Things to know before moving to Anchorage (Wasilla, Palmer: sales, apartments)

[awestover89]

My SO was (tentatively) offered a very good job in Anchorage, AK, pending background check and all those necessities. This came a little out of the blue as we didn't think his chances were too good, so we had only done the basic research to be certain that we could see ourselves living in Alaska. Now that it seems likely this will actually happen, we are going through and doing the real grunt work for research.

What are some of the general things that it's good to know about Anchorage or Alaska in general before moving up there?

We currently both own small sedans (Civic and Corolla), are those fine for Alaska living or should we trade in for a truck or something else with a bit more power?

I know that in the cities further north you need some sort of power block to plug your car's engine in, at least during the winter. Is that necessary in Anchorage as well? What about snow chains?

As far as living arrangements, what's the best option for finding pet friendly housing? We have two cats and a medium/large dog, and I know a lot of apartments, at least around Chicago, are limited on what pets they allow. Would we be able to find rentals that allow all pets, or do we need to look into buying a house? If buying, what is the market like? My biggest fear is if we wind up moving again in 4-5 years (it's a government job, not sure how often/if we will relocate offices) it will be hard to sell.

What should we expect with utilities/internet/cell phone? Can we get cable/broadband internet or is it satellite only? Will T-Mobile work, or what cell providers should we look into? Are most properties well water/septic systems or is it a public water/sewage setup?

Anything else that you might think would be good to know would also be appreciated.

[AKStafford]

Your T-Mobile phone will be roaming here. AT&T & Verizon are the national carriers here, with GCI being the local carrier.
In Anchorage you can use GCI or ACS for cable/internet.
Renting with pets will be more challenging.
Are you looking to be in Anchorage, or would consider commuting from Eagle River, Chugiak, Birchwood or even Wasilla or Palmer?
Your cars should be fine. You can get block heaters installed when you get here. No need for snow chains.

[awestover89]

Originally Posted by AKStafford

Your T-Mobile phone will be roaming here. AT&T & Verizon are the national carriers here, with GCI being the local carrier.
In Anchorage you can use GCI or ACS for cable/internet.
Renting with pets will be more challenging.
Are you looking to be in Anchorage, or would consider commuting from Eagle River, Chugiak, Birchwood or even Wasilla or Palmer?
Your cars should be fine. You can get block heaters installed when you get here. No need for snow chains.

Thanks for your response.

We'd be willing to commute, his future boss lives in Eagle River, so I can't imagine it would be that bad of a commute. Google maps says about a half hour, which is close to his current commute. Wasilla/Palmer might be pushing it a bit, not sure yet. Is there any problems with driving on 1? I see it looks like it goes through the military base.

[heathen]

Very generally speaking, there's not much about moving to Anchorage or Eagle River that would be different from moving to any other similar sized city in the US, especially if you'll be making the move when there's no snow on the ground. Internet is expensive and I think data caps are still common in Anchorage, but you do have cable, broadband, and mobile 4gLTE. Utilities and food are expensive, but not nearly as over the top as the interior and off the road system. I've known plenty of renters with pets, but that'll likely make an already expensive market even worse. Seems it would be better to rent a house?

If you're moving up in spring/summer/fall, don't worry about the cars, or about winter clothes or anything like that. That can all be figured out when you get here. Once winter hits, you'll find front wheel drive sedans are common, and work fine on most days. You'll want to get some good snow tires though. People almost never use chains in town, but they are necessary several days every winter after freezing rain (along with 4wd) on the steep backroads up on the hillside where a substantial portion of the population lives.

Most people who live in Eagle River work in Anchorage, or on base. The highway is surrounded by military land, but you wouldn't know it. There's certainly no checkpoint or anything if that's what you're wondering. Also, everybody up here refers to the highways by their names not numbers. I honestly didn't know that was highway 1, haha.

[Alaskan Mutt]

Originally Posted by awestover89

Thanks for your response.

We'd be willing to commute, his future boss lives in Eagle River, so I can't imagine it would be that bad of a commute. Google maps says about a half hour, which is close to his current commute. Wasilla/Palmer might be pushing it a bit, not sure yet. Is there any problems with driving on 1? I see it looks like it goes through the military base.

From Eagle River to Anchorage you pass by a military base. The base has land on both sides of the highway. However you do not actually go on the base.

Some people will tell you the commute from Eagle River is no problem while others will tell you it is a big hassle. I guess it all depends on what you are use to. Year round you have to watch out for the moose crossing the highway. Come the first snowfall of the season that 30 minute drive can become a 2 hour drive or even longer. A few times a year there will be freezing rain. Once in a while it gets foggy. The biggest problem is if the highway shuts down for whatever reason there is no alt route to take. When this happens all you can do sit and wait. When I lived in Anchorage there were a few Park & Ride options. However once you get to Anchorage city bus coverage is poor.

[awestover89]

Are the northern lights visible from Anchorage at all? How difficult is it to get used to the extended day/night cycle? As I understand Anchorage doesn't get the 24 hour sun/24 hour night, but it does still get more disparity than the lower 48

[grandma4mom5]

I live in an apartment in South Anchorage surrounded by other apartment buildings, and I have seen the lights from my window. It is rare, as it is usually overcast when they are active. Coming from Chicago, you'll know there are good and bad parts of any city. Traffic has time patterns, there is a bus route to the valley & back. bus service in town is decent, depending on where and when. i know one woman who drives her car in the summer and takes the bus in the winter. some rental places have plug ins for cars, others don't. if you get a house, maybe it'll have a garage. i carry chains if i'm going through a pass, or when i was living more remote in a non level area. otherwise, there's a season for when you are allowed to have studded tires or not. mechanic shops are busy around deadline to have them off. or at the start of the season after the first snow. AWD vehicles are best, and there are a LOT of subaru's, i have one. some people adapt well to the short winter days and long summer days, but some do not, hard to tell what you'll do. there are things you can do to help adjust until you get used to it. the thrift stores can have good seasonal clothes, and moving sales are an option. you can rent apartments with animals, but be prepared to pay extra, and some have breed & # restrictions. if you are moving here, best to sell everything you can first. driving will be expensive, whichever path you choose to get here. there are so many questions you have, and many threads on here to read through with good suggestions. the MILEPOST is something you HAVE to get if you are traveling by car on the ALCAN.

[Alaskan Mutt]

Originally Posted by awestover89

Are the northern lights visible from Anchorage at all? How difficult is it to get used to the extended day/night cycle? As I understand Anchorage doesn't get the 24 hour sun/24 hour night, but it does still get more disparity than the lower 48

For me the extended daylight was awesome. I found that I needed less sleep during the summer. About the only thing I would suggest is when looking for a place to live try to find something where the bedrooms do not get direct sunlight in the evenings.

The extended darkness was not good for me. I found myself sleeping more than I should and not really wanting to do much. If this turns out to be the case for you then you might want to invest in some lights that help you overcome the darkness issues. Also you might want to join a few clubs or perhaps take a few classes at the community college.

Some winters I saw the northern lights several times. Other winters not so often.

[awestover89]

One more question that today's news about the Supreme Court reminded me, is Anchorage relatively gay friendly? I'm not worried about my husband's job since the federal government has their own discrimination laws regardless of state, but just in general, what is the local tolerance like?

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by awestover89

One more question that today's news about the Supreme Court reminded me, is Anchorage relatively gay friendly? I'm not worried about my husband's job since the federal government has their own discrimination laws regardless of state, but just in general, what is the local tolerance like?

In my opinion, Anchorage is a very liberal city and seems to be very gay friendly. I'm not gay, and I don't live there, but when I visit that is the vibe I get.