Possible Relocation to Retire in Wyoming (Casper, Jackson: real estate, HOA fees, how much)

[rshort]

Greetings,

We are looking to relocate along the Hwy 89 corridor. I have just retired from the Merchant Mariner industry (non-military) We are downsizing and looking for a place that is retirement friendly. We love to fly fish. Our political views are someplace in the middle.

We are used to cold, rainy weather. Past ares we lived in have been Ketchikan, AK. and Whidbey Island, WA. (south end)

My retirement income is solid. No need to find a job. Not a fan of being close to large resort towns, but fairly close to services.

Thank you for your posts.

[sunsprit]

you're essentially looking at the Star Valley area, perhaps Afton?

do you have a price range for a property?

do you want to be in a town with municipal services, in a HOA subdivision, or on unincorporated acreage?

if acreage, how much are you seeking?

what other amenities do you require? access to commercial service airport? medical facilities? shopping? entertainment?

the more you can identify as desired/needed aspects of your relocation, the more meaningful the responses here can be.

[NDak15]

Originally Posted by rshort

Greetings,

We are looking to relocate along the Hwy 89 corridor. I have just retired from the Merchant Mariner industry (non-military) We are downsizing and looking for a place that is retirement friendly. We love to fly fish. Our political views are someplace in the middle.

We are used to cold, rainy weather. Past ares we lived in have been Ketchikan, AK. and Whidbey Island, WA. (south end)

My retirement income is solid. No need to find a job. Not a fan of being close to large resort towns, but fairly close to services.

Thank you for your posts.

Politically Wyoming is pretty far right. The views are generally conservative to ultra conservative.

Fly fishing is available throughout the state. The only real resort town is Jackson and unless you have a few million lying around I would give that a pass.

What size town do you want? Also, be aware that some areas in Wyoming are predominately LDS. It's not a bad thing, but the religion could very well be a major factor in finding a social life and in politics.

[Wm Jas]

To be electable in WY, the far left is God-fearing, gun-toting and Commie hating. We certainly have many fine citizens to the left of that definition, but they are not electable.

Everyone else is on the right.

[rya700]

Why not Casper.... North Platte River is where it's at for fly fishing and less extreme (political and religious) than you are going to find in Western Wyoming
https://visitcasper.com/things-to-do...-platte-river/

[rshort]

Originally Posted by sunsprit

you're essentially looking at the Star Valley area, perhaps Afton?

do you have a price range for a property?

do you want to be in a town with municipal services, in a HOA subdivision, or on unincorporated acreage?

if acreage, how much are you seeking?

what other amenities do you require? access to commercial service airport? medical facilities? shopping? entertainment?

the more you can identify as desired/needed aspects of your relocation, the more meaningful the responses here can be.

Thanks for your post. Price range is no more than $400K on a house. Would like to stay away from HOA's. A little bit of acreage (2 acres) is good. Access to within a reasonable distance to a commercial airport works. Yes, medical facilities is a plus. Shopping, kinda. Entertainment, not so much. Not sure if Internet is accessed via the big 3 or via wireless companies.

We currently live in the Monterey Bay area of California. I ended up here due to a job with the State which I retired the first time in 2011. I grew up in Lancaster, CA. and left for the Navy in 1972. Swore I would never come back to California. That did not workout as planned. HA!

[jody_wy]

there are 29 access on Salt River for fishing in Star Valley , Surrounded by 3 different National Forest with some small mountain lakes , streams and rivers . You have the Salt, Greys, and Snake rivers. A day trip up to Tri Divide basin and you can catch 3 of your Cutt-Slam https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Fishing-and-Boa...t-Slam.Jackson , Idaho Falls , Logan Ut even SLC are close for shopping. Well in Wyoming 1 to 3 hour drive is close.

[sunsprit]

rshort wrote: "Price range is no more than $400K on a house. Would like to stay away from HOA's. A little bit of acreage (2 acres) is good. Access to within a reasonable distance to a commercial airport works. Yes, medical facilities is a plus. Shopping, kinda. Entertainment, not so much. Not sure if Internet is accessed via the big 3 or via wireless companies."

As one who's been looking for a "new" to us 2nd home in other areas of Wyoming at this time, it's a very interesting marketplace right now in the Star Valley area.

A briefest glance at Zillow for the Afton area has several properties in your price range that "pop" out of the current offerings … take a look at:

1926 Dry Creek Road, Afton. 10 acres, a horse property with outbuildings/workshops/small indoor riding arena, and pix that show a fairly nice house. At $389K, it's a heck of a value compared to some of the places I've recently looked at.

376 SH 236, Afton, on 3.1 acres. Not much description or pix of the house posted, but it's listed at $239. No HOA fees, but CC&R's. Perhaps an expired HOA development with no active HOA anymore?

yet another house in Afton on 1.3 acres at $189K.

and so forth … lots of options present at this time. Looks like it could be a good time to be looking in this area. If it wasn't so far away from where I'm currently looking … I'd be all over that first property above.

Of course, please note my concerns posted in other threads re Wyoming real estate pro's. Do you due diligence on every aspect of a purchase. Do not expect or rely upon the levels of competency or ethics that you have experienced in other markets. Make no assumptions about a property, ask about every detail and get responses that satisfy you rather than generalizations or nods from the agent. Have inspections/surveys/appraisals done on your behalf accountable to you, not the seller or the RE agent. Bear in mind that when the closing funds are paid, everybody else gets their money and you are now the proud owner of the place … warts, if any, included. Keep your eyes open and use common sense.

Good luck with your search. The Star Valley is a lovely place to settle into. Reasonable access to SLC for your major shopping/medical/air travel needs.

One question: Have you spent any time/travels in this part of the country before? If not, I urge you to come visit the areas of Wyoming under consideration for at least a few weeks during the winter months as well as the summer time. What presents here is a fairly unique combination of climate/winds/access to outdoor recreation/regional travels/costs of living/population density. In a word … "it's not for everybody". I've seen a lot of folks come and go in less than 2 years who really wanted this place to be something that it isn't, usually based upon a false paradigm of YNP everywhere. It's not. YMMV.

[NDak15]

Originally Posted by rshort

Thanks for your post. Price range is no more than $400K on a house. Would like to stay away from HOA's. A little bit of acreage (2 acres) is good. Access to within a reasonable distance to a commercial airport works. Yes, medical facilities is a plus. Shopping, kinda. Entertainment, not so much. Not sure if Internet is accessed via the big 3 or via wireless companies.

We currently live in the Monterey Bay area of California. I ended up here due to a job with the State which I retired the first time in 2011. I grew up in Lancaster, CA. and left for the Navy in 1972. Swore I would never come back to California. That did not workout as planned. HA!

I'm going to second Casper based on these criteria.

[Wm Jas]

lead shoes required for Casper - not that wind is an unacceptable criteria