thinking of moving to alaska, can anyone answer some questions? (Anchorage: budget, apartment)

[Rainy]

Rainey, you out there?

oh yeah...

Take another look at the sex offender population on Prince of Wales Island as a whole.

Low crime? Low crime rates in some cases just mean that they aren't bothering to arrest the methheads. I know the little city of Craig very well and can honestly say that this seems to be the case there. They could try arresting a few of the drunks who drive around all the time as well.

Low cost housing....maybe if you want to live in a falling down waterlogged trailer, but Craig has a housing shortage .... don't count on finding anything low there except wages and the standards of the schools.

Look around some more is my suggestion. The schools in Craig are bad and the stats are deceptive. Sorry to be negative here but my concience won't allow me to say anything but the truth about the place. Good luck but...the place pretty much sucks and when my son was six I moved away from there and have absolutely no regrets.

It was okay once...but it's one of the best examples up here of an Alaskan community which has been destroyed by...perhaps that's better left unsaid. It's almost a wasteland now. I hope that I never have to see it again, because I saw it back when it really was something to see. Give it a pass, it doesn't need anymore down south people and it has nothing to offer you and you have nothing to offer it that it needs. It needs to heal.

[PrinceOfWalesFriendly]

Wow... can't say as I agree. I sure hope people aren't making life decisions based on these negative comments. I DO live in Craig and have the polar opposite opinion of the former posting. Sounds like someone had some bad past experiences - fortunately, we all have the opportunity to take advantage of our own lives and surroundings. I feel like doing some major damage control, but won't waste anymore of my time.

[Arcticthaw]

There was an ad in the paper this weekend for school bus drivers $14. hour. Cashiers make less, at least starting out. Most don't work 40 hours either. So how many jobs do you plan to have?
Rents here in Fairbanks, the land of eternal winter...... 83 above yesterday while I was out sailing in my tee shirt! How I got the boat to move in a "frozen lake" I will never know.
1 bedroom apartments start at $750 and up. Two bedroom start around $1000 and up. You pay your own lights, etc. Light bill in the winter can be anyware from $90 and up depending how many cars you plug in and for how long. Renting a house starts around $1200 for a small one plus you pay everything! Lights, water, fuel, repairs. The average 1400 square foot 5 star rated home still uses around 1200 gallons of fuel a year, that is more like 300 or more during the cold times. So imagine spending your Chritmas money to pay the oil bill. Last fill I had was around $2.40 a gallon.
We have private schools, Montesori, Catholic, and a few other faith based. Public schools are probably adequate, though I am not that impressed with them. They mean well though.

Let's reserve walking to the store as a summer activity. Plastic bags tend to relieve them selves of their burden at -30.

I would also suggest you look towards the Wasilla area. Warmer climate, highter growth.

[Metlakatla]

What's worked for you may not work for other people, PrinceofWalesFriendly. It's good to hear as many sides of an issue as possible before making a decision. Nice to see some community pride about the place though, but those rusty waterlogged trailers are a significant fact of life in Craig.

I think that sometimes people respond negatively to first time posters who ask the inevitable questions about the PDF. We get tired of people who seem more interested in what they can get from Alaska than what they can give.

I remember a point when the high school in Craig almost lost its accreditation. That convinced me that there were better places to raise my family. I hope it's straightened out by now; I'm not sure what year it was but it seems to me that it was around 23 years ago. It wasn't a chance I was willing to take with the most important thing in my life and I do guarantee you that if I told you the name of that important thing, you would know exactly what I mean.

And yes, there is a housing shortage, particularly for people who aren't yet able to buy something. Rentals are pretty hard to come by.

Life can be good on POW for people who have an adequate income and property and who can handle the weather and who can stand to look at the clearcuts every day. I can honestly tell you that I simply cannot look at them on a daily basis and understand completely why anyone should share that view.

For people like the original poster of this thread...POW really doesn't have much to offer. Nothing against her and her family at all.

[DannyL]

This state is not a free ride. I've met a few this summer who thought it was.
I wish people would stop thinking this way.
No...don't. Come on up and learn yourself the hard way.
Sorry, I'm just a bit blunt and honest.

[jeeg]

It amazes me how many people I've read on here who think they can just scoot on up to Alaska and live happily ever after (paid too in some peoples opinions!).
Unless you have a large wad of cash as a safety net, you should be doing lots of planning and fairly intensive research (as well as saving every penny you can!).
We've been planning our Alaska move for 18 months now and likely won't officially do it for another 2 years. Not out of lack of desire or any ties to our current place, simply because we want it to be a successful move with as few hardships as possible (we have two wee ones).
If you are single and childfree I say go for it simply because there is always a way to survive then If you have a family, any physical problems, or need a regular wage......... research, research, research.
Just my two cents

[Metlakatla]

Your post is worth a lot more than two cents. jeeg.

[Rance]

What we need to do is get our hands on the morons telling everyone we get 1500 a month to live here. Probably someone mad because they did not qualify for a PFD!

[Tressa]

Very good post Jeeg

[Tressa]

Originally Posted by Rance

What we need to do is get our hands on the morons telling everyone we get 1500 a month to live here. Probably someone mad because they did not qualify for a PFD!

Boy so true, I would really like to get $1500 a month to live here. I remember when the we received the first $1,000 and then the following year it was like $283. or there abouts. Yep we are all getting rich off the PDF NOT