Where to move in the Salt Lake area? (Sandy, West Jordan: houses, neighborhoods)

[Calibelle]

Hey there everyone! My husband and I are considering moving to Salt Lake. I lived in Utah before for 4 1/2 years, but only in Utah county. I am not interested in anything that is in or below, Sandy. I didn't spend enough time in Salt Lake while I was there, to get an idea of what areas are good or not.

We are a young family, looking to buy a house. We want a good area that is not older or rundown, but still affordable. We don't want to pay anything more than $210,000. We want an area that is safe to walk in after dark, and something not too far from the 215.

Another issue, that is not meant to offend anyone, it is just our personal feelings. We ARE LDS. But my experience in Utah (Happy) Valley was, that I wouldn't want to raise kids there. It was great when I was young, single, and dating, but I wouldn't live there now. I have friends from Salt Lake, and they know exactly what I mean when I say, I am not a fan of the over all "FEEL" of Utah Valley. I met a lot of good people there, and have good friends who live there, but as an over all whole, it is not my choice of social atmosphere.

Is there an area that is a little more diverse, that doesn't have such a "bubble" feel to it? We don't want to live smack in the downtown of SLC, but are looking at suburbs. Diversity is something that is really important to us, as we have lived all over the world, and enjoy all types of people.

What can anyone tell me about areas like Taylorsville, West Jordan, Murray, or close-by areas. We couldn't afford anything in Holladay, or Cottonwood Heights. Places like West Valley seem a bit too far from the 215, and Bountiful although it is pretty, is too far North. I haven't heard great things about Magna.

Any input would be appreciated. Thanx!!

[coolcats]

Originally Posted by Calibelle

What can anyone tell me about areas like Taylorsville, West Jordan, Murray, or close-by areas. We couldn't afford anything in Holladay, or Cottonwood Heights. Places like West Valley seem a bit too far from the 215, and Bountiful although it is pretty, is too far North. I haven't heard great things about Magna.

Any input would be appreciated. Thanx!!

West Valley does border 215, but you wouldn't want to live in those neighborhoods in my opinion. There are some nice Taylorsville neighborhoods that border 215. You could check out houses in West Valley off of the SR201 freeway. Those neighborhoods are newer, and an easy drive to downtown. West Jordan is actually a bit of a pain. There is no really good way to get there from freeways, so you have to drive a lot on city streets to get there. Murray seems decent -- good access to the freeways and Trax. It's probably a bit more expensive.

[Elder_Shawn]

Originally Posted by Calibelle

Another issue, that is not meant to offend anyone, it is just our personal feelings. We ARE LDS. But my experience in Utah (Happy) Valley was, that I wouldn't want to raise kids there. It was great when I was young, single, and dating, but I wouldn't live there now. I have friends from Salt Lake, and they know exactly what I mean when I say, I am not a fan of the over all "FEEL" of Utah Valley. I met a lot of good people there, and have good friends who live there, but as an over all whole, it is not my choice of social atmosphere.

Is there an area that is a little more diverse, that doesn't have such a "bubble" feel to it? We don't want to live smack in the downtown of SLC, but are looking at suburbs. Diversity is something that is really important to us, as we have lived all over the world, and enjoy all types of people.
Any input would be appreciated. Thanx!!

I feel the same about the bubble. My wife went to school there for a semester and never returned lol. I always feel weird going down there...I think it's the MTC vibe. Much of the "affordable" housing will be in the areas you mentioned...Taylorsville, WVC, etc. I would check out some of the listing in Millcreek and the East side. You might be suprised by something you find. The home you find might be smaller, but the area can be 3X better. My wife and I paid a premium to live in East Millcreek and love our ward and neighbors!

[Calibelle]

Ya west valley is not really an option for us. My husband thinks its that ghetto!! Maybe once we make our trip there, and he sees certain areas, he will change his mind. We will check out Millcreek though.

[coolcats]

Originally Posted by Calibelle

Ya west valley is not really an option for us. My husband thinks its that ghetto!! Maybe once we make our trip there, and he sees certain areas, he will change his mind. We will check out Millcreek though.

Utah ghettos are not as bad as some places, but WVC definitely has a ghetto feel in some places -- in the older neighborhoods by I-15 and 215. There are lots of newer decent neighborhoods, especially around 5600 west and farther west.

[Calibelle]

We want to be close to the 215, so west is not what we are really lookin' for. But if anyone can tell me more about experiences living in Murray, Taylorsville, and other Salt Lake suburbs? Once again, not Sandy/Draper, we aren't interested in those areas.

[Elder_Shawn]

Originally Posted by Calibelle

We want to be close to the 215, so west is not what we are really lookin' for. But if anyone can tell me more about experiences living in Murray, Taylorsville, and other Salt Lake suburbs? Once again, not Sandy/Draper, we aren't interested in those areas.

Remember that I-215 wraps around the valley. Here's a map for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en...07,0.2314&om=1

[dreameyes]

Hi there. I'm not sure if any thing I add here will be usefull but here goes.
We live in Murray and have for the past 5 years and before that we lived in WJ for 1 year. Where we lived in WJ it was easy access to 215 cause we were right on Redwood but if I could help it I would not live in WJ at least anywhere near Redwood but that would limit your accessibility. Anyhow I love Murray. We do wanna live somewhere a bit more rural but if convenience and accessibility is your thing it's great. It is wonderful to have Murray Rec centre so close and Murray does have great schools. I read once that the Logan and Murray schools were the best in the state. Murray is quite a large area. We live near fashion place mall so our accessibility to 215 is less than a minute and we are close to Trax too which can be convenient. One thing we don't really like here though is although the people in our area are very nice and it is beautiful here, most people are like 60+!! So if you want an OLD, quiet, pretty area; here is great. But like I said Murray is large and I can only speak from where I live. Also Murray is quite pricey. Hope that helps!
P.S. I totally get ya about not wanting to raise kids in "the bubble" That's one of the concerns me and my husband have if we moved South.

[Calibelle]

Thanx! It's funny, because we were really leaning towards Murray anyways, and it is so great to hear that they have good schools! I also saw that they have a Super Walmart, which makes me happy.

Another question..... are there any whole food markets close by in Murray? In California where I am from we have Trader Joe's which is AWESOME, but we really love our health food too. So what is there in that area as far as health food stores go???

[Elder_Shawn]

Originally Posted by Calibelle

Thanx! It's funny, because we were really leaning towards Murray anyways, and it is so great to hear that they have good schools! I also saw that they have a Super Walmart, which makes me happy.

Another question..... are there any whole food markets close by in Murray? In California where I am from we have Trader Joe's which is AWESOME, but we really love our health food too. So what is there in that area as far as health food stores go???

WIld Oats is organic food central. Another map of their locations:

http://www.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en...UTF8&z=10&om=1