Questions for those who moved to Grand Junction/Fruita/Moab/ from Boise (Montrose: apartment)

[Fwdvision]

Hi,

I've lived in Boise for a considerable length of time. When I first moved here Boise wasn't "discovered" by the masses. A 1 bedroom apartment in a good location near the Boise foothills was 1/4 - 1/3 the cost of in Coastal S. California. It has been pretty good for me in terms of a not unpleasant, simple existence! If you can say anything at all good coming of the pandemic, is that employers seem to be more open to remote work and realize employees can be trusted to be accountable, reliable, and hardworking without physically being on their premises. That makes makes life a little easier, I hope. I like the autonomy, and some flexibility on where and how I work, I hope that for many of us, "return to the office" becomes an option, rather than an obligation, if possible.

Californication, as RHCP said in their seminal album! Californication of Idaho (or at least greater Boise)

So, I'd like to hear from anyone who has moved to Grand Junction, Fruita, Moab, from Boise, in say the last 5 - 10 years - especially if you're on a budget, defined as your earnings are less than $35,000 individually or maybe up to $80,000 combined. Do you feel you are better off? - financially, job satisfaction, emotionally, mentally, physically, etc., other ways you measure that, after your move???



A bit off topic, but being an avid mountain biker, I already know the quality of the trails down there are very good, pretty technical, and with a wide variety and the topography is beautiful, maybe even stunning!


Anyway, I appreciate the good info folks can provide me on here, and thank you in advance!

[COcheesehead]

We moved to Grand Junction about two years ago. Our socioeconomic status was higher than what you stated so take what I say with a grain of salt. We are also retired, so work-life does not factor at all into our daily life.

We love it here. Recreation is abundant. There is a low key chill factor that permeates almost all aspects of life.
The weather is hot and dry in summer, cool and dry in winter if that interests you. You have almost all the retail you need, plus two, major carrier serviced airports in GJ and Montrose.

Easy access to Moab, Telluride, Ouray and many national parks.

We have two hospitals, a vibrant craft brew community as well as Colorado’s wine region in Palisade. We also have major music acts and local acts playing here on a regular basis. Good restaurants and the community is investing in growth.

With all that said, the Grand Valley is quickly becoming discovered. Rentals and housing here are getting hard to obtain, both from an inventory standpoint as well as quickly elevating prices.

I think the next three to five years here will be exciting, if you can find a job and a house.

[Dogmama50]

I don't have a direct comparison, been to Boise, lived in the Colorado mountains for years, know GJ pretty well. I do have a friend that is considering relocating from Maine to GJ and I advised her to also look at St. George, UT.

I have noticed in the past few years that Fruita has become very saturated with 2nd homeowners and weekend warriors, Moab seems packed all the time, there are a lot of pluses to the area but the cost of living has risen. I mentioned St. George to my friend since it seems like the cost of living is pretty good and the ability to easily be in some amazing places is very high.

As always the best advise is to visit, drive around, talk to anyone you can.

[COcheesehead]

Originally Posted by Dogmama50

I don't have a direct comparison, been to Boise, lived in the Colorado mountains for years, know GJ pretty well. I do have a friend that is considering relocating from Maine to GJ and I advised her to also look at St. George, UT.

I have noticed in the past few years that Fruita has become very saturated with 2nd homeowners and weekend warriors, Moab seems packed all the time, there are a lot of pluses to the area but the cost of living has risen. I mentioned St. George to my friend since it seems like the cost of living is pretty good and the ability to easily be in some amazing places is very high.

As always the best advise is to visit, drive around, talk to anyone you can.

I haven’t noticed the second homeowner phenomenon in Fruita. It’s still really low key with not much development. It’s mostly zoned as agriculture land.

We spend time in St George as a weekend getaway. Zion is stupid busy, but we like Snow Canyon SP and Kayenta. The town overall is crazy busy. If you are rich and mormon, you may find it attractive, but otherwise, I think it’s jumped the shark. Lots of traffic, lots of tourists and summers are deathly hot.

We considered it briefly for retirement, but decided GJ was more our style.

Just a few years ago, St George was the fastest growing metro area in the US. If you go there today, it shows. The infrastructure isn’t there yet, but the people are.

[otowi]

My dad's family has been in the Zion/St. George area for generations. It has grown a lot and gotten very busy. A lot of its small town appeal is now gone, imho. Zion is a nightmare of crowds and traffic. Maybe there is an off season when it is better.

[johngrossbard]

Hi Fwdvision, I'm about 1.5 years late reading your post! I lived in Boise from 2010-2016 and then Grand Junction from 2016-2020. If you're still interested I can give you some info if you want to DM me!