Moving to greater Burlington VT

[tomcat]

My girlfriend and I are hoping to to move to the greater Burlington area (within 20 mins), hopefully this summer after 5 yrs in central Maine. Jobs aren't a huge deal especially for my gf since she is an RN. We were having difficulty finding rental listings online. Anybody in the Burlington area have info on rental sources online besides the Free Press online? The Free Press Classifieds online only show 5-10 rentals at a given time. There has to be more out there than that in a county the size of Chittenden County. Perhaps a local classified newspaper? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[deadheadskier]

Having gone to school at UVM and then later living in Burlington as an adult, I can tell you that it is an extremely difficult rental market. Something like 99% of all available rental units in the area will be occuppied. You will see a ton more listings late March and into April. The turnover day in that town is 6/1. Students give notice whether they are going to renew their leases by April 1.

Another option besides the Free Press is the newspaper Seven Days.

 

[Euler]

I am a landlord in Southern Vermont and I have found all of my renters through Craigslist. Try that.

 

[thetrailboss]

Be careful with Craigslist, but that is an option. Also look to Seven Days online.

I agree with DHS regarding the rental market. If you are looking at BTV specifically be prepared for high prices and poor quality. The landlords do not maintain the properties because of the college students. I'd suggest looking at Colchester, Essex, or even Milton. The further out you are the better price and the better the quality. I assume that your GF will be at Fletcher Allen. They are a good employer.

The only other comment I will make, and forgive the soapbox, is that Vermont is worse than Maine when it comes to being young and the cost of living. This state is out of control. Starter homes, especially in Chittenden County, are way overpriced. The property taxes are very high. Pay will be the same if not lower than where you are in Maine (Portland I assume?) Since you said "jobs aren't a huge deal," I take it that you either have one lined up or have a pot of gold somewhere to live off of. If so, great because you will need it here. This state is simply pushing young people and the middle class out with the cost of living, taxes, and low wages.

/rant

Other than that it is a great place to live! Get your Sugarbush passes lined up and you are good to go!

 

[from_the_NEK]

Seven Days does have some good listings:

http://classifieds.sevendaysvt.com/listAds.htm;jsessionid=807F178703EF10F9B31421556E8C1FB0?FORMITEM_CATEGORY=11

Also check out Winooski. It is just across the river from Fletcher Alen. They have put in a lot of apartments there in the last few years. I used to live at 300 Main St in Winooski and it was decent (definitely not fancy).
A DHS said, if you can wait until mid-Spring listing may start getting more numerous.

 

[deadheadskier]

Trailboss paints a fairly accurate reality. I lived in 4 different apartments in downtown Burlington over the years; all dumps.

He's also correct about the economic conditions. After going to high school and college in Vermont, I thought I'd live there forever. I left for all the reasons he outlined. Ironically, I left for Maine. I experienced about a 25% favorable swing in cost of living by moving to Portland. Same job paid me over 20% more. Rented a 2 bedroom for the cost of a 1 bedroom in Burlington.

Good luck. Don't mean to discourage you from your move. I did love living in Vermont; just found the income/cost of living not worth the quality of life I had.

 

[thetrailboss]

Sorry to kill the vibe. As you can tell I am frustrated and there may be changes on the horizon.

 

[dmc]

I'd move there for the access to great skiing and the music..

 

[nelsapbm]

Ditto TB and deadheadskier. Rental market is VERY tight. One place to look would be Larkin Realty..I know they've built a couple nice apartment complexes lately....Farmstand in South Burlington is one and there is a new one by the Quarry Hill Club in SB ...but they are pricy. Olde Orchard is more affordable but older..and stay away from Larkin Terrace.
http://www.larkinrealty.net/ .
Look for rentals in South Burlington, Essex, Colchester or Williston. Burlington, as mentioned above...lots of the rentals are housing students and are in old houses that have not been kept up.
When we bought our house we were both working in South Burlington (I stay home with my child now) and we found the house prices to be ridiculous for what we wanted. We ended up in Addison County, with a 30 minute commute, but built a brand new cape style house with 5 acres CHEAPER than what a small ranch on 1/4 acre would have cost us in S. Burlington.
Also...as mentioned above...salaries have not been keeping up with the cost of housing. Chances are you guys will be taking a pay cut. But maybe not. Just keep in mind that it is a strong possibility. I know when I moved back up here from Boston I took a 10k paycut.
Not to be a buzz killer..but these are the realities. If you guys can find good jobs then this is an AWESOME place to live. Great restaurants, shops, music/theater, outdoor activities etc. Oh. and the skiing.

 

[bigbog]

tomcat...
Indeed, with some experience at renting(Boston burbs of 80s-90s), don't rule out the "out-of-the-way" places to look. Landlords outside the main avenues have most always seemed to be terrific, so don't limit yourselves to just a few areas. More work and more career-skill-growth is guaranteed. Nelsapbm knows the area.

 

[riverc0il]

You'd probably have better luck if you expanded your search beyond 20 minutes. Commuting stinks but I bet you could find more reasonable priced offerings in the Montpelier/Barre area. I wouldn't be able to deal with it. Burlington is an awesome town but its a total PITA to drive into and around, especially when its busy.

 

[tomcat]

When I say greater Burlington I was hoping for out of the developed area into more rural setting (Richmond, Jericho, maybe even as far as Waterbury 30-40Mins away). We are definately not looking for city proper place, we just like the amentities available in Burlington and want to be a reasonable drive. As for now I live about half way between Bangor and Moosehead Lake region, an hour to either one. We are talking land of 16% unemployment. One of the poorest in Maine. Portland is Paris compared to where I am living now. I don't think I can possibly make less, I'm definately not in a Boston job/earning market where I live and not expecting much beyond what I'd expect in Bangor in the greater Burlington area. This is not probably going to be a permanant move, maybe five years before we drift from there. We were interested in rentals before possibly buying to see how long we may want to settle in.
Is there a resource that would have rental info for those outlying areas? I'll check the sites you recommended.

 

[nelsapbm]

I'd consider Vergennes and Bristol then.
www.addisonindependent.com
Bristol is just over the mountain from Mad River Glen and Sugarbush - 20 to 30 minute drive. Vergennes would be about 10 minutes further. Both are nice small towns that offer cheaper real estate than Greater Burlington. Vergennes is about a 30 minute drive and Bristol 40. If you like Brewpubs...Bristol has a great one - The Bobcat Cafe. Your other half could look for work at Porter Hospital in Middlebury as well which would be anywhere from 15-20 minutes south.
Waterbury would be another option as well. The Times Argus is the daily paper of record for Central Vermont.