place. How difficult is it to live cheaply in Alaska? I am disabled veteran and recieve a check everymonth from the VA. If I bought the land and house could you reasonably live on a thousand a month? I am an avid hunter/fisherman and would try to live off the land as much as possible. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

I am very glad I found this post. I have been researching a future move, and am in just about the same situation. I was in an accident when I was a kid, and cannot work at a "normal" job. This kind of thing might be perfect for me, although how much would it limit to what parts of Alaska I could see?

[Dakster]

I know some people that are wheelchair bound that nothing stops them. They have done more than most ambulatory people I know have done. Having said that, they take special precautions and learned how to do those things safely within their physical limitations. (Like Snow Skiing and kayaking)

Having said that, no one here knows what you can or cannot do. I really enjoyed AK and we only went on a few hikes that were not paved.

How comfortable are you living without services or the ability to call for help? Only YOU can answer that question.

[hippyman]

Originally Posted by Dakster

I know some people that are wheelchair bound that nothing stops them. They have done more than most ambulatory people I know have done. Having said that, they take special precautions and learned how to do those things safely within their physical limitations. (Like Snow Skiing and kayaking)

Having said that, no one here knows what you can or cannot do. I really enjoyed AK and we only went on a few hikes that were not paved.

How comfortable are you living without services or the ability to call for help? Only YOU can answer that question.

I could get pretty comfortable living without them, pretty fast.