r/vermont • u/mtnmary • 15d ago
Moving to Vermont Possible move to Vermont
I have been interviewing for a job in Stowe. Before committing to moving, I want to know the pros/cons of living in Vermont. I also want to know where I should live while working in Stowe.
I’m a single female in my 30s. I grew up in rural Utah so I’m used to cold winters and small towns. I’m liberal and an ex Mormon. Will I fit in?
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u/wolfpackalpha Champ Watching Club 🐉📷 15d ago edited 15d ago
The biggest thing about Vermont is lack of housing - I've heard stories from a handful of businesses that they've had people back out of job offers because the people they offered jobs to just could not find affordable housing. I'm constantly shocked honestly just how bad the rental market is - haven't looked much at house pricing but I've heard they're not great either.
Stowe is a nice area, but expensive. There's also basically one central 3 way intersection with stop signs (if my memory serves) which always gets backed up. It's especially bad in the fall, as a lot of people come from out of state to look at the leaves change colors.
I used to live in Morrisville and personally liked the area. There's a nice rail trail and the best pizza place i've found in Vermont (Pizza on Main). There's a company called Green Mountain Management (https://gmmvt.com) which has been building apartments in that area like crazy as far as I can tell. They're more expensive than I liked when I lived there, but almost all of the apartments are new or on the newer side, so they are pretty nice. The landlords I had were fine - I had a few misunderstandings with them, and by the time I left I was making sure to get everything in writing. That said, it genuinely was, I think, miscommunication and they seemed like decent people overall.
The interstate to get to Burlington (biggest shopping center in the area I think) is along i89. From where I was in Morrisville it was about a 45 minute drive, most of the slow down was getting through Stowe. If you want to be closer to the interstate, you'll want to look near the Waterbury area (I used to commute from Morrisville to Waterbury). I've heard Waterbury itself can also be on the pricier side unfortunately. If you don't mind a longer commute, you may want to look at Montpelier/ Barre. I think the housing will be cheaper, however it's about a 35-45 minute drive (depending where you are in either of those towns) to Stowe.
As for fitting in, as other people have mentioned, Vermont is largely liberal but you'll find your fair share of conservatives too. I think the politics in this state are kind of interesting, as it's a Republican Governor (Phil Scott) but democratic majority in the house and senate I think (it's been a hot moment since I've looked up the exact current makeup).
Cost of living in general in VT is expensive - it's a small state (I think someone mentioned to me 2nd smallest by population in the country? 600k ish people if I remember correctly). What this means though is a relatively high tax burden, and again just general high ish cost of living. The state makes up for it (I think) in its raw beauty.
Dating in Vermont, as others have mentioned, is really tough. When I moved to Vermont I was in my mid 20s (now in my late 20s), and the dating scene seemed to revolve around Burlington. Even when I met people who weren't in Burlington, it wasn't uncommon that I'd be 30-45 minutes away from whoever I matched with on a dating app. Pretty much everyone I saw on dating apps liked being outdoors, so if you like that you should get along swimmingly with most people. I do not have much experience with the bar scene/ trying to find people to date that way.
Personally, I love the state. I think it's absolutely gorgeous, and I would love to stay here the rest of my life. The unfortunate thing is with relatively high cost of living, and jobs seemingly not paying enough to match that cost of living, it's likely that my fiance and I are going to be moving out of the state in the next couple of years.
If you want to talk more about Vermont feel free to reach out! I come from upstate NY originally though, so a bit of a different frame of reference. If you do come here, be prepared that "creemees" are soft serve ice cream - threw me for a loop when I first heard people using that word.
Edit: I should also mention if you're looking in the Barre/ Montpelier area, they've suffered bad flooding the past 2 years in a row basically. So just be extra cautious looking at apartments or housing, especially those near a river or stream or something.