need help possibly moving to Stillwater (Oklahoma City, Tulsa: sales, home, job market)

[mikevee702]

We are possibly moving to Stillwater this summer but we have a couple of concerns we would like to get an opinion on. We will be coming from Vegas and my girlfriend hates small towns. I happen to love them. I am in sales and she is graphic design. I would be relocating for a job.

is there a lot to do for younger couples nearby and in town?

how is the job market and is there a lot of competition to get both entry level and career level jobs?

How is the most of living compared to bigger cities ( we are coming from Vegas.

Are the people friendly ( we understand everywhere has jerks)?

Is it housing market competitive ?


Thank you for any help you can provide. I really think the town looks like a great place! I just want an experienced opinion.

[StillwaterTownie]

Congratulations upon being interested in Stillwater, since it's easily one of the best places in Oklahoma to live outside the Oklahoma City and Tulsa areas. People are usually friendly and helpful. I haven't needed to check out the local job and housing market in a long time, so can't offer much specific about it. But Stillwater has been in an economic boom for the past year, or so, with unemployment slowing falling until at 3.4% as of April, which is for all of Payne County. Since the cost of living is lower in Oklahoma than in most states, you're bound to discover that a number of things cost less than you're used to.

Thanks to the fairly good amount of construction from the past and current, housing shouldn't be as hard to find as in other oil boom towns, such as Enid. Summer time is one of the best times of the year to find something suitable. If living in a small town atmosphere is real important, I wouldn't live on N. Perkins Rd. There is too much noise, traffic congestion and suburban sprawl on that very busy street and major highway.

By far, the biggest complaint about Stillwater is the lack of big city attractions, so no enclosed shopping malls, no large casinos with shows nearby, few nice restaurants, few big name concerts and so on. Of course, the solution to that problem is to take a break from it by going Oklahoma City or Tulsa, both an hour's drive away.

In Stillwater, the biggest strip mall is Lakeview Point, located on N. Perkins Rd. It even has some stores and restaurants, seldom, if ever, found in small town Oklahoma, such as Best Buy, Belk(like JCPenney but somewhat bigger and better), Petco, Texas Roadhouse and Olive Garden. Across the street from there is Palomino's, a nice Mexican restaurant, along with the town's only movie complex. Thanks to it becoming a Business Improvement District, downtown Stillwater has been remodeling and opening a few new stores, bars and restaurants, rather than going downhill in response to the presence of two Wal-Marts and the strip malls.

One of the biggest things young people do in Stillwater, if they're at least 21, is to go eating and drinking on the strip. One of the nicest places there is Outlaws, a big country bar with a great dance floor. Another thing to do is go to OSU sporting events. If you don't mind it not being huge, there is the Cimarron Casino in Perkins 10 miles away. If one looks hard enough, there are surely other things to do and interesting organizations to join, or volunteer.

Hope you go ahead and move to Stillwater for a great way to discover Oklahoma. As long as a small town is noticeably growing and not going downhill, such as Stillwater, I don't think there is too much to hate about them.

[mikevee702]

Thanks for the response Stillwater townie. How are the winters and summers? I likes place with a decent amount of rain and all four seasons.

[StillwaterTownie]

The seasons change fast here with the transition from fall to winter being a little slow. If the summer is normal, there will be a lot of days with highs in the 90s with a few days in the hundreds. But many more hundreds, if the summer is unusually hot and dry. If normal, there will be a few thunderstorms during a summer month, hopefully enough of them to keep things from going totally bone dry. I don't like winters much, but if normal, it only snows a few inches at a time, for no more than a few times during a winter month and melts off within a few days. On a lot of winter days, you'll need a coat. Windy days during the year are a fairly frequent nuisance.

Currently we're in a drought, but since May, the winter patterns have finally changed, enabling rainy days to put a few dents in the drought. This month there has been 5 to 7 inches of rain in the Stillwater area and June is just half over. Normally June gets a little over 4". If you're a weather fan, Oklahoma is the right place for it.

For real bad weather, tornadoes quite seldom come barreling through town, or huge hail, ice storms, or 1 ft. plus deep snow storms. But such awful weather has happened before, so best not to let your guard down on days the weather is forecast to turn real bad.

[mikevee702]

I do love good sunny weather but we are no strangers to rough weather, she is from Ohio and I am from Duluth MN. I can handle just about and cold or heat and tons of snow.

Thanks again for your response.

[eddie gein]

Originally Posted by mikevee702

I do love good sunny weather but we are no strangers to rough weather, she is from Ohio and I am from Duluth MN. I can handle just about and cold or heat and tons of snow.

Thanks again for your response.

Stillwater is a nice place. A pretty nice down to earth college town. Weather wise, it's going to be way hotter than you are used to. Most years June is warm and humid. July and August are hot and drier but that can vary from year to year.

Winters are a mixed bag. Over all it will be warmer than Ohio and Minnesota but you can have freezing cold, snow, ice, howling wind and 75 degrees,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,all in the same week.

[mikevee702]

What would you say is the realistic take home income for a non student household? Is there a good availability of jobs?

[el gato bandito]

Originally Posted by mikevee702

What would you say is the realistic take home income for a non student household? Is there a good availability of jobs?

Largest employer is the University. Jobs can be a little hard to come by for higher level administrators at times. Entry level jobs are more plentiful. The jobs here aren't going to be the highest paying around, but the cost of living is among the lowest in the country. It is a great place to be if you like a little slower pace without being totally in the boonies. There are also a number of smaller towns within a comfortable commuting distance, so that helps with the job search as well.

edit- I didn't really answer your questions about the income because it's pretty varied. I would say the majority of jobs on campus are probably in the 30-50 range, and then more like 50-100 for higher level administrators but it also depends on what industry you are working in and its availability here in Stillwater.

[StillwaterTownie]

I never had a long, difficult time when looking for a job in Stillwater. People who can't find jobs either have a bad background or refused to accept jobs, because it would be beneath their dignity. For instance, one time a friend of mine got a job at Wendy's. Not me, but some of his friends using the drive thru would make fun of his Wendy's outfit. He quit the job. He later decided the job that wouldn't be beneath his dignity was to go to California and join he U. S. Marines.

[mikevee702]

So I am here, It is a great town. My better half got a job she likes as well within four days of moving to town! I think this is a great town for anyone looking for a relaxed community. Everyone is very nice so far.