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This invading species syndrome is over blown. If people actually used city-data data, you find in Idaho is it's a transplant state. Many people come from elsewhere stay or move on. Every state has generational families I find it disappointing to hear people voice a bias towards families migrating to another state. Politically speaking the University in Boise is hatching as many brains of mush as UNLV and you could say all universities teaching the culture BS. To the OP: the state will have many more people, more money and more jobs that's a fact of life.
I think this is true in a general way.
Big City life is a lot different from Small Town life. Amenities abound in big cities, and big cities tend to be open for business around the clock. There's a lot more social stratification happening in big cities, and each social strata has it's own thing going, so there are many levels of status, many different types of neighborhoods, many different cultures, etc.
Small towns here are as different as can be.
So when a newcomer moves in, they may think they want the solitude and quiet of small-town life, but they are totally accustomed to big city life, and they always miss many of the things they left behind.
They want to see some favorite spot here, or something close to it. They expect things will be here that aren't here. Folks come to expect really a lot of things will be similar in their new home, but they seldom are very similar at all.
So they either try to make the new home more like the one they left, or they want to go back home. Either changes Idaho's way of life a little at a time.
Missing those things quite often intensifies as time goes by instead of lessening. Newcomers often really miss all their old friends, family and loved ones they left behind in the big city, and they miss their old lives the the neighborhoods they still know so well.
For sure, not everyone who moves here stays here forever afterward. I've known lots of folks who came, made a life with friends and were happy enough for some period of time, but eventually left and went back to where they came from.
It's hard to put statistics on it, but the number who leave is substantial.
The pull of the old home place, no matter how bad someone thinks it is, can be very persistent and very strong.
Likewise, the challenges of life in such a different and new place as Idaho can prove to be more daunting and lonely than expected.
I grew up in a VERY big city (South Side of Chicago) but my dad was from a very little town in Upstate NY. From a very young age I learned to love the place he grew up in and what it was like and hated the big city. I've lived in a number of places around the West. Mostly cities. But having now lived in my tiny town in Idaho for 3 years I feel I'm as close to heaven as I'll get till maybe I get to see the REAL one. The people to me is what it's ALL about. We're all on the same page, which is so very refreshing to ME. I've lived with diversity most all my life and while there are others that are not like me that I have truly enjoyed along the way, this is in the end my preference. The new folks to town I've met interestingly enough are much like myself once again, NOT what for example Boise is experiencing. I'm hoping the limitations of this small town and it's inconvenience to the trappings of the big city continue to keep it this way here and let the others move to the Boise's of the world. I can easily drive the 40 minutes to get the major stuff if I need it and frankly don't look forward to it. So ya'll city folks just stick to what you like and don't look elsewhere
I am thinking of moving to Idaho but I have some reservations about it since I heard that the native born residents are weary of newcomers from California because so many are heading there. I'm not from California. I'm coming from Long Island, NY, but when I was in Nashville I remember how people from California were driving up the prices of rentals and houses. I am self-employed and am seeking a laid back rural area that is safe enough for a single female and not totally isolated. Maybe something just outside of a smaller city. I am seeking to pay around $900 to $980 monthyly for a one-bedroom. I have a dog and cat so it must be dog and cat friendly. I am used to experiencing four seasons but I'm not okay with levels of snow that you would find in places like Vermont.
Is Idaho a good fit for me? I love nature, am moderate about politics, and am well-educated. I love mountains and hills--prefer them to flat land.
I am also looking at Virginia, North Carolina, or Florida.
I am thinking of moving to Idaho but I have some reservations about it since I heard that the native born residents are weary of newcomers from California because so many are heading there. I'm not from California. I'm coming from Long Island, NY, but when I was in Nashville I remember how people from California were driving up the prices of rentals and houses. I am self-employed and am seeking a laid back rural area that is safe enough for a single female and not totally isolated. Maybe something just outside of a smaller city. I am seeking to pay around $900 to $980 monthyly for a one-bedroom. I have a dog and cat so it must be dog and cat friendly. I am used to experiencing four seasons but I'm not okay with levels of snow that you would find in places like Vermont.
Is Idaho a good fit for me? I love nature, am moderate about politics, and am well-educated. I love mountains and hills--prefer them to flat land.
I am also looking at Virginia, North Carolina, or Florida.
I had a shipmate from Long Island when I was in the Navy, and I spent a few weekends there with him and his friends.
From this experience, my best advice is for you to plan on taking a long vacation here before you make any other decisions.
Everything is quite a lot different. So different it's hard for me to choose a place to start the comparisons.
But if you were to come out here for a month, enough time to get to know Idaho and some of our neighbors a little, you will come away with a greater understanding than from anything I or anyone can say here.
Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about newcomer weariness here. It exists, but most folks here don't care about it.
The few who do seem to the the newcomers who have settled down here. They will be the ones who are the most quick to give you their opinions and thoughts, often as soon as they know you aren't an Idahoan.
I suggest you save Idaho for last, as your other 3 prospective choices are a lot closer. Coming here will be more expensive and will require more time.
Is Idaho a good fit for me? I love nature, am moderate about politics, and am well-educated. I love mountains and hills--prefer them to flat land.
Sounds like you may be a good fit for ID. Be aware that the climate is much, much drier overall than out east. And ID is BIG; it is something like 600 miles north to south! It is a LONG way from place to place compared to the NE USA, and you had better have a car or truck, just to go to grocery shopping, for instance. (IDK what you are used to in that regard...)
I think what you are going to run into in any of your candidate areas is to find an apartment or small house for rent at those prices. There are a lot of folks seeking that kind of deal right now. I think you can find it, but not in/near a city like Boise. Idaho Falls and some of the smaller cities might be work out.
Sounds like you may be a good fit for ID. Be aware that the climate is much, much drier overall than out east. And ID is BIG; it is something like 600 miles north to south! It is a LONG way from place to place compared to the NE USA, and you had better have a car or truck, just to go to grocery shopping, for instance. (IDK what you are used to in that regard...)
I think what you are going to run into in any of your candidate areas is to find an apartment or small house for rent at those prices. There are a lot of folks seeking that kind of deal right now. I think you can find it, but not in/near a city like Boise. Idaho Falls and some of the smaller cities might be work out.
Actually, Idaho Falls is not pet friendly, especially dogs, when it comes to rental housing. I have a friend with a large a dog who has rented for several years now, the only way that has happened is by being friends with the landlord. We are actively searching for a house for my friend to buy, that has been quite the eye opener! My friend and 19 others bid on a house last Friday that was only listed for 36 hours, it went for $65, 000 over asking price.
....... I am seeking to pay around $900 to $980 monthyly for a one-bedroom. I have a dog and cat so it must be dog and cat friendly.........
Real estate in Idaho is getting expensive fast. So my first suggestion is that you open up Craigslist for several smaller towns and see what the rent is. It's possible that you are already priced out. Be aware that if there is one super desirable place listed for half the going rate, that one is probably a scam. Look more at the average cost of rentals.
Your animals will make it more difficult to rent. Can you provide a landlord reference for your pets? It helps if the dog has an obedience title, or at least "canine good citizen" certificate.
Breed of dog will make a huge difference and many landlords will not take any cats at all. it's not impossible to rent with pets, but it makes the task of finding a place to rent more difficult.
If you can possibly arrange it, spend a couple of weeks in your target location to see if it is close to what you were expecting.
Yes, we get real winters in Idaho. The right clothing, the right tires on your car, and a place to live with a good heating system, and winter can be dealt with.
California is a huge state with 40 million people. Even if it was just 1% of the state moving here a year, it would be 400,000 (2x the population of Boise) migration annually. My educated guess would be that middle class families that are moving to to Idaho for a better quality of living. The coastal elites will not be migrating to places like Idaho. Maybe Seattle or Portland, but not Idaho. I've heard plenty of conversations where they thumb their nose to it, thinking it's backward right-wing people there. There is no coastline, and winters are too harsh for their taste.
Last edited by harrishawke; 04-20-2021 at 11:42 AM..
California is a huge state with 40 million people. Even if it was just 1% of the state moving here a year, it would be 400,000 (2x the population of Boise) migration annually. My educated guess would be that middle class families that are moving to to Idaho for a better quality of living. The coastal elites will not be migrating to places like Idaho. Maybe Seattle or Portland, but not Idaho. I've heard plenty of conversations where they thumb their nose to it, thinking it's backward right-wing people there. There is no coastline, and winters are too harsh for their taste.
Maybe so.
In my own personal experience, based on only here in Idaho Falls, at least some of those coastal elites are choosing to move here, not Seattle or Portland. I've also met some middle-class families too, but it appears to me that the two groups are roughly equal here.
What I haven't seen are folks I thought I would- the ones who need work so desperately they are moving on rumors of work in other states.
I saw a lot of this here in the 2000s- I.F. folks moving to the oilfields in the Dakotas and Wyoming. Not now, though.
I suspect there are un-obvious reasons why the ultra-wealthy are choosing to live here. I don't know what they are, but the reasons are possibly identical to the middle class- a better quality of living.
The rich folks I've met so far all appreciate Idaho's classless society. No one cares how rich a person here is until someone tells them, and that's something really wealthy people seem to like.
California is a huge state with 40 million people. Even if it was just 1% of the state moving here a year, it would be 400,000 (2x the population of Boise) migration annually. My educated guess would be that middle class families that are moving to to Idaho for a better quality of living. The coastal elites will not be migrating to places like Idaho. Maybe Seattle or Portland, but not Idaho. I've heard plenty of conversations where they thumb their nose to it, thinking it's backward right-wing people there. There is no coastline, and winters are too harsh for their taste.
Quote:
Originally Posted by banjomike
Maybe so.
In my own personal experience, based on only here in Idaho Falls, at least some of those coastal elites are choosing to move here, not Seattle or Portland. I've also met some middle-class families too, but it appears to me that the two groups are roughly equal here.
What I haven't seen are folks I thought I would- the ones who need work so desperately they are moving on rumors of work in other states.
I saw a lot of this here in the 2000s- I.F. folks moving to the oilfields in the Dakotas and Wyoming. Not now, though.
I suspect there are un-obvious reasons why the ultra-wealthy are choosing to live here. I don't know what they are, but the reasons are possibly identical to the middle class- a better quality of living.
The rich folks I've met so far all appreciate Idaho's classless society. No one cares how rich a person here is until someone tells them, and that's something really wealthy people seem to like.
We are getting the coastal elites in Boise too. Lots of millenials from the Bay Area have and are moving here. Boise is also a popular place for the M's to move to from Portland and Seattle. I'm sure they are moving to other areas of Idaho but Boise most likely attracts the most.
Of course Idaho is also attracting the middle class families from the coastal states.
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