Northwest Bound! (Reno, Henderson, Sparks: college, income, quality of life)

[RosieSD]

One more -- I think this is from a realtor. Living in Reno NV vs Carson City NV

https://youtu.be/G_qBcNPmmZw?si=CXly9lx2f3V_EY7w

(My apologies -- not sure why some are showing previews and others aren't. I'm uploading them to CD the same way)

[NW Crow]

YouTube videos are a good / easy way to get a little taste of reality. Helpful of you to post. Some readers will use. I looked at a few last night, after wondering which you were recommending.

Google maps / street view is also good if you want to concentrate on learning about specific neighborhoods and streets. Because each city will have neighborhoods with different styles & feel.


Reno, Sparks, Carson City. All same region but pretty big choice between city living, high growth suburb and smaller city. But if one spends most of time indoors, the best apartment with the most preferable neighbors is the most important choice. There will be apartments with young singles, families and perhaps a few with most or all over 50 or 65. If young people create too many background issues, can try to find the quietest, older options.


Airplane landing patterns can be asked about on general or local forums, perhaps by phone call or by paying attention when live on site.

Almost any specific question can be answered if asked / pursued hard enough.


One impression from the videos (especially for CC) is that the streets are pretty tidy. Seems like not much grows unless planted and probably cared for. But I also didn't notice trash or graffiti.

Of the 3 choices, Carson City would seem to make sense if Loveland and Henderson were "too much". Maybe an older part of Sparks or Reno would work but should carefully consider traffic / new development vs. more shopping & restaurants and whatever else they offer over CC.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

Of the 3 choices, Carson City would seem to make sense if Loveland and Henderson were "too much". Maybe an older part of Sparks or Reno would work but should carefully consider traffic / new development vs. more shopping & restaurants and whatever else they offer over CC.

Watching the videos, I was struck by how similar Carson City NV seems to Loveland, CO.

Carson City is slightly smaller than Loveland, and it has Casinos and the NV State Capitol building.

But otherwise, Carson City and Loveland strike me as similar in appearance and overall vibe.

Disclaimer: I've spent a lot of time in Loveland, but have never been to Carson City, so I could be totally wrong. Maybe someone who's spent time in both (StealthRabbit, perhaps) can comment further. Just my impressions from the videos.

This made me curious, so I did a quick search to see how the Reno-Sparks metro area (which includes Carson City and other smaller towns near Reno) compares population wise to the Fort Collins-Loveland metro area (which includes other smaller towns near FC).

According to the most recent figures from the U.S. census:

Reno-Sparks metro area population: 531,000, up 1.5% 2022-2023

Fort Collins-Loveland metro area population: 359,066, up 1.43% 2022-2023

So similar growth in both areas, but smaller population in Fort Collins-Loveland metro area.

[NW Crow]

Pyramid Lake and Washoe Lake are options IF want to boat a bit longer.

There might be services where a boat could be put out for rental income, if interested in that approach to continued boat ownership and occasional use. I know it works in some markets but would have to check whether it would for an old boat. The big motor would appeal to some but maybe they would be bad renters. Liability might an issue. A service and maintenance might take a lot or most of the fees. You probably don't want this but mentioned for slight chance you would or somebody else with a boat would. High rent, deposit and insurance might minimze potential problems. Or maybe a rental service would be a possible buyer of a boat.

[NW Crow]

Carson City and points south are in separate metro and micropolitan regions. Same with Fernley and Fallon. If you add them all in they'd contribute 150+k more to the regional total. Add Tahoe area and it is probably another 100k in greater region.

So greater Reno - Tahoe is pretty similar in total population to NorCo (Fort Collins - Loveland, Greeley and nearby).

Would that really be getting away from NorCo feel and issues? Maybe in spots, particularly CC. To get more difference, might need a different area with a different size, growth rate and profile.

Prescott AZ isn't small and might also be too much but it is way smaller than Reno-Tahoe, probably not growing as much and certainly older and mainly catering to older.

[NW Crow]

Turns out Prescott metro and Reno metro are growing at about 1.5% per year recently. That is on high end for established areas. Too much? Have to decide for self. The base sizes are quite different.

That rate is more than Loveland's approximate 1% rate, equal to Fort Collins metro's rate but barely more than half of Henderson's rate.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

Turns out Prescott metro and Reno metro are growing at about year recently recently. That is on high end for established areas. Too much? Have to decide for self.

Nice places to live tend to grow. Places that aren't, don't.

Last July, the Carson City Planning board approved a large new home development on some of the last ranch land in Carson City limits -- sounds like a couple of other developments are in the works as well : https://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/20...h-development/

Of course, as you note, NWCrow, Henderson is still the fastest growing city in Nevada -- it's a pretty young city compared to the others, though, so probably more room to grow.

Well, I'm sure Babyboomers is doing his own in-depth research, and will be all over details like this before he moves again.

It sure has been interesting following Babyboomers' many moves over the years. I've learned a lot about different parts of the U.S.

[RosieSD]

Adding a fun little tool from Weather Spark that my husband and I have found helpful as we compare possible places for relocating. It compares weather in different cities side by side. I find it's very helpful to see it graphed out side by side.

Here's the comparison for Loveland, CO and Carson City, NV, just as an example:

https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/3...nd-Carson-City

I was surprised to see that Carson City seems to get more snow on average than Loveland, but Loveland gets more rain in the summer months.

Also, it looks like their average temperatures throughout the year are pretty similar, although Carson City seems to be a tiny bit warmer (2-4 degrees), on average.

Of course, if you compare Loveland, Carson City, and Henderson---Henderson wins hands down for heat in the summer months.

Click on the city name to get more detailed insight into weather over recent years.

Just another tool for those researching a future move.

[ChrisMT]

Carson City itself has a growth-cap and is close to 'built-out', but the surrounding areas of Lyon County (Dayton) and Douglas County (Gardnerville/Minden) make up for the slow growth here.

I do not know exactly what the OP is looking for other than rodeo/cowboy and a slower pace. Carson is definitely a better fit for that over Reno. Reno is a college town and more of a party town. Carson is sleepy and more of a retirement pace. Reno is 20 minutes away from Carson and I rarely visit there anymore. If you like really big casinos and shopping malls, maybe you would travel the 20 minutes more often.

Carson City has plenty of borderline apartments that you might want to avoid for a quieter lifestyle. Reno definitely has some areas you do not want to live and more of a younger crowd that you are not comfortable with from what I gather.

Reno does have more dedicated over 55 communities than Carson. I would suggest trying to find something like that because of what you have experienced in the past. Be very careful no matter what city you like, plenty of apartment complexes have issues like what you were unhappy with before.

Find a sleepy complex with good management, preferably over 55 only Please do contact a Realty company to assist with locations for your lifestyle and budget.

Pyramid Lake is managed by the Paiute Reservation and is quite expensive to use regularly unless you purchase a yearly pass.
Washoe Lake does not have boat storage and can be too low for powerboats. Most people with boats that I know use Lahontan Lake, Topaz Lake and if in Reno, Boca/Stampede Reservoirs. Everyone stores their boats off the water that I personally have known.

Carson City is pretty relaxed on rules/regulations and I have met some very indignant newcomers, unhappy over that fact. Reno is more in-line with what most have experienced in the past in other locales.

[StealthRabbit]

OP was a bit bored in Loveland, even tho Ft Collins was only 20 min away. So Carson City might be too sleepy. Tho it is my preference because less traffic / commerce / fast paced life.

Older parts of Carson City are quite nice.
Rents should be lower
https://www.trulia.com/for_rent/Carson_City,NV/
https://www.zillow.com/carson-city-nv/rentals/
(screen by Apart, as houses are pretty $$$$) Apartments, not so much)

I'd find a senior housing co-op or subsidized senior community, and live happily ever after.