Where should I move?

[Kneale Brownson]

Craig might. Drive wouldn't be fun, though.

 

[martyg]

The original post here listed Steamboat Springs, CO as a possibility for a future home. After 16 posts no one else has mentioned it. I think Steamboat deserves consideration. The airport isn't exactly world class and isn't right in town, but it's a nice community, good schools, ski area right there, lots of outdoors in the summer, and not so far from Denver that if you need a bigger city fix it's available.

A few people that I know and respect settled in Steamboat. Lots of nice amenities.

 

[Jerez]

$300K for a lot? I bet it would fit into his budget. There are also towns that are not so far from Steamboat proper with likely cheaper real estate. Young enough to deal with snowplowing etc. if living out of town. Steamboat is a good option IMO. Good schools. Two ski hills and easy proximity to several more big hills. Unlike some resort communities, my impression is there are lots of HS and younger kids who live in town.

Granby/Fraser might do too. Growing community. Two ski hills and some great X-country options and local golf course, if that matters. YMCA of the Rockies is nice too. Terrific community recreation center. Near Rocky Mountain National Park and Grand Lake for summer fun. No local airport but Denver International is only 1.5 hours drive. By the time you fly from Hayden or Montrose or Santa Fe and then change planes, you would save time by taking that drive. Good hospital system in Denver too. Real estate prices have gone up a lot in the last couple of years though. Still, lots of building going on, so there may be excess inventory accruing and hence a good time to look. The folks who own Devil's Thumb Ranch have put a huge amount of money into community amenities, so that the town of Winter Park and environs has become much nicer in the past 5 years. Slightly more working class sensibility that Steamboat. Not better or worse, just different.

Powder Mountain is also intriguing to me. The real estate on the mountain is prohibitive and a little too Hollywood wealthy kinda vibe for my taste, at least in their advertising, but the town of Eden looks nice and still affordable. Salt Lake City airport and medical is 50 miles away. Obviously tons of options for skiing within 2 hours drive. Utah has so much to offer in the way of national parks and summer recreation. No idea about the schools. 4ster here may be someone to contact if that looks appealing.

 

[Fuller]

If I didn't have a 50 year history here at my house in St Petersburg I would be in Whitefish. Next year will be our 7th winter there (8 weeks) and we're still stoked to get back. Mind you it's full-on ski season for us and that's pretty much all we do there. I know the summers are gorgeous but it's also super crowded for such a small town due to the Glacier Park tourists. Glacier National is easy to fly out of but the flights are a bit expensive.

 

[coskigirl]

Will it fit into his budget?

Currently 11 options that meet that requirement. https://www.realtor.com/realestatea...ype-land/price-na-300000/lot-sqft-43560/sby-1

 

[Bad Bob]

Here is a quick search for land in Deer Park WA about 12 miles N of Spokane. We got land, an airport, city culture, medical, and 5 ski areas.

Deer Park Real Estate Listings | Spokane Real Estate | Partners Home Group

Homes for Sale, Listings & Real Estate in Spokane from Partners Home Group. See All Homes Now!

www.spokanearearealestate.com

 

[Sibhusky]

Sounds like Whitefish. You need @Sibhusky to chime in.
PS: you're kind of young to be thinking about your forever home. Heck, I'm starting to push 70 and can't make up my mind about a forever home Unless it's the one for pushing up daisies.
It might be less overwhelming to think about the next relocation as your pit stop for a decade or so.

He's been here. If it's not on his list, it's based on experience. Maybe he hit some fog.

 

[Sibhusky]

Bozeman could work.

Bozeman is getting really pricey and over-box-stored.

 

[Sibhusky]

I would consider Kalispell, MT (real town, airport, lots of amazing properties around) or Whitefish, MT (more of a second home / vacation spot, about 1hr drive from Kalispell)

Or Columbia Falls, the next happening town. Or was until this Covid thing got going, goodness knows how that will impact things. Whitefish has a real dearth of mid priced homes at the moment.

But, once again, who knows what the impact will be of Covid. On the one hand, realtors are reporting folks buying sight unseen in order to escape metro areas. On the other, we have a vast amount of unemployment in this county. But given a move here would take months, that should shake out by the fall.

 

[Sibhusky]

If I didn't have a 50 year history here at my house in St Petersburg I would be in Whitefish. Next year will be our 7th winter there (8 weeks) and we're still stoked to get back. Mind you it's full-on ski season for us and that's pretty much all we do there. I know the summers are gorgeous but it's also super crowded for such a small town due to the Glacier Park tourists. Glacier National is easy to fly out of but the flights are a bit expensive.

That house is going to be under water in ten years. Sell now before the buyer realizes it.

 

[Sibhusky]

Here's a 1.75 acre property right near me. Not a flood area. Slopes 20 minutes away. Nice houses, all custom built. Within your budget.

I think it's right up the hill from @offtraildog

35 Painted Hills Ln, Whitefish, MT 59937 | Zillow

35 Painted Hills Ln, Whitefish MT, is a Vacant Land home. The Rent Zestimate for this Vacant Land is $2,999/mo, which has increased by $2,999/mo in the last 30 days.

www.zillow.com

In regard to the wish list:

Wish list:

• Peaceful setting with mountain or lake views. --> The above land would have valley views, I believe, depending on your downhill neighbor. That property is sloped.
• Driveable to an interesting city or small town. (Our favorite part of Minneapolis living is the restaurants, breweries, and city parks.) --> You'd be restricted to Whitefish, Big Fork, Kalispell, C-Falls. After that it's an undertaking. But there's plenty of breweries, distilleries, are galleries, restaurants..
• Prefer cool or cold weather. Anything consistently over 85 degrees is a no go. That said, we currently live in Minneapolis, so we've had enough of the truly brutal winters. --> We can have truly brutal winters, but with global warming, that should lessen.
• ~30 minute drive to a modest to large size airport for traveling or visiting family in Minnesota & Texas. You'd have to work hard to get every light to make the airport over 30 minutes away.
• Good school system for raising kids. --> Everyone's idea of what good is, is relative. Certainly there's way more new buildings since we moved here, maybe every grade? But I haven't kept up with the quality of the education since my daughter graduated in 2005. We came from excellent schools in New Jersey. This was a step down. They all think the schools here are great. You might want to look at hard metrics.
• Don't need to ski everyday, but a mountain within daytripping distance (1-2 hours) or even a convenient airport to affordably reach skiing would be ideal.--> 20 minutes on a bad weather day.
• Near hiking/outdoor activities for the dog and family --> out your back door. Stoltz lumber allows recreational access to their forest. Part of the Whitefish Trail is right close to you. Carry bear spray.

Season pass prices next season:

 

[Jerez]

I suppose I should put in a plug for Santa Fe. Interesting town with both cultural and outdoor activities. HQ of Outside magazine and the Santa Fe Institute and lots of arts organizations. Nice local ski area. Access to Taos, Wolf Creek and Monarch within 3 hours drive. Hiking biking. Decent local airport and larger one in ABQ an hour or so away. Although not too many direct flights depending on destination. Small town with diverse population and more than just ski economy. Schools are mixed. Some decent private schools and a couple of good public elementary and one high school. But overall not good public schools. Ski season a bit short.

 

[Danny]

Y'know...Burlington, Vermont meets all the criteria. You could actually have mountain and lake view right in town, more bucolic views nearby.

 

[wooglin]

Yah, Burlington was what I was going to mention. Lots of places in NH and VT actually fit the bill, though perhaps a little colder than wanted.

 

[Wasatchman]

Bozeman is getting really pricey and over-box-stored.

Welcome to America unfortunately.

 

[Muleski]

I’d give Portland, Maine a look as well.

 

[jmills115]

$300K for a lot? I bet it would fit into his budget. There are also towns that are not so far from Steamboat proper with likely cheaper real estate. Young enough to deal with snowplowing etc. if living out of town. Steamboat is a good option IMO. Good schools. Two ski hills and easy proximity to several more big hills. Unlike some resort communities, my impression is there are lots of HS and younger kids who live in town.

Granby/Fraser might do too. Growing community. Two ski hills and some great X-country options and local golf course, if that matters. YMCA of the Rockies is nice too. Terrific community recreation center. Near Rocky Mountain National Park and Grand Lake for summer fun. No local airport but Denver International is only 1.5 hours drive. By the time you fly from Hayden or Montrose or Santa Fe and then change planes, you would save time by taking that drive. Good hospital system in Denver too. Real estate prices have gone up a lot in the last couple of years though. Still, lots of building going on, so there may be excess inventory accruing and hence a good time to look. The folks who own Devil's Thumb Ranch have put a huge amount of money into community amenities, so that the town of Winter Park and environs has become much nicer in the past 5 years. Slightly more working class sensibility that Steamboat. Not better or worse, just different.

Powder Mountain is also intriguing to me. The real estate on the mountain is prohibitive and a little too Hollywood wealthy kinda vibe for my taste, at least in their advertising, but the town of Eden looks nice and still affordable. Salt Lake City airport and medical is 50 miles away. Obviously tons of options for skiing within 2 hours drive. Utah has so much to offer in the way of national parks and summer recreation. No idea about the schools. 4ster here may be someone to contact if that looks appealing.

Utah-I wouldn’t recommend Utah or skiing Alta .
I have two kids that have graduated from the Murray District (SLC suburbs) and a 7th and 10th grader currently in Murray. Good district but not a mountain setting. As far as I can tell all four kids can read.
I have a couple sets of friends that live in Silver Summit in Summit County and out of the 4 kids between the 2 families, the youngest is in high school. PC school district and HS get some of the best rankings in the state.
On the real estate side he would have to be out of the PC district I think. Heber, Kamas, Woodland or Francis are about 20 minutes to PCMR and Deer Valley and 60 minutes to SL International Airport.
These towns would put him in the Wasatch or South Summit school districts.

 

[Gary Stolt]

We moved from Minnesota to KY in 1985. We were concerned about the culture change - north to south - if we would fit in, if we would like it. In talking to the realtor, he asked "do you like it where you coming from?" We said "yes, we love it for many reasons." He said "then you will like it here too".
He was right.

 

[TonyPlush]

He's been here. If it's not on his list, it's based on experience. Maybe he hit some fog.

I absolutely love Whitefish. If I was single, I'd have moved there tomorrow.

The fiance though isn't as sold. She's under the impression that Montana winters are too similar to Minnesota. She's also worried Montana could be too much off the grid.

That said, knowing what she likes in a town, I think Whitefish and Kalispell would be right up her alley. I'm also seeing some info that says Steamboat winters are significantly colder and snowier than Whitefish, although the difference in sunshine might be a gamechanger.

Plus, FCA to MSP would be great for visiting family.

I may have to keep working on her!

 

[TonyPlush]

Will it fit into his budget?

Surprisingly, for this budget, Steamboat has some 10-30+ acre lots just outside of town.