Thinking about moving out of Iowa

[besserheimerphat]

What's a bit interesting in my experience is if you move to an area that's transient the ability to reinvent yourself and merge with the local culture is easier. There isn't a "gatekeeper"

SoCal. Vegas.

Places where the population doesn't move has higher walls and more history to overcome when trying to integrate.

Rural USA in a nutshell. I lived in a very small Iowa town for about 8 years after graduation. Population less than 1000 and maybe 5 different last names. I was always the new person who lived in "the old so-and-so place" and "so-and-so" was like three owners ago.

 

[besserheimerphat]

To me that sounds perfect. The sun is an evil bastard! I love dark cloudy days. Just wish WA was more affordable.

Really depends on how close you are to the Seattle metro. Anywhere along the east side of Puget Sound is expensive. It gets cheaper as you go north, to a point. Marysville is kind of the northern edge of commuting distance so north of that it gets cheaper. But further north yet is Bellingham, which is a cool city but it is more expensive too. It's a lot like Cedar Falls - smaller but urbanish with a the state's third largest public university. Also right on a deep water bay so has a cool, historic waterfront. There are a lot of more affordable places on the peninsula that, with ferries, are still very accessible to downtown Seattle.

Seattle traffic is notorious awful. I find the drivers aren't bad or aggressive, there are just too many for I-5/405. But the geography really limits the options to expand. However there are decent and improving public transit options to drive to Everett and then take the lite rail the rest of the way. I can even take a train from my city's downtown, 60 miles north, all the way to T-Mobile Park or Lumen Field. Or to the airport.

 

[ISUTex]

I am and have been well aware of it, I just think it's an entitled, selfish perspective and our society needs to figure out collectivism a bit better. Dodging taxes while still enjoying the benefits of those taxes is a ****** thing to do.

You live close to Canada. Just move there ya Commie.

 

[MountainManHawk]

What's a bit interesting in my experience is if you move to an area that's transient the ability to reinvent yourself and merge with the local culture is easier. There isn't a "gatekeeper"

SoCal. Vegas.

Places where the population doesn't move has higher walls and more history to overcome when trying to integrate.

I’ve definitely noticed the same thing. As a general rule, in areas with lots of transplants it’s fairly easy to make friends because lots of other people will be in your same shoes and are looking to add to their friend group and will be quick to invite you in.

In areas where everyone has lived there their whole life and been friends since kindergarten, it can be kind of tough. Everyone seems to already have all of the friends they want/need and they aren’t super quick to invite in anyone new. You always feel kind of like an outsider because everyone else has already been friends for a long time and you’re the only new one.

I bet some people experience the same thing when they move to Iowa. Compared to most places listed in this thread, Iowa probably has a high percentage of people that have lived their whole lives in the state.

 

[3GenClone]

Just got out of a long-term relationship a few months ago and I've been thinking about moving out of Iowa now that I have nothing tying me down.
I wanted to hear from others who have left where you ended up, if you have any advice about picking a place to live, etc.
I'm thinking somewhere with mild winters, relatively close to mountains or beaches, good job market and lots of people around my age (30s). My current job is as a Product Owner at an insurance company so thinking it would be relatively easy to find something similar in a bigger city.
Thanks!

My family moved from DSM to Columbus, OH last year and it has been a very positive change for all of us. Give Columbus a look - the cost of living is very comparable to Des Moines.

 

[CRCy17]

My family moved from DSM to Columbus, OH last year and it has been a very positive change for all of us. Give Columbus a look - the cost of living is very comparable to Des Moines.

I really enjoyed my 2+ years in Columbus. Definitely has bigger city vibes, especially with the sports team in town, but with a midwest vibe.

 

[Althetuna]

After grad school I moved to Wenatchee, WA for a term (18 month) job. Had no plans on staying. Thirty-two years later, we're still here. Wenatchee is ideally located in the rain shadow of the Cascades. It's dry here, but you can be in sage brush and wheat fields to the east, and it's a 10 minute drive to ponderosa pine forests. Every thursday I leave my office at 4:00 for a 4:30 mountain bike ride with a small group. Similarly, in the winter you can be at the ski slopes within 30 minutes. We have the Columbia River right in town for watersports. Great salmon fishing (when its open), etc. etc. We have good breweries and wineries. We used to frequent Bend, OR, for these things, but we have it all here. The Wenatchee/Leavenworth mountain biking trails are world class.

That said, its getting hotter and drier. You can pretty much count on weeks to months of smoke every year from wildfires. Housing is expensive. Gas prices are really high. But wages tend to keep up.

Now that I'm nearing retirement, I've been starting to peruse Zillow in the Post Falls / Coeur d'Alene area. They get about twice the precipitation, more trees, and opportunities for a decent sized piece of property for elbow room. Lower prices just due to being in Idaho. For the purposes of the OP, CdA is close enough to Spokane that you could have a better chance of finding work.

My daughter and SIL lived in Seattle. We live in Minneapolis. My wife is not a flier so we've driven I-94/I-90 a few times. Its a pretty good road trip. Bad lands, mountains, and Coeur d'Alene is kind of the crown jewel of that trip.

My one gripe is driving another 45 minutes west through Spokane and it feels like you've travelled from the prettiest place on earth to the movie set you'd see in a spaghetti western.

 

[kevdiv48]

Moved to Houston within 2 months of graduating from ISU for an engineering job and have been here for 11(!) years. No way I expected that upon accepting the first job.
My takeaway is it depends what you prioritize if i'd call it recommend

Pros: -big city amenities. Great food & drink options, pro sports teams, fine arts& museum options, solid airports to get you anywhere in the world.
-Diversity. Met people from all over the world. Especially in the city it's minority to be from Houston originally
-generally strong earning potential to cost of living ratio. For engineering specifically pay is close to tech jobs but cost of living is closer to midwest.
-winter weather is awesome. Some cold snaps but not abnormafor sunny 60-70 in mid Jan.

Cons: - horrible summers. Take peak bad iowa August hot & humid day and stretch it from early May to Halloween. Coupled with high rain and hurricane potential it can be rough.
-Lack of nature. Average midwest outdoor rec options blow Houston out of the water. Some of the big city parks have money funnelled into them and good for urban options but it's the exception not the norm.
-ISU alum base is a light compared to other Texas metros Austin & DFW

 

[StClone]

MSN

 

[BCClone]

Really depends on how close you are to the Seattle metro. Anywhere along the east side of Puget Sound is expensive. It gets cheaper as you go north, to a point. Marysville is kind of the northern edge of commuting distance so north of that it gets cheaper. But further north yet is Bellingham, which is a cool city but it is more expensive too. It's a lot like Cedar Falls - smaller but urbanish with a the state's third largest public university. Also right on a deep water bay so has a cool, historic waterfront. There are a lot of more affordable places on the peninsula that, with ferries, are still very accessible to downtown Seattle.

Seattle traffic is notorious awful. I find the drivers aren't bad or aggressive, there are just too many for I-5/405. But the geography really limits the options to expand. However there are decent and improving public transit options to drive to Everett and then take the lite rail the rest of the way. I can even take a train from my city's downtown, 60 miles north, all the way to T-Mobile Park or Lumen Field. Or to the airport.

We went out to Seattle last year. Wife had a cousin who lives in port Townsend, main reason we were there. The houses seemed to be mostly 1940ish two stories where they were. They were about a block from the water. Made me feel like small town Iowa there. Except for the water.

 

[besserheimerphat]

We went out to Seattle last year. Wife had a cousin who lives in port Townsend, main reason we were there. The houses seemed to be mostly 1940ish two stories where they were. They were about a block from the water. Made me feel like small town Iowa there. Except for the water.

We're in Mount Vernon, in the Skagit River Valley. It's a flat(ish) agricultural area so it actually reminds me of Iowa a bit. Significant immigrant population that works the fields. The crops are human food though - potatoes, broccoli, asparagus, baggage, lettuce, berries, etc. And a few thousand acres of commercial daffodil and tulip fields. Its right in the Pacific Flyway so twice a year we get trumpeter swans that migrate through in addition to the normal ducks and geese. Chuckanut Mountains to the north, North Cascades to the east, Straight of San Juan de Fuca to the west, and Seattle to the south. I don't work in Seattle fortunately so my commute is only about 15 minutes.

 

[deadeyededric]

When I mentioned this post to my wife, her first response was "Idaho". We haven't been, but know at least two couples who have relocated to Idaho from Iowa and adore it. And as I said, gives you all the upside of hiking, wilderness, outdoor activities. However it will be one step cooler in comparison to say, Colorado -- but still milder than Iowa.

Colorado is crazy milder in winter than Iowa. They still get snow in the winter, sometimes large quantity, but often it melts away within 2-3 days. It can also be quite a bit hotter in the summer -- you're closer to the sun man -- but never as humid as Iowa.

Boise/Nampa has been booming for quite some time. Its the mountain states version of Des Moines

 

[StClone]

Carolinas offer proximity to both mountains and beaches coupled with a reasonable cost of living and some change of seasons. As a recruiter you become aware of what we call "migration patterns". People who move to Carolinas from the Midwest tend to stay there. Versus people who move from Midwest to the Upper Atlantic seaboard who typically tend to move back.

I spent a lot of time in N. Carolina and for many years my favorite state.

 

[Gonzo]

My family moved from DSM to Columbus, OH last year and it has been a very positive change for all of us. Give Columbus a look - the cost of living is very comparable to Des Moines.

I lived in Columbus after graduating, 1995-1998. Was surprised at the size of Columbus. I'd never been there and thought it was another typical B1G college town, didn't know at the time it had >1 million. Lived in German Village and worked in the Short North. Crime was still an issue then on the tOSU campus along High St. but it sounds like they've cleaned that up. The obsession with tOSU athletics was something else, but a fun couple of years. Went down to Yellow Springs several times, cool little town and the state park down there is beautiful.