Looking at Idaho from Vermont.

[sultresweetie]

Originally Posted by Vtguy

Thank you all for the replies to my post. The photos are beautifull! Snow in the mountains...and green grass. I'm not looking for perfection....mainly, less harsh a winter. Long Spring and Fall sounds good.

Anyone care to comment on the cost of living there?

The cost of living in Boise is 9% lower than the national average (overall). Housing and utilities being the lowest 81% and 75% compared to US (100%). However, the wages are also low as Idaho is a 'Right To Work' state. The annual income per capita is $24k (VT is $25K). You will probably be better off with your skilled trade and your wife being a RN. The unemployment rate is below the national average of 5% at 3.3% (VT is 3.6%) and job growth is steadily increasing, 29% (national average is 9%, VT is .19%).

Cost of living comparison of state capitals (US national average 100%):

Montpelier, VT **** Boise, ID
Overall____ 107 **** 91
Food_____ 106 **** 95
housing____ 92 **** 81
utilities_____ 192 **** 75
health _____ 104 **** 112
transportation__ 102 **** 100
misc. ____ 106 **** 100

[Taznmb1]

Cost of living....

Well To purchase a home is from 180-300 for a home rangeing from 1500-2500 sq. ft. The Taxes on a 1500 worth about 210 are about 1400 a year. As for the cost of other things like gas 2.25 Gallon. What other things are you looking for?

[proeye]

Originally Posted by Vtguy

Thank you all for the replies to my post. The photos are beautifull! Snow in the mountains...and green grass. I'm not looking for perfection....mainly, less harsh a winter. Long Spring and Fall sounds good.

Anyone care to comment on the cost of living there?

I think climate-wise, anywhere near Boise would be good. But be prepared for VERY DRY conditions. A lot of people do not take this into consideration when they move from a more humid area to Idaho. Your skin and hair could take a beating...

Cost of living is on par with Vermont. Not great but not the worst either. Look at statistics if you want to know more. It would be really difficult to ask individuals what they think of the cost of living since it would be very much like asking someone what they thought of a restaurant or a movie. It's all relative. I can send you some stats if you want but I think CITY-DATA is obviously the place to look...

[Ruby]

Vtguy, we come from the land of $400 car tags and $300/mo power bills. Idaho is MUCH cheaper. As one poster said, you can have a better quality of life here for a lot less money.

[proeye]

Originally Posted by Ruby

Vtguy, we come from the land of $400 car tags and $300/mo power bills. Idaho is MUCH cheaper. As one poster said, you can have a better quality of life here for a lot less money.

But it is all relative. Need to keep in mind standard of living, i.e. how much you spend vs. how much you bring in. Here are some stats from 2005. Notice that CT is in the top 1/3 despite it being one of the more costly states to live in.

Note that Idaho and Vermont are back-to-back and they are both in the middle...

Sorry for the bad formatting.


STATE, Median Income Family of 4, Cost of Living Index, Standard of Living

Minnesota $77 100 $76
Illinois 72 99 73
Wisconsin 69 95 73
Colorado 72 101 71
Delaware 73 103 71
Missouri 64 91 70
Kansas 64 92 70
Virginia 72 103 69
Ohio 66 95 69
Indiana 65 94 69
Iowa 64 94 69
Pennsylvania 69 101 68
Georgia 62 91 68
Nebraska 64 93 68
Connecticut 86 127 68
Michigan 69 101 68
Utah 62 92 67
Washington 69 104 67
Massachusetts 83 126 66
Maryland 82 126 65
New Jersey 87 134 65
North Dakota 57 92 62
South Dakota 59 95 62
Tennessee 55 90 62
Texas 55 89 61
Alabama 55 93 60
North Carolina 57 96 59
South Carolina 56 95 59
Florida 59 100 58
Kentucky 53 91 58
Oregon 62 107 58
Vermont 66 114 58
Idaho 53 94 57
Arizona 58 103 57
Oklahoma 50 89 56
Nevada 63 112 56
New York 69 124 56
Alaska 72 129 56
Arkansas 48 87 56
Rhode Island 71 128 56
Wyoming 56 102 55
Louisiana 51 97 52
Mississippi 47 91 51
West Virginia 46 92 50
Montana 49 98 50
New Mexico 46 101 45
California 68 151 45
Hawaii 71 162 44
District of Columbia 56 145 39
Maine 60 NA
New Hampshire 79 NA

[HotIdahoProperties]

The cost of living isn't bad. For my area, Lewiston-The average home is between $160-$200,000. $160,000 can get you a nice home, smaller and a shop...you will probably want one for your craft, right? Gas is about $2.44 a gallon right now, taxes are okay compared to other states..In that home range taxes will be somewhere between $1300 and $2000 a year depending on the area. The area is small enough where you don't have to spend a lot of money on gas, and big enough to have a fair amount of choices for shopping. You have to pay state income taxes in Idaho.. sales taxes change so much I never keep up..I believe it's back to 5% again, but I could be wrong. You have to pay taxes on food in Idaho as well. Plenty of health care jobs around. Orofino Idaho may be an area of interest... It is slightly cooler than Lewiston, homes are a little less, and it is beautiful. It is by the Clearwater river and is surrounded by trees...There is a hospital there as well. It is about 30 or 40 minutes from Lewiston...

[RodFarlee]

Originally Posted by proeye

Note that Idaho and Vermont are back-to-back and they are both in the middle...
STATE, Median Income Family of 4, Cost of Living Index, Standard of Living

Just as a footnote, I was surprised by these state stats, so I checked them. The cost of living data are from American Chamber of Commerce, and the household income data from the 2005 US census survey. (Both now have 2006 updates out, by the way.) So they are indeed good data.

The reason it didn't "look right" to me was simply that individual communities within each state vary quite widely. The Sperling's data posted previously, also CNN/Money Best Places website, which compare individual cities, show this. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2006/

In other words, Boise ranks higher than Idaho does.

[proeye]

Originally Posted by RodFarlee

Just as a footnote, I was surprised by these state stats, so I checked them. The cost of living data are from American Chamber of Commerce, and the household income data from the 2005 US census survey. (Both now have 2006 updates out, by the way.) So they are indeed good data.

The reason it didn't "look right" to me was simply that individual communities within each state vary quite widely. The Sperling's data posted previously, also CNN/Money Best Places website, which compare individual cities, show this. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2006/

In other words, Boise ranks higher than Idaho does.

Oh yeah, definitely, there are big regional differences in some states. So you still have to investigate each community individually since we all know crime can vary considerably between two communities right next to each other. It makes sense that even local economies can too.

It becomes even more widespread as the cost of living goes up. If you are in state with an average home price of $100,000, if you consider communities that are 20% higher or lower than this, that's only a $20,000 difference. If you take an expensive state with an average home price of $300,000, 20% is $50,000. Every $1 counts right? This is the situation in CT. Home prices vary considerably, but since the state is only 60 x 80 miles, it's not hard to commute...

[CafeDelSol]

I'd agree about north Idaho. Boise, or anywhere in the desert south, would be a major shock to your system after Vermont. Maybe Post Falls or if you want a small mountain town, St. Maries or something similar. My personal idea of the perfect Idaho locale is central Idaho - Cascade/McCall area.
The climate out here is much drier than the east but at least you'll have the thick forests and REAL mountains up north. And the droughts don't affect them as much. The Boise valley will have a major water problem soon if its growth continues unchecked.