Where can I find affordable housing in Alaska on a fixed pension. Internet access is important! (Anchorage: mobile home, to buy)

[alionenorthbound]

Hi, where can I afford to move and buy a small home on a pension in Alaska? I am disabled but mobile liberal minded lesbian non drinker. I rarely leave my home. Internet access is imperative. How availble is shipping from internet sites like Amazon. Also who are the best intetnet providers. How is cell phone reception. Looking for a friendly community where neighbors look out for one another. Thank you.

[sweetana3]

You cannot. Just so you know I understand, I moved from Alaska and my brother still lives in Anchorage.

[AKStafford]

Originally Posted by alionenorthbound

afford

Sorry... Probably no where in Alaska. Cost of living here is high. Housing in an area with decent internet will be expensive.

Well... Let's go a little deeper. What's your budget? Not to be nosy, but without hard numbers, I guess we can't say for sure what you can or can't afford. If your pension is $25,000 a year: no dice. If it's $60,000: then there's a chance.
Most areas of Alaska will only have a single internet provider. Anchorage, MatSu, Fairbanks, Peninsula you might have two options.
Amazon: it takes longer and some things that might ship free to lower 48 do not ship free here. And some items they will just not ship to Alaska. On cyber Monday, I ordered Band of Brothers on BluRay for $16. Super cheap. I have Amazon Prime. I also bought a set for Dad, who lives in Portland. He had his Wednesday morning, the 30th. I just got mine last night.

[AlaskaErik]

The only two places that come anywhere close to being disabled-friendly are Anchorage and Juneau. And neither one is cheap.

[alionenorthbound]

Thank you all for your
responses. I will start looking elseware.

[laina1980]

Originally Posted by alionenorthbound

Thank you all for your
responses. I will start looking elseware.

Don't let this very positive bunch get you down. They tend to like to steer people from Alaska for some bizarre reason. I rarely see them say anything positive.
However, they are right about one thing, it is expensive .But it is also expensive just to be alive and survive anywhere these days and with some research and luck, anyone can find something even in AK. I lived in a VERY expensive place in AK that made Anchorage look like a deal to live and I saw many people with all kinds of income even some disabled on SS alone. You just have to know where to look.


Since you didn't give what you have to buy a house no one can really give a point of where to go. My in laws who have worked their butt off in a small island are retiring this year in Anchorage and they are very budgeted. They had no desire to buy a large home as they will be traveling a lot. So they bought a mobile home in a senior community. This also is a cheap alternative anywhere in the country. I also know some who got a small home(like cabin small) in Palmer and live pretty modest. Hope you find what you are looking for

[GnomadAK]

A "very positve" bunch of Alaska residents are trying to warn you off of a very expensive and difficult to undo mistake.

Make sure you save enough to get back out again, if you can. Chances are good that you would be living hand to mouth, existing, like a lot of folks who have lived there from birth and have worked the entire time.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by alionenorthbound

Hi, where can I afford to move and buy a small home on a pension in Alaska? I am disabled but mobile liberal minded lesbian non drinker. I rarely leave my home. Internet access is imperative. How availble is shipping from internet sites like Amazon. Also who are the best intetnet providers. How is cell phone reception. Looking for a friendly community where neighbors look out for one another. Thank you.

I think your pension would determine where you go. I talked with a friend of mine last week and his family lives quite comfortably on $60k. They have two small children.
We do have Internet and the Internet in anchorage isn't that bad. I did discover that I could get 500 gigs a month for the same price I pay for 15 gigs in the bush.
I see lots of liberals and gay people in anchorage so I don't think you will have an issue there. Your disability couldnlikitnwhat you do, but I also saw lots of disabled tags.

[pittsflyer]

Originally Posted by AKStafford

Sorry... Probably no where in Alaska. Cost of living here is high. Housing in an area with decent internet will be expensive.

Well... Let's go a little deeper. What's your budget? Not to be nosy, but without hard numbers, I guess we can't say for sure what you can or can't afford. If your pension is $25,000 a year: no dice. If it's $60,000: then there's a chance.
Most areas of Alaska will only have a single internet provider. Anchorage, MatSu, Fairbanks, Peninsula you might have two options.
Amazon: it takes longer and some things that might ship free to lower 48 do not ship free here. And some items they will just not ship to Alaska. On cyber Monday, I ordered Band of Brothers on BluRay for $16. Super cheap. I have Amazon Prime. I also bought a set for Dad, who lives in Portland. He had his Wednesday morning, the 30th. I just got mine last night.

I have a cousin in law that I ship things too if I absolutely cant find another seller and I really need the product. Otherwise Amazon prime is pretty good in Anchorage, in fact I have only found one ebay seller and one amazon seller that have issues sending things to Alaska.


Also for bigger items you can just freight forward with Carlile or another freight forwarder. That's how I get my tires up here because the tire shops just don't perform up here with selection.

[riceme]

Yeah, tire selection up here kind of blows. Nobody up here sells the particular BF Goodrich tires that I ran on my Tacoma, so when one of them got damaged I had to pay a king's ransom in freight to get one shipped up here. Really ticked me off at the time, but it's just part of the regularly scheduled program in Fairbanks. It isn't going to change anytime soon.