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We are curious if anyone else has moved from So Cal or Hawaii to Boise...? If so, we wanted to know what the biggest challenges were for you when moving to Boise and if it was somewhat easy to adjust...?? I.E: climate, people, bugs, no ocean , grey skies, etc..... I know these types of things might not be a big deal to most but they are for us as we have never really been exposed to anything but 80+ degree weather with sun everyday for years on end. A bit scary to say the least. But again, we need to relocate due to financial problems. Thank you for any info.
I consider myself a BEACH person and have family in San Diego and have been to Hawaii (4 of the islands) on numerous ocassions ! I have been in this area for almost 4 yrs and my 'professional' opinion is that your family will have a difficult time adjusting to ID and that you would be much better off back in CA.
Have you considered Northern CA? You can find quite a few deals on RE there in your price range . Or, just rent a home until you are really certain that your family will like it here or some place else. I'm now wishing that I had done that before buying here, even though I love my home and where I live. That would be my best advice for you !
Below is a post from "Donnam" who is from SD and lived in Boise recently, but decided to move back to SD. I am in strong agreement with what he or she has written:
I consider myself a BEACH person and have family in San Diego and have been to Hawaii (4 of the islands) on numerous ocassions ! I have been in this area for almost 4 yrs and my 'professional' opinion is that your family will have a difficult time adjusting to ID and that you would be much better off back in CA.
Have you considered Northern CA? You can find quite a few deals on RE there in your price range . Or, just rent a home until you are really certain that your family will like it here or some place else. I'm now wishing that I had done that before buying here, even though I love my home and where I live. That would be my best advice for you !
Below is a post from "Donnam" who is from SD and lived in Boise recently, but decided to move back to SD. I am in strong agreement with what he or she has written:
Aloha, Thank you for your reply. We have looked into Nor Cal but homes seem pretty pricey up there as well plus I dont have a job opportunity in that area. When you say difficult time adjusting.....what things do you find hard to adjust with in Boise? We are at the stage in our lives where we want to settle down and buy a home in a family oriented city with good schools and good Christian churches. We love San Diego but we would be forced to continue renting there as we cannot afford a decent sized home there or in Hawaii.
I guess you can say we are open minded and willing to adjust our lifestyle for our future and children's sake. Renting a condo with ocean view is great but our kids don't have anywhere to run and "be kids" here in Hawaii unless we drive them to a park or the beach. Boise seems like sprawling neighborhoods where the kids can just be kids and play throughout......? I guess we'll see once we get there.
I agree with HDL on the Beach thing. If you love the beach and the San Diego culture ... there is a much different vibe here, that can not compare to coastal living.
Now having said that ... I still like it here and I am a Southern California former resident (born and raised) who now lives in Boise/Eagle, so I will chime in.
Like HDL (who will never steer you wrong- look at her rep pts!), I too consider myself a beach person and I would have a home along the ocean if I ever won the lottery.
However, life and career dealt me a different hand and I somehow managed to fall in love and marry a man from Arizona. (side note: we got married and honeymooned in HI)
But we settled the "valley o the Sun " Arizona.
From the get go, AZ was tooooooo hot for me and I spent 9 years telling him I couldn't live there for the REST of my life - I wanted to return to CA, but everything was way too expensive for the lifestyle we wanted . All we really wanted was a nice house in a good area, with outdoor activities and good schools. That's not a lot to want.
We had a little house in AZ but with a second child on the way we quickly outgrew our "starter house" and wanted something a bit bigger in a nicer neighborhood. We began our research in earnest and discovered Boise, through family friends and online articles ... then of course - city data
The people on this message board are the BEST and I gleaned a lot of information from those who took the time to respond in many states.
We eventually visited Boise and loved it. It took us over a year to find employment - from AZ - it was worth the wait. We moved here in the fall of 2007. We rented a home for a bit over a year and just recently purchased a home - after deciding exactly what part of town we want to settle in. We don't regret the move for a minute. The saving grace for me is the river that runs through the middle of the city. Yes, it’s a small thing ...but if you are a water person, it feeds that part of you even if it’s just for the occasional stroll or bike ride. Compared to CA or HI ... well, you can't compare ... its different here.
It's impossible to match the beauty of Big Sur, an ocean sunset in Hawaii or the redwoods. But, it's still a great town with many charming aspects if you take it for what it is - a nice mid/small size city.
I like the small town feel of Eagle - even though it's not REALLY a small town - being only 8 miles from downtown Boise. However, when we purchased our home 2 months ago, we actually got several welcome baskets from neighbors . It was nice ... we got jams, jellies, bread, cookies ... all kinds of stuff ... notes and phone numbers saying "call us if you need anything ..." It was great and felt like a little bit of Mayberry RFD. No one ever welcomed me into any apt or condo I had in Los Angeles ... and no one welcomed us into our first home in Scottsdale either - except the 87 year old man across the street who clearly still had good manners.
Our children love their school and the friends they've made. The really neat bonus is that we have seasons, but they are not extreme. As you know in So Cal, there are no real seasons ... it's the same in Hawaii (season = beautiful with a chance of rain) Here there is snow to play in, but it's gone quickly. The children love it. Sure, it gets hot in the summer, but not for 6 months straight like the inland empire of CA or AZ. We get winter inversions here - which remind me of coastal fog - so I'm one of the weird people who think they aren't so bad. As for rain ... I've seen very little of it in my 14 months as a resident. The beautiful cool breezes of fall along with the tree changing color, make this place feel like heaven in Sept/Oct.
Home prices are good right now and I think it's a pretty nice little corner of the state. As someone else once said on this board, Boise is big enough to have everything you need and small enough to find it. If you are like me, you have lots of friends and family along the coast or in the islands ... you can always travel to get and ocean fix. I do it at least twice a year. Final Bonus: We've got a great airport in Boise with no lines and daily flights to just about anywhere.
I agree with HDL on the Beach thing. If you love the beach and the San Diego culture ... there is a much different vibe here, that can not compare to coastal living.
Now having said that ... I still like it here and I am a Southern California former resident (born and raised) who now lives in Boise/Eagle, so I will chime in.
Like HDL (who will never steer you wrong- look at her rep pts!), I too consider myself a beach person and I would have a home along the ocean if I ever won the lottery.
However, life and career dealt me a different hand and I somehow managed to fall in love and marry a man from Arizona. (side note: we got married and honeymooned in HI)
But we settled the "valley o the Sun " Arizona.
From the get go, AZ was tooooooo hot for me and I spent 9 years telling him I couldn't live there for the REST of my life - I wanted to return to CA, but everything was way too expensive for the lifestyle we wanted . All we really wanted was a nice house in a good area, with outdoor activities and good schools. That's not a lot to want.
We had a little house in AZ but with a second child on the way we quickly outgrew our "starter house" and wanted something a bit bigger in a nicer neighborhood. We began our research in earnest and discovered Boise, through family friends and online articles ... then of course - city data
The people on this message board are the BEST and I gleaned a lot of information from those who took the time to respond in many states.
We eventually visited Boise and loved it. It took us over a year to find employment - from AZ - it was worth the wait. We moved here in the fall of 2007. We rented a home for a bit over a year and just recently purchased a home - after deciding exactly what part of town we want to settle in. We don't regret the move for a minute. The saving grace for me is the river that runs through the middle of the city. Yes, it’s a small thing ...but if you are a water person, it feeds that part of you even if it’s just for the occasional stroll or bike ride. Compared to CA or HI ... well, you can't compare ... its different here.
It's impossible to match the beauty of Big Sur, an ocean sunset in Hawaii or the redwoods. But, it's still a great town with many charming aspects if you take it for what it is - a nice mid/small size city.
I like the small town feel of Eagle - even though it's not REALLY a small town - being only 8 miles from downtown Boise. However, when we purchased our home 2 months ago, we actually got several welcome baskets from neighbors . It was nice ... we got jams, jellies, bread, cookies ... all kinds of stuff ... notes and phone numbers saying "call us if you need anything ..." It was great and felt like a little bit of Mayberry RFD. No one ever welcomed me into any apt or condo I had in Los Angeles ... and no one welcomed us into our first home in Scottsdale either - except the 87 year old man across the street who clearly still had good manners.
Our children love their school and the friends they've made. The really neat bonus is that we have seasons, but they are not extreme. As you know in So Cal, there are no real seasons ... it's the same in Hawaii (season = beautiful with a chance of rain) Here there is snow to play in, but it's gone quickly. The children love it. Sure, it gets hot in the summer, but not for 6 months straight like the inland empire of CA or AZ. We get winter inversions here - which remind me of coastal fog - so I'm one of the weird people who think they aren't so bad. As for rain ... I've seen very little of it in my 14 months as a resident. The beautiful cool breezes of fall along with the tree changing color, make this place feel like heaven in Sept/Oct.
Home prices are good right now and I think it's a pretty nice little corner of the state. As someone else once said on this board, Boise is big enough to have everything you need and small enough to find it. If you are like me, you have lots of friends and family along the coast or in the islands ... you can always travel to get and ocean fix. I do it at least twice a year. Final Bonus: We've got a great airport in Boise with no lines and daily flights to just about anywhere.
Thank you for your post. You really put a lot of thought into that and we appreciate it. I guess our biggest concern is the climate. We are not big fans of the humidity here in Hawaii but we prefer the warmer temps and sun over cold, grey days of winter....Sounds like the Boise area gets a little cold but are the skies grey for days/weeks on end??? We are mentally ready to leave Hawaii as it has become to costly for us to continue living here and afford to buy a home that we want. We do love coastal living but we hate living check to check even more! I guess there are trade offs for everything. We want to get somewhere that allows us the chance to actually take a family vacation somewhere and not go broke doing it. Thanks again for the post.
No it is not grey and gloomy for days and weeks on end.
I would go crazy if it was grey or drizzly and damp for weeks.
We were consdering Oregon before we chose Boise.
After much reading on the Oregon page, we finally realized we couldn't do Oregon or Washington.
My hair hates the humidity (that ruled out the southern states)
That is the one thing I liked about AZ ... the dry heat and dry cold.
It's dry here, too.
We quickly learned that a light dusting of snow is way better than rain because it just like little teeny tiny white bits that bounce off your windshield.
It doesn't stick to your clothes either. Rain, dampness and drizzle leave you feeling wet and muddy - light snow does not.
You should come visit in the winter (when the trees are sticks) and it's cold.
See how you like it then ... If you like it ... you'l be fine. My first visit was during the first week of January and the friends I stayed with said, "Are you sure you want to come now? Because this is NOT the prettiest time in Boise by any means..." I said yes. My thinking is that you should see a place at it's worst before you decide to move there. Since we were coming from extreme heat (AZ) - we, like you, were worried about the cold.
If someone is considering a move here from a mild climate ... I would suggest they visit in the middle of July when it's HOT. but dry
I consider myself a BEACH person and have family in San Diego and have been to Hawaii (4 of the islands) on numerous ocassions ! I have been in this area for almost 4 yrs and my 'professional' opinion is that your family will have a difficult time adjusting to ID and that you would be much better off back in CA.
Below is a post from "Donnam" who is from SD and lived in Boise recently, but decided to move back to SD. I am in strong agreement with what he or she has written:
I am from San Diego too and I would have to agree with HDL and doonan. If you really are set on moving here rent for a year, especially through the winter months, and see if its the place for you.
Feel free to Direct Message me if you have any questions.
I can totally understand you all missing the ocean and the beach. I used to live on the coast and it was one of the best experiences of my life along with living here in Boise. The way I look at it is that you give up living on the Coast for living in and near the Mountains here in Boise, it is like a trade off, one extreme to another. You trade the ocean for mountain lakes.
The mountain and forest scenery adjacent to Boise is in my opinion and many others to be among the most beautiful alpine scenery in the West. The mountainess landscape spreads out forever and has that truly wild feel to it. The first time I drove up towards Idaho City I was amazed at the beauty and heading up Highway 55 along the Payette River to the McCall area is one of the most beautiful drives I have been on in my life. I believe this drive has even been ranked as one of Americas most scenic drives.
btw, there is an excellent Hawaiian restaurant on Broadway Ave.
Maui there is a yahoo group that you might want to contact..its called CAtoID, there are a lot of people in that group and they are very friendly and helpful to new people and their questions.
Ok, I took a leap and purchased a ticket to Boise last week. I am writing this post in Boise! When I first arrived, the weather was not too bad. Around 40ish with sunshine. A little chilly for me with my thin blood from Hawaii but not as bad as I thought. Very comfortable actually. I took a drive up and down the highway(s) and this I must say is very confusing. Hopefully it is because I am not used to the area but the flatness of Boise made it difficult for me to navigate with no real indicators of which way I was going. I do think the mountains with snow are very pretty but the layout of Boise in general struck me as blah. Many nice homes here with these giant entryways with waterfalls but across the street is a trailer park or a lot with run down homes on it. Stores and restaurants galore!! Anyone who says Boise is boring or lacks in this area must be crazy. I have lived in San Diego for many years and I must say that Boise has twice the amount of stores/restaurants that San Diego has considering its size!
All in all.....homes were very beautiful and at a great price. However, wasn't sold on Boise in general but maybe tomorrow will change my mind......I am here until Monday. Wish me luck.
Aloha
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, grey skies, etc..... I know these types of things might not be a big deal to most but they are for us as we have never really been exposed to anything but 80+ degree weather with sun everyday for years on end. A bit scary to say the least. But again, we need to relocate due to financial problems. Thank you for any info.
and have family in San Diego and have been to Hawaii (4 of the islands) on numerous ocassions 
! I have been in this area for almost 4 yrs and my 'professional' opinion is that your family will have a difficult time adjusting to ID and that you would be much better off back in CA. 
. Or, just rent a home until you are really certain that your family will like it here or some place else. I'm now wishing that I had done that before buying here, even though I love my home and where I live. That would be my best advice for you 
!
A long rambling message
" Arizona.
and I spent 9 years telling him I couldn't live there for the REST of my life - I wanted to return to CA, but everything was way too expensive for the lifestyle we wanted 
. All we really wanted was a nice house in a good area, with outdoor activities and good schools. 
That's not a lot to want.
As for rain ... I've seen very little of it in my 14 months as a resident. The beautiful cool breezes of fall along with the tree changing color, make this place feel like heaven in Sept/Oct.
thank you
but dry 
