CA residents moving to Idaho (homes, job openings, income)

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Jakehorror

Sounds like Indiana, alot.
Wonder if people who are so eager to leave CA ever take into consideration all the hassles and inconvenience (not to mention mental anguish) that snow and winter bring?

I did.

Admittedly, it is worse for my wife than it is for me. In California she could take the kids to the park all year round. Several days per month it is too cold in Colorado. However the community and infrastructure do have some but not all means of compensating with obviously more indoor activities. We knew all this going in. Most of the time (like 300 days per year) it is sunny and cheerful, not gray and depressing like the midwest and the east coast.

We went from A weather to B+ weather. We knew the weather would be worse but it really isn't that bad. Last week it was -21F on the way to work at 530 AM. Yesterday (when I was stuck inside watching football of course) it was sunny and in the 50s, shorts and t-shirts.

Of course people who work outdoors would have a bigger problem.

I swam 6000 yards (3 X 2000) per week for like 15 years outdoors all year long at lunch time in California. I really miss that.

[Cali4life80]

Originally Posted by Charles

That's too bad about the religion thing. It would bug me too.

Is that the only problem you are having there? If not, what else is bugging you, and, could you have found out about these things prior to moving to Idaho?

The religion thing plays a huge role in me moving back to CA. Its kinda out of control. I haven't expeienced myself yet, but I have been told that non-mormon kids are given a hard time in school. Some have even had their last name hidden so that mormon kids didn't know they were not mormon. Thats very sad. I have a two year old daughter and I would NEVER put her in Idaho schools. I would be a terrible mother to let my daughter go through that torture. Thats why we are getting out of here before she is of school age.

Also, besides that huge problem, the people here are so mean. No one ever gives you eye contact and they obviously were not taught the word 'excuse me' or 'sorry' from their mothers because I never get that when someone bumps into me on accident. And another thing, I have a two bachelor degrees and can not find a descent paying job. I honestly think I am discriminated against and am not offered jobs here because I am from California.

The snow here is dangerous and annoying. It never stops falling. We moved up here because we liked how cheap the houses were. But as far as cheap goes, it stops at real estate. Groceries are still the same price as in CA, restuarants are still expensive, gas is a little cheaper but rising. There is no way to survive here unless you have a pretty good paying job and the point is..there are NO good paying jobs here. They pay crap. Also the food up here is crap. Nothing tastes good. There is no fresh produce and the meat here is terrible.

So basically this has been an awful experience and we are more than ready to move back to CA. And to answer your question..there were some red flags about Idaho that I read about before I moved up here but I decided to ignore them and give it a chance. I knew about the Mormons and the culture shock, but I wanted to see for myself. Well, I saw and now I'm outta here!!! LOL

[spudmom]

I have been in Idaho for 3 years now. I like it, I do not want to move back to CA, but a job situation may force me to.
I had a small business that went under because I am not of that certain faith here. I offered a great coupon deal. People would come in my store, ask if I was of that faith, and when I would say no, they would use my coupon and buy nothing else. Nothing. A few even said that they were headed over to my competetor because I didn't have the right shade of something or they had a bigger selection. Yeah right. Since I have more than the typical 2 kids, people just assume I am one of them, and when they find out that I am not, my kids are not invited over to play anymore. I will say that I do have some CA transplant neighbors that are of that faith that are nice and friendly to me, and they are greater than any CA neighbors I had.
I will stay if I can, but I have a bad taste in my mouth regarding the whole situation. I have lost tens of thousands of dollars because of my business situation, the stats and research of the company I used and other factors say that I should have been able to make my business a go. The one thing not factored in was the good old boys club.

[Cali4life80]

Originally Posted by spudmom

I have been in Idaho for 3 years now. I like it, I do not want to move back to CA, but a job situation may force me to.
I had a small business that went under because I am not of that certain faith here. I offered a great coupon deal. People would come in my store, ask if I was of that faith, and when I would say no, they would use my coupon and buy nothing else. Nothing. A few even said that they were headed over to my competetor because I didn't have the right shade of something or they had a bigger selection. Yeah right. Since I have more than the typical 2 kids, people just assume I am one of them, and when they find out that I am not, my kids are not invited over to play anymore. I will say that I do have some CA transplant neighbors that are of that faith that are nice and friendly to me, and they are greater than any CA neighbors I had.
I will stay if I can, but I have a bad taste in my mouth regarding the whole situation. I have lost tens of thousands of dollars because of my business situation, the stats and research of the company I used and other factors say that I should have been able to make my business a go. The one thing not factored in was the good old boys club.

That sucks. I don't know why that wouldn't want you to go back to CA. That would never happen in CA. Thats why I'm moving back to CA. I can't stand how obsessed these people are of their religion. It gets to the point of down right discrimination and that is not right. Take your buisness to people who would never do that to you, in CA!

[Niners fan]

Originally Posted by spudmom

I have been in Idaho for 3 years now. I like it, I do not want to move back to CA, but a job situation may force me to.
I had a small business that went under because I am not of that certain faith here. I offered a great coupon deal. People would come in my store, ask if I was of that faith, and when I would say no, they would use my coupon and buy nothing else. Nothing. A few even said that they were headed over to my competetor because I didn't have the right shade of something or they had a bigger selection. Yeah right. Since I have more than the typical 2 kids, people just assume I am one of them, and when they find out that I am not, my kids are not invited over to play anymore. I will say that I do have some CA transplant neighbors that are of that faith that are nice and friendly to me, and they are greater than any CA neighbors I had.
I will stay if I can, but I have a bad taste in my mouth regarding the whole situation. I have lost tens of thousands of dollars because of my business situation, the stats and research of the company I used and other factors say that I should have been able to make my business a go. The one thing not factored in was the good old boys club.

Spudmom - it is not very difficult to guess which dominant religion you mean in your post, given that we're talking Idaho. I am sorry to hear of your experiences. There are a lot of members of that same religion in California. I know you will run into some of them. I hope that you will not have a permanent poor taste in your mouth because of your Idaho experience. It's unfortunate that a few members (or a lot of members in a certain area) make the rest of us look bad.

Best of luck to you and Cali4life80 too.

[EscapeCalifornia]

I thought it was common knowledge that if you're not Mormon, you're not going to fit and and your business isn't going to do well in a heavily Mormon area like Utah or parts of Idaho.

[Donna7]

Originally Posted by spudmom

I have been in Idaho for 3 years now. I like it, I do not want to move back to CA, but a job situation may force me to.
I had a small business that went under because I am not of that certain faith here. I offered a great coupon deal. People would come in my store, ask if I was of that faith, and when I would say no, they would use my coupon and buy nothing else. Nothing. A few even said that they were headed over to my competetor because I didn't have the right shade of something or they had a bigger selection. Yeah right. Since I have more than the typical 2 kids, people just assume I am one of them, and when they find out that I am not, my kids are not invited over to play anymore. I will say that I do have some CA transplant neighbors that are of that faith that are nice and friendly to me, and they are greater than any CA neighbors I had.
I will stay if I can, but I have a bad taste in my mouth regarding the whole situation. I have lost tens of thousands of dollars because of my business situation, the stats and research of the company I used and other factors say that I should have been able to make my business a go. The one thing not factored in was the good old boys club.

Just wanted to say that the good old boys club/network is alive and well in many towns across the U.S. I've found the whole "connection" thing, whether employed or self-employed to be very REAL and sometimes a difficult thing to overcome. In our little town (that we moved to over 16 years ago, about 8 minutes from where we grew up), the same people run everything; from the local government, to the school board, to the Chamber of Commerce, to Little League, and more. This is one of the reasons why I prefer bigger cities and towns and greater diversity myself. I wish you the best for the future, as both an entrepreneur as well as parent. I'm really sad to hear about your experience there in light of you trying to make a go of it in a new area. Wishing you the best.

[Woof]

I always recommend that people NEVER move to a small town anywhere in the country, and that includes California, unless they have friends or relatives there. I've learned that from bitter experience (mainly several places in California).

[Donna7]

Originally Posted by Woof

I always recommend that people NEVER move to a small town anywhere in the country, and that includes California, unless they have friends or relatives there. I've learned that from bitter experience (mainly several places in California).

Here, here! Ditto.

[redheadedsister]

I have a very nice 1913 Craftsmans Bungalow for sale in the historic district in Twin Falls, ID. I am asking 135K obo. That's about $850 a month w/mtg ins, escrow and a 6% mortgage. If you are interested, contact ed.newman@yahoo.com