Relocation advice on family relocating from Texas to Wyoming (Cheyenne: vehicle registration, insurance)

[l1corinth13]

Hi everyone, my husband and I started to talk seriously about moving to Wyoming from Texas. We are a family of 6 with 4 children.

My husband has experience and certificates in HVAC and I&E Air conditioners, and electrical work. We are having trouble finding a job that will pay what we are currently looking for. Does anyone have any knowledge or advice on finding the pay we need to support our family?

Also advice on finding the right location to fit our family? I homeschool so school districts do not affect us, we love rural living, outdoor activities and self sufficiency.

Anything specific we need to be thinking about preparing for before our big move? We've done tons of research but I do understand that it does not compare to actually being there and experiencing it.

I appreciate all advice and information.

Thanks so much.

[GoshWyo]

Start here:
https://www.wyomingatwork.com/

Enter “hvac” and do a key word search.

[Crazy4Chickens]

My advice is before you pull the trigger on moving here is visit here. Visit in the winter especially. Everyone loves our area of Wyoming in the summer, but the winters here and all around Wyoming can be brutal, and our winters are long.

Drive on the icy and/or snow covered roads. Feel the very low temperatures that dip into the negatives overnight. Prepare yourself for the punishing wind that some areas face daily. Stay for a solid week and drive to the local grocery store, the gas station, all the places you would go day to day, because when you move you won't be a tourist or a visitor. Think about where you'll need to go to buy bulk items, are you used to having a Sam's Club or Costco nearby, or even a Wal Mart? How far will you be to reach one of those big box stores? For me it's nearly two hours to Wal Mart and over two to Costco on roads that can get quite dicey in the winter months.

However that being said if you visit here in winter and love what you see, warts and all then Wyoming could be the state for you. 😃

[sunsprit]

OP wrote: "We are having trouble finding a job that will pay what we are currently looking for. "

Most likely the HVAC or electrical trade pay scales here in Wyoming will not match what's paid in TX.

What counts, however, is how do the pay rate and projected annual earnings/benefits compare for your standard of living?

You may need to visit places of interest to you in Wyoming and check out the costs of housing/utilities, access to recreation and entertainment, medical access/costs, transportation, and so forth, to project your annual family living costs. Projected property taxes, motor vehicle registration/insurance cost, household budget (food/clothing/necessities) may present an entirely different paradigm than what you now experience. What's important to you will be the driving factor for the expenses here.

As C4C mentions … "visit in the winter especially". I've been advocating this approach for years on this forum, and specifically … you need to visit with an eye towards residency costs of living and the attributes of living in Wyoming. There are significant trade-offs for many people which don't present until they've moved here … blindsided by such details as the access to restaurants, entertainment, medical needs, recreation, shopping. C4C nails one important issue … the distance and time to access many essentials here can be daunting to people accustomed to 5-10 minute shopping trips frequently done because of the convenience. It's a whole 'nother paradigm when you've got to "plan" major shopping trips for a longer time frame. Example: for some folk, discovering that their choice of numerous pizza joints (or other fav foods) with nearby access or quick home delivery may not be an option at all in many places throughout Wyoming. At that, the choices in a larger community such as Cheyenne, Casper, or Gillette may simply be unacceptable after the larger scene in much of TX.

Come visit. Check it out for yourself.

[excowboy]

The OP started this on the 7th in the Alaska forum, https://www.city-data.com/forum/alask...as-alaska.html
and quickly moved to the Wyoming forum when they didn't receive the answers they were seeking. To my knowledge they have not responded since the 8th.

[rya700]

My thoughts would be that the husband is probably capable of finding his own job...which I would let him do before making any further plans. Most likely it will be based out of Rock springs, Gillette, Casper or maybe Riverton and will probably require extensive travel to other locales as needed.

[pax4pax]

Re WY versus TX, I am looking at WY, primarily Casper, for our US business headquarters. Having lived in TX and seen its growth in all areas, WY looks like the TX of 40 years ago and should experience growth (as has Casper, the only major city with continuous positive growth). The last election says TX won't be able to be TX for much longer.

For living, WY has a lot of pluses. The natural beauty and potential for better looking development drive the hope. Our selection is not done yet but WY has a lot of potential. Hope you make that choice.

Our business concern is attracting new workers or getting what we need in WY. Some say they will commute from wherever. Your considering WY is a good sign, one that I think is becoming more common.

Again, WY has many beautiful places; my research suggests Casper.

[l1corinth13]

Yes, we plan on making the trip up there next month.

[l1corinth13]

Cowboy we did receive the answers we were looking for and have ruled out AK for relocation due to high cost of moving. We'd literally have to put all my husband's firearms and reloading equipment, his milling machine, welding machine all the big heavy stuff on a barge and we just don't want to have to do that. Also AK seems to have a lot harsher winter than we could handle. We may even not be set on Wyoming after we visit next month so you might just see another post asking for advice on another state.

[l1corinth13]

and about long commutes we are used to them; my husband drives 45 minutes to work, the nearest mall is over an hour away, nearest police station 30 minutes, there is a wal mart 20 minutes away.