Have any WNY's made the move?

[NevadaRE]

Yes, the wind almost always blows from the west!

[HighNoonTumbleweeds]

As former long term residents of WNY, we are pleased to have made the retirement move to Northern NV. In the three years we have been here our cost of living has been a fraction of what it was in WNY. No income tax, lower sales tax, comparable food prices (although no Wegmans), and dramatically lower real estate taxes, about 1/8 to 1/4 of what they are in WNY.

Climate is dry and the number of sunny days far exceeds anything imaginable back east. We have seen only a dozen or so completely overcast days in the last three years. Average winter temperatures have been running above normal, but even with historically normal winters, it is rare to have more than a few days with winter highs below freezing. Summer highs can approach or top 100 degrees for 7-10 days per year, but outside of major metro areas, the high desert usually cools dramatically at night with 40 degree swings between daytime highs and nighttime lows the norm, even in the hottest part of the summer. We run a whole-house evaporative cooler during the day in the summer season usually from about an hour two after sunrise until just after sunset at an average cost of of about $10/month.

Stormy weather is a rare occurrence, but winds can be fierce at times (a couple of days every year with gusts over 65mph) and strong breezes (25-40 mph) are common at sometimes of year. Orientation of your home is important for outdoor living since winds tend to blow hardest from the west or west south west, so we prefer outdoor living space on the lee side (east) of our home.

Most transplants to the area seem to settle in the Reno (Washoe County) area, but we are strong proponents of Lyon County along Hwy 50 - Dayton, Stagecoach and Silver Springs. Now that Tesla has committed to the area, the USA Parkway connecting Hwy 50 and I-80 is due to be constructed with completion expected in December 2017.

The USA Parkway will reduce the commute from the Stagecoach / Silver Springs area to Reno/Sparks to something in the range of 30 minutes. Homes in the Stagecoach/Silver Springs area are greatly undervalued currently due to lack of shopping and jobs as well as the travel times to Carson City (about 40-45 minutes) and Reno/Sparks (about 50-55 minutes).

While there are lots of mobile/modular homes in the area at affordable prices, there are also plenty of stick-built homes, as well. Lot sizes average 1-5 acres and numerous homes stick built in the last 10-20 years can be had for between $125,000 and $200,000, which is well below the median price for a home on similar lot sizes in Washoe county. Check out the Northern NV MLS - nnrmls.com for real estate listing.

High speed cable internet (60Mbs+) and excellent, affordable public water service ($54/month for the first 25,000 gallons) are available in a number of locations. Cellular voice and data service (ATT) is also strong in most locations. One downside, if you don't have a fenced lot the roaming herds of wild horses will come around and eat your landscaping. On the upside, it can't get more Old West than looking our your window to see horses grazing on your land or next to your home.

All in all, as long as you don't need to commute to a job on a daily basis - Lyon County is great place to live. Costco and Trader Joes have stores in Carson City and Reno and there is a Whole Foods in Reno, as well. There are numerous farmers markets in the summer in almost every community so it is easy to get fresh affordable groceries year round, with a simple weekly trip.

The one thing you will quickly get used to in this area is the seemingly large distances between towns. However, since the weather is good most of the time (unless you head up into the Sierras during a snowstorm) and most rural roads /highways carry 65+ mph speed limits you can often get where you are going much faster covering two to three times the distance that you could travel in the same time in WNY.

It's dry, brown and windy here, but we'll take that any day over the cold, snow, rain and constant clouds of WNY.

[Hotfeet]

A great first post HighNoonTumbleweeds and thanks for the info. Since moving to Reno I still haven't been to the areas along Highway 50 that you mentioned. How are the outdoor recreational activities? Lahontan Reservoir looks interesting.

[MayMoveInFuture]

HighNoonTumbleweeds - thanks for all the info, that was great. I'm not sure where we would settle and also not sure we'd be interested in that much land. Haven't been there yet so you never know. We're going to keep an open mind about this.

I'm happy to hear that, all in all, you find the cost of living to be cheaper. That is something we are interested in if making the move. And yes, I would miss Wegmans

Thanks, I was wondering about internet and phone service.

hehehe "It's dry, brown and windy here, but we'll take that any day over the cold, snow, rain and constant clouds of WNY." You left out the fun wind we have here - especially in winter. Brrr. I have to view the dry, brown, windy for myself to see if I can adjust. The hubby says he knows he can and I probably could but we'll find out. Looks like we will be making our first trip out this fall.

[HighNoonTumbleweeds]

Originally Posted by MayMoveInFuture

HighNoonTumbleweeds - thanks for all the info, that was great. I'm not sure where we would settle and also not sure we'd be interested in that much land. Haven't been there yet so you never know. We're going to keep an open mind about this.

I'm happy to hear that, all in all, you find the cost of living to be cheaper. That is something we are interested in if making the move. And yes, I would miss Wegmans

Thanks, I was wondering about internet and phone service.

hehehe "It's dry, brown and windy here, but we'll take that any day over the cold, snow, rain and constant clouds of WNY." You left out the fun wind we have here - especially in winter. Brrr. I have to view the dry, brown, windy for myself to see if I can adjust. The hubby says he knows he can and I probably could but we'll find out. Looks like we will be making our first trip out this fall.

According to my wife, the advantage of the dry weather is never having a bad hair day - no frizz.

Anytime we tire of the brown, we can travel up into the mountains for the green trees and Lake Tahoe - a mere 30 - 45 minute drive away. In addition, the mountain vistas that surround the entire area make for more interesting viewing than the normal limited viewing distance in WNY.

As far as lot sizes go, desert conditions pretty much ensure that landscape or lawn work is kept to a minimum. It is not sensible to try to maintain a grass lawn in the desert, so the biggest task maintaining a acre or more is simply to have the ground dragged to keep the tumbleweeds from springing up in an uncontrolled manner. I spent far more time maintaining an acre of landscaping in WNY in a single year (between mowing, weeding, snowplowing and shoveling) than I ever will spend here over many years.

One of the other advantages of being here in Northern NV is that you are only a short drive (2-3 hours) from the Sacramento area, which offers access to all major metro area retail (such as IKEA) that was never easily accessible from WNY. A little further drive (4-5 hours) takes you to the Bay Area. So you can go from desert, through the mountains to the Pacific Ocean in a mere 1/2 day drive.

[MayMoveInFuture]

No frizz? Hey I never considered that. Good point. :-)

I'm looking forward to see Lake Tahoe. I do love the idea of having the mountain views surrounding the area. No, I wouldn't try to force grass to grow. I would stick with native flora. I would like to grown some vegetables though.

Yes, the proximity to big cities in CA is appealing. The commute to Toronto is becoming so much more tedious due to the traffic and constant road work cause it's growing so fast.

[wrz0170]

Originally Posted by MayMoveInFuture

No frizz? Hey I never considered that. Good point. :-)

I'm looking forward to see Lake Tahoe. I do love the idea of having the mountain views surrounding the area. No, I wouldn't try to force grass to grow. I would stick with native flora. I would like to grown some vegetables though.

Yes, the proximity to big cities in CA is appealing. The commute to Toronto is becoming so much more tedious due to the traffic and constant road work cause it's growing so fast.

You are going to fall in love with Lake Tahoe. I did about 11 years ago. We live an hour north of Philadelphia and I don't have to say that the "Northeast corridor" is an absolute rat race. From weather, to traffic to people to cost of living.

Since the first time my Wife took me to where she grew up (Washoe valley area), we have been there about 9 or 10 times. Everything we have done for the past 10 or so years has been working towards the dream of moving to the area. We are now less than 2 years out This Fall we are finally staying in Reno to get a feel for it and look at neighborhoods. The Reno Balloon Races, staying near the River Walk doesn't hurt either.

Anyway, you have probably seen many pictures of LT. This is something a little different. Here is a picture of the trail leading into Marlette Lake. It's a hike we did from Spooner Lake to Marlette. I believe the trail extends even beyond picking up on the Tahoe Rim Trail.

[MayMoveInFuture]

OMG that photo is beautiful!!! Wow, I hope I get to see it this fall, thanks :-)

[signalfire]

I moved from Rochester to Portland, Oregon 10 years ago now. I didn't miss the snow and cold whatsoever, and even the rainy winters were welcomed comparatively. My daughter went from Roch to Portland to Reno for school and was unimpressed; the winter weather was colder than she would have liked and she thought it was boring otherwise; in a whole year she never went to a casino even once... I think as a 20 something she wants more (real) nightlife and museums, art galleries and college-style lectures and things like that. True socializing rather than the kind that comes from hanging out in bars.

I'm now in southern Oregon and it's close to perfect. I'd like a little more sun (winters are still gloomy) but the green really helps and the summers are stellar with no bugs whatsoever.

One thing no one seems to take into account with those 'cost of living' sites is the cost of utilities for heating and cooling. Sure, housing in NY was cheap but heating costs were 1000s a year, and there was two good weeks before AC weather kicked in... and don't get me started on NY taxes! Heating and cooling costs are almost non existent here.