South Dakota vs. other states (Sioux Falls, Rapid City: ski resorts, real estate, transporting)

[scifidude]

Hey all,

I'm researching potential places to live. Here are a few of my current choices:

AK
SD
ND
WY
OR
WA

I'm currently in the south and I hate the heat. I cannot tolerate these six-month summers much longer. I need to save for a few more years and then I want to be free of this place.

Why South Dakota vs. any of the states I listed above? I see that SD does not have state tax, which is really nice.

Here's what I'm into:

- Fishing and hunting
- Would love to get back into hiking
- Affordable housing with LOW property taxes
- Great schools (no drugs, no hip-hop crap culture, no gangs)

I don't really like huge metro areas. I prefer smaller cities and towns under, say, 20,000 people.

I work as a computer technician.

Anyway, of all the above states I've researched, so far, Alaska looks the most appealing. What do you have that they don't. Why SD?

[MJ1986]

scifidude, I'm sure others will chime in soon...but SD is famous for fishing and hunting. Hiking is awesome in the Black Hills region. Housing is affordable all over the state... We aren't experiencing the housing downfall that most of the nation is seeing. Schools are top notch here, especially the smaller ones.
I would recommend Sioux Falls, because you wouldn't have a problem finding an IT job...
But SF is about 150,000 people...
Hopefully others will add to this...

[Jammie]

I'd also go with So. Dak.~Wyoming would be my second choice of those you listed. I agree that Sx. Falls would be perfect because of the fact that you could find a job very easily. The only problem is that you sound like you're searching for a less populated area.

Both So. Dak. and Wyo. have a very low unemployment rate. The last stats I saw put Sx. Falls at 2.3% for unemployment and our entire state is under 3%. Wyo. would be somewhat similar to that.

Real estate has increased in our state, but the prices are nearly laughable compared to many areas of the country. In some of the smaller towns, you can still get a very nice house for $50,000. But then you would have the problem of driving out of town to work.

Our RE taxes seem high compared to many states. On average, we pay a bit over $20 per thousand. But there is also a 30% tax break and keep in mind that appraisal rates will be much lower then in a lot of states. As you know, we don't have a state income tax.

Taxes by State

Hunting, fishing, hiking~they're big in SD and Wyo. Our educational system is very good and I don't think you'll find much gang activity here. But unfortunately, drugs seem to be all over and we're not totally immune from it. If it's any consolation, our state is very aggressive on drug users and dealers. You wouldn't believe how often someone is caught here who is transporting drugs across many states. Our law enforcement even has signs up warning people about transporting drugs across our state.

Our summers are very short compared to yours, but we can have some pretty hot days. They are far and few between, but our state record is 120 (I think) degrees and it was just tied a year or two ago. East River has humidity~West River has very little. The Hills are in a semi-arid climate and the summers seem cooler and the winters seem warmer.

Here's a site you can browse until you find an area that you like. If you can narrow it down a bit, we will try to help you.

http://www.city-data.com/city/Sioux-...th-Dakota.html

You can browse until a town or two looks interesting.

[SonicsFan93]

As a Seattle resident, and someone who is looking to get the hell out of Seattle, I wouldn't recommend Washington. It's just too expensive. Affordable Housing? In. My. Dreams.

[DannyBanany]

I suggest looking at Spearfish, South Dakota. It has about 15,000 people and it's home to Black Hills State University. It's also the prettiest city in South Dakota and it's about a 20 minute drive from ski resorts, hiking, rock climbing, and any kind of outdoors activity you can think of. There are also a few credit card and technical companies there that you might find work in. I'd suggest Rapid City but it's too big with 80,000 people and the property taxes are WAY too high.

http://www.city-data.com/city/Spearf...th-Dakota.html

[scifidude]

Thanks all; I appreciate all of your inputs.

Danny, Spearfish looks nice, but I read that when Sturgis gets going, Spearfish is also crawling with bikers. Not my scene. I like places that stay pretty quiet year-round. A parade here and there is OK, as is a football game, but thousands of motorcycles roaring around is something I'd rather avoid, even if it's temporary. I don't like that whole scene and lifestyle.

Last night after I posted, I continued my research and I've narrowed my search down to SD, ND, and WY.

It would be nice to live near a larger city for entertainment purposes, as well as having an airport in those rare cases I would need to fly out somwhere, but I don't want to live "in" one.

Both SD and ND look really appealing. I know that ND has state taxes, but other than being more rural, what is the real difference between SD and ND? Is the weather all that different? The home prices in ND seem to be a little cheaper. What about quality of life between the two states? Are people leaving one for the other?

Someone mentioned Valley City, ND as a great place to live in the ND forum. It looks like an appealing town. Would Mitchell be a similar town as far as size and general quality of living? What's life like in Mitchell?

[DannyBanany]

South Dakota and North Dakota are pretty similar in many aspects except South Dakota has more people, is a bit warmer, and has the Black Hills. I've never been to North Dakota so I can't speak for it, but from what I hear Bismarck is a nice place to live.

Mitchell is also a very nice town in South Dakota. Our moderator, Jammie, is from there. It's only an hour from Sioux Falls and it still has everything you'd need and most of the things you'd want. IMHO it's the nicest town East River.
The only downside is that it is very flat over there and the winters are much more brutal than in the Black Hills region. Also tak a look at Chamberlain-Oacoma. These towns are across the Missouri River from one another and they are very pretty too!

[ElkHunter]

Originally Posted by scifidude

Thanks all; I appreciate all of your inputs.

Danny, Spearfish looks nice, but I read that when Sturgis gets going, Spearfish is also crawling with bikers. Not my scene. I like places that stay pretty quiet year-round. A parade here and there is OK, as is a football game, but thousands of motorcycles roaring around is something I'd rather avoid, even if it's temporary. I don't like that whole scene and lifestyle.

When Sturgis gets going for that week, all towns in Western South Dakota have lot's and lot's of bikes. Motels are booked as far away as Gillette Wyoming, a year in advance. My inlaws stay in Sundance for the bike ralley. When they went last year, they booked and payed for this year.

Last night after I posted, I continued my research and I've narrowed my search down to SD, ND, and WY.

It would be nice to live near a larger city for entertainment purposes, as well as having an airport in those rare cases I would need to fly out somwhere, but I don't want to live "in" one.

Both SD and ND look really appealing. I know that ND has state taxes, but other than being more rural, what is the real difference between SD and ND? Is the weather all that different? The home prices in ND seem to be a little cheaper. What about quality of life between the two states? Are people leaving one for the other?

Someone mentioned Valley City, ND as a great place to live in the ND forum. It looks like an appealing town. Would Mitchell be a similar town as far as size and general quality of living? What's life like in Mitchell?

Like Danny, I can't tell you a lot about North Dakota other then the taxes are considerably lower. The winters are considerably rougher. But when you mention small towns, vrs large towns, keep in mind that in South Dakota, 80,000 is considered a large city. Rapid City, Sioux Falls, are the two largest. Both have good airports that can pretty much point you in any direction you want to go. Some of the smaller towns have airports, but they'll take you to Rapid City or Sioux Falls so you can catch something from there.

Much like Wyoming. Two biggest cities are Casper and Cheyenne. Both run about 60,000. But a lot of towns have good airports. Here in Sheridan, you can catch a flight to Denver. Or, you can catch a later flight to Denver.

[Jammie]

South Dakota and North Dakota are a bit similar geographically. We both have the East River/West River differences of terrain and weather. We have the same last name and other then that, the similarities are few.

I like South Dakota (except for winter) so any of the towns suggested would be great. I would personally not move into a tiny town because of lack of employment or sheer boredom, but it doesn't sound like that's what you're planning on doing.

Since you asked about Mitchell~I think it's a nice town. It's clean and during the summertime, we have some very pretty areas. We have flowering bushes and some flowering trees~other trees are green and lush. We have parks with very nice flowers. Our Main Street is lined with the old-fashioned barrels full of flowers and also flower pots hanging from our old-fashioned style street lights. I think it's a very clean town and friendly, too. Our unemployment rate is below 3% and has been for quite a while. One of the benefits that I see in our area compared to most parts of the country is the fact that employers generally treat employees with dignity. If you have a job that offers benies~you normally qualify from DAY ONE. That's a biggie if you need health insurance and I thought it was the norm all over. A couple years ago I learned that it's actually quite rare.

If you have any specific questions about Mitchell, I'll be happy to try to answer them for you. Also, have you checked out the "sticky" at the top of the So. Dak forum? You'll find several pics of Mitchell on there.