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I am looking to move to a new location around the 1st quarter of 2014. Here I will give my background, I am looking for information on SLC, and Utah.
So about me I am a 29, will be 30 when I move, single white male. I have lived in Central Florida for essentially my entire life. I was born in Los Angeles and we moved to Central Florida when I was 5. I HATE the hot humid summers that we have, and I HATE the fact we get 2 months of decent temperature.. To me I am a firm believer you can always put more clothes on, you can take off your skin to cool down. I HATE the beach just not my thing never has been. I am tired of Disney World and all the traffic it brings to that certain area. I hate that there is no scenery.
So those are the things I dislike there are a few things i like. I like the friends I have, but those can be made anywhere. I love the car scene here, as i am into cars. That is literally about it...
I am looking for mountains, 4 seasons, winters that are actually winters, I would love to get into snow sports (boarding probably being a skateboarder.) My career path is pretty universal anywhere I go as I am a banker. Cost of Living from what I can tell is relatively the same.
I am Currently considering 2 cities for relocation, and I will visit both, before I move, and setup a job and housing as I will be moving alone.
Cities for Consideration:
Denver, CO
SLC, Utah
At the current moment Housing market does not effect me, neither does schooling. Not saying it wont eventually but it does not at the current moment. I hear Denver housing is rediculously high, they don't have much night life, and the food leaves alot to be desired... All 3 of those are what I am looking for. I can afford 1100/mo rent for a 1 BR Apartment but if I can avoid it I would like to. I don't know much about Utah, I have heard from everyone that it is absolutely gorgeous, and I would like to find a place for me and my future family I will start to be a place I want to live, vs a sacrifice I am making.
Things I did like about Denver, the area I was looking at has 3 MAJOR Ski area within 3 hours, (Breckenridge, Winter Park, Aspen) I know this sounds weird being I have lived in Summer my entire life, but that is the exact reason why this is part of my decision.
I would love to find someone who has lived in both places, if i could find someone that has lived in all 3 that would be amazing. Just looking for Pros and Cons.
Well, if you want winter, this past one we had it in spades! Not my thing, but hey, to each their own. We also have numerous ski resorts MUCH closer than within three hours. They are pretty much within an hour drive. Summers are hot, but not humid like back east (10 years in NJ...I know which I speak).
I am not into the nightlife scene so I really can't comment on that much. Probably not the same as what you would find in Florida, that's for sure. There are a bunch of bars and dance clubs downtown. Rent on a one bedroom depends GREATLY on the area in which you would want to live. Still, you could find some very nice apartments for well under $1100/month in some really great locations.
Cons would include Utah really does take some getting used to. People say that, but until you experience it, you really don't understand. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE living here. I really, REALLY do. For me, the winters are almost unbearable. The inversion makes for some long, gloomy, cold winters. The food? Meh. Some places are good, but I haven't found too many places that really have "it".
"Friends can be made anywhere." With comments like that, you are certain to find some great people!! Best of luck in your decision!!
Thanks for the quick reply, I guess I should have ventured more into my "Nightlife" comment, I meant more towards bars not really clubs, but if I want to get out and shake a leg I can. I am not concerned with the winter, if it is to unbearable I can move, but I would rather have the option to move away from it, than to never have seen it, or lived it. But knowing me, I am almost sure I will love it.
I am moving back to Boulder this month from Salt Lake. This area of Utah is undeniably beautiful but I am more inclined to live somewhere that cares about the environment and has clean air. I love Colorado and there are plenty of areas to enjoy winter. I just got back from a trip to Boulder and after having lived in both places......Colorado is my choice!! Lot's of open space and not so densely populated like the Salt Lake Valley.
I'm from central FL and I'm currently living in Utah for school. I'm kinda the opposite of you, I miss my humid weather and warm florida nights, and I feel claustrophobic without the ocean. However, SLC is great. I don't spend a ton of time there, but I've been maybe 10 times in the last 4 months. Plenty of ski areas-don't even worry about that. Food seems to be pretty good, lot of ethnic places, even more generic chains. Everyone here is tall, blonde, and hot.
These are sweeping generalizations, but generally:
SLC (even as the most liberal part of Utah) is still fairly conservative. SLC has a huge Mormon population, although if you find you don't mesh well with LDS there are plenty of non-LDS folks, especially in the city itself. Don't believe what you hear about Mormons being clannish and unfriendly from people on this board. Then again, I'm biased as a LDS, but I've never known anybody to feel anything but welcome.
SLC has a wintertime air inversion with poor air quality, but if you're like me and spend enough time in the mountains, it won't be a big a deal as it seems.
SLC area and down to Utah County is growing by leaps and bounds, which I don't like but unemployment is incredibly low.
SLC is safer, less crime. Plenty diverse, plenty of culture, all that kind of stuff.
As to the nightlife, that's not my scene, but according to FL friends the nightlife in Orlando really isn't that great compared to most other cities, so you may be pleasantly surprised in SLC.
If I had to live in a city, I would choose SLC, simply for the culture, history, and close outdoor opportunities. Many people, me included, have no problem taking an afternoon after classes/work and getting up in the mountains til it gets dark. If it was between the two states, I'd choose CO, simply for the hunting and larger amounts of water.
I have grown up in Lake County and lived here the entire time with a short stent in Sanford. I don't know what LDS means. And I am not a huge religious person so I don't feel that will bother me to much. Orlando is grimey and horrendous. The reason why I hate the humidity is because I'm 6'2 240lbs and I just can't stand sweating 24/7. I don't care for water be it salt or fresh. Just never have. I would rather hike a mountain or bike it. I have no doubt that either location would be a good switch from where I currently am. I'm seeing a lot more things in Utah that I am liking than colorado but the true test will be when I visit.
I have grown up in Lake County and lived here the entire time with a short stent in Sanford. I don't know what LDS means. And I am not a huge religious person so I don't feel that will bother me to much. Orlando is grimey and horrendous. The reason why I hate the humidity is because I'm 6'2 240lbs and I just can't stand sweating 24/7. I don't care for water be it salt or fresh. Just never have. I would rather hike a mountain or bike it. I have no doubt that either location would be a good switch from where I currently am. I'm seeing a lot more things in Utah that I am liking than colorado but the true test will be when I visit.
dude, want to trade places?? I love Lake County. Hate Orlando though, I hear ya. LDS is an acronym for latter-day saints, also known as Mormon. Sounds like you'd fit in wonderfully in either place, goodluck with your choice! Hope you get to visit soon, we're coming up on the best time of year up here.
I graduated Leesburg high and currently live in Clermont. Of all the places in fl Clermont is my favorite but its still Florida. I'm just over the same repetitive day in day out grind that is Florida. I understand every place is a grind. But if I want to get awy it's Disney world or a beach. Both of which bore me.
My wife and I (both 27) left from Central Florida in October last year. We lived in Seminole County (Oviedo/Winter Springs area). I've lived in Central Florida my entire life. My wife lived in the West Palm Beach area the majority of her life until we met in college at UCF.
Wanted a change, didn't like my job anymore and wanted something different. We're not beach people as well, pools are OK, and was sick of the humid weather as well.
Got a job, found an apartment complex in Murray, and took the drive and stayed there starting in October and we lasted until January. We couldn't get out of apartment living fast enough because my wife and I have two dogs who bark a lot and we moved from a house to an apartment, that's a big downgrade. Murray was a nice enough area, a little transient, but close to everything you'd ever want. Closeish to downtown (we're not downtown people, but my work is downtown), close to getting up to Brighton Ski Resort for all of those winter activities. We went for the cheap snow activity and picked up some snowshoes and went up every other weekend to Big Cottonwood and took to some trails. Amazing.
The winter was hard. All the Utah natives said it was a doozy and extra cold for extra long. The inversions are bad. You can escape by going up into the mountains, but if you're working a 9-5, you really won't be getting up there during the week. We couldn't see the mountains some days. Just nasty, but it seems like this winter was extra bad for that too. Since it snowed and stayed cold it kept the inversion around longer apparently.
In February we found a house and moved to Draper. So far we love it here. It is super suburbia, but we like the people in suburbia, we like the space between the houses for some privacy (we were on a zero lot line house in FL), and there are plenty of trails and bike paths around to take some late afternoon rides/walks. Last few weeks it has been warming up and just been beautiful. Everyone does say that it gets hot, 90-100s, but no humidty. So I guess we'll see how it compares to central FL.
Food wise.... Cafe Rio (a chain out west) is delicious, there's a billion burger places, some good (Crown Burger), some bad (Arctic Circle), Hawaiian places which are not normal in Central FL, tons of Mexican places too, not as many Italian places (probably less NJ/NY transplants?). That's mostly my biggest issue with food, the lack of Italian and quality pizza but I need to try some places some more.
Night life, we're not nightlife people, but it is cool to have some museums downtown and the new City Creek area. We haven't made it to the national parks yet, I think we will be getting over to Arches National Park in the next few weeks.
The LDS thing. It's weird. We're not religious in the least bit, but things are closed on Sundays, even places like Jimmy John's since they are franchised and then owned by Mormons and thus close on Sunday. It is against their religion to drink, so there are limitations on alcohol, but we don't drink either so I don't know 100% specifics, except there are no wine areas in grocery stores, only at restaurants and state owned liquor stores (which is strange coming from Florida). No powerball/lottery since I believe it is against their religion to gamble. We haven't personally really been affected though, just some strange little quirks.
Overall, we're very happy with the move. The beauty of the area, which we've barely explored, is amazing. The utilities are a little bit cheaper, there are tons of good grocery stores (Harmons is pretty much the Publix equivalent FYI) and food is about the same amount, and my job is such a great improvement. Everyone at my job and our neighbors have been friendly and very helpful with everything that's different about Utah.
Income tax does suck, sales taxes are about the same, if not a tiny bit higher.
Yea I was reading about the income tax. Luckily for me I have been saving for this move for 2 years now. I have 7 mos salary saved up so I am more than ready. Again I will have a job and an apartment before I move. I have more than enough vacation time saved up and everyone knows about my plans. Are there BOA branches in SLC? Ideally I would like to transfer as that would mean keeping my tenure my vacation and my benefits.
What do you mean by inversion?
Also the Sunday thing I can understand. I just know its going to be like chicfila I won't want it until Sunday.
Thanks for all the help. Ill have to look into draper area. I'm going to come up for 5 days in oct so I'm going to be driving around and checking out areas.
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