Great if you can handle the smoke - 5/5/2022

Pros: Absolutely beautiful. Lots to do outdoors. Lots of community events, live music, performing arts entertainment, street festivals, etc. Many areas are very walkable. New restaurants opening frequently. People are very friendly. Close proximity to Lake Tahoe including skiing and water sports. Downtown riverfront is great for tubing, fishing, swimming. No state income tax. Unbelievably low property tax in historic areas. Cons: Elevation (can also be a pro). Drought–rampant fires in the summer and fall left the air hazardous for several weeks last year. Cost of living/housing has gone WAY up since Covid, especially with the influx of SF transplants who are attracted to the comparatively better cost of living. Low inventory makes housing market tough for buyers. Job market is not very diverse in terms of industries. Infrastructure struggling to keep up with post-Covid population influx. Love living here but with my health concerns we're now looking elsewhere.

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Love Reno - 12/3/2020

Yeah I moved here from the Midwest and wouldn’t ever go back. The weather, outdoor activities, closeness to national parks and the coast of California and Oregon are priceless. Vegas is a short trip to fly or drive. Traffic is almost non existent vs where I came from. Yes housing sucks right now but I can walk out my front door and have some of the most beautiful scenery ever. Wild horses, snow capped mountains, and the most beautiful lake I’ve ever seen in Tahoe which is 45 mins away. Sounds like people who are rating it bad don’t like those things for some reason. Go live in -20 degree weather for a few months in the Midwest... then complain about Reno.

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Survival in this city is hard. - 11/10/2020

I was born and raised in San Jose, CA. Not when it was "silicon valley". I had to basically flee after my son was born, 20 years ago because I was drowning financially. I have been registered Republican and Democrat and Independent. I do not align with being very progressive or conservative. Why I mention that is because Nevada is a very difficult state to find acceptance because of the strong beliefs here. Reno is now like CA at this point to me. The trendy, over priced grocery stores, horrific driving, insane rents and home prices, drugs, crime add to it all. I've sat around and watched the Reno mayor attack and troll people on social media, make personal speeches during city council meetings, invite greedy developers to come into the region and bust out ringers that cost a fortune. What I have seen now is foreign entities come in and gobble up brand new homes, turn around and rent them out well above market rate. Reno is dead last in the country for mental health and I 100% agree as I have a son with disorders. I spent 5 years scouring - calling, visiting every possible health professional and it was a waste of time. What ends up happening - doctors and mental health professionals will come into Reno, attracted by cheap UNR costs to finish their degrees or the lure of being right next to Tahoe and skiing. They quickly learn what a mistake it was and leave. ALL of my primary doctors left within 2 years of coming into their practice. My son's pediatric psychiatrist left after 1 year after the UNR medical system denied him from practicing "therapy" and only wanted him to dish out medication. This is the norm for Reno. If you aren't playing the game, in the circle, you end up suffering. Don't attempt to buy health insurance either. You will get a good package if you work for a casino because they have the insurance companies in their pocket. The town has become a mess. Older strip malls are destroyed - business owners forced out in favor of upscale, highly expensive cement cities. Traffic is a nightmare. Driving is dangerous. Forget accidents - you have a high likelihood of dying from just crossing the street. I'm not exaggerating. For reference I have lived in Dayton and Elko also. I have traveled the state and frequented Carson City and Gardnerville area a lot. All I can say in my bottom line is that you'd better have a fat pocket book to live here, and if you are coming over from CA to save on taxes, you won't much longer. Washoe county is the most highly taxes county in the state. Incoming CA residents think nothing of voting for increased taxes which they believe will do some good. What ends up happening is what always happens in Reno - money gets "lost" in the system. And people suffer. Nevada is very sad to me at this point. We are again "fleeing" this state we have called home for 20 years just to survive.

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Reno is actually a nice place to live. - 10/19/2020

I've lived in Reno for 7 years now and having lived in LA and Seattle before and I find it to be relatively pleasant (although due to COVID19 everything is kind of on hold.) I like the weather (lots of sunshine and only a little rain) and there is not much traffic (compared to LA and SEA.) The people are friendly enough but generally keep to themselves. The school system isn't great but my kids managed to made it thru (taking honors and AP classes) just fine. They participated in sports and other extra circular activities and generally had fun. They all went off to college elsewhere claiming not to like the city. They do come back to visit. The airport is small and easy to get in and out of. Precovid, I liked that it seemed there was always a community event or activity going on and the community would pull together for events and activities. Folks here are generally conservative but tend to be respectful of other opinions. (Some more than others.) I live in the suburbs and have a short commute (which is priceless.) The churches are small but nice. Shopping is easy and not crowded. Except for housing the cost of living is relatively modest. Again, no real traffic to speak of and generally a nice quiet place to live. The thing I like most about Reno is it seems you have time to smell the roses (or sage brush actually) and can cultivate a hobby or activity. You can keep yourself busy but it doesn't seem to be as busy as the big cities I've lived in most of my life. More time, less pressure, the great outdoors and a bit of isolation from the rest of the world. (Reno's a bit of an island as it is not connected to Vegas and not in California...) I like it and find it's peaceful.

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Expensive and will continue to get more expensive - 9/28/2020

BestPlaces is years behind current data by 5+ years. This city is becoming more and more expensive. For 2020, the median rent for a 2 bedroom apartment is $1,600. The median rent for 2 bedroom house is $2,200. Do your homework before moving here. Look at other cites that stay up to date on cost of housing, apartments, etc. I have lived here for 5 years and this place has doubled in cost of living in the short time of being here. Why is this? The reason is that people from the bay area of CA are selling their homes and buying in Reno, NV because there is no state income tax, which is great for people who are retired or who have lots of money from the bay area and are bringing it with them to Reno. Reno cannot keep up with the high demand for houses and apartments causing the price to rise record breaking. Making this the fastest growing city in the nation. It is too costly to start a family here and there is a lack of companies that are willing to pay relatively to the cost of living.

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DO NOT MOVE HERE. YOU'RE SAFER IN L.A. - 9/2/2020

DO NOT MOVE HERE. I've lived here almost 30 years. It's more dangerous to live in Reno, NV than in Los Angeles. Look it up. The schooling is Horrendous! A student with a C average is considered a STELLAR STUDENT. It's riddled with drug addiction, prostitution, unemployment so high that people are losing, or have lost, their homes. The Homeless problem is INCREDIBLE. I used to be able to fly fish in the Truckee River, just below the old Monastery. The monks left 15 years ago. Now it's littered with dirty people, dirty needles and garbage. Tents line the river banks. Children are snatched every day. Sex trafficking is rampant. DON'T BUY INTO THE PROPAGANDA. The businesses want to pay $10 hour. But houses are in the $350,000 to $2,000,000. I've met 8 good people in 30 years. Evil is the accepted norm.

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is it true there's a big snake problem in Reno? - 7/5/2020

Interesting place I love the mid-desert some of my concerns are well the cost of life Housing, food and the like. My other big one is the report of large quantities of rattlesnakes & vipers being found in the city. I wonder if it's not the neighbors to the East that decided to many from SLT were sinning in Reno and not getting their cut of the money. Is the snake population that big and if so have you tried Road Runners (the bird) they love snakes. I watch one bet the hell out a rattler by slapping the snake on the rocks.

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There is worse. But there is also much better too. - 7/2/2020

At least it's better than Carson City which is the most boring place on earth. It's also a lot better than Lake Tahoe too which is also extremely boring and the most overrated place on the planet. Still there are much better places than Reno. But hey if you're coming from Carson City or Lake Tahoe it's downright exciting and upscale.

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Observations of Reno by a Seattlite (continued) - 6/30/2020

Drivers in Reno are disproportionately bad and aggressive. Expect people to drift into your lane, not signal, not headcheck. Speeds far in excess and far below posted speed limits are common. Often men will become enraged if you honk at them. Using a car's horn is a way to communicate and avoid accidents in Seattle. In Reno, honking is offensive. I've been chased into a grocery store parking lot, where a man got out of his car as if he was going to fight me. (I drove away.) I've had a big guy in huge truck shout “f-----g f----t!” out the window of his truck at me going 65 mph down the interstate. I’ve read in the local paper about multiple instances of gunfire pursuant to road rage incidents. Don’t honk at men. Also men in trucks tend to fly full size American flags from the beds of their pickups, especially around Sparks and the North Valleys. This is only slightly more common than full size Confederate flags. Native Renoans have a libertarian streak that bends conservative but not strictly. People are generally live and let live here. But I have seen random conservatives harass people at Pride in Reno. So, there are exceptions. Despite the libertarian streak, natives tend to be pretty resigned to the power structures of the city. If someone high on the social hierarchy says that we should do it, then most people don’t put up much of a fight. I read this as more from a sense of powerlessness and irrelevance than an endorsement of the positions of the powerful. Protests here are quaint. The city is segregated in a lot of dimensions, primarily socioeconomic. I’ve never seen so much discomfort when asking what neighborhood someone lives in. I think this is because Renoans of differing socioeconomic classes are neatly classified by neighborhood, so you can basically nail how wealthy someone is by where they live. Seattle neighborhoods are much more heterogeneous. Race is highly correlated with wealth and income, so there’s a defacto racial segregation of Hispanics from Whites, as well, but the drivers seem more closely tied to wealth than race. Increasingly, the city comprises transplants who come to work at University of Nevada, Reno and firms with IT or distribution facilities here. Often these transplants are more liberal, technology trained, and wealthier than natives. It creates some tension … or maybe distance … between natives and transplants. The only natives I know are from work. And we don’t socialize outside work. Reno breweries make excellent IPAs. The weather is great: 300 days of sunshine per year. But it’s high desert, so expect little rain and parched air. Overall, I like it here and expect to stay if my job remains viable. This is not a great place to come to find work if you don't already have something lined up.

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A few observations about Reno from a Seattlite - 6/27/2020

I moved to Reno in Summer 2018 from Seattle. I like it, but it's different. Here's a few observations:Tahoe is awesome and close, but far too crowded with Californians and tourists. The Sierra Nevadas have tons of stuff to do for miles and miles, both north and south from Reno. The Truckee runs through downtown from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake, a closed lake where the only way for the water to escape is through evaporation. One of the few places, maybe the only place, where this happens in North America.Most people are friendly and down to earth.Drivers in Reno are disproportionately bad and aggressive. Often men will become enraged if you honk at them. Using a car's horn is a way to communicate and avoid accidents in Seattle. In Reno, honking is offensive. I've been chased into a grocery store parking lot, where a man got out of his car as if he was going to fight me. (I drove away.) I've had a big white guy in huge truck shout

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Not for families - 2/19/2020

Not a good place to raise kids. Schools are terrible, health care is unreliable and hard to come by. Crime is high and neighborhood policing is nonexistent, there is no protect and serve attitude in this city. Casinos provide free drinks and the roads are a free for all for drunk drivers, policing like I said, a problem. Pedestian death rate very high, around the schools as well, again no community policies that protect people.

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A nice place to if you have lots of money already - 11/26/2019

I have lived here for the past 13 years and I disagree with the statement that its a me first place. Its an only me place. Making friends here is almost impossible unless you meet someone that is not native. Getting a decent paying job is hard to do as well. This place is as cut throat as most anywhere. I am from Oakland, Ca and it wasnt nearly as bad as this place. There are some advantages, Im told, but havent seen any lately. There are tons of warehouse jobs if you want to break your back for 40 hrs a week. I think in the past week there have been 5 or 6 hit and runs. People just dont care about others at all here. Its sad and depressing. I could go on but whats the point?

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Just a mini LA without all the jobs now. - 7/10/2019

Lived here my whole life too expensive to live here now might as well go homeless w everyone else. Homeless and drug addicts are everywhere. Very dirty I wish schools would take their kids and pick up trash to teach the new generations to not throw trash. The roads are so full now than it used to be with cars EVERYWHERE. It’s like I’m in California or something just without all the jobs it’s hard to get jobs other then fast food chain jobs.

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Friendly, Beautiful Little City - 10/22/2018

I've lived in Reno for the last 7 years and am in love with this little city. The people here are friendly without being intrusive. There are great shopping and dining options, with tons of local businesses. People are community minded, and as a single female, I feel safe and cared about in this community. I've had great job opportunity, and you can't beat the beautiful scenery and sunsets here. I'm proud to call Reno home!

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Reno-healthy,weather,yr round activities,friendly - 9/20/2018

Lived in Reno for awhile, loved the outside recreation, the wonderful weather, had alot going on, the bike and walking paths (be nice to link them all instead of just ending and ya wonder around guessing where one starts again, draw arrows..), dog friendly for alot of places, close to all year round activities, its affordable and so beautiful with clear skies 98% of the time with fresh clean air (when no ones smoking cigarettes). Low allergies for many people and a nice dry climate. The people, communities, churches and EVERY offered services or "resources" are a huge let down. No one knows what the heck their talking about! NONE. Not 1. I found them to be friendly yet impersonal and unreliable. Snobbish judgment and weaselly actions. Downtown's dirty and full of homeless, even in public areas taking up residence. Shame on the school district all the way for not being up to date and balanced. Why is there no account for responsibility anywhere here? It's never "their job" and "No, things don't work like that, never have or it's a wrong number of some sort.

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reNO - 3/22/2018

A miserable dead end. Reno is cursed as kryptonite to the best of efforts. Most anything that might work out ok any place else tends to fail here.

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The Next Silicon Valley. Perfect Place to Move. - 3/2/2018

I remember myself moving to SF back in 2006. Reno has the same feeling today. It is slowly but surely getting crowded with people from startups and bigtech firms (Google, Amazon, Tesla etc) People are great. Downtown is nice and safe. There is night life. Climate is perfect. Surroundings of Truckee River is somehow similar to the SF Pier. And since it's close to the SF, it's an easy move. I expect all SF startups to escape here off of unbearable costs and business-friendly attitude of Nevada. Compared to Las Vegas, Reno feels more like a place to actually live and has a great climate. Compared to Austin, again the climate is an important factor to choose Reno, plus it's an easier to move (you can complete your move in a single day) So it's a no-brainer. If you're in tech, come here. There are a lot of co-working communities forming. PS: University of Nevada is great too.

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quality of life - 11/25/2016

reno has a me first mentality. so if looking for long term relationships forget it. very hard to do. also 36% mexican american voting block. ok there but influenced by californians coming across from calif. and mexico. liberal thinking coming to nv. and voting. beautiful area in short travel time but mostly reno is behind in metro travel because of large population in a small area.concerns for gangs in reno and sparks is high,.our crime rate is growing. we do have an excelent university but very expensive and it seems the graduates go elsewhere. the mexicon peoples are mostly democrate but also very family oriented.mexicons produce large numbers of children and seem to be on assistance of tax dollars from the state.there is a large number of homeless here. also a very largh number of drug usersand so burgleries. this seems to be growing. so if one is looking for a mate for long term and a safe place to raise kids then think again. we have well meaning people here but mostly they asre being taken over by the selfies. honestie is hasrd to come by here.

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Maybe too early but a review never-the-less - 6/27/2016

RENO is a fairly easy city to get around in.Lots of places to eat.The police seem very polite here.Yes we do have crime but it is like any other city.The one thing I really don't like is the pan handlers who you see by fast foot restaurants,the 7-11's, and even on street corners.

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if you could rent anywhere in Reno/Carson/Minden a - 6/27/2016

Hi all. What I'm looking for is sort of a place where I can rent a good apartment or house, without "town" prices, which may be here nor there as far as Reno area goes. Can anyone tell me if Carson City get the same kind of vicious wind that Reno does? I am going to be semi-retired shortly (60 this fall but still chomping at the bit) and may only be living there for a year, or might stay. If you could rent a place, any place, in that Reno/Carson/Minden region, where would it be? I might end up staying, who knows. Thanks much.

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