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I agree with you on this one. I'd argue from 1995-2010 or so, Denver was probably the #1 city to live in the entire western US. It had a lot to offer in terms of both urban and recreational amenities (still does-- but much more crowded and difficult to access now), had a good diverse economy (this part is still true today and probably even stronger than ever, to Denver's credit) and it was very reasonably priced city-- and being moderately priced was one of Denver's top benefits. The prices have gone up the roof and the traffic has gotten so bad it is really taking a hit on the "quality of life."
The climate of Denver is chaotic, to say the least, and not well understood, even by people who live in Denver. It has its ups and downs. I think people in Denver can be downright schizophrenic about what the climate and physical geography of the place is really like.
Most underrated city in the west: Reno. I don't know why Reno is almost never even thought of by people, even within the mountain west. It has a LOT to offer. Gorgeous location, just east of the Sierras, 40 minute drive from Lake Tahoe, 4 hours from San Francisco. Mountains all around in every direction (in the Great Basin). People have an old outdated image of Reno being a dumpy city full of casinos, brothels, meth heads, and rednecks, but the truth is, while you can still find a lot of the "old Reno" around, there are tons of areas in the Reno area (particularly the south part of town) that are upscale, modern, with a very California-suburban (in a good way) feel to it. There are a lot of small scale manufacturing businesses moving to the area. Biggest downsides are very high housing costs (not as high as Denver, but getting up there) and very low wages. Not a great combo. But for those who can somehow make it work economically and want to live in a smaller city, seems like a great place to live.
Agreed. RENO is very underrated. The location is great. The city is hilly and surrounded by mountain. The suburbs are beautiful and upscale. The weather is quite mild too.
Why is everyone saying Las Vegas? How could a city that gets so much hate be overrated. That doesn't even make sense. I mean if we're talking about as a tourist destination, I can kinda see how some find it overrated, but even then it never hypes itself up to be more than a gambling/entertainment mecca. LV is far from overrated. I just don't see it.
Overrated
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Los Angeles - No place could live up to the hype they get. Great place to visit, lots to do, beautiful area. But very high cost of living, poor air quality, earthquakes, wild fires, drought. Wouldn't ever want to live there.
San Francisco - See LA (only exception would maybe be air quality)
Las Vegas - Just a tacky place....period!
Underrated
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Salt Lake City - Beautiful area, great economy, nice people. Some people's religious bigotry gets in the way of them giving SLC a fair shot (and, no, I'm not Mormon, lol).
Phoenix - I wouldn't personally want to live here because I don't like desert climates in general. But Phoenix is a better place than some give it credit for. A really nice area.
Spokane, WA - Beautiful hidden gem that a lot of people seem to forget.
Most over-rated; Phoenix. i don't find it to be a particularly nice area.
Flagstaff + the South Rim area however, is a quite nice, and livable community/area
(It has more speed traps than just about *ANYWHERE i've seen out west
*with the exception of NEW MEXICO - where it is nearly against the law to drive).
Most over-rated; Phoenix. i don't find it to be a particularly nice area.
Flagstaff + the South Rim area however, is a quite nice, and livable community/area
(It has more speed traps than just about *ANYWHERE i've seen out west
*with the exception of NEW MEXICO - where it is nearly against the law to drive).
You can pretty much have the rest of Arizona....
Yeah, some of the best suburbs in teh nation, all the big-city amenities one could want, plentiful outdoor activities, low-ish COL, and incredible stable weather is so overrated.
Overrated: LA. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I dislike LA, but people on here always try to make it out to be something it's not (a walkable city with a strong urban core).
Underrated: Phoenix- This city is clean as all get up, has great resorts, shopping, restaurants, and good lookin' people and sunsets
Salt lake city: This city is truly gorgeous. With a great downtown, great mountains that surround the city, a great public transportation system, and it's uber clean.
Why is everyone saying Las Vegas? How could a city that gets so much hate be overrated. That doesn't even make sense. I mean if we're talking about as a tourist destination, I can kinda see how some find it overrated, but even then it never hypes itself up to be more than a gambling/entertainment mecca. LV is far from overrated. I just don't see it.
I think because of the amount of visitors. To me Vegas is fun, but a cultural wasteland. When you see that Vegas gets more visitors than Chicago, Boston, DC, New Orleans or Seattle it's really disheartening, because those places offer so much more, and you can still have a lot of fun too.
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