Anchorage Beta/ relocation tips

[rockcreek]

The Mrs and I and our 3yo and our cat and our dog are moving up to Anchorage in June. She's working at the Native Hospital, I took a job at AK regional. Weve been looking at places to rent/ buy. How is the traffic into Anchorage from Eagle River/ Chugiak? The wifey works five days 9-6, I'm only on three days a week 1p-1a. If we do decide to buy/ rent in Anchorage, I was told to avoid the north side, but not quite sure what that specifically encompasses. Eagle River/Chugiak seems a logical choice to get into the woods quicker. Real estate up there seems super hot, with most houses getting offers within a week of going on the market.
Anywho Just wondering if any of the mags had some insight on places to live, traffic, food, etc.
Ive been browsing the other posts RE: anchorage, so I know that taking the fam to ABC is numero uno on the priority list. Thanks in advance for helping a jong out

[highangle]

1. Alaska is entering a deep recession, but real estate hasn't crashed yet. I'd certainly rent for a while before I bought a home, even though spring/summer is the worst time to rent up here.

2. Anc is a dirty boomtown, where real estate scammers and washed up drunken builders flock to make a quick buck in a boom, and leave before they get caught. Pay for an inspection before you put anything down on a house. There's more fucked up houses in ANC than you will believe. I can tell you about a million dollar home in Campbell Lake resting on a foundation of tree branches and firewood the builders found laying on the lot...

3. The Glenn gets jammed up frequently. It spends weeks at a time coated with glare ice. It's also going to be pitch dark during rush hours for five months a year.
A buttload of people make the hour commute from Wasilla, or the hour and a half run each way from Big Lake. They are all going to be on the road with your wife.

4. Schools are pretty decent in ANC, except for a couple...You'll have the lay of the land when the time comes. ANTHC/ANH should have day care too.

5. The Native Hospital has one of the best Native art museums and gift shops in ANC. Decorating your home will not be a problem.

[highangle]

6. ANC is a sump of used furniture, sporting eq, and Subarus. The population turns over frequently, and it's expensive as hell to freight shit out. Check out the antique shops!

7. No se donde esta "Oro y Plata", pero te decepcionara la comida mexicana en ANC...pero no en el centro y sur de America lugares.

[BFD]

I will agree with everything highangle posted. definitely not the time to buy. I have a friend that owns a few rental houses in Airport Heights neighborhood. He rolls over all his leases i believe end of June. Contacted my friend he has one available maybe 2 on July 1. Two bedroom, backyard that opens onto the greenbelt Chester creek trail. off street parking. PM if you are interested in the contact.

[Svengali]

I agree with all of the above. Plenty of rentals in vicinity of both places of employment; 2 miles apart. I live in this area(mid town); the rush hour/commuter traffic in Anchorage sucks, can't imagine spending more than 5 minutes in it!, so I don't. The Getting-in-the-woods-quicker thing gets old fast when you are subjected to idiot drivers, bumper to bumber RV's, road closures, road construction for an hour plus twice a day! Access to "outdoor's" is not a large hurdle like in other metro areas.

[rockcreek]

Great info, exactly what I was looking for, thanks highangle.

BFD, pm sent, appreciate it.

Oh and oro y plata is Montana's state motto, no worries on the lack of quality Mexican food.

[rockcreek]

Sven any neighborhoods to avoid?

[Svengali]

Considering your places of employment, I'd stay in the Airport Heights (great neighborhood bakery), Roger's Park, College Village, and westside of College Gate Area's. If your budget allows there's downtown/south addition. I'd avoid anything north and east of Ak Regional and Fairview.
Anchorage has an odd layout in that there are pockets of haves/have nots all over town. I don't know anything about rents where you are coming from, but expect sticker shock!

[gravitylover]

My old college roomie is a realtor up there, he grew up there and really knows his way around and is a successful and well respected realtor. If you want a hookup pm me some info and I'll send it to him.

[Chugach001]

Have fun. Super town and even better state

[STLHD]

Depends on whether you're a commuter or not, but living in Girdwood and working in ANC isn't that bad, particularly if you're on a 3x a week schedule. Traffic is slower in the summer with all the RVs and beluga gawkers, but nowhere near as bad as the Glenn highway commute.

Regardless, I agree with the suggestions about renting first. Even if our economy wasn't in the toilet, ANC is a weird town and it helps to spend some time here before you commit to a house.

[Alaskan Rover]

Traffic and house availability and pricing us relative to where you're coming from.. Compared to San Fran or Seattle, traffic and R E. prices are quite low. If, on the other hand, you're coming from northern Maine, you will find both traffic and housing to be crazy.

Overall, for a city of its size, traffic is only moderate and manageable, except in construction zones. Sure...rush hour happens in Anch...but it's neglible compared to trying to get on I-5 in Seattle at 4:45pm. I wouldn't really base your location solely on traffic.

I definitely concur that it would be best to rent before buying....gives you a chance to spec the city out. No idea your budget, but a decent house rental can be anywhere from. $1000 to $2000 a month. You can still find small studios for as low as $600, and actually sometimes less, even $400/mo. Townhouses seem to rent for same as a house...not a townhouse guy. Not long ago there was a house and land for rent in Rabbit Creek area for $850/mo.

Areas to look at:

West Lagoon area: Considered Anchorage's upscale area. A small suburban area with the Tony Knowles threading through it. Very close to downtown district. High rent, low crime. Not much flavor, but safe and secure. Good high school (West High). Close to the ice rink and small parks.

Government Hill: An area that DOES have a little flavor and is off by its self. I actually like that little area. Great views of the water (sits on the hill directly above the port). Has a very cohesive, small-town feel to it. Nice folks. Low crime. Downside is homes very seldom come up for sale or rent....but if they do, snap it up...it's a great little enclave all its own.

Hillside: The Hollywood Hills of Anchorage, with prices to match... at least for homes with an acre or two. A very horsey area. Good stables all around. Best views in Anchorage...hands down. Getting up to the upper hillside houses definitely takes studded tires and 4wd at times. Flattop trailhead very close by.

Those are my three favorite areas IN or near the downtown area of Anch. In between there are tons of small neighborhoods too numerous to mention. Needs exploring.

Farther out:

Rabbit Creek, South of Anchorage , this area is far enough from downtown to have a more Alaska feel to it. Great for jumping onto the Seward Hwy for points south. Portage and Bird Creek is just a short hop. Decent schools...Service High is the H.S.

Chugiak...much like Rabbit Creek to South, it's far enough from Anch to feel you've gotten away from the city...but a few minutes on the highway brings you right down to Fourth.

Eagle Creek....reaching the limit of a cummute to Anchorage. I've never really liked the lay-out of Eagle Creek...similar to Wasilla...a linear strip town, whose "downtown" happens to be a 1970s shopping center (but I'm biased, I like old-fashioned downtowns like Palmer"s). The good thing about E R. is the access to some incredible lands....the Eagle River Visitor Center being just a nibble of it.

Butte: Definitely on the far edge of the easy commute circle, Butte, like it's name implies, is an area that could easily be in the center of Wyoming...lots of farms and small ranches. Magnificent views of Pioneer Peak pretty much ANYWHERE I Butte. Even being fairly far from Anchorage, it is definitely a place to check out if you're looking for a more open, less crowded feel...and since you would be taking the "cut", it's basically same distance as going to Wasilla...but much less crowded. School district is Mat-Su and the groceries in Palmer (although there is small-scale local supplies right I Butte).


Places to stay away from (IMHO!!) :

Spenard.
MountainView.

Both those areas have considerable drug-dealing, small time theft. Spenard is sorta like N. Aurora Avenue in Seattle, and Mountainview is similar to Rainier Ave of South Seattle (except white instead of black).

Dimond : A continually growing area of South Anchorage. Not bad in terms of crime of anything...just so damned CROWDED. Rife with large, totally boring subdivisions with lookalike houses. The type of subdivisions you need a GPS to get around in. But if you're used to large lower-48 type subdivisions, Dimond is a fine area...I just don't like it, never have. At least it has good biking trails, though.

That's the great thing about Anchorage....TONS of great biking trails, you can thank corner Anch mayor and Ak Governor Tony Knowles for that!! Just watch out for the moose on the trails, they may try and kill you if you surprise them (and often succeed).

[Alaskan Rover]

Sorry about all the typos above. I hate typos, but can't seem to correct them now for whatever reason. Slmethkng fudged up, for sure!

[Alaskan Rover]

Couldn't even fix "West lagoon" to Westchester lagoon. WTF??? But check it and Government Hill out, you might like them both.

[Svengali]

Overlong Rover, as per usual, your rambling literary stylings leave the casual reader completely bewildered; ie wtf.

[highangle]

The sun sets in September in the Butte, doesn't rise again until early May. And that dark place is full of white trash and cranky nates. It's a hellavalot cheaper than Barrow for the same amenities...

[Alaskan Rover]

The sun sets in September in the Butte, doesn't rise again until early May. And that dark place is full of white trash and cranky nates. It's a hellavalot cheaper than Barrow for the same amenities...

Eh...pockets of Butte are white trashy, but the area around the Butte itself (the topographic entity) is quite fine. Pastoral with the farm fields and the butte as a backdrop. There is an elementary school right in Butte...middle and high are in Palmer. The butte itself is also a great little day hike. And the day hiking at Pioneer Peak is outstanding. Plenty of sunlight in summer. Also s good pizzaria.

[highangle]

I usually just take the New Glenn...

[Alaskan Rover]

For whatever reason, I every time I'd go to Palmer, I'd always take the Old Glenn. It's a bit of a wraparound, but I just like meandering. I always stop and walk the old Knik River Bridge, even though it's been unused for years and barely safe. The back doors into a place are sometimes so much more interesting than going through the front door...and the Old Glenn is definitely the back door to the Mat-Su region!

[Svengali]

Old Glenn: Back door to the asshole(s) of Alaska

[rockcreek]

holy shit, thanks for the info guys.
Would you rather drive all the way through from Montana, or drive to prince Rupert and ferry to haines?
Bellingham to haines wont work for our time frame.

[Alaskan Rover]

Me, I'd take the ferry route. Reason: The drive from Montana through the Peace River area to Prince Rupert is pretty enough...lots of inland topography similar to what you see in Montana (although the Canadian Rockies are spectacular!). But jump on the ferry to Haines and you will be seeing coastal mountains and vistas that will knock your socks off and be impossible to see in an inland state...a great welcoming to Alaska. Think about heading to Dawson City from Haines and then the Top of the World Highway into Alaska instead of the more common route. Either way, the drive thru the Yukon is incredible.

[BFD]

I have been in Alaska for 36 years. Drove the Alcan and Cassiar for the first time this year. It was late October so the road was deserted , It is a great trip until Calgay. Had a chance to stop and check out Shames, Hyder , Stewart Bell2 and a bunch of places I always wanted to see. Just pulled over and camped where ever for the night. Do not know how busy the highway is in the summer. Your pets would probably prefer the drive over the ferry. The ferry takes a few days and you better look for reservations now because I think it books up.The road from Haines to Haines Junction is spectacular but so is the icefield parkway and the Cassiar. Either way you can't go wrong. The ferry is definitely a fixed schedule.

[Svengali]

Definitely drive the scenic Cassier vs. Alaska Highway unless you enjoy boring scenery and Semi/Heavy Equipment traffic. BFD is correct about ferry reservations. Save the Gold Rush history detour/Top of the World Highway for a more relaxed schedule and when your kid is older and engaged

[Meadow Skipper]

Cassiar>Alcan. Cassiar v. the ferry out of Prince Rupert is a tough call, especially in June. I like both a lot. You might consider going with the ferry, since it's easier to do the highway without a lot of planning, and you'll likely hit the highway anyway at some point during your tenure in AK.

Also, anytime you can travel when you're sitting in a bar...