Advice about your Area (Springfield, Nixa: sales, vehicle registration, house)

[craftinmomx3]

Hello everyone-
I have a family of preteens and older and we have lived in southern California and currently in Las Vegas,NV but my family is from and most reside in Missouri still and I think its time to move back toward my family. I see both positive and negative reasons to move to Springfield,
Can someone please tell me about the economy, job market, and such as of this year
Which lil surrounding cities/towns to stay away from and why to stay away from them or why to move to them, specifically if possible -the agent I have looking for property (no offense to realtors) is giving me only positives, no negatives. I found a nice home in Aurora and another in Miller and a quite lil one in Nixa. I want good schools and a safe environment (yes Im a protective but responsible parent). My desert born and raised husband is already having issues and I need to be sure this is the right move for all of us. Did I mention we do enjoy hunting and fishing and that makes for a good stepping stone, but dont get me wrong I am not a "country" girl. I like the outskirts of Vegas because we can live without of the strip and its fast pace nonsense.
PLEASE HELP, Thanks very much!

[mrschilicook]

I'm originally from No. CA. and then lived in Las Vegas (up near Silverstone Golf Course) for 5 years. Moved to an area just north of Branson 3 years ago.

My immediate thought is that you should come stay here for a couple of weeks before you even think of moving. It could be a great move or a horrendous one depending on your expectations, needs, etc.

First, there IS state income tax....Second there is winter. Third, Springfield is a mid-size town so you while you can find most things, you won't find lots of most things.

The cost of living is lower than CA when it comes to housing, but probably pretty similiar to Las Vegas now. Housing used to be significantly less here, but with the housing bust, I would guess the difference is now minor. However, you can have land if you so desire....or a very large lot easily.
Property taxes are county by county....I believe Taney county (Branson) has the lowest.

Food is about the same. Some things like citris fruit are a bit more, but other things (pork) are less. Food prices have gone up all over the country, but in my travels I find that local food is what is more cost efffective.

What you save in summer cooling here (we use A/C but it doesn't run 24X7 June-Sept), you will make up for in winter heating. While sales taxes may be a bit lower here , you also pay tax on food here. Vehicle registration is much lower here, but we also pay personal property taxes on vehicles which sort of makes up the differences.

I love this area, but have to admit I miss Las Vegas winters. But it's short lived and the trees, water, lakes, rivers, and general beauty of the area make
up for the relatively few days of snow/ice. I do NOT miss Las Vegas summers,
traffic, dust, water issues. It is slower here...attitudes are more laid back. Religion is more apparent (not a bad thing). Fishing and hunting are great. Water sports are abundant.

I've been here three years and from a financial viewpoint, I think it is a wash between this area and Las Vegas (depending on where you live).
I can't speak to employment, but this is a low cost area so salaries/wages are
lower than CA for sure. It depends on what you do for a living. If you have
a profession you have a better shot most anyplace you go. Like everywhere else, the job market is tough.

From a weather viewpoint, you will have to adjust to humidity, bugs, and winter.
After three years, the humidity doesn't bother me much, will always have a love/hate relationship with bugs, and winter isn't all that bad. I only have to deal with snow/ice maybe once or twice a year. I've adjusted....so will you.

Good luck....come visit before you make your plans. You may love it or you may hate it. But it's a great place to raise kids so my friends from other states tell me.

[christina0001]

The job market will entirely depend on what line of work you and your husband are in. Some professions are doing quite well, others are not. What do you and your husband do?
Having also relocated here from out of state, I do NOT recommend you buy a home and move in immediately. Rent, or stay with family while you secure jobs, and decide for yourselves what towns and neighborhoods feel right to you. It is a buyer's market out here, big time...you will have no problems buying, but if you buy and then decide you want to move (locally, or back west) you will have a heck of a time selling. If I had bought first, I would have been very unhappy...the towns I thought I liked best from afar were not favorites once I was here, and I learned about other towns/neighborhoods that I liked much better once I was here.
Best of luck.

[DeanMoore]

I would consider southern Springfield, Nixa and Ozark. good schools, and decent prices. missing in the previous posts, is culture. as a former youth pastor who pastored in california, you will get a much better return on investment in the peer pressure area. We adopted a street-wise teen with a serious attitude just before we moved here and the culture shock was great for us. he has since graduated high school (first in his bio-family to do so) We are rural 1/2 way between Branson and Springfield, but if I must have it, I can have Starbucks in 15-20 minutes either direction. With pree-teens in the house, I would do it again in a heartbeat, even if pay was lower. (BTW vehicle fees here vs California, I can license 9 vehicles for two years, and pay PPT for two years for less than one pickup costs in California for one year)

[DeanMoore]

Also the schools here (Christian county) blow California schools out of the water. My adopted son, was 5 grades below his peers here when we got here, with passing grades in Calif. With a great school staff here, we were able to get him caught up to only one year behind, graduating at 19. My younger son who had only gone previously to a good private school in Calif. was right on level when he enrolled here. dont know Las Vegas schools, but if similar to Calif. or Reno, you will like it. Nixa and Ozark have impressive facilities and programs far in excess to what their town population would suggest.

[misplaced1]

I cannot stress enough to please check out an area personally and for a bit of time before making the move. I've only lived in small town Missouri but the difference of the towns is almost night and day. One felt welcoming and the other, not so much.

[DeanMoore]

Absolutely visit first, I should have added that advice. and ask questions from everyone you meet. we only had a few days to visit, and packed a ton in, but we did well. if we hadn't visited, we would have picked a different house and neighborhood that while nice, wasn't as nice as we have now. there are cheap flights into Branson now, from Las Vegas should be easy.