Is Idaho Similar to Vermont? (Boise, Star: car registration, homes, to buy)
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Thanks Sandpointian. Thant's an interesting analysis, particularly about the difference between your hippies and ours. Right now Vermont is controlled by the Cambridge Mass hippie class that ideological falls somewhere between Berkeley and Stalin.
Funny characterization. My husband was born in Cambridge because his Dad was a Harvard med student and my husband returned as a young adult for his own education at MIT. Yet here he is in north Idaho...defnitely not a liberal, yet not exactly as conservative as he used to be either.
I loved visiting Vermont when we lived in New England but I don't see many similarities between it and north Idaho.
I left the Marxist State of Maine 2 years ago and fled to Ireland and the Celtic Tiger. The Tiger is now dead. I am staying temporarily with relatives in Florida until I make my next move.
I want out of New England and the east coast in general. I am a 55 year old libertarian architect who hunts, fishes & traps. I prefer rural [even isolated] to urban but usually must compromise to earn a living.
I have been looking at Wyoming.
I am here on the Idaho forum because Boise, with a population 10 times that of Cheyenne or Casper, may be the market size required for me to find work.
Until a few minutes ago I had the same opinion as Sandpointian concerning Wyoming’s low tax status.
However what gives with the chart in the post just before? It says that Wyoming has the third highest per capita taxes in the US?
What am I missing? Should I give up on Wyoming and concentrate on Idaho?
I can't explain Wyoming? I looked at a lot of charts on state tax ranking and Wyoming was all over the place.
Vermont was the highest or top 5 in every chart I looked at. Their neighbor New Hampshire was the lowest or close to the lowest in every chart. Now explain that. From a distance they seem like very similar states.
California was around 10th in all the ones I looked at.
Idaho was around 30th in all of them, 27th being the highest I saw.
Have you considered the western side of Virginia. Smokey Mountains, topography similar to VT, social values remind me of VT 30 - 40 years ago. Decent land prices, and property taxes. Outstanding weather compared to VT.
We looked there for retirement, but decided on NW South Carolina.
good luck.
Leggo
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang!
How similar is Idaho to Vermont?
I'm a native Vermonter who's had enough of the state's radical left wing politics but otherwise like Vermont life. My perception of Idaho is that its natural environment is very similar to Vermont but the politics are the polar opposite. Is this accurate?
I'm an educated, hard working, married with children, conservative Christian. And, as if this isn't enough, I'm not a dope smoker either which combined with my other 'failings' practically makes me an outcast in the state. I'm inclined to think I'd find more people like myself in Idaho than Vermont correct?
Also of concern, in what trajectory is Idaho politics on? Meaning, is it moving left or moving right? And, if it is changing, whats driving the change? For example, until thirty or so years ago Vermont was probably the most conservative state in the country. Thirty years of hippie migration to the state have flipped the politics on its head.
What direction is the economy moving? Discounting the obvious problems the entire country is facing, is Idaho on a growth path? Are businesses happy doing business in the state or do they pull up stakes and move elsewhere more often then they new ones move in?
Lastly, what are the wages like? Any idea what are RNs earning (CCRN)? And, are there any bio-techs in the state? Or Pharma's Are they concentrated in a single area? Where?
They straightened me out in a hurry over on the Wyoming forum. Most of the taxes in Wyoming are collected from the mineral extraction industries. I also remember reading that the majority of school financing is paid by from the fees collected from the private leasing of federal land.
It all makes sense now. Wyoming is a very low tax state for individuals and non-mineral extraction businesses.
NH is better than VT, but not by as much as it might seem. And NH is heading down the road VT has paved... <Edit- Funny the only thing VT has paved in the last 20 years is the road to Socialist hell>
There ain't freedom left in the Northeast. Although todays election will be interesting.
mustmove, you have summed up the NH-VT comparison well. NH is well along the road to VT, and has made much of that headway in the past 15 yrs. Where will it be 15 yrs from now?
Funny Wyoming should be mentioned - dh likes Wyoming and I like N. Idaho.
Aside from politics, how would you describe the population of either place on a friendly-meter? We mainly keep to ourselves, but we are courteous and friendly in the presence of others. It likely does not matter to most of the country in this day and age, but where do people behave most kindly to one another, holding doors, good old fashioned manners, etc? Are people more thoughtful and pleasant in Idaho or Wyoming?
Sorry but I have to disagree. You are implying Idaho has higher taxes then California.
No, I am implying that Idaho tax is far from being "conservative" where tax rates on income are extremely high at low thresholds.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oh2az2id
You can compare a tax on this or that to make a point but there are hundreds of different taxes that make up the total tax dollars taken in. Heres a couple of examples -Gas Tax $.35.3 in Cal and $.25 in ID(those dimes might ad up quick) or Cigerette tax $.87 in Cal and $.57 in ID.
This is true but since California is a much bigger economy, they get lower per unit prices on everything so even after the large taxes the prices are roughly the same for a gallon of gas or a pack of cigarettes. And I am being generous enough not to use California's per capita income being anywhere from 2-4 times as much as Idaho.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oh2az2id
My nice 2000 sq ft house on 3/4 acre with guest house in Idaho had a tax bill in 2009 of less then $1,000. What would it have been in California?
It depends on what and when you paid for it in California... if you bought your house in 1969 for $45,000 your property tax would be about $500/year.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oh2az2id
How about looking at total taxes taken in by the state and dividing by population, like this chart from the census bureau. By the way Alaska is 8th highest and California is 10th. Idaho 31st. http://www.census.gov/govs/statetax/05staxrank.html
I am referring to tax on the people... not total tax. Alaska has been the lowest with New Hampshire being the second lowest for overall tax. Like I said... if you move to Tok, Alaska you don't pay income, property, or sales tax.
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My husband was born in Cambridge because his Dad was a Harvard med student and my husband returned as a young adult for his own education at MIT. Yet here he is in north Idaho...defnitely not a liberal, yet not exactly as conservative as he used to be either.
