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Boisefan does have a point about the growth. I personally would be happier if we had a population the size we were 30 years ago. And we have definitely had major growing pains, as the infrastructure has not kept up with the growth. So I do resent the growth as a phenomenon, but not the individual people who move here. I can't blame people for wanting the life we have here, but I do acknowledge that the more people who move here to get "it", the less of "it" exists.
A major trait I have noticed in the Idaho/Boise forums over the past few years is if someone from California or wherever posts a question in the main Idaho forum about moving to North Idaho the forumers are usually always amicable and answer questions and are welcoming to the person interested in moving to Idaho.
If a person from California or wherever posts a question in the Boise forum about moving to Boise there is one, maybe 2 forumer(s) who reply with a rude tone and almost blame the person interested in moving to Boise and in a shrouded tone tell the interested person to Keep Out!!! This tone is not at all representative of the Boise I have come to know. Maybe it is because in my work and personal life I know a lot of people who have moved here from out of state and they speak about how their lives are better here and believe it or not they are younger professionals, some with young families, and they really appreciate Boise and Idaho for what it offers them.
When I look online it appears that there are many open jobs and all demographics about unemployment Boise looks pretty good for job seekers. I also have read about low wages??? They are the same as from where I am from and our cost of living is much much higher. We are nice people and we are trying to escape CA not bring it with us to a new place. We know how bad CA is more then most out there. My Little valley is running out of water completely. Ramped Drugs, taxes, gangs, worst air quality in the nation, crime rates, and crooked law makers. CA is broken. We want somewhere beautiful somewhere better thats all
When I look online it appears that there are many open jobs and all demographics about unemployment Boise looks pretty good for job seekers. I also have read about low wages??? They are the same as from where I am from and our cost of living is much much higher. We are nice people and we are trying to escape CA not bring it with us to a new place. We know how bad CA is more then most out there. My Little valley is running out of water completely. Ramped Drugs, taxes, gangs, worst air quality in the nation, crime rates, and crooked law makers. CA is broken. We want somewhere beautiful somewhere better thats all
There are a few posters on this site who routinely talk about the horrible wages and job situation in the Boise area. The truth is unemployment is currently very low and there are a lot of pretty high paying professional jobs available to people who have the right credentials. It is true that there are also low paying service sector jobs but that's true anywhere. I make a very good living here and have no problem comfortably supporting my stay at home wife and kids, and most of my friends do quite well also.
If you show up in Boise with no experience or education and expect to earn a high wage you'll probably be disappointed. If you have more realistic expectations and put in the effort to make yourself desirable to employers, you'll do fine.
Don't let a small vocal minority discourage you from your dreams, I doubt most Boise area residents are all that worried about new arrivals coming from California.
Remember, many of those moving to the Boise area are "Retiring" to the Boise area because they have looked the area over and found that it offers what want in retirement. Lots of outdoor activities, low crime rates, low cost of living, and LESS intrusion in their personal life and freedoms.
Many of the new comers are bringing money to spend, will be contributing to school systems via taxes, yet will not make any use of those systems because they have no school age children. Many of these new arrivals are NOT taking jobs. Many of the new homes are designed for and priced for that segment moving to the Boise area.
Yes many of us are ex californians who came up in 96 hell when we left boise for rural california (folks wanted to be closer to family to retire) we miss idaho a great deal but love the weather here and this little part of cali is still conservative family oriented and slow paced lifestyle wise. Boise is getting quite large and different from what it once was. That said it pulls at me. I only lived in california till I was 7 with regular visits though yearly and so I found living in boise I was more liberal than many in my thinking and most of my friends were former californians with a rare native here and there.
As for the economy Idaho needs to bring high tech companies especially to boise and the treasure valley. And idaho does have much to learn from california both good and (mostly) bad.
Katie Giles... sounds like you may be trying to escape from Bakersfield. Am I close? We did a few months ago. LOVE it here! PM me if you want... we can chat!
katie giles... Sounds like you may be trying to escape from bakersfield. Am i close? We did a few months ago. Love it here! Pm me if you want... We can chat!
I also posted this in another thread, but I'll throw it out there in this one too........
Interesting thread. Here's our story: We plan to retire in 4 years or so from our San Diego area jobs and are strongly considering moving to Boise. It's in our top three destinations. We want to get our daughter on a track outside of California, and regain our own sanity. Simply put, the far left politicians from LA and SF that run Sacramento do not share our values and we have been wanting to leave for a long time. California's 9.3% state income tax, and otherwise high cost of living is something we also don't want in our retirement. We'd go now if we could financially swing it.
Regarding anti-California sentiment in Boise....I suppose I can understand the frustration with real estate prices rising due to demand from transplants, but aside from that I can guarantee that Boise will benefit greatly from us. All of the money we've saved over many decades of hard work will be spent in Boise in retirement. Idaho will also gain our daughter, a fantastic kid raised with strong traditional values. Heck, one of us even has some CalPers pension coming from a past job, all of which will be spent in Idaho, thus creating jobs and adding to the economy. California's fetish with illegal aliens and leftist politics is driving us out. The state makes it perfectly clear who it sides with so, I guess we'll take our $ and go, thank you very much.
For a gauge of how many people are making the move out of California, just go to the Uhaul wesite and compare, say, the cost of renting a truck from LA to Boise (or Austin, or or or), to the reverse direction. It's about 3-4x more to leave california due to the high exit demand. This place was paradise decades ago, but it ain't now. We don't want our grandkids growing up here.
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