Points 7 and 10 are related. It seems the non-english speaking community have kids too.....and THEY dont speak english very well/at all bringing all the test scores, etc, down making the school system look like crap......

Also, I'm moving there in October and from the sound of it: The strip is 'Las vegas' and (for the most part) outside the strip is 'regular America' just like anywhere else.

This is correct. I live out in Summerlin and the schools are good, crime is low and medical care is as expected. We barely go to the strip and have little interest in it. If you are here to raise a family you buy towards the outside of the valley, if you are here to party then you live close in. Each has its advantages.

anyone that says driving in vegas is the worst can go nit some sweaters

they just don't know

it's not that bad op, some people just can't handle aggression, just like anywhere you're gonna find dumb drivers, but what these people probably mean is they get scared of aggro drivers overall so they simply say drivers in vegas are bad

note: im a super safe drivers myself (try not to speed always use blinkers and other common sense driving tactics), and katana is not a bad driver at all from my experience

Nah those are the best, usually they stop the car for the pic. Usually.

Thanks. I'm an excellent driver.

YOU should go knit some sweaters what the hell is this crap? j/k

the bads have been covered pretty well ITT so I won't beat a dead horse....but the one bad driving thing that seems to be prevalent in Vegas is so many people paying no attention to what they're doing, like their the only ones on the road. Example: I'll be driving 70 MPH in the freeway left lane and someone, w/out any turn signal or any other warning at all, will just pull right front of me from the center lane (like 10 yards between our cars) going 50 MPH and never speed up, causing me to slam on my brakes or rear-end them. Crap like this happens way more often here than anywhere else I've ever driven. You just really have to pay attention on the roads here and dodge the mindless idiots.

one other beat - getting shaken down for change by bums whenever you get out of your car at a gas station or a Walmart.

pretty obv he wasn't driving... more like completely stuck in gridlock.

i've been out here for two months now & my biggest issue is the prospect of crime. i'm renting in Cambridge Park Towers and made the mistake of walking from Twain/Cambridge to the Venetian at night to play. Everytime a cop pulled appeared I felt momentary yet fleeting relief.

Which brings me to public transpo. Being from Chicago, my standards are a bit high in this department. Vegas, especially for being city geared towards night life, fails pretyy hard. Often times a bus will be over an hour behind on the route at night, making the taxi or walking better options.

Don't get me started on the monorail... to put it in perspective, i took the L ( chi's subway ) from the city directly to O'hare. It cost me a whopping 2.25$ lol

However, cigarettes cost 1/2 the amount in Chicago. Rent and city taxes are cheaper as well.

TBH, this isn't a vegas issue, this is a "you moved to the wrong neighborhood" issue. For one of the worst neighborhoods in the general area, its not so bad though. If you made a similarly bad decision in NY, LA or another big city, i dont think it would be nearly as livable.

Too late to give you this advice but for others like you... if youre going to live on the east side of the strip, stay south of flamingo rd.

that said, the only reason to live on the east side is you have 1. A small housing budget and 2. No transportation.

Ditto. I've been in far worse areas in Chicago... it isn't THAT bad. Cambridge Park is gated, and as long as I stick to Flamingo when headed to the Strip, I'm fine. The strip via Twain is BAD. felt like I was being 'sized up' by everyone that passed by...

tbh, i totally lucked out with my rental situation.

Are you from California?

There's a huge Indian population in the SF Bay area. They are evidence of the above.

I once saw an Indian guy back out of a parking space, without looking, of course. He bashed right into another car that was driving by, also piloted by an Indian. They both got out, laughing like idiots, patted each other on the back like they were long lost brothers, got back into their cars and left. Neither car had a straight body panel on them, except maybe the roof.

I saw that once - two dozen blonds were trapped on it.

this, nor cal bay area drivers are muuuuuuch worse than LV drivers

LV is a very drivable city. even rush hour is manageable. You do have to watch our for senior citizens and pedestrians. People tailgate like mad and fail to signal all the time. But if you pay attention you can make time.

cambridge/twain has to be one of the worst places to live in lv. anywhere in that flamingo to sahara, koval to eastern area. NLV, around the strat, might be the only worse places.

And Spanish is defintely a plus

Private or public?

If I move out it will be with my wife and infant. Wife and I are in our mid 30s. We will definitely be looking for the regular family lifestyle, not the party lifestyle. Seems like Summerlin and Henderson are the main recommendations for housing. Anywhere else that should be on the radar? Any more specific advice for those places?

Again, thanks all.

I call bulls**t on this one. I am of Indian origin and I can assure you that there is no way in hell an Indian is going to take damage to his japanese, economy car and not have someone pay for it (even if the other guy was his brother). An Indian and his money is not easily parted, dost. At least get your stereo-types right.

Now if you inserted a couple of arabs into this story then, wallah habibi, you got yourself a credible story.

Summerlin, Henderson, and the Mountain's Edge areas are the best for families. For Henderson, the closer to Green Valley is better. Anthem is not too bad, but it will be a drive to get anywhere. Look for a place closer to a good elementary school so you have less chance of being re-zoned out.

There are plenty of 'normal' people out here and a growing professional class! Several facebook groups dedicated to the family lifestyle and a listing of free things to do with kids. There are plenty of 'kid friendly' places around town, if you look for them. If it makes you feel any better, I'm cheerfully raising kids in this town. Sure, we don't have the same freedoms as small town midwest, but I haven't had a scare so far!

A car is required. It takes about a year to adjust to the weather and then you are fine. Crime isn't bad *IF* you live in a safer area and are not stupid. Health care depends on your doctors, and is the same gamble as any town. Tourism is NOT the only industry in town. As a matter of fact, in 7.5 years, I'm on my first tourism and gambling related job.

Police are a factor. You do NOT **** with the police here in any way shape or form. It's easier to just calmly state your rights if it comes to a search, keep your hands in plain sight, do not physically act out in any way, and argue any misconduct later in court.

It has it's ups and downs. It really depends on if you are moving here with a job or marketable skills, or if you want to live here and play poker all the time. The former would want a different situation than the latter.

Since everyone knows that the best way to prove anything is from anecdotal evidence, you're clearly the one who is wrong.

Boulder City would be another option. It is just like a normal town (no casinos) but is only about 25 minutes from the Strip. I've worked with people who have families, live in Boulder City and love it.

You haven't traveled much, have you?

Health care has improved greatly in recent years. You still have to ask for referrals from friends.
Hospitals have also improved substantially but you should review some of the comparisons statistics available for them. There are some large differences in apparent outcomes from one hospital to another (but this is true most places). Unfortunately, none of the hospitals seems to be among the highest rankings nationally. If I was going to have a serious elective procedure done, I'd still go to the airport.
There are some very good dentists; I have found one, but the search for a good dentist seems to be more difficult than for an M.D.

1. Aliante -- its a nice community, in spite of having the "north las vegas" stigma, and you can get some pretty good values there.

2. SW las vegas... like in the vicinity of rainbow and the 215. IMO, try ot stay s of the 215 and W of torrey pines.

3. rhodes ranch -- you can get some good values because its fairly far out there.
boulder city is pretty scummy for the most part.

Care to elaborate? Yeah it's a bit of an older community and not filled with mansions, but how is it "scummy"?

I have never heard anything but the opposite. Just what I've heard but everyone I know that lives there loves it. Prices tend to be high for what you get.

my bad.
i just looked at a map, and boulder city is not what i thought it was.... I was under the impression that "boulder city" was the area around boulder station casino and boulder highway.

As far as driving, just be a defensive driver. That's about all you can do.

In regards to healthcare, do as much research as possible and ask for recommendations from trusted people. For example, I have IBD, and I found a good doctor through research and a recommendation on the Chron's and Colitis Foundation website. You should be able to find good docs, but don't hesitate to switch to a new doctor if you don't like the first one you choose.

I can't comment on too much more since I just moved here myself. I'm still taking it all in. But it seems like a fairly normal city overall; there's just a ton of casinos/resorts in one area that you aren't obligated to visit if you don't need to.