Need advice on areas on UT to move too. (Salt Lake City: appointed, new house)

[Tool Shed]

Hello, my wife and I are considering leaving socal (Temecula), due to many common reasons. We have a 4 month old daughter and of coarse our yellow Labrador. My wife will soon have a degree in child development, and I might go back to school for an economics degree or start a photography business. We want a nice city to raise our child, with most of the conveniences of a larger community. We like outdoor activities, camping, Lake Powell, mountain biking, motorcycles, etc. I have no problems with LDS, and we are Christians. I also currently work at Costco, so I may be able to transfer to a Costco to help us get started. We have Costco's in these Cities:

Lehi
Murray
Orem
S. Ogden
Salt Lake City
Sandy
St. George
West Bountiful

I would consider all of these except St. George. Thanks in advance!

[ComingToHeber]

Have you looked into Heber? It's pretty close to Provo and Orem, and it's a more rural feel. We're looking to possibly move there later this year, and we live in Lake Tahoe, CA.

[chazcrew]

All of those cities you listed are within very easy commuting distance of what you're looking for. For instance, you might not want to live in S. ogden but you could easily work there and live in one of many smaller towns surrounding it. Same with Salt Lake. Murray and Sandy are basically suburbs of SLC, so you could find a suburban lifestyle with a yard for the dog and decent schools for the kids, and still live near your job. The Lehi Costco is really new, and Lehi is growing like crazy. You could easily find what you wanted in that area, lots of families and safe cities and good schools. I'm a little biased, I admit, because I only live about 10 minutes from there. But I really like where I live.

Lastly, all of those areas are close to all of the outdoor activities you want. I'm only a five-minute drive from the nearest canyon, and there are many nice areas along the mountains with similar access.

Heber is a great area, but I warn you that your commute would be long to get to the orem Costco, and you would have to go through a canyon to get there, which can be a problem in winter. It's beautiful though, and would give you a rural, small-town feel.

That probably wasn't very helpful, was it? But it's hard to narrow it down because there are so many options. If you knew for sure which store you were transferring to, then it would be easier to recommend areas near that store that you might like.

[Tool Shed]

Thanks for the replies, I will take it all in. If we had our ways, eventually I would like a larger lot, over 1 acre. This doesn't need to be immediate, but thats my American dream for the family and the dog(s). What can you tell me about Sandy and Orem, and does anyone know if there is some good off-highway riding/atv trails, or even a motocross park near any of these areas? Also, do these communities have a local airports, my dad has a Cessna and that might be a factor too. Thanks again!

[RockyMtnr]

Originally Posted by Tool Shed

Thanks for the replies, I will take it all in. If we had our ways, eventually I would like a larger lot, over 1 acre. This doesn't need to be immediate, but thats my American dream for the family and the dog(s). What can you tell me about Sandy and Orem, and does anyone know if there is some good off-highway riding/atv trails, or even a motocross park near any of these areas? Also, do these communities have a local airports, my dad has a Cessna and that might be a factor too. Thanks again!

Lots of moto-cross trails right at the Salt Lake.
Sorry, but I would never recommend Orem to anybody. No offense.
Sandy and Murray would be good bets - but good luck finding a whole acre.
South Jordan, Riverton and maybe Bluffdale and Draper might be your best bets for an acre - and they're all pretty good areas. Draper is just south of Sandy. Riverton and Bluffdale are south of South Jordan - which is south of West Jordan.
While you can keep a plane at Salt Lake and possibly West Jordan, you can also keep one in Ogden - which might prove better in the long run.

[sofam]

Tool Shed,

You might want to check out Grantsville if you are willing to commute (half hour to Salt Lake). Probably easier to find a one acre lot and there is a small airport between Stansbury and Grantsville. Plus you would have quick access to atv riding southwest of town. You can be in the Deseret Peak Wilderness area in a half hour also.

[VC dreamer]

Hey Tool Shed,

Welcome to Utah!!! We moved here from Hemet, last December. I used to work in Temecula, right there on Margarita Rd & Winchester. We live in Saratoga Springs right now, and I work in West Valley City (another San Jacinto) and the commute from here to there each day is 45 minutes. 10 minutes less than it took me to get from Hemet to Temecula and it's about 9 miles further.
Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain are very rural kinda like Murrieta was about 15 years ago and basically the only way in or out of here is Redwood Rd, which is another winchester without all the new houses and traffic lights, but we are very close to the Lehi Costco.
The housing prices out here are unbelievably low, about 1/3rd the price of a home in Temecula, they are well spaced with very large front and backyards.
Salt Lake county is very diverse, and more in pace with California, while Utah county tends to be more of the "small town", "mayberry" kind of place.
Do your research throughly, and try to spend some time in the areas your interested in, if you can. Utah is a beautiful state, and has a great deal to offer. You won't be disappointed, once you get used to the slower pace.

[jncsolis]

I have to say that I agree with everything that VC dreamer said and to add to it Eagle Mountain has a small airport that is up and running too. There are lots of trails out here for riding on too. If you keep going West past Eagle Mountain about 10 min. there are a lot of hills for motorcycles and 4 wheelers to ride and jump on. I live out here in Eagle Mountain too and WOW!! what a view we have. If you need any help in finding a place I am a Realtor yes I know but anyway if you need some help in your home search I would love to help you and keep you up to date on all the properties that you might be interested in. If I can help just let me know, either way Welcome to Utah!!!

John

P.S. there are 1 acre and larger lots out here that have not yet been built on too.