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I'm hoping to find out about South Dakota. I should be moving there in March. I'm wondering what the people are like, what kind of winters and summers there are. I'm curious about everything really. The cost of gas, average to rent homes. Is there a bad part of the neighborhood i should steer clear of? I'll be looking for places to rent online and would like to have the warning of better places to live. I'm 24 and have a 5 year old daughter. What is the average cost for babysitting? What was the cut off date for the children to go to school? My daughter couldn't go here in missouri because she was born a month late. Basically any information on places,costs,people everything!!!! I'm scared and excited...hopefully it is a good decision to make....please help with anything you can offer with the information.Oh and how is the workforce out there? Are there a lot of jobs available? My fiance will be looking when we move.Thanks in advance!
I'm hoping to find out about South Dakota. I should be moving there in March. I'm wondering what the people are like, what kind of winters and summers there are. I'm curious about everything really. The cost of gas, average to rent homes. Is there a bad part of the neighborhood i should steer clear of? I'll be looking for places to rent online and would like to have the warning of better places to live. I'm 24 and have a 5 year old daughter. What is the average cost for babysitting? What was the cut off date for the children to go to school? My daughter couldn't go here in missouri because she was born a month late. Basically any information on places,costs,people everything!!!! I'm scared and excited...hopefully it is a good decision to make....please help with anything you can offer with the information.Oh and how is the workforce out there? Are there a lot of jobs available? My fiance will be looking when we move.Thanks in advance!
Hello, and welcome to South Dakota! I live in Rapid City too, so I have kinda become known as the "Rapid City/Black Hills expert" in this forum!
You will find that people here are very warm, friendly, and welcoming towards newcomers. Rapid City's climate is semi-arid, so humidity is rarely a factor here. This helps in winter because it makes it feel less cold, and it helps in summer because you won't feel as hot. Summer temps usually stay around 90 degrees and winters can get very cold with average highs in the teens. It is not rare for Rapid City to get below zero in the winter and to reach 105 degrees in the summer. You will need an expanded wardrobe!
Cost of fuel right now is about $2.85 and rent depends on which part of town you live on. North Rapid City and areas near the mall have the cheapest rent, but that area is pretty sketchy. If you want to stay away from iffy areas, do not look at homes above Omaha Street. Southside and Westside Rapid City are considered the most expensive and Rapid Valley (east of Rapid City) is pretty exceptional too. Average rent in Rapid City probably runs around the $600-$800 range.
Cut-off date for starting school is September 24th, I believe. Your child must be 5 by this date. I always think it is a good idea to wait a year though!
It is probably a good idea to have a job waiting for you when you move to Rapid City. There are some great companies to work for in this area, but you should not move here without that security. What type of work do you and your fiance do? I can give you some companies that would work out.
I wanted to post something from the Weather Channel site, too, but this is the second time I've looked for averages today and the charts don't show up. They must be having problems, but the first link will give you an idea of the weather in the area.
Good luck to you and you'll love it out there. SO pretty.
Luckily i will have a job waiting. He's really just going to be looking for anything, but he preferes warehouse work....Is there a county i should look in for renting? I would like to live in a safe place to raise my daughter. She was born September 9th, hopefully it won't be bad that she is behind everyone else.
Luckily i will have a job waiting. He's really just going to be looking for anything, but he preferes warehouse work....Is there a county i should look in for renting? I would like to live in a safe place to raise my daughter. She was born September 9th, hopefully it won't be bad that she is behind everyone else.
If your fiance wants warehouse work, it will be easy to find in Rapid City. Trucking, storage, and transportation are big industres here because we are equidistant to both coasts. I am sure Job Service will have plenty of lisings for that. Rapid City is in Pennington County and about 5 miles north is Meade County. Many people build homes in Meade County because property taxes in Pennington are OUTRAGEOUS! However, if you are renting, you will not have that problem. Look for apts. and townhomes on the westside and southside of Rapid City Anything above Omaha Street is kinda iffy. Also, Rapid Valley has some really nice new apartments called Homestead Gardens that have great views of the Black Hills and Harney Peak. I don't think they're all that expensive either. You also may want to check out Harmony Heights on the NW side of Rapid City. They're very nice as well.
Rapid City only has about 80,000 people and a metro of 120,000 so there is not a lot of crime here. I've never been a victim of a crime and I've been here since I was 2 years old. Rapid City has pretty much everything you will need like a couple Safeways, Albertsons, Target, WalMart, Herberger's, etc. We are also getting a second mall and a second WalMart. Restaurants are plentiful here and people are friendly. It is also a very beautiful region. I have some pictures posted of Rapid City on page 11 of the "South Dakota Pictures Thread". Hope all goes well for you!
Rapid City, like Sioux Falls and the vast majority cities in the region, is safe and the chance for being a victim of crime is minimal. From the times I visited Rapid, unfornuately not last weekend or the weekend before due to winter weather, the area leading to Mt. Rushmore is decent along with the western areas. There is plenty to do for recreation and plenty of places to show your visitors when they come.
You asked about winters in RC, are you familiar with Denver winters? RC is comparable to them. The Black Hills benefit from what are called Chinook winds, which is thought to mean "snow eater". West winds go over the peaks of the Black Hills and come back down the eastern slope where RC lies. As the winds come down the eastern slope, they get compressed and heat up. Therefore, RC could have a morning temp of 20 and by noon time it could reach 60. We could have 12 inches dumped on us and because of the winds, the snow could be gone by the next day. Snow doesn't stay on the ground all winter long in RC.
In fact, Spearfish, SD, only 40 miles from Rapid City, holds the record for the world's fastest rise in temperature, due to Chinook winds. They are a beautiful thing and make winters very livable!
I'm going to be looking for bedrooms to rent...is there any names you know for me to call to find places...i've been to a lot of renting websites,but i'm not having too much luck with that.
It is very difficult to find renting information online pertaining to Rapid City or Sioux Falls. Must be the population. Try contactiong local realtors like ReMax, Coldwell Banker, Century 21, etc. and ask them if they have any ideas. The most common place you will find rooms to rent are in the West Boulevard District or near the School of Mines and Technology. I recommend West Boulevard.
wow, i just realized i said i was going to be looking for bedrooms to rent. TYPO!! I'll be looking for homes to rent actually...
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