Newly Remote Employee: Where to move? (w/ LOW Allergies)

[FIREandMONEY]

So after nearly a decade of debilitating allergies in the DFW, TX region, it's become apparent that me and my family (wife and two kids under 5) need to move.  I've tried about every pill, spray, shot, and surgery you can think of.  Spent thousands of $ and I get continually worse every year.  It's a continuous cycle of sinus infections, ear infections, bronchitis, even pneumonia.  The allergist is finally recommending "relocation out of the region".  My main allergens are 1) Ragweed 2) Mountain Cedar/Juniper 3) Ash/Elm/Oak 4) Sage.  Generally in that order.  Thankfully, my boss has agreed to move my position to 100% remote.  Great right! The world (er, USA) is our oyster.  We can move wherever we want!  We've looked at a few places, mainly in the Western US because that is where all the allergy websites say pollen is the lowest. 

Our priorities are:

1) Low Allergies
2) Good school districts
3) Cost of Living/Housing
4) Not awful Winters
5) Diversity/Moderate Politics

We've looked at the general areas:

1) Boise, ID (Star, Eagle, Middleton, Treasure Valley)

Seems like the whole Treasure Valley has relatively low allergies.  I am of course worried about the Juniper/Cedar and I've never lived somewhere with a lot of sagebrush during their peak pollen season, so we are still hesitant but that could be said about anywhere.  School districts seem ok generally speaking even if I hear Idaho teachers are underpaid.  We'd like a normal 3-4 bedroom 2-3 bath house with 2000-2500 sqft.  Looks like that goes around $500-650K in this area.  Wish it was cheaper but that's what I'm seeing.  It obviously snows in Boise, but everything I've read says it generally melts within a day or two.  The actual city of Boise, being 1/4 Million people, has some diversity I'm sure, but I know that Eagle and Star are pretty homogenic.  My wife and I are politically moderate and definitely not a fan of MAGA.  I worry about that for a lot of places we are considering, but it is one of our least important criteria.  We've learned to bite our tongues living in Texas. 

2) Logan, UT

A lot of what I said about Boise could be said about Logan.  I feel like retail/shopping is worse here then the Boise area, but the diversity and politics may be a little better since the town has more of a college town feel with Utah State University.  Definitely worried about the Mormon/LDS influence as we are definitely not that, but if it checked all the other boxes, it would be a contender.  Logan has worse winters then the Boise area from what I've read.

3) Flagstaff, AZ

When you mention moving to a place with low allergies, a lot of people automatically think Arizona.  I've read that Phoenix has gotten worse over the decades thanks to people bringing in invasive plants into their subdivisions.  I know juniper is a concern in the Flagstaff region, but if it's only 6 weeks or so out of the year, that may be doable.  I spend 7-9 months a year trapped in my home in DFW thanks to nearly year round allergies.  Crime and school districts both seem to be good in Flagstaff, but I want to know more.  If not Flagstaff or Phoenix, where in Arizona? 

4) Arcata, CA

Winters here would be a non-factor, so that's a huge plus.  Hopefully the coastal breeze would also keep a lot of the allergies low, but I don't know that for sure.  I used to also live in Corpus Christi, TX right on the bay and I had horrible allergies.  Diversity/Politics are a plus here.  Of course, housing is more expensive.

5) Cortez, CO (whole SW Colorado)

This is one of the more rural regions we have been looking at.  Housing prices don't seem too bad and the winters seem doable.  There is some concern about the school districts and the level of poverty in the region.  I have also heard that there can be a lot of hay farming in the region depending where you're at.  That sends up my allergy red-flags.  We have also considered the Grand Junction, CO region. 


You can see we are all over the place.  Really, I am looking for suggestions of any locales or regions that other mustachians may have heard of that might check some of our boxes.  Low allergies for me are #1 priority.  Followed up with good school districts and affordable housing.  The good thing is I bring my job with me wherever I go, so we are ok being a little more rural if it helps with the school districts and/or house prices.

Any thoughts?

[cannotWAIT]

Some people's allergies get drastically worse when moving to Boise. Specifically what causes it, I don't know, but I've heard this a couple of times. Also be aware that apart from allergens, the whole SLC area can have terrible air pollution. They get some weird weather pattern that pushes the pollution up from California, mostly San Diego I think. The last time I was there I got the first nosebleed of my entire life and it had to have been from the choking pollution they were having.

[hdatontodo]

Amen on no SLC

https://snowbrains.com/why-salt-lake-city-ut-has-some-of-the-worlds-worst-air-quality-in-the-world-and-what-we-can-do-to-fix-it1/

Sent from my SM-G991U1 using Tapatalk

[FINate]

We've lived in Boise for almost 4 years now.

Not sure about Juniper/Cedar... We have a lot of sagebrush in the surrounding foothills/desert, and a ton of mature Ash/Elm/Oak in the city (City of Trees). This site may be useful: https://www.bvaac.com/past-pollen-counts/

Teachers are underpaid most places. Idaho spends less on education than most states, yet standardized test scores (I know, not perfect) are somewhere in the middle of the pack. But really, schools are extremely local. We are in the Boise School District which far exceeds the quality of schools in our former affluent area of California. Though it really depends on the specific district and  school.

Yes, we get snow, but typically not very much and like you say, it usually melts quickly. That's not to say it we never get a lot of snow. This January we had record snow over a week or so with maybe 12-15" on the ground, which stayed around for a week or two. We have a real four season climate, with average winter lows in the low 20s and daytime highs in the low 40s, and usually a few days that dip down to near 0F. But then we have a lot of warmer sunny winter days that barely get below freezing with daytime highs in the 50s. Summers can get hot, with daytime highs in the low 100s, but cooling off overnight by 30-35 degrees. It's high desert, so low humidity.

Boise proper is liberal, though somewhat moderate and less progressive. Overall, being a blue city in a red state requires both sides to reach across the aisle. Everywhere outside Boise is more conservative. Eagle is affluent conservative. Star is a conservative bedroom community. Meridian is a sprawling suburb trending somewhat less conservative. Happy to comment more on specific neighborhoods if you have questions.

In the $600k you should be able to find what you're looking for in several of Boise's neighborhoods: Winstead Park, Collister, the Bench. I would avoid far SE Boise, SW Ada County, and anywhere near the airport. Inventory is exceptionally tight with just 1.18 months of supply. It's been this way for almost 10 years now, so I don't expect it to change anytime soon. This was true even during the dip in prices last year, especially on houses in your budget. We had friends that were out bid on numerous homes before having an offer accepted. Just know that it can be difficult.

[Cranky]

My experience with moving across country several times is that I usually get a couple of low allergy years and then I find something new to be allergic to.

[former player]

Something that might help you is to look for the areas of the USA with the lowest levels of air pollution: air pollution makes it much harder for your body to deal with air-borne allergens.  Somewhere the prevailing winds come straight from the ocean is best for this and being as close to the sea as possible.  Certainly one person of my acquaintance has solved their allergy problems this way.

The other thing you can look for is to make the house you live in hypoallergenic - here's an example from the UK:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtBmYCoH_SA

[Mountainbug]

As a fellow allergy sufferer and someone who frequents both the SLC and Boise areas, you need to flip flop your opinions of them. Logan will be less diverse and proximity to better retail and dining while Boise will be more diverse and less amenities. Boise can be incredibly windy and SLC has inversions, so neither is great for your condition. I am not LDS in a predominantly LDS area and while it occasionally bothers me, it is not a deal breaker. You just have to find your people.
If you were to visit the area you would see that outside the cities it is a “sagebrush sea” dotted with juniper so you really need to figure out if that will be a problem for your allergies. Both spring and fall bring different blooms, and if snow mold will be an issue you need to consider that as well.
The northern CA coast has a huge weed culture and a serious meth problem (I mean where doesn’t) so that’s something to consider.

[Dicey]

If ever there was a situation where renting was preferable to buying, this is it.

[LongtimeLurker]

Hi, I don't live in Flagstaff, but I have been there a few dozen times. First, I want to make sure you understand the city. It is about 2 hours north of the Phoenix metro area. In the winter it is a college town mostly, but anytime it snows you will have 1,000,000 people from Phoenix driving up north to see this mysterious phenomenon. In the summer in Phoenix(April - October), you will get 1,000,000 people vacationing in Flagstaff to escape the heat in the valley. Basically, if you do not like living in a touristy area, this is not the place to be. As for allergies, juniper is probably more prevalent in the warmer areas or places that get less precipitation, but it is still in/near Flagstaff. And god help you if you travel pretty much any direction outside the city for any amount of time, because juniper and cedar will be everywhere. As for the winters, Flag is high in elevation, so it does get cold. It snows. There is a ski resort not that far away. It is not Minnesota, but there have actual real seasons, unlike Phx/Tucson. Culturally, I think the city probably meets your criteria. You have college kids, hicks, tourists, and native americans blended together. School districts are interesting. Arizona has a huge teacher shortage, lots of politics in education, and spends very little money per student. Flag is a wealthier area, generally, so the schools might look good, but its just an illusion. This state does not care about education and it shows. COL wise, be prepared for sticker shock on home prices. Too many wealthy Phoenicians buy vacation homes, and people buy rentals for the college kids in winter and vacationers in summer.

As far as alternatives that lack juniper trees... You have get lower in elevation which means it is hot outside. Nothing grows in Yuma, so it might good for allergies, but I think I would rather die that live in that shithole of a city. You could go east into the white mountains. There would be more juniper and more conservative politics, but housing costs would be lower. Other than that, I dont know.

[Sibley]

If your immune system is reactive enough, you're just going to develop new allergies to whatever is around in your new location.

You have tried allergy shots? Sounds like it, but confirming.
You wear N95 masks outside? Yeah, it's a pain but there's a reason why so many people were less miserable from allergies in 2020.

I understand not liking winter. There's also a reason why places with harsh winters are less likely to be on the bad allergies lists.

[AccidentialMustache]

I can't speak to your set, but when I was out in the Los Alamos / Albuquerque area for a conference during grad school years ago, my head was completely totally clear. YMMV but you should maybe put it on your list. Out by the national labs there you should be able to find good schools since the PhDs are going to value education?