OT: Do any of you live in Alaska?

It is extremely expensive to live there, but beautiful. my great uncle lived there until he passed recently. I know they give a residential stipend type thing once you have lived there a full year. 900 dollars per year per family member in household. I would love to live there as well but my husband hates the cold and depending on where you live you may be in the dark a lot and then back in the light with very little dark. LOL

I have lived there, but I was just a kid... I want to move back, but my dh has no interest so as for now we will stay in the mid west. My advice would be to talk to people, find out the cost of rent/groceries/everything would be. Do not move without a job lined up. Anchorage is now a big city, compared to when my family lived there you could travel a few miles from there and actually homestead. Yes it can be very expensive to live there. If I were to move there's no way I would live somewhere that I couldn't have a green house to grow some fruits/veg.

I grew up in AK. It is beautiful. You have to keep in mind that there are several different types of climate within the state. Anchorage is the biggest city population wise, but the main University is in Fairbanks. I grew up in Juneau, the capital and 3rd largest city. Most of the outlying areas have a "regional" clinic for the type of injury you'd be looking at. The "stipend" is the PFD (Permanent Fund Dividend). The amount is different every year is based on the returns from the investments from oil revenues. It has ranged from (and these are estimates, I don't remember the exact amounts!) about $350 to around $1700. The first PFD was sometime in the mid 80's and was $1000. the next few were considerable lower. I'll pm you my e-mail if you have any more specific questions. Or - LOL - if anyone has any general ones, I do love to talk about my homestate!

Hi! I live in AK. I moved up here from the Midwest around 16 years ago. I think the cost of living in AK can vary greatly depending on where you choose to live. If you are off the road system, than it will be more expensive than if you are on the road system. I first started coming up here to work in the summers 20 years ago. Throughout this timeframe I have lived and worked in Fairbanks, Healy, Anchorage, Girdwood, and Portage. Some things are more expensive in Fairbanks than Anchorage and vice-versa. I can say that when I go back to the Midwest, my Mom has a hard time going with me to the grocery store as everything looks like it is on sale to me and I am unable to tell if something is a good deal or not. In terms of the PFD, as I understand it, the PFD started as a result of the pipeline. The state invested a chunk of money way back in the day. The PFD varies from year to year depending on how the stock market does with regards to the investment. Some years the PFD check is large and other years it is not huge. I certainly do not count on its presence. You do have to be an AK resident for a year before you qualify for a PFD. They do specify what that calendar year time frame is but I do not remember it. Pros: Beauty, peace, people, the recreational opportunities that are so close by... It is either a place that people love, or think it is nice to visit, but they would never want to live here. Cons: It is expensive to fly in and out of esp. during the holidays! I hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions. Good luck!