Where to live near Vegas with a generally outdoorsy family?

I've just accepted a job at Nevada State College, and so I'll be moving with my family to the Vegas metro area in July. The coronavirus lockdown as left us unable to fly out and investigate things as much as I'd like, so I'm trying gathering intel in other ways.

The situation:

Family members:
Me, my wife, our 4 year old son, and our 7 year old cattle dog mix

Jobs:
I'll be working at Nevada State which is on the southeast side of Henderson, fairly near Boulder City. My wife is finishing her PhD this year, so where she'll eventually need to go is less clear.

Preferred activities:

• We're less climbing focused than most on this site, though I'd be excited to get more into it. I've top roped and bouldered a good amount of times over the years and really liked it every time, but never consistently enough to really improve. This will be the first place I've ever lived where climbing while have the comparative advantage though and I'm excited to spend more time on it.
• What I enjoy most now is mountain biking, skiing, trail running, and hiking/scrambling. The most important thing for me is that there is something that I can do easily every day. Right now I spend large amounts of time on a tiny trail system I mostly build in our nearby woods either running or biking with the dog. I'd love to have run/bike from my house access to something, but it doesn't have to be trip worthy grand as it gets me out there.
• My wife likes running, hiking, flat water paddling, swimming, bike path riding, easy mountain biking, and skiing. She likes the outdoors, but is not in it for the adrenaline, whereas I like that. 
• Our son likes playgrounds, riding his bike and scooter, and wading in streams/ponds/pools. I suspect that his interests will change a bit.

Other considerations:

• Schools - Clark County's schools aren't generally excellent, so we'd want to be in one of the better ones and we'd prefer to send out son to public schools.
• Culture - we'd love a neighborhoody feel. My wife is a liberal South Asian woman, so she worries about her fit in some areas.

Budget: $375k +/- 50k. Assuming my wife gets a job at some point, we could comfortably go a bit above that, but I'd prefer to be in the "not a problem on my salary alone" range. If we could find something decent below our range, I'd be happy to save the extra money to put toward a mountain cabin in Northern AZ/Southern Utah sometime in the future.

Options:

Boulder City
Pros: Close to work for me. Bootleg Canyon is right off the main drag (I rented a bike and rode it when I was out for my interview). Good access to flatwater at Lake Mead.  We like the small townishness of it. Decent schools. Good access to Northern AZ. No HOAs for most places.
Cons: Farther from most places my wife might work. Potentially more conservative than other areas. Generally a bit more expensive for housing. 72 American restaurants, 4 other restaurants. Bootleg is a bit more than my wife would ride. Farther from everything on the West Side of town.

Henderson (near eastern edge of Sloan Canyon):
Pros: Super close to work for me. Access to some easier mountain biking on/around the McCullough Hills Trail. There looked like a couple of bouldering possibilities.
Cons: Maybe less community feel? No really center with any restaurants or shops. Not a lot of housing stock on the edge I'd like to be.

Henderson (near western edge of Sloan Canyon):
Pros: Very good schools. Lots of parks. More restaurants, etc. than other side. Sloan Canyon access. Maybe a bit higher in elevation than the other side.
Cons: More expensive in neighborhoods with good access to outdoorsy stuff. Just a bit too long to mountain bike commute (unless I embraced the dark side and got an e-mtb).

Summerlin:
Pros: Great access to RR and several sets of mountain bike trails that are more XC and varied than Bootleg Canyon. Good schools. I like some of the architecture more than in some other parts. Seem to be a bit more neighborhood self-contained?
Cons: 35 minute car commute for me. All HOAs.

Other places? I'm not limiting myself to these, there just what popped up in my research.

So any advice? Where would you live if you had a young outdoorsy family and were moving to the Las Vegas metro area?

Places where you are going to find "community" in Vegas are few and far between and you will pay for them.  Boulder city is one, Blue Diamond (really pay for) is another.  It seems like money is what gets you walking out of your house and into the desert.  SW side of town is popular, has good access, cheaper than Summerlin.  HOA is generally the name of the game in Vegas unless you want to pay for an older neighborhood.  

We have a big lot in an older horse neighborhood and know everyone on the street, but we searched a lot, and these houses are at the max of that budget with the current market.  With the economy it might be a good time to rent a bit and see what happens to the market.  Big lots in old neighborhoods are more central because they were built before the town sprawled outward more.
Plan on driving, Vegas is a driving town, you'll meet people you jive with and drive over to see them, climb, bike etc...

Recent Vegas transplant here.  I'd have to say that focusing on your commute and schools is your best bet.  It really is a small city, so everything else is a quick trip.  Not sure what this all will do the housing market.  We were really hot, so that may limit choices to what you can actually get.  

Tim Malacarne wrote: I've just accepted a job at Nevada State College, and so I'll be moving with my family to the Vegas metro area in July. The coronavirus lockdown as left us unable to fly out and investigate things as much as I'd like, so I'm trying gathering intel in other ways.

The situation:

Family members:
Me, my wife, our 4 year old son, and our 7 year old cattle dog mix

Jobs:
I'll be working at Nevada State which is on the southeast side of Henderson, fairly near Boulder City. My wife is finishing her PhD this year, so where she'll eventually need to go is less clear.

Preferred activities:

• We're less climbing focused than most on this site, though I'd be excited to get more into it. I've top roped and bouldered a good amount of times over the years and really liked it every time, but never consistently enough to really improve. This will be the first place I've ever lived where climbing while have the comparative advantage though and I'm excited to spend more time on it.
• What I enjoy most now is mountain biking, skiing, trail running, and hiking/scrambling. The most important thing for me is that there is something that I can do easily every day. Right now I spend large amounts of time on a tiny trail system I mostly build in our nearby woods either running or biking with the dog. I'd love to have run/bike from my house access to something, but it doesn't have to be trip worthy grand as it gets me out there.
• My wife likes running, hiking, flat water paddling, swimming, bike path riding, easy mountain biking, and skiing. She likes the outdoors, but is not in it for the adrenaline, whereas I like that. 
• Our son likes playgrounds, riding his bike and scooter, and wading in streams/ponds/pools. I suspect that his interests will change a bit.

Other considerations:

• Schools - Clark County's schools aren't generally excellent, so we'd want to be in one of the better ones and we'd prefer to send out son to public schools.
• Culture - we'd love a neighborhoody feel. My wife is a liberal South Asian woman, so she worries about her fit in some areas.

Budget: $375k +/- 50k. Assuming my wife gets a job at some point, we could comfortably go a bit above that, but I'd prefer to be in the "not a problem on my salary alone" range. If we could find something decent below our range, I'd be happy to save the extra money to put toward a mountain cabin in Northern AZ/Southern Utah sometime in the future.

Options:

Boulder City
Pros: Close to work for me. Bootleg Canyon is right off the main drag (I rented a bike and rode it when I was out for my interview). Good access to flatwater at Lake Mead.  We like the small townishness of it. Decent schools. Good access to Northern AZ. No HOAs for most places.
Cons: Farther from most places my wife might work. Potentially more conservative than other areas. Generally a bit more expensive for housing. 72 American restaurants, 4 other restaurants. Bootleg is a bit more than my wife would ride. Farther from everything on the West Side of town.

Henderson (near eastern edge of Sloan Canyon):
Pros: Super close to work for me. Access to some easier mountain biking on/around the McCullough Hills Trail. There looked like a couple of bouldering possibilities.
Cons: Maybe less community feel? No really center with any restaurants or shops. Not a lot of housing stock on the edge I'd like to be.

Henderson (near western edge of Sloan Canyon):
Pros: Very good schools. Lots of parks. More restaurants, etc. than other side. Sloan Canyon access. Maybe a bit higher in elevation than the other side.
Cons: More expensive in neighborhoods with good access to outdoorsy stuff. Just a bit too long to mountain bike commute (unless I embraced the dark side and got an e-mtb).

Summerlin:
Pros: Great access to RR and several sets of mountain bike trails that are more XC and varied than Bootleg Canyon. Good schools. I like some of the architecture more than in some other parts. Seem to be a bit more neighborhood self-contained?
Cons: 35 minute car commute for me. All HOAs.

Other places? I'm not limiting myself to these, there just what popped up in my research.

So any advice? Where would you live if you had a young outdoorsy family and were moving to the Las Vegas metro area?

Somewhere in Henderson or Boulder city is the best bet for you.
I am a Window washer in Vegas area and I have several realtors as clients.
PM me if you want to talk.

Dwain

Given the current economic situation everywhere I would say it’s very likely the high house prices Vegas has had the last while are going to drop.  Whether it will go as low as it was 5 or so years ago depends on how long everything is shut down but you might be better renting short term and will give you the chance to see what areas you like best before buying.

Thanks for the advice everyone! Seems like Boulder City/Henderson would be the way to go, probably leaning Boulder City. Anyone live there?

We definitely are planning on renting first now. We had hoped to buy and just move into a place permanently, but now that's out the window. I admit that I now hope real estate drops a bit. It would put one level up within our range or give us some money left over from the places we've been looking at previously. We'd hope to rent near one of the places we'd like to buy though to get a sense of it.

Thanks for the offer, Dwain. I may take you up on it as we figure things out a bit. The Realtor thread was one of the things that prompted this one 

T- good luck with your search!
Just curious where you are coming from?

seamus mcshane wrote: T- good luck with your search!
Just curious where you are coming from?

Western Massachusetts. I grew up in rural - basically Appalachian PA - and have lived in DC and New Haven in between. So, Las Vegas will be very much an environmental change for me.

I found this to be a valuable tool when assessing potential neighborhoods to live in.  In the 18 months since, I'd say the patterns seen on these maps are fairly accurate (certain parts of the city are 'best avoided').  With this current pandemic, and so many out of work, I'm sure the rate and coverage of criminal activity will creep into areas previously sheltered.  :-/

Commuting can be a bit of a drag, depending on where you live and work.  Since you're not big into climbing, finding the best neighborhood closest to work/school is the most logical choice.  We live on the West side of town for easiest access to Red Rocks, and I've done commuting for 9 months to the strip and airport.  It can be a grind but even on a bad day, maybe 30 minutes (compared to other metro areas that's not bad).

We're from Albany NY.  There's some cultural differences here, and making new acquaintances hasn't been particularly easy because of several factors, but overall the move has been worth it for our outdoors-focused lifestyle.  No State tax but there's hidden taxes, like car registration being insanely expensive.  Still, overall the taxation rate is an improvement over NY and cost of living (gas, food, utilities) about the same.  Culturally, there's an ethic of working hard.  This means - work a lot of hours, but be generally sloppy and half-assed.  I've learned to do as much as I can around the house in order to avoid inviting incompetence into our lives.    This extends into the professional realm as well.  The expectation is you work alot of hours because everyone else is already doing long days to make up for the lack of planning and attention to detail (ie - constantly fixing their own mistakes or operating with gross inefficiencies).  You're expected to work 50 hours, even if you get done in 40 what your coworkers get done in 50.  Hopefully with the influx of well trained/educated professionals from elsewhere in the country things will continue to lean in a more positive direction.

Kevin Heckeler wrote: I found this to be a valuable tool when assessing potential neighborhoods to live in.  In the 18 months since, I'd say the patterns seen on these maps are fairly accurate (certain parts of the city are 'best avoided').  With this current pandemic, and so many out of work, I'm sure the rate and coverage of criminal activity will creep into areas previously sheltered.  :-/

Commuting can be a bit of a drag, depending on where you live and work.  Since you're not big into climbing, finding the best neighborhood closest to work/school is the most logical choice.  We live on the West side of town for easiest access to Red Rocks, and I've done commuting for 9 months to the strip and airport.  It can be a grind but even on a bad day, maybe 30 minutes (compared to other metro areas that's not bad).

We're from Albany NY.  There's some cultural differences here, and making new acquaintances hasn't been particularly easy because of several factors, but overall the move has been worth it for our outdoors-focused lifestyle.  No State tax but there's hidden taxes, like car registration being insanely expensive.  Still, overall the taxation rate is an improvement over NY and cost of living (gas, food, utilities) about the same.  Culturally, there's an ethic of working hard.  This means - work a lot of hours, but be generally sloppy and half-assed.  I've learned to do as much as I can around the house in order to avoid inviting incompetence into our lives.    This extends into the professional realm as well.  The expectation is you work alot of hours because everyone else is already doing long days to make up for the lack of planning and attention to detail (ie - constantly fixing their own mistakes or operating with gross inefficiencies).  You're expected to work 50 hours, even if you get done in 40 what your coworkers get done in 50.  Hopefully with the influx of well trained/educated professionals from elsewhere in the country things will continue to lean in a more positive direction.

Hey Kevin;
I am the BEST window washer in Vegas if you need one.
FREE if you are not satisfied. And I do pay attention to detail.

One other thing to think about is elevation, Summerlin is a bit higher so when it’s 120 degrees in the summer it might only be 110 or 115 there

Thanks for that map, Kevin. I'll definitely take a good look at it. I walked around one of the neighborhoods I was potentially interested in (Paradise Hills in SE Henderson) after I interviewed. I talked to a couple of people out at a park there and asked them about the neighborhood. They said that a lot of cops liked to live there. I couldn't tell if they meant that as a good thing or bad thing, but it might be good in the current climate. Ha

Interesting about the work culture. For my own job, I suspect that it won't be a big deal as I'll be in an academic setting where everyone is coming from somewhere else, but I'll definitely keep it in mind for more personal stuff. I'm reasonably capable at DIY stuff, but am reaching that life stage where I'm more willing to pay people to save me time than I was for many years. Which still kind of galls me as I like building/fixing things.

Adam, the elevation in Summerlin definitely is an attraction. I'm not really looking forward to the summer heat. I've lived in a couple of very hot places for summers in the past (Sinaloa, Mexico; Hyderabad, India). I didnt love the heat but still got outside, so Im hopeful for Vegas.

If it was clear where my wife would work this would be easier. I'm a better commuter, so if one of us had a 30 min drive it would be better if it were me.

It's NV, with a super cyclical tourist dependent economy.  So just wait for the next bust and buy for half price.  

tallguy wrote: It's NV, with a super cyclical tourist dependent economy.  So just wait for the next bust and buy for half price.  

Well...seems like we might almost be there. I'll be watching prices closely.

Unrelated real estate observation: I'm curious as to why there are so many planned communities, but they all seem pretty much undifferentiated. Obviously the amenities/aesthetic upkeep increase with price, but it seems to be along a pretty general spectrum. I'd be way more excited about living in a planned community if it was specific interest focused. Like an outdoors focused one located near some trail head that had a bouldering wall, pumptrack, maybe loaner bikes/kayaks/etc.. I'd be much more excited to live someplace like that both because I care more about the amenities and because I suspect I'd make more friends. The only things I've seen that are similar in Vegas are related to horses, and that's not the community for me.

E IV wrote: I bought a house in Spring Valley in an older (1970's), nice neighborhood. Many of my neighbors are original owners, know each other, and introduced themselves to my wife and me when we moved in. We all look out for each other and let each other know if we see anything out of place. I also paid quite a bit less than I would have in Summerlin or any of the newer areas, and have no HOA. We love the location - 20-25 mins to RR, 10-15 mins to airport, 10 mins to strip, 5 mins to Korea/Chinatown (restaurants). Couldn't be happier.
Good luck with your search. 

Thanks! Spring Valley looks to have some advantages. My main worry would be the high schools. We'll see if we're still in the same place in 10 years, but a number of neighborhoods seem to have good elementary schools, but less good high schools.

Tim M wrote:

Well...seems like we might almost be there. I'll be watching prices closely.

Unrelated real estate observation: I'm curious as to why there are so many planned communities, but they all seem pretty much undifferentiated. Obviously the amenities/aesthetic upkeep increase with price, but it seems to be along a pretty general spectrum. I'd be way more excited about living in a planned community if it was specific interest focused. Like an outdoors focused one located near some trail head that had a bouldering wall, pumptrack, maybe loaner bikes/kayaks/etc.. I'd be much more excited to live someplace like that both because I care more about the amenities and because I suspect I'd make more friends. The only things I've seen that are similar in Vegas are related to horses, and that's not the community for me.

Summerlin, South Summerlin, and Spring Valley are as close as you'll get to this, with longish trail systems that cut through communities and biking from your doorstep.  Henderson has some of this, we will occasionally travel out that way for hiking, but I mostly see Henderson as the non-outdoorsy gentrified part of town.  Summerlin/Western parts of the city are closer to what it's like in Boulder (or New Paltz), Henderson more like a Connecticut suburb, if that makes any sense.  But I can't imagine driving an extra 15-45 minutes for some outdoors time will matter much to you if your commute is 10-15 minutes, possibly by bike.  We live just south of Summerlin (aka 'South Summerlin'), and avoided the HOA thing (there's many advantages, but also several disadvantages).  Late 1990s neighborhood with mostly working or retired neighbors.  Overall good neighborhood.  But houses don't come up for sale very often here, people looking for the right fit look for this type of housing, and once they find it they generally stay.

One con for Henderson is if you want to go to Mt Charleston.  It's a significantly longer drive from Henderson than from Summerlin.  We spent a lot of time at Charleston last summer (80-85F when it's 105-110F in the valley).

The heat isn't so bad if you're expecting/plan for it, reaching its peak for 3 months most years (June - August).  May and September can be hot, but they're variable so it could be 85F or 105F from year to year.  Other than the brief surges from the monsoon, humidity is insanely low because desert.  Being in the sun is the real killer here.  Just expect summer here to be what your winters were back East.  Winter can be awesome, this year it hardly rained January and February.  We got out climbing a lot.  The prior winter was very wet so that also varies a bit year to year.  Still though, weather alone has at least doubled our outdoors opportunities when compared to life back East.  Not to mention Red Rock alone ... there's literally nothing like it on the entire east coast, and it's 15-30 minutes from our doorstep.

The housing market is inevitably going to take another hit.  And it will inevitably go back up, as people like us are willing to ride out these storms for the tradeoff in improving our outdoors life, or the draw of the big lights.  You're coming in at the right time IMO, so definitely negotiate.  It's going to be a buyers market again in a matter of weeks.

Cosmiccragsman AKA Dwain wrote:
I am the BEST window washer in Vegas if you need one.

Yeah I hear that a lot.  Smiling and salesmanship seem to be the skill sets of choice here.   

Kevin Heckeler wrote:

Yeah I hear that a lot.  Smiling and salesmanship seem to be the skill sets of choice here.   

I've been a Window washer for over 28 years and I work by myself. Most of my business is in Henderson but also have accts in Summerlin.
The Ridges Red rock CC and a lot of the pulte/Dell webb homes.
I don't advertise because my customers do it for me in the next-door app and word of mouth.
I do a complete service, screens, clean the tracks, all the mirrors shower doors. Richard Harrison, climber/ window washer gave me some of his business
before he passed away. and I built the business up from there.
I also have a business in the Victorville/Apple Valley calif where my orig business was and I still go out there to handle my 20 plus years customers
that actually pay me more because they can't find a window washer as good as me.
Like I said If you are not satisfied with my work it is
FREE. I always tell my customers that and not once have I had to give it to them free.
I smile, but my work backs up my claim.

Cosmiccragsman AKA Dwain wrote: I've been a Window washer for over 28 years and I work by myself...
I smile, but my work backs up my claim.

We should climb sometime once this is all over   .  I bet your rope coils are impeccable.  

[we don't need any cleaning at the moment, but thanks for the hard sell]

After 52 years of climbing Rope coils are ok.
Wasn't trying to hard sell I just don't want to be lumped into
 the  same category as most of the mediocre window washers around here.
I take pride in my work.
I've always been a lousy salesman
My skillset has been my work
and I was just reacting to your remark
you made.

Edit: You probably won't want to climb with me as I just had back surgery
and most likely won't be able to climb as hard any more.
It's been 4 years since I have climbed because of really numb toes, and major pains in the legs. I have gotten
back some  feeling in the toes and no pain in the legs now but with the partial numbness I still have I will have to stick to easy climbs
which is fine with me as long as I am able to at least climb even if it's easy.

Cosmiccragsman AKA Dwain wrote: After 52 years of climbing Rope coils are ok.
Wasn't trying to hard sell I just don't want to be lumped into
 the  same category as most of the mediocre window washers around here.
I take pride in my work.
I've always been a lousy salesman
My skillset has been my work
and I was just reacting to your remark
you made.

I've met a few exceptions, but note exceptions.  I work in a field where I come into contact with A LOT of people of various trades, so my assessment (like it or not) is well informed.  This is on top of our personal challenges getting a lot of house work done when we first moved in late 2018.  It sounds like the quality work you do is noticed and rewarded.  I can't say that's consistent across all segments of the Vegas workforce.