Spearfish (Deadwood: real estate, cliquey, renting)

[wpcp]

how is the area of spearfish? schools, homes, taxes, jobs, crime.....? i heard that there were several sex offenders in that area. thanks.

[Jammie]

It looks like there are nine sex offenders in Spearfish. Keep in mind that some of them were probably 18 year old boys who slept with 15 year old girls so violence wouldn't have been a factor.

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

As you can tell, the crime rate is very low and it's actually a very cute town. You're right by Spearfish Canyon and it's beautiful there.

Schools~sorry, but I can't help you with that.

Our real estate taxes are fairly high statewide because we have no state income tax. Jobs~Black Hills State University would probably be one of their biggest employers.

But I'll let some of the West River people give you more details.

[no8fann]

I can't say that there is a huge crime problem in Spearfish, but we came from a much larger community earlier this summer. I have been told that the schools are very good, but a bit cliquey. We settled in Belle, at least for the time being, so I can't offer much help there. Renting in Spearfish can be a bit pricey, but the home prices, overall, seemed reasonable. It's entirely possible to find a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home with a garage for under $200,000 (nearly impossible where we came from, so home prices here seem reasonable to me!). Utilities have been very low so far - we will see what happens when we have to switch on the heat this winter!

[DannyBanany]

Like Jammie said, Black Hills State University is probably the largest employer in Spearfish. Many people work up at the casinos and resorts in Deadwood too. Other larger employers like Premier BankCard, Lehman Trikes, and even WalMart are in Spearfish too. Personally, I think Spearfish is the most beautiful, cleanest, and most progressive town in South Dakota.