How do you you people make money in rural Alaska (Metlakatla: 2015, apartment)

[Snowball7]

just curious, i'm hoping an easy question here..

can you live ok over there without a car, just by ATV/dirt bike/snowmobile/horseback ?
assuming you have all the other requirements ?

[AKStafford]

Originally Posted by Snowball7

just curious, i'm hoping an easy question here..

can you live ok over there without a car, just by ATV/dirt bike/snowmobile/horseback ?
assuming you have all the other requirements ?

Depends on exactly where you are asking about...

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by RayinAK

Can you tell us which village you are referring to? I just don't know of any village in Alaska where rent is so cheap. Then you say, " That price is just for the house," which got me completely lost. Are you saying that you are paying $200.00 a month for a house?

Yep. Rent is 200 a month in this village. Some people pay more ($300 is the going rate for the newer homes), but that is what the older houses rent for. THey are not in great shape and as mentioned, housing is almost non-existent. Two years ago there were two homes for rent in the village. That is it. WE looked at both, and I was not moving my family into the house. I pay $650 (water/oil included). My power bill runs about $120 month on average. So my total housing cost is $770 for 900 sq ft home (large home in the village).

I live on the Yukon River. Middle Yukon.

Don't forget that every village is different. I know a teacher that lives two villages up from us and he pays $600 a month and has to pay for oil/wood/electricity.

I also know that some villages charge more for an outsider than a local...just because they can.

Not all villages have high rent prices, but the only people that live in our village that are not from our village are the teachers. Housing is an issue here as in most villages.


When we looked at renting in the village vs teacher housing here is what we determined:

Teacher housing cost was $770 month with maintenance provided and a fully furnished house.

In the village:
REnt: 200
Oil: depends on the insulation quality but I estimated $400 month
Electricity: same rate
Water: $120 mnth
Maintenance: on me...
Furniture: On me...
Sq footage: around 600.
Fire wood: $375/cord
And a longer commute (about a mile, which isn't bad, but it all adds up).

We ultimately decided not to go with the house in the village b/c of our two small children. The house was not what I wanted to raise my kids in and I also had heard horror stories of family members moving back to the village and kicking current renters out of their family's house.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by Snowball7

just curious, i'm hoping an easy question here..

can you live ok over there without a car, just by ATV/dirt bike/snowmobile/horseback ?
assuming you have all the other requirements ?

Depends on where you live. Our first year we didn't have any motorized transportation. Second year we bought 4 wheeler and canoe with motor. This year we bought our snowmachine. I had no intentions of owning a car/truck in the village. However, budget cuts forced us to move. Where we are moving to, we will bring a vehicle. Will wait on the ATVs.

[TheKezarWoodsman]

i dont need a car, a truck would be helpful to haul lumber, but not needed. i dont trust myself on a dirtbike, but the others all work. Ive been on atvs since i was literally 5 or 6 years old.

[TheKezarWoodsman]

also regarding wood, what would be a resonable amount to go through assuming its your main heatsource up there a year? 10 cords, or would it be more in range at 20, assuming an average insulation quality?

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by wolfhelm

also regarding wood, what would be a resonable amount to go through assuming its your main heatsource up there a year? 10 cords, or would it be more in range at 20, assuming an average insulation quality?

Depends on the winter and location. Interior is colder, but we have had two mild winters back to back.

I do not heat with wood (oil is provided) but my friend says that he plans on using 6 cords a winter.

[TheKezarWoodsman]

Are you interior, or costal.

As well, whats the laws up there on cutting firewood on state lands, do you need a permit, pay by chord, or is it outright barred?

As well, how safe is it to eat freshwater fish? Down here its all hogh merc waters, so more than a meal a month is toxic.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by wolfhelm

Are you interior, or costal.

As well, whats the laws up there on cutting firewood on state lands, do you need a permit, pay by chord, or is it outright barred?

As well, how safe is it to eat freshwater fish? Down here its all hogh merc waters, so more than a meal a month is toxic.

We are more interior. But in the delta. It gets cold. coldest I saw this year was -38 for about a week. But other than that one week, i didn't wear my parka at all.

There is pollution in the rivers here. But all my protein came from the Yukon River and the moose we shot.

[Metlakatla]

I don't think you'll find those rental rates in coastal Alaska.

One thing to remember about mercury in seafood -- as a general rule, the colder the water, the less mercury the fish contains.