Hey gang. I could potentially move to Reno for work this year and was wondering what the natives thought of the place. I've been there 5-6 times as a tourist, which really doesn't give me much useful information. I know the gun laws are better than here in WA and there's no state income tax, which are both awesome. My primary concerns are:

1. housing costs
2. good places to shoot (and by good I mean the boonies, public lands, forest roads, stuff like that, not formal ranges) that are less than an hour away
3. traffic
4. job opportunities for my wife (she's back office healthcare, works on workman's comp claims for Kaiser right now)
5. Any oddball gun laws I need to worry about
6. fun places to go hiking
7. weather, especially snow. I know the city is kind of in a rain shadow from the mts, but how is the snow? what areas get the most/worst snow? I have a job where 'calling in snow' isn't an option...
8. property tax, how bad is it?

Can any natives comment on these? I'd appreciate the help. I don't have much to offer in exchange, but I might be able to provide two anti-democrat votes every election.

I just moved to WA a little over a year ago after living in the Reno area for about 6 years.  I loved it there.  Generally snow once or twice a year but rarely over a few inches.  I think in 6 years I had 8+ inches at my place 2 maybe 3 times.

1. housing costs are going up but still not bad and great compared to a few hours west.  lost of high tech jobs are moving to town so expect them to keep going up but still manageable.
2. unlimited places to shoot within an hour drive out in the desert.  Also a really great county range about 20 minutes north of town with tons of formal competition events if you are into that sort of thing.  they even have a 1000 yard range but I don't remember it being open to the public very often.  usually reserved for training and competitions.  I'm sure someone else can provide more info on the range.
3. Traffic isn't great but not bad depending on where you live and where you are trying to get.  Pyramid highway can be crowded for about an hour in the morning and hour in the evening if you live north like I did but they have started a few major construction projects since I left that should lessen traffic.  It never bothered me enough to worry about and if you currently live anywhere near Seattle you will laugh at what Reno considers traffic.
4. 3 major hospitals in Reno counting the VA (which is the best VA I have ever used) and lots of medical specialists and practices.  I'm sure she can find something
5. nothing crazy to worry about but the are a few initiatives that are being worked and a background check law that was just passed that is in limbo.  someone local can provide better info on this one than I can but they were better than WA laws.
6. Lots of hiking within an hour and many spots just outside town.  Tahoe rim trail was a favorite of mine and the mountains around the gold lake basin (about 90 minutes away)  you could hike every weekend and never take the same trail twice easily.
7. some areas get more snow than others.  I lived in Spanish springs area and didn't have much of a problem but I know the Virginia City highlands and I think NW Reno get much more snow that I did.  Major roads in town are almost always open and it never stopped me from getting to work.
8. not anywhere near as bad as WA although car tabs will be more expensive.  generally cost of living seemed less to me there than it does here.

Hope that helps.  The NVHTF folks are great and always willing to help out, drink your beer and show new guys a good time.  My wife and I miss it and have often thought about moving back.  Good luck!!

thanks for the awesome response! If I lived there I would prolly rent for a while to get my bearings and find the right place to settle down. Just looking at maps of the area, it seems like one could live some where between Reno and Carson City and have access to both job markets. That might be beneficial. My potential work place is right off the 580 by the airport...

your new job would be right in the middle of what reno considers "traffic" which again isn't pleasant but is noting like what you see around seattle.

There isn't much between reno and carson except Washoe valley and you probably don't want to live there.  it gets crazy windy (100+ at times).  There is the Mt.Rose highway area which is nice but kind of upscale mountain type living. south reno isn't bad overall but it's generally the more upscale and pricy area to live (if politics factor into your decision then it also seemed to me to be one of the more liberal areas as well).  for medical jobs there also isn't much in Carson (only one small hospital).  Most (but not all) medical jobs are going to be right around the spaghetti bowl (I-80 and 580 junction area)  If you want to live somewhere with a little more space and less "city" feel look for places outside the McCarran loop (McCarran makes a big circle around the city)  Sparks has some really nice areas especially west sparks and spanish springs area around the north Costco area. It's also closer to the places to go shooting but nowhere is really far from a place to shoot.  If you aren't afraid to drive 30-45 minutes to work and want a little space then check out the Virginia city highlands.  It's outside washoe county so no vehicle smog testing and large home lots.  It does get more snow than most other areas but I have only ever seen the road closed a few times, they do a really good job keeping it passable, more so than 395 through washoe valley it seemed to me.  If you have kids then the Virginia city schools are also excellent but much smaller than reno schools.  Spanish springs area also has above average schools.

what else would you like to know?

Housing costs are a little high for the average income ho early. 1,300 sq ft is selling for $300,000.

Traffic isn't bad if you don't mind driving 50-60 mph on the freeway for no reason other than it's 3:30-6:00pm during the work week.

No odd gun laws I can think of.

Commuting to Carson city isn't bad. I do it daily.

It's snowed a lot the past two weeks but mostly it snows in the morning, you're late to work because everyone drives like they're scared and won't move out of the way, then it melts while you're at work.

If you'll be by the airport you're in the middle of traffic. If you live North on 395 and there is rain, snow, ice or a car wreck add 30-60 minutes to get home. No joke.

Fun places to go hiking include Hunter creek trail, Mt. Rose, Tahoe Meadows, Relay Peak, Tahoe Rim Trail, Peavine Mountain, Davis Creek, just to name a few.

Oh yeah don't forget there is only Smog checks for vehicles in Washoe and Clark counties. Smog exempt is 1967 or older.

It's close to Tahoe, it's a good base camp, we get decent concerts locally, food is good with a good assortment of option but nothing like a real major city. Hospitals are Renown, St. Mary's, VA, Tahoe Forrest, And Carson City. My sister in law currently commutes an hour to Tahoe Forrest and deals with highway closures but they let her through.

Oh great. lol. I'm actually not in Seattle, I'm in Vancouver. My wife and I both work in Portland, so at times it is Seattle-esque. It usually takes my wife about 45 mins to an hour to drive the 12 mile route from home to work.



Just doing some basic searches on Zillow, that certainly seems to be the case. I hate wind...so I'd prolly want to avoid that area.



No kids here, so I'm not worried about schools. Helps with resale value to have good ones, but it's at the bottom of the priority list for sure. VCH definitely sounds interesting though. Like the idea of being outside the county...especially if Reno slides more and more lib over time. Counties can do a lot of crap to you. Have to check that area out. Cost of living is a concern because I'm not sure what kinda $ my wife is going to make initially. She's worked her way up where she is now and is doing really well (makes more than me AND has amazing benes)...starting over again could really make it tough sledding as far as buying a new house. I have some equity in my current place, but not a ton. I make between 50 and 60/yr and initially anyway that would be our main source of $. Prolly be stuck renting for a while. I don't need a mansion. 1900-2000 sq ft is plenty. Don't need a huge yard either. Some day I want to be able to shoot in my backyard, but that prolly won't happen until retirement.

Yeah, that could be a problem. I'm sure to people from CA that's cheap...but you can definitely get 2000-ish sq ft for $300k where I'm at now. hmmmm...



buwahahahaaa! I'm lucky if I'm driving 5 or 6 on the freeway on my way home, let alone 50-60. I'm pretty sure that my wife would kill someone for that kind of commute.



meh!



copy that, thanks for the info. I have a few months to make a decision about whether I want to 'go for it' or not...every bit of info helps!

Her eis somethign to consider about living in virginia City Highlands.  It's all on propane heat and wells and we have had a rough 5 years with small amounts of rain and snow for those years.  Also the roads in/out of Virginia City are at a much higher elevation and get ice much easier than the roads in town. They're also full of cyclists probably every day riding up and down both sides.  Virginia City itself is a big tourist attraction so on weekends expect more traffic than living in the country. You'd be better off living out of Chicakdee Rd. or something like that in the North Valleys if you want to be in the country. Heck even in Palamino (spelling?) Valley you could find nice places to live if you don't mind driving an hour to Reno and 90 minutes to Carson City (depending WHERE in Carson you're driving).  I'm personally in South Reno and it's 20 minutes to the hospital or the airport, 30 minutes to the Capital building (driveway to desk) in Carson, 30 minutes from Mt Rose skiing, and an hour from Truckee and/or Sand Harbor. Mt Rose is a 10 mile out and back hike, Galena Creek has 3-9 mile hikes, Spooner lake can get you PLENTY of hiking/trail running/mountain biking, and Carson City has plenty of spots also.  If you want to do off roading Reno4x4 has runs all over town and most are within 30 minutes regardless of where you live.  

395/80 South is a traffic jam before and after work. Friends lived in Northwest reno (NOT Sommerset) and it was 50 minutes to Carson City when they worked at 6:30am. I lived off Los Altos Blvd on Sparks and planned on an hour drive. The pinch points were Pyramid Highway, 395/80, the airport, Virginia St (near the mall, Barnes and Noble) going to work and add in Neil Rd with all those coming home. If you can do 7-4 working in Carson City or 4 10s I'd recommend it just to avoid traffic.

As for rent you're in the ballpark:
http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5967852631.html
http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5967904044.html
http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5958438741.html
http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5947553554.html
http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5926156559.html

http://reno.craigslist.org/apa/5968085476.html
*Note: Highland Ranch is the North end of Sun Valley. Sun Valley is a lot of lower income working class people that may or may not be involved with drugs.  These are nice houses and you can get there without driving through Sun Valley. This is the only area of Sun Valley I'd consider and I'd only consider it if there was nothing else I could find I liked. I'd never buy a primary residence there at this point in my life.

I don't live in Reno, but moved to Northern Nevada from Vancouver, WA.  Once in a while I roll in to Reno to get a whiff of big city life again.  Then quickly remember why I'm content out in the sagebrush.  Misjudged my timing and have hit prime traffic a couple of times.  Reno traffic at it's worst is laughable compared to going across the bridges between Portland and Vancouver.

I live in Galena, off Mt Rose highway and have no complaints.

I've lived in Nevada for 35 years and love it for all of the open, public land.    It seems like everywhere I think of moving, everything is "No Tresspassing".   Who cares about a scenic coastline or forest if you can't even go there?

I lived for 15 years and my wife grew up here. We still live here off and on but moved to Phoenix for better job opportunities. It's a love/hate relationship for my wife and I. For outdoors activities and quality of life like hiking,fishing,camping,shooting, etc. This place is awesome. For jobs though this place is shit (I work in aviation). So if you are secure in your work I would try it.  Also your wife shouldn't have a problem finding work at a hospital.

The other thing about this place is we have had a huge influx of Bay Area rejects. They were priced out of their apartments in Oakland so they moved over here. But still kept their shit house politics and habits. So essentially if you see a hipster or a set of skinny jeans I would treat it with a complete lack of trust. They see anyone with a real job as a threat.

The other thing here is we have a huge drug subculture from the afore mentioned rejects and burning man. You although you will most likely never see it unless you spend a lot of time among hipsters or downtown.

From what I am reading here, and elsewhere, I think I'd like the place...but the home prices are a bit daunting relative to what I'm used too. If I was getting a big promotion, then I'd be fine being single income for a while until my wife could find her niche....but this is just a lat move situation and I don't think we could afford to live there  (without being house poor) even after the wife got a decent job. On the otherhand, I paid the lousy state of Oregon $6500 in income taxes last year and I don't even flippin' live there.

look in Fernley.  it's about 30 minutes east and an easy commute on 80 and it's outside Washoe county so no smog on the vehicles.  Much cheaper housing and lots of people make that commute.  You could also look in cold springs which is up near the CA border. that would also be about a 30-45 minute commute.

wow, way more options out there. Honestly, I had pretty much given up hope that this could work...but that area (if Zillow is to be believed anyway) gives me some options. Thanks for suggesting it!

I would caution living in the North Valleys (Golden, Panther, Lemon, and Cold Springs) because there is a wreck on the highway often enough to stop traffic. When it snowed this week it took my friend 30 minutes to get from the Cold Springs exit to Red Rock.

As for Fernley, it's a good alternative.  I don't hear of the highway being shut down and there is just one or two small pockets where you lose radio signals.  The commute to Carson City would be about an hour if you're still working in Carson.  Plenty of people live there and they finally have more than a Super Walmart to shop at but I'd take a trip out there first. Also look up where the flood was a few years ago and any flooding this year so you don't have to deal with it if it happens again.

EDIT: Don't trust Zillow.  Go to nnrmls.com or sign up on Listingbook.com.  Listing book will show you the history of pricing on a house as well as a lot more information I found useful when I was buying such as how much a home sold for 6 months ago.
http://nnrmls.com/homes-for-sale-results/?resubmittedSearch=true&sortBy=pd&zip=89436&propertyType=SFR%2CCND&searchType=BASIC&inclusiveYn=true&deactivated=false&photosOnlyYn=true&openHomesOnlyYn=false&status=active&minListPrice=&maxListPrice=350000&bedrooms=0&bathCount=0

Don't forget to look in Carson City for housing. Particularly if your work will be near 580. Your wife will likely be employed somewhere close to 580 as well if she stays in health care.

If you want:

Rural: Washoe Valley
City: Reno
Suburb: Sparks / Spanish Springs
Cheap: Fernley / Dayton (both of these are a bit of a drive though)

Avoid mostly for traffic issues during bad weather: Bordertown, Cold Springs, Red Rock, Stead, Lemmon Vally, Panther Valley, Virginia City, Minden, Gardnerville

exactly the kind of info I'm looking for, thanks much!