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As stated in a previous thread, me and the hubby are looking to move to Nevada from Texas. Currently we live south of Dallas, TX. However, we are absolutely intrigued with Nevada and have decided to try moving there sometime between October 2019 and March 2020. I know that is still a long time from now, but I am a researcher and planner by nature so I can't help myself but to look into every aspect of this move. I am consumed by it really.
A little background - we both grew up in very rural towns around the DFW area. When he was old enough, he moved to Irving, TX. In my early 20s I lived in Euless, TX for a very short time. We both spent a lot of time around downtown Dallas, Irving, Arlington, Fort Worth, etc. So we have an idea of what it is like to live, work, and play in a metropolitan area. But circumstances have brought us back to a relatively small town where there is not much to do that's of interest to us. There is a nice walking trail and a small lake nearby, but we crave more than that. Our community has annual festivals that draw a decent sized crowd, but again, these are not festivals that are of any interest to us. They are all focused on downtown where there's just honestly not much going on. We like going to rock concerts, seeing shows like Cirque de Soleil, going to exhibits like the Titanic exhibit in Las Vegas, and visiting museums like the Mob Museum. Dallas has the Holocaust Museum and the 6th Floor Museum that were very interesting to me, but beyond that it seems meh. When we started dating in late 2012 we would joke around about eloping in Las Vegas. Having both been married before, we didn't want to have another traditional wedding. Two years later, we were on a plane to Las Vegas to tie the knot. From the moment we stepped off the plane and made our way to our hotel, we were like kids in a toy store! After being there almost a week, we started joking about how we should just move there. And so an idea was conceived.
Now it's 2018 and we are in the beginning phase of planning our move to Nevada. We initially focused on Las Vegas because we fell in love with the vibe of the city. However, after many, many days and nights of online research, Henderson has been placed on my radar. Then, I started thinking maybe the Reno area would be a better fit because my oldest son is stationed at Fallon and that would put us closer to him. Not to long ago, my middle son moved in with my oldest - so now I have two children there.
All that said, I would love to hear from anyone who has moved from the Dallas, TX area to either Reno or Las Vegas regarding your experiences. Are the people friendly? (Side note - when we were in Las Vegas the first time we had went to eat at one of the restaurants in the hotel/casino and I had asked for sweet tea to drink. The server was very hostile and said "you're not in the south!" I learned real fast not to ask for sweet tea ever again.) Are the job choices really as limited as I've read? What activities are there to do besides the tourist traps that come up when you do a google search of things to do in... (e.g. bowling alley's, disc golf, miniature golf, movie theaters, etc.)? Is there a high concentration of pan handlers and/or homeless in any particular areas of town?
I will end on that note. Thanks in advance for your time and any stories you decide to share.
We moved to the Anthem area of Henderson from Dallas a year ago. We lived in the M Streets area; but had moved there from Las Colinas 2 years before we moved to LV. We like Dallas alot, and in general real estate in the metroplex is more affordable than in our section of Henderson. But we love to hike, and we love mild winters. We enjoy the strip and love the beautiful views from our home here.
People are very nice. Car registration and car insurance are very high. But property taxes are low. Finding good doctors is a big challenge compared to DFW. The weather is much nicer here and we spend more time outside. We really like it here and plan to stay.
We moved to the Anthem area of Henderson from Dallas a year ago. We lived in the M Streets area; but had moved there from Las Colinas 2 years before we moved to LV. We like Dallas alot, and in general real estate in the metroplex is more affordable than in our section of Henderson. But we love to hike, and we love mild winters. We enjoy the strip and love the beautiful views from our home here.
People are very nice. Car registration and car insurance are very high. But property taxes are low. Finding good doctors is a big challenge compared to DFW. The weather is much nicer here and we spend more time outside. We really like it here and plan to stay.
The DFW area in general has a lot to offer. And I know Texas is a big state so you can go all over the place and find activities if you just look. In some ways I feel as though I am betraying my home by wanting to relocate to NV. But, we as a couple feel drawn to expanding our horizons and we really fell in love with the Las Vegas area. We especially look forward to doing more outdoor activities. And can't wait until we have beautiful views to look at every day.
I am concerned about the medical care wherever we go. We aren't getting any younger and once we relocate we intend to plant roots and stick around. So the prospect of growing old somewhere that may have limited or sub-par medical care is a bit scary.
And, I've heard car insurance is very high. Yikes...
Not from Dallas but I lived in the Houston area for decades and my H was born and raised in Bowie. I still have lots of friends in TX and many in the DFW area. Some of my best times ever were at Possum Kingdom. Love that place.
If you decide on Reno, you will have a real winter. And shoveling snow gets old fast as well as driving on snow and ice. If you move to Las Vegas, some of your ideas about spending lots of time outside will have to change. From June to October, most people don't spend any more time outside than they have to. It's too hot. You won't be out hiking! In the summer I have to walk my dogs in the middle of the night so their feet don't burn. AC is not optional here and it's the highest bill I have. It's party day here for me when I can turn the AC off!
If you are moving here and you don't have to work, come on down, or up... Just don't plan on making money here. You have been here and most of the jobs available(and there are lots of them) are low pay customer service type work. Part time, no benefits, physical labor, stand on your feet all the time. Lots of people have multiple jobs just trying to cobble together a liveable income. And locals almost never go to the Strip unless they have visitors from out of town. It's too expensive, too crowded, and parking is difficult. But there are discounts for locals that make some of this stuff more reasonable. Yes, insurance is high, you have to drive defensively and just assume all those other drivers are drunk! Or high on something!
I would suggest you need to make another trip here and stay away from the Disney atmosphere of the Strip and Fremont Street. I actually like Fremont Street more than the Strip. Come in the summer so you know how hot it is, and rent a car. Spend time driving around and cruise houses for sale in your price range. Do things locals would do. Check out local stores. I like Henderson a lot. Spend some time there! Maybe you need to spend a week or so in Reno too, preferably in February so you can see winter. Try to see what it's like to actually LIVE here. If you decide this is the place for you, I would suggest renting for a while so you have time to learn the city and figure out where you want to be.
Henderson does have a small walkable downtown area. They have parades and quite a few antique car shows. They have a small stage type venue where they often have concerts too. The French bakery is divine and my favorite casino, Emerald Island is right off Water Street. I go to Henderson quite often.
Like any place that sells dreams and get rich quick schemes, we have more than our share of the down and out population. You will see pan handlers and people will ask you for money. That's just the way it is. I can't remember a time when we didn't have them. Sometimes more, sometimes less. I started visiting Las Vegas in the 1970's and moved here in 2008.
Are people friendly? Yes and no. If they are trying to make a living, they are probably working all the time. And whenever they are not at work, they stay in the AC with their feet up! A lot of the population is transient and everyone came from some other place. I do know my neighbors and we watch out for each other. Las Vegas is very diverse and no one really cares about color and religion here. It's all about the Benjamins, have and have not.
Not from Dallas but I lived in the Houston area for decades and my H was born and raised in Bowie. I still have lots of friends in TX and many in the DFW area. Some of my best times ever were at Possum Kingdom. Love that place.
If you decide on Reno, you will have a real winter. And shoveling snow gets old fast as well as driving on snow and ice. If you move to Las Vegas, some of your ideas about spending lots of time outside will have to change. From June to October, most people don't spend any more time outside than they have to. It's too hot. You won't be out hiking! In the summer I have to walk my dogs in the middle of the night so their feet don't burn. AC is not optional here and it's the highest bill I have. It's party day here for me when I can turn the AC off!
If you are moving here and you don't have to work, come on down, or up... Just don't plan on making money here. You have been here and most of the jobs available(and there are lots of them) are low pay customer service type work. Part time, no benefits, physical labor, stand on your feet all the time. Lots of people have multiple jobs just trying to cobble together a liveable income. And locals almost never go to the Strip unless they have visitors from out of town. It's too expensive, too crowded, and parking is difficult. But there are discounts for locals that make some of this stuff more reasonable. Yes, insurance is high, you have to drive defensively and just assume all those other drivers are drunk! Or high on something!
I would suggest you need to make another trip here and stay away from the Disney atmosphere of the Strip and Fremont Street. I actually like Fremont Street more than the Strip. Come in the summer so you know how hot it is, and rent a car. Spend time driving around and cruise houses for sale in your price range. Do things locals would do. Check out local stores. I like Henderson a lot. Spend some time there! Maybe you need to spend a week or so in Reno too, preferably in February so you can see winter. Try to see what it's like to actually LIVE here. If you decide this is the place for you, I would suggest renting for a while so you have time to learn the city and figure out where you want to be.
Henderson does have a small walkable downtown area. They have parades and quite a few antique car shows. They have a small stage type venue where they often have concerts too. The French bakery is divine and my favorite casino, Emerald Island is right off Water Street. I go to Henderson quite often.
Like any place that sells dreams and get rich quick schemes, we have more than our share of the down and out population. You will see pan handlers and people will ask you for money. That's just the way it is. I can't remember a time when we didn't have them. Sometimes more, sometimes less. I started visiting Las Vegas in the 1970's and moved here in 2008.
Are people friendly? Yes and no. If they are trying to make a living, they are probably working all the time. And whenever they are not at work, they stay in the AC with their feet up! A lot of the population is transient and everyone came from some other place. I do know my neighbors and we watch out for each other. Las Vegas is very diverse and no one really cares about color and religion here. It's all about the Benjamins, have and have not.
My husband is from Jacksboro and has spent a LOT of time at Possum Kingdom. So you have an idea where he is coming from. I am from Ennis...nothing noteworthy going on there.
I will say the snow and ice are one of my biggest concerns with regards to Reno. The hubby saw a lot more snow living in Jacksboro than I ever have living south of Dallas. However, I'm quite certain the snow/ice around Jacksboro is nothing compared to what it is in Reno. That's definitely something for us to consider.
As far as Las Vegas, I have thought A LOT about the summer heat. But, it gets really hot here too so I figure we have a better chance of adapting if we moved there vs. Reno. Admittedly it is a turn off for me though. I like to keep our AC set on about 72-73 degrees. But during the summer months it's hard to get it any cooler than about 76 degrees and our light bill skyrockets. Sadly, I understand we won't be doing much outside during the summer months if we do choose to move to Vegas.
As for work - I am very fortunate that my company allows me to work remotely. As long as I have access to the internet I'm good. It's my husband that I am worried about. He will have to find a job and he will have to do it fast! Since every place I've looked at to rent so far says your gross monthly income has to be 3x the monthly rent, that is going to be a HUGE problem for us as long as I am the only one with an income. Right now we make enough to survive where we are, but trust me, we aren't much different than the people around there that have to work multiple jobs just to keep their head's up water. Last year I had to work 2 jobs myself. That said, we have no delusions that we're going to move to NV and make lots of money. Also, we don't plan on going to the Strip very often. I won't lie and say we never will, but I'm sure the glitz of it all wears off fast when you live around it day in and day out.
We've been to Vegas 3 times so far. Twice in July (2014 & 2015) and once in March (2016). But all 3 times we stayed on the strip. We spent a week both times in July so we know exactly how hot it gets. It didn't take long for us to discover it's best to wait until it dusk to try and go outside. Not to say we never went out during the day, but it was more uncomfortable to do so. Honestly it's the same here. I don't go out much during the day during summer. I just don't. LOL.
We are planning a vacation this coming October where we will spend about 3 days in Henderson and 4 days in Reno. We plan to drive around Henderson, check out the grocery stores, check out the hospitals, go to some parks, explore and do things locals would do. We are going to do the same thing when we get to Reno. My boys live in Silver Springs so we are also going to explore that area along with Fernley and Fallon. I know October won't give us quite what we need to see what winter is like in Reno, but it's gotta be a start.
Regarding the pan handlers and homeless - we encountered several when we were on the Strip. Heck, we have a few right here in my current neighborhood! I try really hard not to feel any type of way about these individuals because they are just people like you and me. And, I appreciate that I could just as easily be in their camp if things get sideways. But...it is a bit nerve racking for me to have encounters with them because I don't have much myself and I certainly don't want to get assaulted or killed over a few bucks or my car. The other reason it's difficult for me is because I want to help but can't. We work hard for what money/things we do have and there's not much left to spare.
I suppose asking if the people are friendly is a silly question. Like anywhere else I imagine it depends on each individual person. Some people are nice while others are rude. I guess my biggest concern is that we don't move to an area where you are frowned upon if you aren't political or in church.
I currently live in Reno but I lived in Arlington, Irving and Dallas before.
Snow in Reno is nothing to be scared about. It only snows about 4-5 times per winter. It is sporadic. Some years don't have any. Some have a lot. We had only 1 snow day during Dec, Jan, Feb this year but then we had 3 snow storm in 2 weeks of March.
The ice storm in Dallas is much more dangerous than snow hare in Reno.
I never have to shovel snow when I lived in an apartment in Reno.
There are tons of festivals in summer, pretty much every weeks from June to September. We also get pretty of concerts (certainly not the level or quality of Vegas. On the other hand, price is cheaper too)
People are very nice in Reno.
Rent in Reno is on par with the popular area of Dallas so it will be more expensive than where you are living right now. Property tax is much cheaper than Texas but gas price is very high and car tax is high.
There are a lot of outdoor things to do in Reno. We are much more active since moving to Reno (instead of hiding in air-conditioning malls like in Dallas)
The DFW area in general has a lot to offer. And I know Texas is a big state so you can go all over the place and find activities if you just look. In some ways I feel as though I am betraying my home by wanting to relocate to NV. But, we as a couple feel drawn to expanding our horizons and we really fell in love with the Las Vegas area. We especially look forward to doing more outdoor activities. And can't wait until we have beautiful views to look at every day.
I am concerned about the medical care wherever we go. We aren't getting any younger and once we relocate we intend to plant roots and stick around. So the prospect of growing old somewhere that may have limited or sub-par medical care is a bit scary.
And, I've heard car insurance is very high. Yikes...
Thank you for sharing.
If you plan on renting, I do think rentals — especially rent houses — are more affordable here. I own rental properties in the DFW metro and it amazes me how little rent people pay for rent houses compared to Dallas when I find houses more expensive here. My rent houses in zips 76039, 76016, 76017 and 75060 are generally small (about 1200 sq ft) 3 bedroom or 2 bedroom houses and average rent is $1500. My 4-bedroom rents for $1800. You can get equivalent rentals for $1200 here for the smaller houses. Maybe this reflects the lower property taxes. We also find our electric bill is much lower here. Our water bill runs about $100/mo. That includes our landscape irrigation system (desert landscaping but drips for plants).
The variety of grocery stores is disappointing. They have the usual Krogers (Smiths), Tom Thumb (Vons), Sprouts and Whole Foods. There’s also Walmart and the 99 cent stores have grocery sections. Missing is Aldi and several ethnic groceries found all over DFW that I love.
Concierge doctors are becoming more and more common — something that I find outrageous. People who use concierge docs pay an annual fee (payable quarterly) of $1200-2K to be a VIP patient and the doctor has a limited practice to just a certain number of patients. For that fee, the patient has no trouble getting appointments or referrals that will see them right away. We are retired, so many of the people we know use concierge arrangements because they have medical conditions and want great access to specific doctors. It is well known among the medical community of this practice in LV and I predict it will continue to grow. I find it just another way to rip off people who are vulnerable. It is my deepest concern regarding life here.
I love the feeling that I can get in my car and in under 5 hours be in Flagstaff, Prescott, St. George, San Diego, or Phoenix.
I haven't lived in Texas, but let me tell you a couple of things about Las Vegas/Nevada in general.
First off, Henderson starts where Las Vegas leaves off, there is no separation between the two. There are two or three areas that people tend to suggest to newcomers, Green Valley area of Henderson, Summerlin/Spring Valley in Las Vegas, and areas close to the 215 in North Las Vegas. These areas are all in the Vegas valley and it's kind of like one large city rather than separate communities.
There are some rural areas in Nevada, but they are a long drive from most services, Ely, Elko, Winnemucca, in the north and Pahrump in the south. One city that is quite nice and just outside of the Las Vegas valley is Boulder City. I've never lived in Reno/Sparks/Carson City area, but it's quite pretty up there. Personally, I like Gardnerville, but I understand it's really jumped in price due to "come-here's" raising the price of real estate.
As for the heat of summer, it takes a couple of years to get used to it, some people don't ever get used to it, and for some, it gets worse as they grow older. Personally, the lack of humidity makes it more livable to me than places in the midwest or east coast. (I once moved to Washington DC on July 12, 1998 and it was 104 degrees and 65 percent humidity--that was much worse than here in Las Vegas)
If you or your husband are ex-military, there are VA hospitals in both Reno and Las Vegas, the one in Las Vegas is almost brand new. If not, finding good doctors can be a challenge, but not impossible. Specialists are a little better represented than primary care, but it can still be a wait to see one. As for getting scans or x-rays, there are two good firms here in Las Vegas, Steinberg and Desert Radiology.
Property tax is between 1/2 and 2/3 less than Texas (thank you, gaming industry!), but due to the large amount of DUI and uninsured drivers our car insurance in the Las Vegas area is quite high. The rest of the state is much lower (not sure about Reno area). Just as in Texas, there is no state income tax. As mentioned above, power usage is pretty high and expensive in the summer, we usually leave our temp at 78 in the day in the summer, but with no humidity, that's quite comfortable.
Jobs can be a challenge, especially applying from afar. Reno and Las Vegas are both tourist-oriented economies and the rest of the state is pretty much mining or ranching. Of course there are more opportunities in Las Vegas than just gaming, we do have a large metro area of nearly two million.
Having a large transient population leads to a lot of panhandlers when people lose their jobs. Plus, not having cold winters tends to make being homeless a little less uncomfortable than in other cities. You'll see a fair number of people begging on street corners, and you may be approached in parking lots, but I've never had anyone be overly obnoxious to me, YMMV. P.S. I don't give money to street beggars, although I do give bottled water to people during the summer.
pahrump to las vegas = 45 minutes to 1 hr (depends on the end point destination in vegas)
I guess it depends on where you're coming from, to me, a 45 minute to 1 hr drive to get to Trader Joe's is a long drive.
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But, we as a couple feel drawn to expanding our horizons and we really fell in love with the Las Vegas area. We especially look forward to doing more outdoor activities. And can't wait until we have beautiful views to look at every day.
