Seeking Detailed Info on Pierre (Fort Pierre, Blunt: fit in, for sale, real estate)

[simplewife&mom]

Hi,

My husband has a possible job offer at a company in the Pierre area. We've lived in the same rural northern CA town all our lives, but he was laid off in early Feb. and now has a new job that he dislikes and that has him traveling 18 days/month. We've tentatively discussed leaving CA for years; with the recent events in our state's economy and tax increases, it may be that now is the time to get out. Please forgive me if some of the info. I am asking about is already on this forum but I have some specific questions about Pierre. I'll be researching online extensively as well, and we will visit too, but I would like to hear what local people on this forum have to say. Here are my questions:

--Property taxes in the Pierre area
--Sales tax rates (is it 4%)
--No income tax, right?
--Vehicle registration, I can't understand it on the state website
--How are homeowner's insurance rates?
--We are evangelical Christians. Churches for us?
--Pace of life? Do people chat on the street, wave as they go by? (Hope so!)
--What do people heat with? We use wood, but there are lots of trees here. How are heating costs, and do most people use a/c in summer?
--Illegal immigrant population prevalent? (I said illegal, nothing against immigrants.)
--Housing costs? We would want to rent for at least a year. 3 bdr/1+ ba on acreage out of the city limits, any idea on rent?
--Is it an agricultural area? Mining? What kind of industries are big in the area?
--We homeschool our children. Any info on homeschool groups would be appreciated. Also charter schools.
--The ever-present question about the weather. Are we going to be stuck in the house for 6 months per year? Will it be so cold we have to wear scarves over our faces so we don't breathe the air and freeze our lungs? (I had family in AK and it was like that there sometimes.) Coming from a milder winter climate, with some snow but not much, I am anxious about the winters in Pierre.
--We care nothing for big shopping malls and city life. We love hiking and fishing and boating, we're very casual and family oriented. We are very patriotic Americans who love our country and the Constitution. Will we fit in in Pierre?

Thank you in advance for any assistance. I hope if we do move to Pierre, that the people are as friendly as you all seem on this SD forum.

[Jammie]

http://www.city-data.com/city/Pierre-South-Dakota.html

Hi Simple and welcome!!! We've actually got a member here who is from Pierre so hopefully they'll pop in and give you firsthand info. I think we've all probably been there a few times, but it's not the same as living there.

Just to answer a few of your questions~YES, it does get cold here in the wintertime and we do get colder then some places in Alaska. You will be stuck inside with winter for about 6 months, but we do get some nice winters and we also get some warm spells thrown in there every once in a while. This winter got very cold right after Labor Day, but then warmed up nicely until the first week of Nov. It's been nice now for about a week. SO, even though we had 5 or 6 very cold spells, it's been a short winter compared to many. It can also get hot here in the summertime and Pierre often tops the list.

You can find some info on the site above and it'll also take you to threads where we've discussed Pierre. You're right along the River (Missouri) so that is very nice. It's kind of isolated or out there by itself. But it is a nice town.

As far as people waving when you drive by~it's not quite that small of a town, but I'd venture to guess that if you wave first, you may get some people who would reciprocate. But as far as walking down the street and people saying, "HI" and smiling~DEFINITELY!!!

I think our state sales tax is 4%, but cities can add more tax to it. Not exactly sure about Pierre, but it's probably around 7% cause I think that's what most of us have. It seems like food is 4% though, but that doesn't include restaurants~just actual food items from the grocery store.

Vehicle registration~I'm not sure how it works when you first come into the state. I don't believe we have a huge registration fee like some states have. At one time, Fla. charged 300 per car when you first registered them. I'm not aware of anything like that in our state.

No state income tax~That is correct.

We have a VERY small amount of illegal immigrants in our state. They have been caught at a few places and returned. It's more around chicken and turkey and beef plants.

Pierre isn't very diverse~mostly white and a few Sioux so there aren't actually many immigrants around there.

The main industry in the Pierre area is Govt. since it's our Capitol. There isn't too much ag land so very little farming. It's more of a ranching area.

Our real estate taxes are higher then in most states because we don't have a state income tax. I'd venture to guess that it's in the area of $20 per 1,000 because that's pretty close to what it is statewide. BUT we get a 30% discount since we legalized gambling. We've had no personal property tax since the late 70s or early 80s.

But keep in mind that since we're taxed somewhat along the value of our houses, it's VERY low compared to Cali. In most areas you can still find a pretty nice house in the area of 100,000. Of course, there are a lot cheaper houses and also a lot more expensive, but just a fraction of what you'd be used to.

Fishing, hunting, outdoor recreation, no big city life, no need for huge shopping malls~YUP, you're good candidates for Pierre.

Just adding~two of us here are winter weather whiners and I'm one of them so take it for what it's worth. LOL It isn't our winter temps that are so rough~it's our windchills. They can get awful sometimes.

[simplewife&mom]

Thank you Jammie for the above response. It is very helpful.

Here in our town people are still pretty friendly, but I've noticed a gradual change to a more hurried, impersonal lifestyle. I get irritated when people don't wave as they drive by on the dirt road, but I understand not doing it out in town. It just seems rude when someone pulls over to let us by, and we drive right by them, and they don't even look our way. So I am curious about the friendliness of the people in Pierre.

We do not have tax on food here in CA. But we do have high vehicle reg. fees and that frustrating emissions test every other year. A few times our truck didn't pass the "smog" test and it cost us hundreds to get it to meet the guidelines. SD's property property taxes sound like they're not bad with the 30% discount.

The main thing that concerns me is the weather in winter. We have hot here, being about 40 miles east of Sacramento. Anyone we mention the words "South Dakota" to immediately thinks we're nuts. If it wasn't for the weather, we may not have any hesitation about moving for a good job. Pierre sounds like just the kind of place we're looking for. Really, we're stuck inside here too probably about 5 months with rain and cold weather. But when it snows here, it's gone in a few days, and no blizzards! I'm trying to find them on youtube to get an idea.

Here, my husband has a job he dislikes and he's gone every week in San Francisco (though we are thankful the he found a job so fast in these times), but our family's here and we have roots. In Pierre, he has the opportunity for a new career in an area where we could probably afford some property for our children to grow up on. We have the chance for a new adventure and to create new roots. It's a big risk, but how to know if it was the right choice unless we go for it? The kids are all for it, they love skiing and snow, and my daughter wants to live on the "prairie."

Sorry for rambling on this post. There's a lot to sort out. Any other information about Pierre, especially perspectives on the winter weather, would be appreciated.

[rjl78]

Pierre is OK. But there are better places to live in South Dakota.

[simplewife&mom]

Originally Posted by rjl78

Pierre is OK. But there are better places to live in South Dakota.

Are you able to elaborate? I would love to hear why you think that, it could really help us in our decision. What is wrong with the town, in your opinion?

For one thing, is there no housing in the area? I find very few homes for sale, and virtually no homes to rent. We don't mind living in town, but not in an apartment, and we have 3 dogs so a yard or acreage would be great. I find nil. There was one house for $825, and when I looked it up on Google Earth, it looked like a trailer in a mobile home park. We live in a manufactured home now, so are not "snobs" about that, but for the price of the rental, I was surprised at the look of the neighborhood in the photo.

So, is this a huge problem, affordable housing? Aren't there any relatively rural areas out of the city limits where people live? Or is it just open, vast prairie anywhere outside of the town of Pierre, with no people? I am curious.

[rjl78]

Housing can be an issue. It tends to cost more to live here. There are a couple pretty nice trailer parks. I have lived here 10 years. Tired of the town. Tired of the politics, sick of the people.

Blunt is 20 miles away. Housing is pretty cheap that way but a 40 mile a day commute doesn't sound like fun.

Here is a site to look at for housing. City run site. Pierre/Fort Pierre Area Rental Property Search

[simplewife&mom]

Originally Posted by rjl78

Housing can be an issue. It tends to cost more to live here. There are a couple pretty nice trailer parks. I have lived here 10 years. Tired of the town. Tired of the politics, sick of the people.

Blunt is 20 miles away. Housing is pretty cheap that way but a 40 mile a day commute doesn't sound like fun.

Here is a site to look at for housing. City run site. Pierre/Fort Pierre Area Rental Property Search

Thank you, rjl78. I have noticed Blunt, but that commute in the winter for my husband worries me.

What is wrong with the people, the politics?

[rjl78]

The town has a different vibe. That stretch of road between Pierre and Blunt is a good road, well traveled however in the winter time can be miserable.

If you like hunting and Fishing Pierre is a great town. Other than that shopping is not great, nothing to do but drink and gamble. Neither sound like fun to me.

Give me a bit of time and I will get you some information to get you pointed in the right direction on Pierre.

The gripe with Pierre is more of a personal gripe. Apartments and rentals are not pet friendly around here.