Why move to North Dakota? (Fargo, Grand Forks: buy, taxi, property taxes)

[Future Trooper]

"Why move to North Dakota" was intended to help give information to people who are considering moving to North Dakota.

[Future Trooper]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

Agreed. The thing I don't like is suspicion of outsiders in a community and a place so tight-knit that there is no room for newcomers.

Alot of Montana is just like that.

Originally Posted by Chris19

I have been to North Dakota a couple of times. The people are very friendly and it is FLAT going on I-29 to Fargo. Not a bad thing, but a little odd. I would like to see other parts, but maybe another time. My guess is that North Dakota is inexpensive but their taxes are a little higher than those in South Dakota.

The taxes maybe a bit higher but they put that money to good use up there.

Originally Posted by koltonkj26

I live in Minot North Dakota and I have lived here all my life even though I am only 13. North Dakota is a great place to live and is EXTREMELY SAFE. The last murder that happened was about a year ago and even one murder a year is A LOT for ND. Very rarely does anybody get killed here usually I hear about a murder maybe once every two years. Our schools are safe as I have never been bullied ever in our schools. Our climate is great, cold winters hot summers. We NEVER NEVER have traffic jams here, EVER. I have never been in a traffic jam and probably never will be. There is litttle no cars at all on broadway at 1:00a.m to about 6:00in the morning. When I have been on broadway this late I have only seen one other car. I live in minot and the population is 37,000 and we have towns here that have only 25 people and many towns dont have over 15,000 as most are 100-1000 in population. It great hunting and fishing here and a lot of open space. You have to drive about 5 miles from any part of town to get into huge open space that all farmland and crops. From here to bismark is all farmland and small towns with a population of about 1,000 or less. In short ND is a great small place to live!!!!!!!!!!

Almost sounds like my town in Indiana. Only we get the traffic jams.

Originally Posted by gdude

i love the black hills. one of the things i would like to do while i am still young is go to the black hills rally.

Or visit the Badlands

Originally Posted by GregW

Balta is obviously near the geographic center of the North American continent.

I have never been in North Dakota but Road Runner magazine just did an piece about a motorcycle tour in ND and it seemed like a very peaceful place with interesting scenery.

National Geographics occasionally does pieces about North Dakota and how alot of towns only have 1 person living in them and how abandon houses are perfectly "preserved" up there. Some of the pieces are good and some maybe not so good. The scenery in North Dakota is amazing.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by gdude

Alot of Montana is just like that.

The taxes maybe a bit higher but they put that money to good use up there.

Almost sounds like my town in Indiana. Only we get the traffic jams.

Or visit the Badlands


National Geographics occasionally does pieces about North Dakota and how alot of towns only have 1 person living in them and how abandon houses are perfectly "preserved" up there. Some of the pieces are good and some maybe not so good. The scenery in North Dakota is amazing.

That is part of why I won't move to Montana. Do you think North Dakota is like that?

[Future Trooper]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

That is part of why I won't move to Montana. Do you think North Dakota is like that?

Tough to say because I don't live in either state.

[3-Oaks]

Only 10 towns with WalMart in the whole state....I'd say that's not bad.

You have to consider the size of area that shops at Bottineau. Closest retail centers would be Minot or Devils Lake and then Grand Forks, Bismarck, or Fargo....depending on what they're looking for.

Originally Posted by BreaOC

I hate to be a party pooper for this poster. ND is over saturated with the Wal Mart Corp. Even little Bottineau, with a population of just over 2100, is getting a Wal Mart Supercenter. Bismarck has two, Fargo has one with a second always in the works, Grand Forks, Minot, Dickinson, Williston, Wahpeton, Jamestown, & Devils Lake. That is every large market in ND, including numerous small communities. You basically can't get to a shopping destination in ND without running into one.............

[AlaskaErik]

Originally Posted by condorito

I am from MN and I feel like most people here have never been to ND. I recommend visiting several times before moving!!

1)First, no one has said anything about the cold weather in ND. It is brutal here in MN, in some parts of ND is even worse!!

2)Lack of variety: ND has very little variety of people! Although it is changing slowly, it is not a very diverse state

3) Floods: If you live along the Red River Valley(Fargo area), floods are constant, one of the worst ones being in 1997

4) Tons of people move out: You can ask anybody from ND, vast majority of young people end up moving here to Minneapolis. It is one of the states that has lost more population last year(tied with Michigan)

5) Boredom: This is more of a personal issue but I find Fargo(the biggest city in ND) to be very boring. After you have done downtown, the mall and NDSU, there is not much else to do. Grand Forks and Bismarck are even smaller

My old neighborhood in Anchorage became diversified after I moved in. And as that was happening, the crime rate went from zero to lock everything up and put locking gas caps on your vehicle. Diversity isn't all that it's cracked up to be.

As for boredom, I grew up in a town of 250 people at the end of the Alaska Peninsula. We had no radio stations and no tv. Even so, I don't ever remember a time when I was bored. You can be bored in NYC and you can never have enough time to everything you want to in a small town. I'll take the small town over the big city any day of the year.

[gaduchman]

Originally Posted by gdude

Alot of Montana is just like that.

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

That is part of why I won't move to Montana. Do you think North Dakota is like that?

Actually Montana ISN'T like that at all. I found the state has a leave me alone attitude and that's why I liked it from the git go. Too bad I had to leave in 2006.

[Missy Michelle]

I grew up Here in North Dakota and couldn't wait to leave. After seeing 28 of 50 states I decided where I belonged was North Dakota where life was normal and came running back. I don't think I would ever leave agian. I am a single mother and can't think of a beter place to raise kids. I can at least let my daughter play outside. The cost of living is cheaper, and people are friendly here. Here is North Dakota life is the way its suppose to be.

[eok]

These questions are for anyone to answer any of them any time. Don't feel obligated to answer more than one of them if you don't have time. I just want to keep the questions and answers coming, and not let this thread dry up, because the information is useful and interesting to lots of people everywhere.

How are the bugs in ND? Are there lots of mosquitoes, houseflies, etc.?

What kind of house can you get for $150,000? How many bedrooms, bathrooms, how big a yard, etc.? Are old houses more common than newer ones? Do a lot of the houses on the market have problems that need expensive repairs?

Roughly what percentage of the year can you keep all the windows open in your house, day and night, without being too hot nor too cold?

Does bluegrass grow well? Or do yards tend to get patchy and weedy? Or do good lawns use some other kind of grass there?

How common are droughts, where it doesn't rain for a month, and the grass turns yellow from it?

If you waste water, such as by watering your lawn a lot, will your water bill be sky high? Or is the water cheap there?

Do you know anyone there who uses a geothermal heat pump to heat their house in the winter?

Can you give a rough estimate of what percentage of houses have wells vs what percentage use municipal water? And/or a rough estimate of how much it costs to dig a well there?

What animals (such as spiders, crawfish, mockingbirds, mosquitoes, bears, rats, etc.) bother you the most there? Obviously that varies from person to person, as different people feel bothered by different animals. But that's what this question is. To discuss different animals and why different people feel bothered by them in different places.

Do you, or anyone you know, have problems with termites, carpenter ants, or carpenter bees? And/or do you see them around, but not have problems with them?

What's the worst pain you ever got there, from any kind of accident, stinging insect, snake bite, or whatever?

Do you know anyone who uses the internet for porn or online gambling or any other such activity that would normally be frowned on? When people do that kind of stuff in the privacy of their own homes, are they careful to make sure their neighbors don't find out about it? Or are they open about it, because it won't cause them any problems anyway?

Do you know anyone who has constant problems with their internet connection? Is broadband very common there, or do most people use dial up?

If someone brings illegal drugs or porn or whatever in from a trip out of state, and uses them in the privacy of their own home, and someone finds out about it, are they likely to get arrested? Or do people mostly ignore that kind of stuff if they don't try to sell it or share it?

What percentage of your neighbors own a motorcycle?

What percentage of your neighbors own a boat?

What percentage of your neighbors own a car that cost more than $50,000?

How big is your yard?

How many miles is it from your house to the nearest cornfield?

When you drive past fields, what is the most common crop you see?

What is the most common weed you see, in your yard or anywhere?

Are there more cows than people around your house?

The above questions might seem silly. But some of them could lead indirectly to interesting discussions. So please try to answer at least one of them. Or add more question as they occur to you. Thanks.

[krystalbeth]

I love most of those questions!! I am moving back to ND in a few months. By "back" I mean I was born there and moved away before my earliest memory. I have visited frequently over the years as most of the maternal side of my family lives there still. I am wondering the same kind of everyday things about flies and lawns. As far as the "creatures" go, mostly I remember BATS. Lots of stories in my family are told about the various bat encounters throughout the years!!