Idahfornia (Boise, Idaho Falls, Twin Falls: condo, neighborhood, buy)

[LVGAZ]

this is great - can anyone give us any information on Meridian Utah - we are looking for a small town - close to a major city - for culture aspects
outdoor activites - not a lot of snow, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, etc
small town to us 30-40,000 people coming from Phoenix -
any thoughts
DO they have a downtown with shoppes, groceries, movies, neighborhood mall, pizzeria - neighborhood ball park, recreation areas.
I have read Meridian is a diverse neighborhood, nice people - a bit to the sw of boise - but still close to the downtown core. Oh one other thing - Is Boise an "alive" city even at night -theatre, cafes, restaurants

[CafeDelSol]

Originally Posted by deem

so in regards to the above question is there any answers

To answer your question of Boise over Idaho Falls, I'm an Idaho native and have lived in both (currently in Idaho Falls) and I much prefer Boise. Boise is greener by far than I.F. People are constantly cutting down all the old trees they can find around here in the name of growth. Boise is called the City of Trees for good reason. And Boise has much nicer greenbelts, lakes, parks and rivers. You can be in the mountains (with REAL pines, not lodgepoles) in just a few minutes. Culturally speaking, Boise is a different world. Regardless of your background you can probably find something to keep you occupied.

Mainly you have to decide if you want to live in or near a big city or a smaller rural area. I.F. is the only larger city in the eastern part of the state (I don't count Pocatello) and isolated. It's surrounded by ugly bare dessert and very small rural communities. In Boise you have the entire valley with ten times the population. The crime rates aren't that bad in the Boise valley considering the population. It's one of the safest big cities in the country.

I think I just convinced myself to move back!

[buckleyclan]

I am intriqued by all the commentary on culture and religion.
I've lived in a dozen states or more and found that, GENERALLY speaking:
small town people stick together 'cause they've only known eachother their whole life--fear of the unknown. Highly religious areas tolerate their own more often than outsiders--'birds of a feather'. I found this to be the case in PA near the Amish, in MS near the Baptists, in UT & ID near the LDS, in the Wilamette valley of OR with the Greek Orthodox, and I would wager money on Rome being pretty much Catholic too.
The point is, all people gravitate toward like minded people. LDS people are very family oriented and very socially and fiscally conservative, as a group. Individuals can be real whack jobs, just like individual Catholics, Baptists, or Atheists.
That said, nepotism will always exists, as does cronyism. No matter the city, or state; not to mention the predominant religion, or lack thereof.

[dawnlarzelier]

Originally Posted by IdahoReturn

Caldwell, has a higher hispanic population, but, has pretty decent housing.

I am not sure if this is a veiled racist remark or if it was purely an innocent report. As in, "if you are willing to put up with the Hispanics you will find that the housing is pretty decent." Hmmm...??

[Anchorless]

Whether that comment was or not, sadly you'll find a lot of veiled racism in the Idaho forum, and on this board in general. People like to confuse the Mexican people as necessarily being illegal immigrants, often substituting the words.

Rest assured it shows only two things on their behalf: fear and ignorance (of other cultures, other people, and of immigration in general).

[HDL]

One of my best friends is Mexican, here legally, a US Citizen, has had the same job for 15+ yrs and pays her taxes. It pains me to see a group of people disliked and labeled as illegal, when many are here legally and are very hard working citizens .

I do not disagree that there are problems with illegal immigrants. I just hate to see all Mexicans labeled as ILLEGAL and lazy ! It's just not a TRUE statement!

Originally Posted by Anchorless

Whether that comment was or not, sadly you'll find a lot of veiled racism in the Idaho forum, and on this board in general. People like to confuse the Mexican people as necessarily being illegal immigrants, often substituting the words.

Rest assured it shows only two things on their behalf: fear and ignorance (of other cultures, other people, and of immigration in general).

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by dallasfan

I grew up in a small town in rural Idaho, and now also live in California. I livedin LA for several years, and now live in the Sacramento area. I keep teasing my wife (who is from CA) that we need to move back to Idaho. The truth is, I would do it in a heatbeat, but the job opportunities are not as good as here in Cali, nor would my wife, who is a Ivy League schooled professor, be able to get the type of job she wants. I miss the pace of life there, and when I go back to visit my parents I'm amazed at how slow things function there, compared to CA. I can see why people are moving there, but it distresses me to see the growth and the influx of people moving in. I see what happened to parts of Montana that has become attractive to "outsiders", and also what happened and is happening to the Jackson Hole, WY area, include the Idaho side. The people who have lived there for generations, farmed the land and raised families there, can almost not afford to live there now. The local economy is growing, but at the expense of the people who made it such a great place to begin with.

Now I'll get off my soapbox...

California is becoming unlivable for the most part. I'm not a Californian, but I wonder, what should one do if they are trying to leave the California life behind something more laid back ans slower(and doesn't plan on changing the area in question)? Stay in the place he or she is trying to leave. California is very crowded now and many Californians want something else(or anyone who comes from a crowded place). What should a Californian do?

[donnam]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

California is becoming unlivable for the most part. I'm not a Californian, but I wonder, what should one do if they are trying to leave the California life behind something more laid back ans slower(and doesn't plan on changing the area in question)? Stay in the place he or she is trying to leave. California is very crowded now and many Californians want something else(or anyone who comes from a crowded place). What should a Californian do?

We lived in California for 40+ years and relocated to Boise about eighteen months ago. For Californians considering relocating out of state I would advise them to give very thoughtful consideration to the reasons why they want to leave.

Are they looking for a slower-pace of life? Will they be able to deal with it once they get it? Everything will be slower - people aren't in a rush. You can't zoom around on freeways and driving the surface streets (at least here in Boise) is extremely slow due to endless, slow-paced road construction. People sometimes work at a slower pace in the service sector, not a bad thing because they are friendly and conversational, but you do need to accept it.

Do you want a smaller, less crowded area? Then you'll have limited access to public transportation, community colleges, libraries and such. Do you want out of the rat-race of climbing the corporate ladder? A smaller area will probably have lower wages, along with lower housing prices. However, other living expenses may not be that much less than what you are used to in California. For example, Idahoans pay 6% sales tax on all of their groceries.

People are friendly here and we haven't had problems with Californian-bashing. It is a conservative state and moral and religious principles are very strong here. There's an independent, take care of your own feeling here in Idaho that has a lot of positives. Once again, though, it takes some getting used to. For example, California has a helmet law for motorcycles. Some people here in Idaho feel that kind of law limits personal freedom. In Idaho, riders are free to chose to not wear a helmet and they accept the consequences if they are involved in an accident.

If you can accept and respect the differences in lifestyle and culture and you feel that California has nothing left to offer, than maybe a move would in order. Just be aware of the differences and don't move expecting that things will be the same here as they are in California. Don't assume that any other state will be simply be a less-crowded version of California - it won't.

[AndyV]

Originally Posted by CafeDelSol

Question - With real estate prices, taxes and cost of living in general so absurdly high in California, HOW do people actually live there? Living comfortably in Idaho requires at least $50k per year for a small family (and that's pushing it). Are wages also ridiculously inflated in Cali? How does the person with an average job even afford to pay rent much less buy a home? You'd have to make four times the average Idaho salary to live most anywhere in California at the same standard of living.

There are pockets, in California, that the real estate is 'absurdly high'. The San Francisco Bay Area, the Los Angeles and San Diego areas; the latter two most of us refer to as Southern California and it is as foreign to us in the North, (Chico/Redding area), as it is to the rest of the world. Chico real estate is about 35% higher than Redding real estate and Redding real estate is probably 30% higher than equivalent Idaho real estate; though it isn't easy to compare directly as ya'll in Idaho generally live in far bigger houses than we do in California.

As far as rents: investors are currently getting about 4% - 5% return on their investments. So if you just bought a median priced house, in Chico, for $312,000 ~ you can expect to get between $1,100 and $1,300 per month for rent. (My numbers are not exact but close enough for you to get the idea). Real estate economics, supply and demand, are very local but market value of homes do vary based upon the local economies.

[Miborn]

Originally Posted by dawnlarzelier

I am not sure if this is a veiled racist remark or if it was purely an innocent report. As in, "if you are willing to put up with the Hispanics you will find that the housing is pretty decent." Hmmm...??

OH Please,,,,,
it was an innocent statement for heavens sake!