Relocating to Idaho from California
We talked with a family that recently moved to Idaho from California. You can watch the full interview below!
Q: How do the people in Idaho compare to the people in California?
A: There are some good people in California, some great people, but the culture, especially today, has just become so illogical and people are so harried and in a rush and stressed. Oh my goodness, are they stressed! The pace up here is different; you just feel it’s slower even if it’s not.
Q: Do you feel like Idaho is safe?
A: Here in Idaho, we don’t feel afraid of our neighbors. We have nothing to worry about. You can go anywhere and do what you need to do. I mean, I did feel safe. I mean, I’m sure there are more people and things, but I thought Nampa was a really nice town.
Q:What’s your experience driving in the Treasure Valley?
A: It’s so easy to find things, and we only have one freeway, and you know, that’s right, that’s the other good thing.
Q: Was the snow here really all that bad?
A: Of course, we came from an area where it snows maybe once or twice a century, but we were surprised that it didn’t stick around for long, and we were able to get around without any chains or just slow down. I think you just sped it up right there. No sudden movements, and just go slow. It’s almost like a dry cold. It doesn’t feel like it’s cold. If you just layer your clothes, you can go out and really enjoy it.
Q: What events have you enjoyed?
A: We went to the Christmas festival, and oh my goodness, that was fabulous. Never in my life have I seen so many Christmas lights and they were so family-oriented. There were so many families there enjoying it. It was great. They had hot chocolate and, oh no, no lack of hot drinks, coffee, cider, all those things that you could get and walk around with, so it was awesome. And now during the daytime in the winter, the sun usually comes out.
Q: What about the outdoors in the area?
A: They’ve got the rivers and the streams. Not far from us is a pretty good-sized lake, Lake Lowell. It’s beautiful. It’s so big.
Q: How do the utilities in Idaho compare to those in California?
A: Did you guys run your air conditioner? We did well. You know, did you get a surprise when you got your bill? I thought it was wrong. When we got our bill, I said “this has to be a mistake” and I kept looking at it and I thought “well send it in, maybe they’ll send us another bill, but not until the next month and that was the same low price and I thought “man this is awesome.” The other thing is that the house is well insulated. You know, construction up here is different than it is down there in southern California, so we really appreciated that because we didn’t use an inordinate amount of electricity. It was way more expensive in California, and even if you tried to keep your air conditioner off, even down there, yeah, it was still astronomically priced. You can’t get ahead of the price. They keep raising it too. But all the utilities here are amazingly low.
Q: Cost of Living in Idaho?
A: The food is a lot less expensive here and the food prices, I will say, some of them are lower on some of the produce and other stuff. I think most of the other prices are similar to where we were living for groceries. My grocery bills are probably a little bit lower here.
Q: HOA in Idaho?
A: They clearly spell out the rules, and you know, you should abide by them. And frankly, we’ve invested some of our money in this house, and we’re glad that it’s protected. You know, junk cars aren’t, so you don’t have the neighbors or cars up on blocks or the big thumping music playing at 2 a.m. Nope, we haven’t had any of that, and as long as we’ve been in the neighborhood, it’s been quiet.\
In Closing
Many families have moved to the Treasure Valley. Bob and Donna did it, and you can too! If you think Idaho might be for you, give us a shout. You can also visit our YouTube Channel. Thanks for reading!
