Crazy retirement idea #3,932, Salt Lake City

[scottmandue]

Doing a random search of places that have moderate weather and low cost of living and SLC, UT pops up.

Honestly never visited SLC... looking on a map nice location, close to mountains and parks, right between Denver and Reno.

Being an enlightened guy I can see it is a very large city and I'm sure it has a very diverse population with lots of activities and entertainment...

However it is difficult to say Salt Lake City and not think MORMON!

I'm pretty sure we have at least one person here living in SLC... so what is it like?

[VincentVega]

very diverse population

I've only traveled there on business but I would not agree with this statement. I found some good food and great access to the outdoors but it's an interesting place.

[herr_oberst]

Moderate weather?

You'll know it's winter in SLC - (but lots of world class snow skiing close by).

[porsche4life]

I don't think it's exactly cheap either. Maybe cheaper than SoCal, but I think Reno would be cheaper yet...

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

I don't think it's exactly cheap either. Maybe cheaper than SoCal, but I think Reno would be cheaper yet...

I'll have to do some research on Reno.

Pretty much wherever we move the weather is not going to be as moderate as SoCal.

Leaning towards a cooler climate than warmer...

[JavaBrewer]

You really need to visit SLC first. Gets snow (not crazy like MN) in winter and is hot (not crazy like PHX) in summer. Everyone thinks of LDS (Mormons - Latter Day Saints) when SLC comes up. For good reason. When a new community breaks ground the first building in place is the LDS church. Yes the community is more diverse than ever but still predominantly LDS. If you are not LDS then you can expect a more difficult time building a social network - if that is of concern. That said you could do much worse than having LDS neighbors. Very polite, clean, and respectful group of folks.

SLC is not all that cheap either. Some of the nicer communities are == in price to nice communities in SoCal.

[Arizona_928]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Leaning towards a cooler climate than warmer...

eastern washington, nothern idaho?

[sammyg2]

I was born in SLC and lived there until I was 13.

They have all 4 seasons and winter is cold, but the snow doesn't get that deep or stay on the ground all winter.
Spring is really nice.
Late summer can get humid.
Fall is beautiful but can be short.
The elevation is around 4300 ft IIRC.

The city is really nice, you can find anything easily with just an address, and there's plenty to do.
Real estate is cheep depending on where you buy.

Last I read the percentage of Mormons in SLC was just over 50%.
I don't believe being a non-Mormon would be a problem at all.


I really like it there, but my wife has been in so cal her whole life and I believe it'd be too cold there for her in winter.

South of there is St. George.
Longer summer. Shorter, milder winter, elevation around 2800 ft.



EDIT: percentage of Mormons in SLC is 57%.

[LWJ]

Boise. Hoodriver. Bend. Sequim, Wa.

[930addict]

I'm a non-Mormon who recently (Oct. '13) relocated to Utah from SF Bay Area. I live in Utah County which neighbors Salt Lake County to the south. My city is more affluent and is 99% Mormon so naturally most of our neighbors are Mormon. We had the same concerns but have found all of our neighbors to be quite pleasant. During our first week one of our neighbors brought us breakfast every morning because he knew we didn't have all of our stuff from California yet. He makes a mean quiche. And we literally had treats left at our door welcoming us to the neighborhood for the first two months. During X-mas it was anonymous twelve days of Christmas theme and we had so much chocolate and candy we couldn't finish it all. You will be asked if you are Mormon. I haven't seen a difference in people's behavior when I tell them that I am not. It was such a culture shock (in a good way) from how california was. Everyone is so nice. You can actually look at someone in the eyes and say hi.

Speaking of which, I ride public transportation in both California and in Utah. In California (San Jose) no eye contact and oh boy it is a freak show. In Salt Lake I see mainly professionals and students and you can expect people to say hi to you at the train station and even strike up good conversations. I was riding the frontrunner train and a highschool aged kid sat next to me with his date and struck up a conversation with me. I've yet to see that in california. The kids seem to be very respectful and nice. You don't see many baggy pants kids walking around and I don't see much grafiti either. Did I mention everyone is so nice?

Winter wasn't that bad. I'm at 5500 feet and my wife declined my offers to buy a snow blower. I travel to SF Bay Area a lot and so she is left to do the snow removal before taking the girls to school. So it wasn't bad enough for her to complain. I was told that this was a mild winter though. They do maintain the roads very well. We never needed chains or got stuck anywhere. It does get cold (where I am) but if you are prepared for it it really isn't that bad. You will find some people shoveling snow in shorts with a coat on.

Our homeowners insurance went down by half from what we were paying in California. Same with car insurance. Gas is less expensive as well. I sold my 1300 sq. ft. California home in a sketchy area of san jose for 100k more than what I paid for my 4200 sq ft Utah home in an exclusive neighborhood with really awesome schools for the kids. And my view is gorgeous.

One thing I noticed about Utah is the number of restaraunts. Sure you will have the chains, but there are a LOT of independant restaraunts. Utah people love to eat. There are several sushi bars in Salt Lake City and you can now find many Indian restaraunts as well. You can find any type of food you want. I have yet to be dissapointed with regards to food and I'm a foody.

You need to buy wine and spirits from the state liquor store. They have different types of state liquor stores some specializing in wine and others in spirits. The wine store selection rivals bevmo and the price is about the same from what I can tell. The spirits store has a competitive selection. They had all of my favorite scotches and bourbon and the price is exactly what I would have paid at bevmo in California. My favorite beers are Pauliner Oktoberfest and Paulaner Double Bock. They don't have this and for some reason couldn't order it. It had nothing to do with laws it was something about the distributor. But they do have a good assortment of beer and micro brews. Typically if they don't have something they can order it for you.

So far I really love it here and plan to retire here in 8 years. PM me if you have any specific questions.

[glewis80SC]

Try South Jordan or Sandy both are south of SLC…good schools..good job market..real estate is lower than SoCal for sure. I was raised LDS here in So. Cal, needless to say I have lots of family in Utah..they always return to the Motherland!!
Being non LDS is not an issue, any religion will have its 10% that are over the edge but they are the minority. If Outdoor fun is your thing Utah is for you..worlds best snow..GREAT fishing…hiking, camping, hunting….plus the state really supports your 2nd amendment
My sister live in Mapleton, just south of Provo…actually flying up on Thursday for my Aunts funeral.
Nice state.

[porwolf]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Doing a random search of places that have moderate weather and low cost of living and SLC, UT pops up.

Honestly never visited SLC... looking on a map nice location, close to mountains and parks, right between Denver and Reno.

Being an enlightened guy I can see it is a very large city and I'm sure it has a very diverse population with lots of activities and entertainment...

However it is difficult to say Salt Lake City and not think MORMON!

I'm pretty sure we have at least one person here living in SLC... so what is it like?

Salt Lake City living can't be too bad. They have a Democratic Mayor!

[look 171]

more wives for you Scott.

We visited there last summer and spent a few days in Salt Lake. We found the typical large city stuff (not LA large, but like Thousand Oaks large and feel to it). Most people we encountered were generally pretty nice even in the Target or fast food places unlike back home. We can live there.

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by porwolf

Salt Lake City living can't be too bad. They have a Democratic Mayor!

Way to PARF it up, A-hat.

[glewis80SC]

930addict.....the welcome food I forgot about but is very much the norm..when I was there for my Dads funeral in February the neighbors brought all three meals to our family for a week, arranged food set up and take down of the whole service. Almost scary nice...but not.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

I was born in SLC and lived there until I was 13.

This explains a lot!

The city is really nice, you can find anything easily with just an address, and there's plenty to do.
Real estate is cheep depending on where you buy.

Last I read the percentage of Mormons in SLC was just over 50%.
I don't believe being a non-Mormon would be a problem at all.

I really like it there, but my wife has been in so cal her whole life and I believe it'd be too cold there for her in winter.

AMEN to that! However I'm the spoiled SoCal boy and too cold for me, not her...

South of there is St. George.
Longer summer. Shorter, milder winter, elevation around 2800 ft.

I love St. George but too hot for her

Not sure where you guys get your numbers... I know, don't trust everything you find on the internet but you can look up weather numbers, high and low by month... and number of sunny days Vs cloudy/rainy.

I also know every town has bad parts (cheap real estate) and good parts (expensive) but I am doing Zillow searches on all of these places.

Also comparing real estate and sales taxes...

After crunching the numbers no one place seems to be nirvana for the retiree...

Drifting back to just staying in Cali.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by 930addict

I'm a non-Mormon who recently (Oct. '13) relocated to Utah from SF Bay Area.

Snip

So far I really love it here and plan to retire here in 8 years. PM me if you have any specific questions.

Okay, you make a good pitch... just not sure about retiring to someplace that snows in winter.

[GH85Carrera]

We spent a week in SLC a couple of years ago. The place has some great local beer. I is cool that in 45 minutes you can get from downtown to the ski slopes if snow is something you like.

[motion]

I go through Provo several times a year, and wow, it is nice! Winters are really fairly mild, too.

[JavaBrewer]

My brother in law lived in Draper heights for 10+ years. Recently moved back to San Diego. I thought Draper was pretty nice - a more upscale suburban community reasonably close to downtown and airport. Close to ski resorts (Alta & Snowbird).

I have driven that community many times and love to look at real estate. Homes are traditionally large and rather impressive in a country/stone/log cabin way. Easy to spend lots of money - folks like the big homes - makes the winter months go by faster
Draper UT - Realtor.com