Houston to Alaska! (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Hope: real estate, big house, purchase)

[tigre79]

Originally Posted by Dakster

Hey, at least it is a dry heat in Texas.

Not in Houston, it ain't.

[tigre79]

Originally Posted by CatherineKF

Valdez sounds awesome! What do the majority of men do for work there? women? How are the schools? I'm looking for complete honesty from a locals perspective. ps. I LOVE snow.

People work at the oil pipeline terminal, the refinery, the schools, local government, various businesses, and so on. Probably a third of the boats in the harbor are commercial fishing boats, so there's a bit of that as well. I don't know how the schools compare with other towns in AK, but they have a relatively strong focus on vocational skills, which to me is a good thing. The community college here will let advanced high schoolers take classes there, as well. There's not a huge amount of trouble for kids to get in here. Most people don't lock their doors, and there's occasional vandalism or drug use but nothing really major. There's some local politics and so on, a bit beyond normal small-town stuff mostly due to the pipeline, but it's easy to ignore. It's a fairly expensive town to live in, especially compared with Texas, but that's going to be true of most towns in Alaska. Housing can be difficult to find due to the small market. Sound Realty is the place to call here, it's pretty well the only game in town.

As for hunting and fishing, do ya'll have a certian number? I know you have to buy tags for bears, but I just didn't know if you could only get so many per season. Like for us, alligator, you have to buy tags, but how many tags you buy you have to use, or they get deducted.

This website will answer all your questions: Home Page, Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Also, what do ya'll drive up there?

There are a lot of pickups and SUVs (just don't bring a 2wd truck here), but plenty of people drive cars, either front wheel drive or AWD like Subarus. In the summer you'll see rear-wheel-drive cars and motorcycles, but they're put up in the winter. BTW, I grew up outside Fort Worth and stuck around long enough to attend Texas A&M, so "Howdy!"

[starlite9]

Originally Posted by CatherineKF

Thank you for telling me about Nenana!

Nenana has good Points and some bad like all towns. Lived all over Alaska and have been in the Nenana area about 22 years, good hunting, school classes are small and you know all the teachers.

It's a good place to raise kids, although I preferred to live out on the road system where it is a bit quieter!

[CatherineKF]

Do you know if they train or do you have to be certified to work on the pipeline at all?

I'll be grateful for the small town feel, I do well when it takes me 45 minutes to get to the gocery, and the nearest mall is an hour away! (at least)

I have read that it's expensive in Alaska, but I also read that the jobs usually tend to pay more then the lower 48 for that reason, is there truth to this?

I looked at some houses for sale, we bought here for about 120k, and up there it's like 350k for a house like we're in. I'm ok with that, We dont really want a big house. Just something in the woods somewhere, cabin type feel, we'll be happy. :-)

What is the major difference in prices that you found compared to Texas? I came from Michigan, and Texas was ridiculously expensive compared to that state, so i'm definitely curious.

Good to know about the vehicles, we do have a truck, and I drive a Jeep wrangler. It's a soft top thought.. :-/ see anyof those around?

Aggies!! Gig 'Em!

[joie_de_vivre]

Can I just say, my family lived in the Homer/Anchor Point area and I loved it there. But I haven't experienced living anywhere else in Alaska, so I can't comment as to how it compares!
We are moving back there (or near there) this coming summer and I can't wait!

[CatherineKF]

Thats awesome that ya'll are movig back!! What preparations are you taking to move? Are ya'll going to find jobs/housing before relocating? What are your most favorite parts about Homer/Anchor Point?

[CatherineKF]

Ok, another question. Lets talk "trapping." Illegal? Can you only trap on private property or public too? etc... Any info about trapping in Alaska is helpful!

[joie_de_vivre]

Originally Posted by CatherineKF

Thats awesome that ya'll are movig back!! What preparations are you taking to move? Are ya'll going to find jobs/housing before relocating? What are your most favorite parts about Homer/Anchor Point?

Well, we are coming from PA, so we are actually going to do the move in two parts---next month we are moving to Oregon to live by my family for about 8 months and then move to AK. We can't stand to stay in PA any longer and OR would at least let us be near my family and friends until the summer when we're moving up to AK. It will also give my fam some extended visiting time before we make the permanent move up north. The first time we moved there we weren't sure how long we were going to stay. Now we know it's where we're going to settle. So it will be nice for my family to have that time with us for a little while.
We are going to get a trailer hitch installed on the car, rent a trailer from Uhaul, and get rid of most of our furniture. We moved to PA from AK with just what we could fit in our car, so we didn't have much to start with. The things we have accumulated have mostly been given to us, so we won't have to worry about getting our money's worth out of selling it...we can just drop it off at Salvation Army or put it out for free in the yard. I am sad to see our piano go...it was free, it's out of tune, and has some broken keys but I had fun playing it. Oh well, we'll get a new one when we go up.
We'll use a queen bed that my parents don't need when we get over to OR, then leave it with them and purchase a new one when we get up. We'll try to take all our kitchen stuff with us..spices, dishes, pots and pans...and books, the crib and changing table, and a few lamps. Our computers, baby toys, clothes, etc. We have a cat & dog too.
That's about it for now...
Oh and I dont' know anything about trapping, sorry!

[CatherineKF]

LOl. The trapping questions is more for my husband. He's a big outdoors type.

Thats a great plan! We are in Texas, it's hot here. Miserably hot, and we're burning up with all these fires. Worst part is, they've arrested quite a few arsonists. Idiot I tell ya!

We are basically going up there with nothing as well. Hopefully next fall or the following spring. We want to pay off all of our debts, we dont have much left. Sell our home and one of our vehicles. I'll be staying with my in laws while my husband goes to find housing and a job. Once he gets that in order then the kids and I will head up there. The good thing is that we aren't the types that are attached to our belongings, (material items that is.) So I dont mind selling or giving things away. I'm so looking forward to being back in the north, back to a "cozy cabin" type feel. I just can't fathom the idea of raising our kids in a big city, especially Houston. Not saying Houston is all bad, just not our cup of tea!

Good Luck to you on your move! Maybe eventually we'll all be able to have a cup of coffee together! lol :-)

[ArcticState]

Originally Posted by CatherineKF

Ok, another question. Lets talk "trapping." Illegal? Can you only trap on private property or public too? etc... Any info about trapping in Alaska is helpful!

2011-2012 Alaska Trapping Regulations

I suggest you give the above a good read. Trapping rules are complex (it's not as simple as "public vs. private land"), setting up new lines can cause you trouble with other trappers if you don't know what you're doing, and it can be very expensive for non-residents.

I would urge you or your husband to work with an experienced trapper for a season before attempting it on your own. It can be fun and rewarding but only the most experienced make any real money.