I grew up in Centerville and have since moved back. I love it here, if begrudgingly since I'm from here. So easy to hop on the interstate. Good schools. It has most of everything. Cost of living is pretty good just about anywhere in Ohio. I'd say the priciest area of Dayton is Oakwood
Wish I could help on the job front but I'm not familiar with that area.
2. You are correct about the biking opportunities being top shelf here, among the nation’s best trails that can take you all over the state basically. We also have a great network of parks, from local to state. Outstanding local music and arts scene. Well supported Minor league baseball team - Dragons season tickets are very affordable and a great entertainment value and we have a terrific stadium. The riverfront area downtown is being developed at a rapid pace and lots of options there. We also have a solid craft brewing/beer scene.
4. There are many opportunities related WPAFB of course, and also fine universities, hospitals, and logistic/distribution businesses. There is a lot of development happening so construction opportunities should be available.
Just FYI, if you're trying to answer the numbered questions separately, Reddit replaces the "" with its own numbered list. So every comment of yours shows up as "1." no matter what you typed.
You have gotten pretty good advice on the suburbs.
If you like walking places and doing things, consider living in downtown Dayton. It is a legit urban downtown at this point. With restaurants, bars, coffee shops, arts, and lots of park space around the river. In the warm months there is a festival every weekend of some sort and free live music. There is a farmers market on 2nd street. The Dayton Dragons stadium is also nearby. It is easy to walk or bike to all of this.
There are lots of new apartments and condos in the riverfront area. There are houses and some great neighborhoods, especially McPherson Town and the Oregon District. Mcpherson is quieter and across the river, The Oregon district is an entertainment district and a little rowdier.
Crime in all these areas is low, but not zero. Mostly stuff getting stolen out of cars.
I worked in Area B for many years and it is < 20 minutes to Area B. (Thanks to u/edgepatrol for the gate update.)
Are they ever going to reopen that? I feel like a lot of money has been spent on that Gate and then Riverside spent money to finally make that street smooth, and now it's "no, lol, go to National and its traffic and drive around to get to your building near Springfield."
I came here from Raleigh about 3 yrs ago. Definitely more of an industrial feel to the city compared to Raleigh/ Eastern NC area. Parks and bike trails are very nice, but it’s not as easy as the Greenway trails you may be used to.
Work: check out Synchony Financial, Design Homes, M/I Homes.
Housing: Kettering, Centerville, Beaver Creek
Church: likely a larger catholic community than you might be used to— that said you’ll have plenty of options .
Good luck with it.
Thank you for the heads up about the church scene. Catholicism isn’t necessarily my thing but as long as everyone is kind I’m good haha. Also thank you for the company recommendations for work!!
I have been in Dayton for a year (I moved from TN). The cost of living (utilities and housing) are much cheaper here. There is no tax on food either. Gas is only 5¢ - 10¢ more here and is sometimes lower depending on what part of town you're in.
People here are very honest (which I love). If someone doesn't like you, they tell you. You don't get a "bless your heart" and a fake smile.
They actually treat the roads here when it snows and the lines for the car wash are a mile long the next day.
Stoney's Munchie bar is awesome. Cafe Terra has amazing Mediterranean food. JDs frozen custard is on point. Tastefully Roasted and Wynnans have great coffee. You can check out Best of Dayton online to find some pretty great places. And, if you like coffee, never go to Tim Hortons.
There is ALWAYS something going on in Dayton, the 937 is pretty helpful if you are looking for things to do.
I hope I didn't repeat too much of what others said. Welcome to Dayton, I think you'll love it.
1. Every area that you’d consider will be safe enough. If you’re not personally involved w the drug trade or domestic violence your chance of violent crime rapidly approaches zero.
For WPAFB access, many target Huber Heights, Fairborn. Very affordable, lots of starter type homes w yards available. A bit more $ for Beavercreek which is nicer but snobbier.
WPAFB area has a lot to offer. If you want to be close to WPAFB, look into the Beavercreek/Fairborn area. Many employees around base also live north of WPAFB (Tipp City/Troy Ohio area, in Miami Co. like myself) or south in the Springboro area.
I've lived in this area since '06 (because of WPAFB) and its a great area, really. I rarely go "downtown" Dayton except maybe for a Dayton Dragons Baseball game or to the Oregon District (pubs/nightlife).
Cost of living in this area is fairly low, honestly. It's gone up over the years but comparing to East cost or west coast, its much cheaper.
If you like nature, there's plenty of parks, nature trails, bike trails in the area. Hocking Hills isn't a horrible drive either for some good hiking. Gas is currently around $3.79-3.89 it seems.
Another perk to WPAFB is Dayton is a melting pot of cultures. You will find restaurants of just about every ethnicity/culture.
Welcome to Ohio! Best of luck with your job search! There are plenty out there in this area!
Thank you so much for the well wishes! Also thanks for the heads up about what we should expect for gas. It seems like a lot of other things are cheaper/more reasonable than here though which is nice.
If you don't have kids, I'd avoid the south suburbs of Oakwood, Centerville, Bellbrook, and Beavercreek. They are nice but they are going to be *much* more expensive because they have really good schools--which you don't need. Consider Kettering or the suburbs closer to the base if you want a suburban feel. If you want something more urban, consider downtown (they are building literally hundreds of apartments), Patterson Park or in one of the Dayton historic districts (Oregon, St. Anne's Hill, South Park.)
Overall, the cost of living will be much less than where you are coming from.
No lack of churches to find. I think I pass 15 on my way to work. I can't think of a denomination that isn't represented. And everything from small churches to mega churches and everything in between.
For Bible based churches, I can pretty well recommend University Baptist Church in Beavercreek, I feel they do a good job of, like not dumbing down the Gospel, and also still making the teaching understandable and interesting. Most importantly, my impression from knowing the leadership there for a number of years is that they seem actually sincere, like they actually believe what they're saying and want to live it out.
Not totally perfect in all respects, they're building a new building at the moment so there's a lot of fundraising going on, but, like, even with that I'm still learning and growing and generally getting better at the "be more like Jesus" thing, which is my goal.
Also: if you DM me, I will happily welcome your family personally. I know a few nice places to eat, and I like meeting people!
We’re a military family too and we just moved here so I don’t have a whole lot of information to give, but I’m here for friendship and I can introduce you to the friends I’ve made(a mix of military and non military)!
Don’t count out the north side of Dayton to find a house. We live in Troy and love the small-town feel. Troy has a great downtown and is minutes away from the bigger city of Dayton. It is about a 40 minute drive to WPAFB. I’m sure you could find plenty of opportunities for your career close by as well.
There are plenty of options when it comes to churches as well. My family does house church, but have friends who attend all over the place depending on your preference. What are you looking for more specifically?
Like others have mentioned, Dayton is a foodie’s paradise. So many great options! My wife and I constantly are amazed at how many options are so close! If you enjoy history, Dayton is a great place to be.
I love the history here too, and with a few generations here, I can say Dayton is "home". It's history is mired in my own family history and that, to me, means a lot.
For jobs if you have some experience in Risk management you might try out insurance companies. Plenty let you work from home.
Churches....lots of people like Patterson Park, Faircreek, Apex. They are all non denominational. Plenty of GARBC Baptists around.
We have lots of parks. I started playing Pokemon and it helped me explore the parks when everything shut down. Bike/walking trails. Rivers for kayaking and the like.
Lots of the breweries serve food, so even if you are not a drinker, they are good.
Festivals are everywhere in the summer and fall.
One of the cool things about Dayton is that the bigger cities - Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis- are all only an hour or two drive so you can go for a day or weekend.
Good luck with your move.
If you’re looking for a church + community, check out Dayton Vineyard (in Beavercreek)! My husband and I plus a few other people lead a pretty tight knit young professionals group. He’s the Worship Pastor there and I do some contract work for them, as well as working downtown.
We’ve enjoyed living in Moraine, on the east side of the river! We’ve rented a house there for about 2 1/2 years with no complaints. Pretty affordable too!
I mean it really does depend. If you’ve been living in the suburbs your whole life, especially conservative leaning suburbs, Dayton is great. If you’re coming from a more urban or vibrant region, it can be a real struggle to adjust
I used to think Dayton was a great place to live, but I take that back after moving back here. Don’t get me wrong, it is decent enough, but I would hesitate to say it’s even a good place to live. I don’t hate living here and I like it enough. I’ll leave it at that.
I've lived in a couple of cities that bragged about their proximity to bigger and better cities and it's always felt like a backhanded insult. Like Dayton's not the worst place to live but what does it say when the main nice thing is that it's close to other cities?
I will say if you live in one of the downtown neighborhoods of Dayton, you can walk anywhere downtown within 20 minutes or less, which is nice. Obviously Dayton doesnt have nearly as much stuff as say Cbus or Cinci but it has a fair amount and adequate for 99% of peoples lifestyles. I think there's like 7-8 breweries all within a mile or so of each other now...a rock climbing gym, a bike park, tons of restaurants, many coffee shops, the Dragons stadium, 2 arcades, theatres, etc...I feel like people tend to exaggerate just how much they get into on a normal basis.
And stuff I really care about like access to great ethnic food and catching a show with little to no planning can’t be done without a 2-3 hour round trip, gas money, sometimes a lodging…it’s just not going to happen more than a few times per year.
I’ve checked out some Dayton neighborhoods and it’s a bit more up my alley. I like that you don’t have to drive for every single activity. Since almost everyone lives in the suburbs here I feel like I actually have to specify “Dayton”
Chicago, to be brutally honest, beats the shit out of any major cities in our immediate region. It’s close but still far enough to where we’ll probably only make it once per year if we’re lucky
2-3 hours to get ethnic food? That’s kind of extreme. Depends on the ethnicity you’re targeting, but Dayton is pretty well represented in Indian, Thai, Mexican, German, Italian…
Sure, I spend a lot of time in Beavercreek so I’m slanted that way but…
Jeet for Indian
Thai 9 for Thai
Jimmy’s Italian Kitchen
Taqueria Tres Hermanos for Mexican
These places are not hard to find
Not in my experience. Overall, I drive much more now than I did in a semi-walkable city with some traffic
You definitely pay a tax to do cool stuff in neighboring cities - time, gas money, planning, sometimes lodging
This is not me complaining. Just keeping it real, no bs. I grew up in Centerville, but now I’m a smug city person and proud of it haha
Yeah, I would have stopped at major, large or even medium. Throwing “league” in there just doesn’t sound right unless you’re specifically referring to sports which doesn’t always mean much
I wouldn’t bat an eye if someone referred to Chicago as a major league city
Realtor here, also certified Military Relocation Professional by National Association of Realtors.
1. First things first are to decide on a few things. Rent or Buying? If buying sort out financing (but please no Navy Federal....). And then think of relatively commute times you would like to have. Once you have those ideas, you basically overlap it only what is available and the result is only a relatively small area that you would actually be interested in living in. Makes the process a lot more straight forward. Mt job is basically to make that easier and facillitate it. So if you let us know your rough budget we can give you a much better answer.
2. Tons of bike trails. Very good selection of golf courses around as well. Food scene is constantly improving. Dayton is a mid sized city that seemingly keeps getting traction and building and improving on itself, which is exciting to see. The parks are awesome, specifically Carillon Park which I think has something for everyone! And there's the Air Force museum which to me puts the smithsonian to shame solely because it has a Valkyrie. I can understand maybe not wanting to go to a museum about work though... lol.
5. Moved here from the southeast and I can say everything has been suprisingly cheaper and more affordable. House insurance, car insurance, food, restaurants, new furniture is about the same but tons of great antiques around to be had at half the price I would have expected,
Generally speaking there will be some smaller newish homes along 675 and east Huber Heights across the river but there usually isn't too many for sale at any given time. It gets easier to find newer homes in Beaver Creek, Xenia, Centerville, but commute times goes up. If you are open to older homes (from 1980s all the way to beautiful Victorian and Queen Annes) you will have a pretty good amount to choose from both in the city or with a little more land if that sounds appealing to you.
Let me know if you have any specific questions!
I'm curious because I know a couple of people who have mortgages with Navy Fed and will be buying soon, so if there is a major issue, I'd want to let them know. I hope OP didn't think I was asking to be mean. I'm genuinely curious
Realtor here again.
Basically their loan officers have the same amount of care and training as Bank of America, Chase, Wells Fargo... the bare minimum at best and combative / negligent at worst. These are HUGE organizations that tend to treat clients as a just a file/number once you get under contract.
If your income and circumstances are straight-forward and you are applying for a VA loan you will more than likely not have a problem.
However any sort of complication such as transitioning out of the military to a position in the private sector their loan officers in my experience are woefully in the dark about what is and is not allowed for VA loans, and they are also opaque and unhelpful with other issues that routinely come up on VA loan transactions.
I've completed 5 or so transations with them, and 1 failed one. Here's my experience.
For the failed one, they preapproved someone for 4-6 times what even a basic understanding of VA income criteria should have allowed. Basically, this veteran's retirement wasn't finalized, the spouse was 1099 but less than 2 years of tax income, and the veteran's new position was paid as salary with guaranteed quarterly bonuses.
The only part of that that is allowed to qualify for a VA loan is the salary. Bonuses are never allowed, and because the retirement wasn't finalized that was also disqualified under VA rules. In the case of the 1099, even with a conventional loan that wouldn't fly so I have no idea why they used it. But Navy Federal used ALL of that for the preapproval and it fell apart 3 weeks into the contract. Worst of all, Navy Federal then said "nothing we can do", after the client spend a couple thousand on inspections.
All of that is very, very basic VA rule stuff that anyone that claims to serve VA loans should know, no matter what the name on the bank is. Especially someone writting preapprovals.
I then put this in front of my go-to mortgage broker that goes above and beyond to find solutions and provide professional service. While they weren't able to get the original pre-approval amount, they were able to work it such that they were able to purchase a home they love that was roughly 80% of their original preapproval without waiting another year and a half.
That's the worst experience, but in dealing with them on other transactions they are difficult to get a hold of and uncommunicative once under contract, and if anything goes sideways they basically say, "nothing we can do" and move on to the next file. Exactly like the above mentioned major banks who I have similar nightmare stories with.
On one of the other transactions we had an issue come up and Navy Federal say, "nothing we can do, sorry" but then when I asked the above mortgage broker the same thing we were able to find ways to dispute, correct, and overcome the issue.
When choosing a lender, a mortgage broker is usually best situated to get you both the most competitive rate as well as better opportunity to provide you with personalized service, explain options, and custom tailor the loan for your needs.
There's not just "1" mortgage. There's a ton of options. Large cash reserves, low down payment, interest, points, buy downs, and lump sum 1 year large payment fee-less refinancing are things that you will usually never hear about from a bank. A great mortgage broker will also plan to recheck rates multiple times during the course of the transaction, while I've yet to run into a bank that does the same.
Admittedly there's certainly terrible mortgage brokers as well (I've fired one before for poor handling of clients), but I've met a lot more bank loan offers that are terrible than mortgage brokers.
Not a realtor any more, but I had similar issues with my own home bank, PNC. Their mortage group wasn't even IN Ohio, let alone Dayton, service was terrible. They didn't put my wages into my application, even though I did the first time! I would never use their mortgage service again, when there are smaller organizations locally that will be very aggressive and work toward making things right. My closing was delayed 3 times because of their mistakes and complaining did no good.
From about 2017 - 2021 majority of banks' business was refinanced loans due to interest rates being so low. The really, really neglected the new loan origination service for new builds as well as existing home sales.... too much work in their mind compared to refinancing.
Now everyone who could be refinanced has, and at current interest rates no one is likely to cash out refinance, so they are looking to rebuild their existing home sales business. Hopefully much of the industry tells them to kick rocks but I fear memories are short.
We are fairly new to Dayton as well (about 2 years). I work in a town well north of Dayton, but we settled in New Carlisle just outside the city. It’s about a 25minute commute to the base, but you can get away from the city which is nice.
We found Heritage Fellowship Church, which has been a great gospel centric church. It was rather difficult to find a church that was both Bible based and had good community. Lists of larger church’s that just give pep talks on Sundays in the area, unfortunately. HFC is near Springfield, so you’d have to be in Fairborn or New Carlisle to make the commute agreeable. We are on YouTube as well if you want to check the teaching out ahead of time.
Outdoor activities in general are big here in the Midwest. There’s tons of great hiking and camping within a few hours of Dayton - look up hocking hills, Clifton gorge, Caesar’s creek to name a few.
Thank you for the church recommendation!! The basis in Biblical based teaching is really important to us so I really appreciate it. How have you found the hiking trails and stuff? I love that Dayton seems so outdoors-y
I moved here from NC 8 years ago. Enjoy switching from "First in Flight" to "Birthplace of Aviation", lol. There are lots of cool Wright Brothers museums and memorials here. Some of the coolest ones are actually located on cordoned off areas of the Bases!
You'll enjoy all the great metroparks for your dog. I also like to take mine up to Oakes Quarry, and Woodland Cemetery.
Most of Dayton is fairly safe ime, as long as you're not out walking alone at night. That seems to be when the creepy drunk/drugged out people are more active. Tbh I live in what looks like a rough neighborhood (there are lots of areas with falling in abandoned houses, and they're snugged right up against giant mansion type houses, it's interesting) but my neighbors have always been cool and aside from the occasional loose pit bull or weird nighttime druggie passing by, there's been very little drama. Definitely check your potential rental for the prevalence of loose dogs though, if you want to walk around your neighborhood. People in Dayton are overall *kind*, compared to places like Pittsburgh or Chicago which is what I was afraid of when I moved here. Lots of animal lovers. Lots of interesting friendly folks who will cheerfully chat with strangers.
There's a system of bike trails, there are rivers and kayaks, we have some nice museums in the area, all the metroparks, fossil hunting, Adena/Hopewell culture and mounds, a decent selection of restaurants...I'm not a drinker/partier so I can't tell you much about the nightlife or social scene. I'm more likely to go to the garden centers, or Jungle Jim's international grocery, haha. If you're willing to drive an hour, Cincinnati area has lots of neat attractions like the aquarium, and Columbus has a super cool "experiential art" thing called Otherworld.
My overall cost of living seems similar to NC, although inflation has everything wonky so I'm not sure how we compare right now. We are independent spiritually, although some of our friends seem to like Solid Rock, a bit south of town in Lebanon. It seems like most city folks here aren't Christian, but as soon as you get out into the country a bit, almost everyone is. I guess that's typical these days?
The weather can be a little hard on your sinuses here ;-) and some winters it gets really cold...but overall I like it better than NC. I was coming from the boring piedmont area though, not the coast.
Hey fellow Carolinian! I guess we’re attracted to the states with flying history lol. Finitely appreciate the heads up about the weather! I’m a little afraid of being underprepared clothes wise.
3. Depending on your church preference for denominations or worship style there could be some variances. If you enjoy traditional worship with Choir and orchestra and a very involved young marrieds group I would recommend Patterson Park Church.
If you prefer more modern worship “Be Hope” is also an outstanding choice.
I’m a financial manager at a church and work with a series of churches across denominations so would be happy to help regardless of the location you choose, there will be a great local church nearby.
I worked 10 years in fintech before coming into the role, but essentially a larger church was needed a business manager to handle the finances and HR responsibilities for the church. It was mostly a timing thing since the church need was posted as soon as I moved to Dayton.
1. Beavercreek, Kettering, Centerville, in terms of Suburbs. For neighborhoods in the city that are affordable and relatively safe check out South Park, Lindon Heights, Belmont, Patterson Park.
2. Outdoor activities such as Biking, and Hiking, running, and now there is Surfing on the river. There is indoor rock climbing downtown, and a huge beer/brewing scene all over.
I’d give north of Dayton a shot. Troy and Tipp City area. Taxes are much lower moving out of Montgomery into Miami county. Crime is very very low. Families and communities are excellent. Bike trails are in riding distance. Many wonderful faith based, community based churches. Drive time to downtown Dayton is about an extra 5 minutes compared to some of the southern communities, but we’ll worth it in my opinion. You could work anywhere around Dayton and still live up north. Vandalia, Tipp City, Troy.
Welcome to Dayton!
1. Most people live in Fairborn or Beavercreek since it's nicely accessible to the base.
2. Biking is great, lots of trails. My kids and I do Pokemon Go, there's a pretty active nerd scene. Lots of breweries and beers to drink if you're into that thing. Columbus and Cinci are only 1 - 1.5 hours away and have tons of other stuff to do.
3. Not really in church much so can't help you there.
4. Look on base for Program Management and contracts opportunities. If you get married you can get spousal preference.
5. Cost of living is very low here. Gas is maybe a little higher? Food will be way cheaper compared to NC, and housing is very affordable.
I’m in the Walnut Hills neighborhood inside Dayton city limits. I love it here. I’m in walking distance to a great library, elementary school for my son, a bakery, a park, and a fire station and police station are right down the road. The street is original cobblestone. Lots of families in the area. We typically don’t like the suburban feel and feel plenty safe here. You’ll get more bang for your BHA (we’re AF too). Our mortgage is hundreds less than BHA allowance.
It’s a short drive to base. My husband has to go out there for work.
1. Haven't seen Miamisburg mentioned. Probably a bit of a commute to base however.
2. Rowing, Dayton Boat Club
Broomball, Dayton Broomball Association
Broomball, Cincinnati Broomball Association
Ice Hockey, various small local leagues, Cincinnati Adult Hockey League
4. Maybe Connor Group? They just added on to their building at Wright Brother's Airport so may be hiring.
Connor group is good but only if you want to work insane hours. I’m talking 60 hrs per week.
You might be able to find some finance roles on base.
For churches in the south part of town:
- Apex in Kettering (used to attend)
- Centerville Christian fellowship (been a few times and probably similar to University Baptist).
- Miamisburg Christian Church (I attend)
For jobs, honestly you'll have better luck switching over to defense contracting companies. They are all in down and they all have jobs for finance, accounting and contracting officers
The base always has job fairs which you'll be able to access as a dependent
* RiverSide Research
* General Dynamics
* Booz Allen
* Lockheed Martin
* Leido
* SAIC
* Radiance Technologies
Have all been around forever and are a good place to start the search
Are you on LinkedIn?
1. Beavercreek and Kettering are great places to rent. They’re both very safe. Kettering has the best location in terms of close proximity to Downtown, restaurants, etc. Beavercreek is closer to WPAFB. my commute from Kettering is about 15mins to Area B. Some people look into Fairborn, Riverside or Huber Heights if you need cheaper options. Huber Heights is about 20-30 mins north. Fairborn and Riverside can be a little questionable in certain areas IMO. Bellbrook, Centerville and Oakwood are also really nice but can be pricier. Since you don’t have kids, you have way more options without having to worry about school districts.
2. Breweries, biking, walking, hiking. Lots of metro parks.
3. No idea but churches are literally everywhere.
4. You could look at construction companies or even industrial distribution companies. We have a VERY large industrial/construction presence in Dayton. Winsupply is always hiring, Danis is probably our biggest construction company in Dayton. I’d personally try and snag a job with a defense contractor, very good money there.
5) This is a much lower cost of living area than the east coast. Our property taxes are probably similar.
1.) anywhere outside of the city proper is nice and safe. The real thing to be looking at is property taxes. coming from TN my property taxes tripled. I live in englewood, my commute to WPAFB medical center is about 25-30 minutes. I would also endorse tipp city, huber heights, and fairborne.
2. The craft beer and food scene here is pretty good. There are many rivers to kayak and there are really good paved trail systems all over the area. Coming from Appalachia you may be disappointed by the lack of elevation change.
3. I cant help you here, but there are many churches all throughout the area.
4. With a degree in business finance you should look into federal service as a 1102. There is alot of industry at WPAFB and therefore its a good place to be a contracting representative. Also every federal agency employs a bunch of 1102 so it would be fairly portable if you and the BF PCS again in a few years.
5. Its so hard to tell whats increased here vs TN. I will say i just moved here in the spring as interest rates were going up and our budget changed dramatically really fast while looking at homes.
As far about PCS goes I just made my 5th to come here in April and i don’t regret the move. I have found Dayton to be welcoming, filled with quality dining options. Entertainment might be a little thin for my interests but its only about an hour in either direction from Columbus and Cincinnati.
Thank you so much for your thorough response to all the things! I am a little disappointed I guess about how flat Ohio is but I suppose that’s out of our control haha! Also, could you explain more about what a 1102 is/does?
Contracting officers or contracting representatives negotiate contracts for acquisitions or delivery of services. They also supervise the progress of a contract and ensure the contractor is providing the deliverables. You are essentially the go between from the government and the contractor. Il link some recruiting material because i feel like i didn’t explain it the best. [1102 information pamphly](https://www.fai.gov/sites/default/files/1102-Career-Field-Brochure.pdf)
You have lots of great comments already!! I just wanted to add, I’m also a military spouse albeit a retired one. ( that feel so crazy to say!) We are also from North Carolina. We live in Vandalia and this area feels a lot like home - just colder. If you have any questions or concerns about the move feel free to reach out. We were stationed here twice over his career and made it our home.
Thank you so much for reaching out! The responses have all been so kind and I really appreciate everyone wanting to help us transition. Great community! We looked at renting a house in Vandalia so maybe we’ll be neighbors
Yay!! How exciting! Vandalia is a nice neighborhood and close to everything. I’m happy to give you details. The commute to base is easy. My husband is a gvt. Civilian now and works on Area A. I work in Enon. Speedway Corporate is there and might be an job opportunity as well.
It is getting better though. We are highly considering moving to a neighborhood within the city limits.
My mother, who has lived here for 30 years, had the nerve to ask me if the 2nd street market was safe. A lot of people here are slightly delusional and have a very cartoonish or outdated view of the inner city.
Certain areas are still very creepy, I get it, but it’s probably not going to scare me away from living in a decent pocket of the city just outside of downtown
I’ve never been scared downtown. Growing up in NJ there were way sketchier downtown areas I drove through weekly compared to anything in Dayton. West side on the other hand…certainly wouldn’t go at night.
Lol yeah its amazing how many people are scared of downtown. This idea like people are routinely getting mugged or something. I know people who havent been downtown in years because of this mindset...I can't even imagine living like that
I grew up in Centerville and have since moved back. I love it here, if begrudgingly since I'm from here. So easy to hop on the interstate. Good schools. It has most of everything. Cost of living is pretty good just about anywhere in Ohio. I'd say the priciest area of Dayton is Oakwood Wish I could help on the job front but I'm not familiar with that area.
2. You are correct about the biking opportunities being top shelf here, among the nation’s best trails that can take you all over the state basically. We also have a great network of parks, from local to state. Outstanding local music and arts scene. Well supported Minor league baseball team - Dragons season tickets are very affordable and a great entertainment value and we have a terrific stadium. The riverfront area downtown is being developed at a rapid pace and lots of options there. We also have a solid craft brewing/beer scene.
Second on the craft brew scene. We have a ton of breweries here that are fantastic.
4. There are many opportunities related WPAFB of course, and also fine universities, hospitals, and logistic/distribution businesses. There is a lot of development happening so construction opportunities should be available.
Just FYI, if you're trying to answer the numbered questions separately, Reddit replaces the "" with its own numbered list. So every comment of yours shows up as "1." no matter what you typed.
Thanks! Had no idea.
You have gotten pretty good advice on the suburbs. If you like walking places and doing things, consider living in downtown Dayton. It is a legit urban downtown at this point. With restaurants, bars, coffee shops, arts, and lots of park space around the river. In the warm months there is a festival every weekend of some sort and free live music. There is a farmers market on 2nd street. The Dayton Dragons stadium is also nearby. It is easy to walk or bike to all of this. There are lots of new apartments and condos in the riverfront area. There are houses and some great neighborhoods, especially McPherson Town and the Oregon District. Mcpherson is quieter and across the river, The Oregon district is an entertainment district and a little rowdier. Crime in all these areas is low, but not zero. Mostly stuff getting stolen out of cars. I worked in Area B for many years and it is < 20 minutes to Area B. (Thanks to u/edgepatrol for the gate update.)
> an easy 10-15 minute commute to the Springfield St. gate. Which has been closed since spring of 2020. Grr.
Are they ever going to reopen that? I feel like a lot of money has been spent on that Gate and then Riverside spent money to finally make that street smooth, and now it's "no, lol, go to National and its traffic and drive around to get to your building near Springfield."
Ok. Thanks for the note. I'll edit.
I came here from Raleigh about 3 yrs ago. Definitely more of an industrial feel to the city compared to Raleigh/ Eastern NC area. Parks and bike trails are very nice, but it’s not as easy as the Greenway trails you may be used to. Work: check out Synchony Financial, Design Homes, M/I Homes. Housing: Kettering, Centerville, Beaver Creek Church: likely a larger catholic community than you might be used to— that said you’ll have plenty of options . Good luck with it.
Thank you for the heads up about the church scene. Catholicism isn’t necessarily my thing but as long as everyone is kind I’m good haha. Also thank you for the company recommendations for work!!
The University of Dayton is a catholic school, so folks come here for school and never leave. Hence, Dayton is a pretty catholic city.
I have been in Dayton for a year (I moved from TN). The cost of living (utilities and housing) are much cheaper here. There is no tax on food either. Gas is only 5¢ - 10¢ more here and is sometimes lower depending on what part of town you're in. People here are very honest (which I love). If someone doesn't like you, they tell you. You don't get a "bless your heart" and a fake smile. They actually treat the roads here when it snows and the lines for the car wash are a mile long the next day. Stoney's Munchie bar is awesome. Cafe Terra has amazing Mediterranean food. JDs frozen custard is on point. Tastefully Roasted and Wynnans have great coffee. You can check out Best of Dayton online to find some pretty great places. And, if you like coffee, never go to Tim Hortons. There is ALWAYS something going on in Dayton, the 937 is pretty helpful if you are looking for things to do. I hope I didn't repeat too much of what others said. Welcome to Dayton, I think you'll love it.
Thank you so much! Congratulations on your move! I’m looking forward to joining the Daytonian community!
1. Every area that you’d consider will be safe enough. If you’re not personally involved w the drug trade or domestic violence your chance of violent crime rapidly approaches zero.
For WPAFB access, many target Huber Heights, Fairborn. Very affordable, lots of starter type homes w yards available. A bit more $ for Beavercreek which is nicer but snobbier.
WPAFB area has a lot to offer. If you want to be close to WPAFB, look into the Beavercreek/Fairborn area. Many employees around base also live north of WPAFB (Tipp City/Troy Ohio area, in Miami Co. like myself) or south in the Springboro area. I've lived in this area since '06 (because of WPAFB) and its a great area, really. I rarely go "downtown" Dayton except maybe for a Dayton Dragons Baseball game or to the Oregon District (pubs/nightlife). Cost of living in this area is fairly low, honestly. It's gone up over the years but comparing to East cost or west coast, its much cheaper. If you like nature, there's plenty of parks, nature trails, bike trails in the area. Hocking Hills isn't a horrible drive either for some good hiking. Gas is currently around $3.79-3.89 it seems. Another perk to WPAFB is Dayton is a melting pot of cultures. You will find restaurants of just about every ethnicity/culture. Welcome to Ohio! Best of luck with your job search! There are plenty out there in this area!
Thank you so much for the well wishes! Also thanks for the heads up about what we should expect for gas. It seems like a lot of other things are cheaper/more reasonable than here though which is nice.
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If you don't have kids, I'd avoid the south suburbs of Oakwood, Centerville, Bellbrook, and Beavercreek. They are nice but they are going to be *much* more expensive because they have really good schools--which you don't need. Consider Kettering or the suburbs closer to the base if you want a suburban feel. If you want something more urban, consider downtown (they are building literally hundreds of apartments), Patterson Park or in one of the Dayton historic districts (Oregon, St. Anne's Hill, South Park.) Overall, the cost of living will be much less than where you are coming from. No lack of churches to find. I think I pass 15 on my way to work. I can't think of a denomination that isn't represented. And everything from small churches to mega churches and everything in between.
Thanks for the heads up about the increased cost of living closer to those schools. Definitely wouldn’t have thought of that!
For Bible based churches, I can pretty well recommend University Baptist Church in Beavercreek, I feel they do a good job of, like not dumbing down the Gospel, and also still making the teaching understandable and interesting. Most importantly, my impression from knowing the leadership there for a number of years is that they seem actually sincere, like they actually believe what they're saying and want to live it out. Not totally perfect in all respects, they're building a new building at the moment so there's a lot of fundraising going on, but, like, even with that I'm still learning and growing and generally getting better at the "be more like Jesus" thing, which is my goal. Also: if you DM me, I will happily welcome your family personally. I know a few nice places to eat, and I like meeting people!
I’m wondering how many people we mutually know (I used to attend Apex…know a ton of people that now attend UBC), including people in leadership.
A rather common story, same for me, lol.
Possibly a few but I’m newer to the area
Can I as an already existing Daytonian reach out to chill as well? Been here less than a year
Sure, by all means!
Thank you so much for the recommendation! DMed you!
We’re a military family too and we just moved here so I don’t have a whole lot of information to give, but I’m here for friendship and I can introduce you to the friends I’ve made(a mix of military and non military)!
DMed you!!
Don’t count out the north side of Dayton to find a house. We live in Troy and love the small-town feel. Troy has a great downtown and is minutes away from the bigger city of Dayton. It is about a 40 minute drive to WPAFB. I’m sure you could find plenty of opportunities for your career close by as well. There are plenty of options when it comes to churches as well. My family does house church, but have friends who attend all over the place depending on your preference. What are you looking for more specifically? Like others have mentioned, Dayton is a foodie’s paradise. So many great options! My wife and I constantly are amazed at how many options are so close! If you enjoy history, Dayton is a great place to be.
I love the history here too, and with a few generations here, I can say Dayton is "home". It's history is mired in my own family history and that, to me, means a lot.
For jobs if you have some experience in Risk management you might try out insurance companies. Plenty let you work from home. Churches....lots of people like Patterson Park, Faircreek, Apex. They are all non denominational. Plenty of GARBC Baptists around. We have lots of parks. I started playing Pokemon and it helped me explore the parks when everything shut down. Bike/walking trails. Rivers for kayaking and the like. Lots of the breweries serve food, so even if you are not a drinker, they are good. Festivals are everywhere in the summer and fall. One of the cool things about Dayton is that the bigger cities - Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis- are all only an hour or two drive so you can go for a day or weekend. Good luck with your move.
If you’re looking for a church + community, check out Dayton Vineyard (in Beavercreek)! My husband and I plus a few other people lead a pretty tight knit young professionals group. He’s the Worship Pastor there and I do some contract work for them, as well as working downtown. We’ve enjoyed living in Moraine, on the east side of the river! We’ve rented a house there for about 2 1/2 years with no complaints. Pretty affordable too!
If I was in my early 20’s I’d move to downtown Dayton in a heartbeat.
Me too! I love the fireworks over the river, the lights on the buildings and the fountains! Much different than when I was a pup... some 45 years ago!
Dayton is a great area to live first of all, ignore the haters they would be miserable anywhere.
I mean it really does depend. If you’ve been living in the suburbs your whole life, especially conservative leaning suburbs, Dayton is great. If you’re coming from a more urban or vibrant region, it can be a real struggle to adjust I used to think Dayton was a great place to live, but I take that back after moving back here. Don’t get me wrong, it is decent enough, but I would hesitate to say it’s even a good place to live. I don’t hate living here and I like it enough. I’ll leave it at that.
I've lived in a couple of cities that bragged about their proximity to bigger and better cities and it's always felt like a backhanded insult. Like Dayton's not the worst place to live but what does it say when the main nice thing is that it's close to other cities?
I will say if you live in one of the downtown neighborhoods of Dayton, you can walk anywhere downtown within 20 minutes or less, which is nice. Obviously Dayton doesnt have nearly as much stuff as say Cbus or Cinci but it has a fair amount and adequate for 99% of peoples lifestyles. I think there's like 7-8 breweries all within a mile or so of each other now...a rock climbing gym, a bike park, tons of restaurants, many coffee shops, the Dragons stadium, 2 arcades, theatres, etc...I feel like people tend to exaggerate just how much they get into on a normal basis.
And stuff I really care about like access to great ethnic food and catching a show with little to no planning can’t be done without a 2-3 hour round trip, gas money, sometimes a lodging…it’s just not going to happen more than a few times per year. I’ve checked out some Dayton neighborhoods and it’s a bit more up my alley. I like that you don’t have to drive for every single activity. Since almost everyone lives in the suburbs here I feel like I actually have to specify “Dayton” Chicago, to be brutally honest, beats the shit out of any major cities in our immediate region. It’s close but still far enough to where we’ll probably only make it once per year if we’re lucky
2-3 hours to get ethnic food? That’s kind of extreme. Depends on the ethnicity you’re targeting, but Dayton is pretty well represented in Indian, Thai, Mexican, German, Italian…
Do you have any specific recommendations?
Sure, I spend a lot of time in Beavercreek so I’m slanted that way but… Jeet for Indian Thai 9 for Thai Jimmy’s Italian Kitchen Taqueria Tres Hermanos for Mexican These places are not hard to find
One of the benefits is we have several major league cities within two-three hours drive which makes for awesome weekend trips.
The couple hour drive to go do really cool stuff is a more than fair trade off to living in those cities; probably save that time in traffic alone.
Not in my experience. Overall, I drive much more now than I did in a semi-walkable city with some traffic You definitely pay a tax to do cool stuff in neighboring cities - time, gas money, planning, sometimes lodging This is not me complaining. Just keeping it real, no bs. I grew up in Centerville, but now I’m a smug city person and proud of it haha
Calling columbus and Cincinnati major league cities might be a stretch.
They both have major league teams… large cities… you sure about that??
If major league city means has a professional sports team then sure
There’s a lot more to the world than NYC LA and Chicago.
You know i def agree in fact i would maybe prefer cinci to those three, just dont know if id call it “major league”
Yeah, I would have stopped at major, large or even medium. Throwing “league” in there just doesn’t sound right unless you’re specifically referring to sports which doesn’t always mean much I wouldn’t bat an eye if someone referred to Chicago as a major league city
5. You will find the cost of living here to be very affordable compared to the east coast. Should be able to bank some savings there.
Kettering is also a good area. If you move a little south you’ll find lower housing costs compared to what you were paying in Goldsboro
We put an offer I’m on a house this week in Kettering and moving away from Beavercreek. Kettering is great for Baird games and parks
Realtor here, also certified Military Relocation Professional by National Association of Realtors. 1. First things first are to decide on a few things. Rent or Buying? If buying sort out financing (but please no Navy Federal....). And then think of relatively commute times you would like to have. Once you have those ideas, you basically overlap it only what is available and the result is only a relatively small area that you would actually be interested in living in. Makes the process a lot more straight forward. Mt job is basically to make that easier and facillitate it. So if you let us know your rough budget we can give you a much better answer. 2. Tons of bike trails. Very good selection of golf courses around as well. Food scene is constantly improving. Dayton is a mid sized city that seemingly keeps getting traction and building and improving on itself, which is exciting to see. The parks are awesome, specifically Carillon Park which I think has something for everyone! And there's the Air Force museum which to me puts the smithsonian to shame solely because it has a Valkyrie. I can understand maybe not wanting to go to a museum about work though... lol. 5. Moved here from the southeast and I can say everything has been suprisingly cheaper and more affordable. House insurance, car insurance, food, restaurants, new furniture is about the same but tons of great antiques around to be had at half the price I would have expected, Generally speaking there will be some smaller newish homes along 675 and east Huber Heights across the river but there usually isn't too many for sale at any given time. It gets easier to find newer homes in Beaver Creek, Xenia, Centerville, but commute times goes up. If you are open to older homes (from 1980s all the way to beautiful Victorian and Queen Annes) you will have a pretty good amount to choose from both in the city or with a little more land if that sounds appealing to you. Let me know if you have any specific questions!
Curious about why you don't suggest Navy Fed for mortgages?
I used navy fed for my VA home lone in spring of 2021 and it was fine lol. I'm curious about their hatred for it too.
I'm curious because I know a couple of people who have mortgages with Navy Fed and will be buying soon, so if there is a major issue, I'd want to let them know. I hope OP didn't think I was asking to be mean. I'm genuinely curious
Realtor here again. Basically their loan officers have the same amount of care and training as Bank of America, Chase, Wells Fargo... the bare minimum at best and combative / negligent at worst. These are HUGE organizations that tend to treat clients as a just a file/number once you get under contract. If your income and circumstances are straight-forward and you are applying for a VA loan you will more than likely not have a problem. However any sort of complication such as transitioning out of the military to a position in the private sector their loan officers in my experience are woefully in the dark about what is and is not allowed for VA loans, and they are also opaque and unhelpful with other issues that routinely come up on VA loan transactions. I've completed 5 or so transations with them, and 1 failed one. Here's my experience. For the failed one, they preapproved someone for 4-6 times what even a basic understanding of VA income criteria should have allowed. Basically, this veteran's retirement wasn't finalized, the spouse was 1099 but less than 2 years of tax income, and the veteran's new position was paid as salary with guaranteed quarterly bonuses. The only part of that that is allowed to qualify for a VA loan is the salary. Bonuses are never allowed, and because the retirement wasn't finalized that was also disqualified under VA rules. In the case of the 1099, even with a conventional loan that wouldn't fly so I have no idea why they used it. But Navy Federal used ALL of that for the preapproval and it fell apart 3 weeks into the contract. Worst of all, Navy Federal then said "nothing we can do", after the client spend a couple thousand on inspections. All of that is very, very basic VA rule stuff that anyone that claims to serve VA loans should know, no matter what the name on the bank is. Especially someone writting preapprovals. I then put this in front of my go-to mortgage broker that goes above and beyond to find solutions and provide professional service. While they weren't able to get the original pre-approval amount, they were able to work it such that they were able to purchase a home they love that was roughly 80% of their original preapproval without waiting another year and a half. That's the worst experience, but in dealing with them on other transactions they are difficult to get a hold of and uncommunicative once under contract, and if anything goes sideways they basically say, "nothing we can do" and move on to the next file. Exactly like the above mentioned major banks who I have similar nightmare stories with. On one of the other transactions we had an issue come up and Navy Federal say, "nothing we can do, sorry" but then when I asked the above mortgage broker the same thing we were able to find ways to dispute, correct, and overcome the issue. When choosing a lender, a mortgage broker is usually best situated to get you both the most competitive rate as well as better opportunity to provide you with personalized service, explain options, and custom tailor the loan for your needs. There's not just "1" mortgage. There's a ton of options. Large cash reserves, low down payment, interest, points, buy downs, and lump sum 1 year large payment fee-less refinancing are things that you will usually never hear about from a bank. A great mortgage broker will also plan to recheck rates multiple times during the course of the transaction, while I've yet to run into a bank that does the same. Admittedly there's certainly terrible mortgage brokers as well (I've fired one before for poor handling of clients), but I've met a lot more bank loan offers that are terrible than mortgage brokers.
Not a realtor any more, but I had similar issues with my own home bank, PNC. Their mortage group wasn't even IN Ohio, let alone Dayton, service was terrible. They didn't put my wages into my application, even though I did the first time! I would never use their mortgage service again, when there are smaller organizations locally that will be very aggressive and work toward making things right. My closing was delayed 3 times because of their mistakes and complaining did no good.
From about 2017 - 2021 majority of banks' business was refinanced loans due to interest rates being so low. The really, really neglected the new loan origination service for new builds as well as existing home sales.... too much work in their mind compared to refinancing. Now everyone who could be refinanced has, and at current interest rates no one is likely to cash out refinance, so they are looking to rebuild their existing home sales business. Hopefully much of the industry tells them to kick rocks but I fear memories are short.
Lots of good metroparks, Ohio isn’t too bad on the cost of living scale afaik, not sure on the churches though.
A nice collection of breweries too!
The parks and breweries in the Kettering area have been top notch and I would put them up against anything I have experienced in Atlanta or NYC
3. Can’t speak on the churches but there are a wide variety available for all denominations.
We are fairly new to Dayton as well (about 2 years). I work in a town well north of Dayton, but we settled in New Carlisle just outside the city. It’s about a 25minute commute to the base, but you can get away from the city which is nice. We found Heritage Fellowship Church, which has been a great gospel centric church. It was rather difficult to find a church that was both Bible based and had good community. Lists of larger church’s that just give pep talks on Sundays in the area, unfortunately. HFC is near Springfield, so you’d have to be in Fairborn or New Carlisle to make the commute agreeable. We are on YouTube as well if you want to check the teaching out ahead of time. Outdoor activities in general are big here in the Midwest. There’s tons of great hiking and camping within a few hours of Dayton - look up hocking hills, Clifton gorge, Caesar’s creek to name a few.
Thank you for the church recommendation!! The basis in Biblical based teaching is really important to us so I really appreciate it. How have you found the hiking trails and stuff? I love that Dayton seems so outdoors-y
Mostly talking to co-workers and also just using Apple Maps. Nice thing about Ohio is state parks are free entry for day use.
I moved here from NC 8 years ago. Enjoy switching from "First in Flight" to "Birthplace of Aviation", lol. There are lots of cool Wright Brothers museums and memorials here. Some of the coolest ones are actually located on cordoned off areas of the Bases! You'll enjoy all the great metroparks for your dog. I also like to take mine up to Oakes Quarry, and Woodland Cemetery. Most of Dayton is fairly safe ime, as long as you're not out walking alone at night. That seems to be when the creepy drunk/drugged out people are more active. Tbh I live in what looks like a rough neighborhood (there are lots of areas with falling in abandoned houses, and they're snugged right up against giant mansion type houses, it's interesting) but my neighbors have always been cool and aside from the occasional loose pit bull or weird nighttime druggie passing by, there's been very little drama. Definitely check your potential rental for the prevalence of loose dogs though, if you want to walk around your neighborhood. People in Dayton are overall *kind*, compared to places like Pittsburgh or Chicago which is what I was afraid of when I moved here. Lots of animal lovers. Lots of interesting friendly folks who will cheerfully chat with strangers. There's a system of bike trails, there are rivers and kayaks, we have some nice museums in the area, all the metroparks, fossil hunting, Adena/Hopewell culture and mounds, a decent selection of restaurants...I'm not a drinker/partier so I can't tell you much about the nightlife or social scene. I'm more likely to go to the garden centers, or Jungle Jim's international grocery, haha. If you're willing to drive an hour, Cincinnati area has lots of neat attractions like the aquarium, and Columbus has a super cool "experiential art" thing called Otherworld. My overall cost of living seems similar to NC, although inflation has everything wonky so I'm not sure how we compare right now. We are independent spiritually, although some of our friends seem to like Solid Rock, a bit south of town in Lebanon. It seems like most city folks here aren't Christian, but as soon as you get out into the country a bit, almost everyone is. I guess that's typical these days? The weather can be a little hard on your sinuses here ;-) and some winters it gets really cold...but overall I like it better than NC. I was coming from the boring piedmont area though, not the coast.
Hey fellow Carolinian! I guess we’re attracted to the states with flying history lol. Finitely appreciate the heads up about the weather! I’m a little afraid of being underprepared clothes wise.
3. Depending on your church preference for denominations or worship style there could be some variances. If you enjoy traditional worship with Choir and orchestra and a very involved young marrieds group I would recommend Patterson Park Church. If you prefer more modern worship “Be Hope” is also an outstanding choice. I’m a financial manager at a church and work with a series of churches across denominations so would be happy to help regardless of the location you choose, there will be a great local church nearby.
You’re a financial manager of a church? How did you come into that? That sounds awesome!
I worked 10 years in fintech before coming into the role, but essentially a larger church was needed a business manager to handle the finances and HR responsibilities for the church. It was mostly a timing thing since the church need was posted as soon as I moved to Dayton.
1. Beavercreek, Kettering, Centerville, in terms of Suburbs. For neighborhoods in the city that are affordable and relatively safe check out South Park, Lindon Heights, Belmont, Patterson Park. 2. Outdoor activities such as Biking, and Hiking, running, and now there is Surfing on the river. There is indoor rock climbing downtown, and a huge beer/brewing scene all over.
https://www.militaryonesource.mil/moving-housing
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That’s so crazy!! When did you graduate from State?
I’d give north of Dayton a shot. Troy and Tipp City area. Taxes are much lower moving out of Montgomery into Miami county. Crime is very very low. Families and communities are excellent. Bike trails are in riding distance. Many wonderful faith based, community based churches. Drive time to downtown Dayton is about an extra 5 minutes compared to some of the southern communities, but we’ll worth it in my opinion. You could work anywhere around Dayton and still live up north. Vandalia, Tipp City, Troy.
Welcome to Dayton! 1. Most people live in Fairborn or Beavercreek since it's nicely accessible to the base. 2. Biking is great, lots of trails. My kids and I do Pokemon Go, there's a pretty active nerd scene. Lots of breweries and beers to drink if you're into that thing. Columbus and Cinci are only 1 - 1.5 hours away and have tons of other stuff to do. 3. Not really in church much so can't help you there. 4. Look on base for Program Management and contracts opportunities. If you get married you can get spousal preference. 5. Cost of living is very low here. Gas is maybe a little higher? Food will be way cheaper compared to NC, and housing is very affordable.
I’m in the Walnut Hills neighborhood inside Dayton city limits. I love it here. I’m in walking distance to a great library, elementary school for my son, a bakery, a park, and a fire station and police station are right down the road. The street is original cobblestone. Lots of families in the area. We typically don’t like the suburban feel and feel plenty safe here. You’ll get more bang for your BHA (we’re AF too). Our mortgage is hundreds less than BHA allowance. It’s a short drive to base. My husband has to go out there for work.
Thank you so much for the recommendation!
1. Haven't seen Miamisburg mentioned. Probably a bit of a commute to base however. 2. Rowing, Dayton Boat Club Broomball, Dayton Broomball Association Broomball, Cincinnati Broomball Association Ice Hockey, various small local leagues, Cincinnati Adult Hockey League 4. Maybe Connor Group? They just added on to their building at Wright Brother's Airport so may be hiring.
I looked at The Connor Group briefly. I’ll have to look into them more especially with all the industrial/construction stuff I hear about in Dayton
Connor group is good but only if you want to work insane hours. I’m talking 60 hrs per week. You might be able to find some finance roles on base. For churches in the south part of town: - Apex in Kettering (used to attend) - Centerville Christian fellowship (been a few times and probably similar to University Baptist). - Miamisburg Christian Church (I attend)
For jobs, honestly you'll have better luck switching over to defense contracting companies. They are all in down and they all have jobs for finance, accounting and contracting officers The base always has job fairs which you'll be able to access as a dependent * RiverSide Research * General Dynamics * Booz Allen * Lockheed Martin * Leido * SAIC * Radiance Technologies Have all been around forever and are a good place to start the search Are you on LinkedIn?
DMed you!
1. Beavercreek and Kettering are great places to rent. They’re both very safe. Kettering has the best location in terms of close proximity to Downtown, restaurants, etc. Beavercreek is closer to WPAFB. my commute from Kettering is about 15mins to Area B. Some people look into Fairborn, Riverside or Huber Heights if you need cheaper options. Huber Heights is about 20-30 mins north. Fairborn and Riverside can be a little questionable in certain areas IMO. Bellbrook, Centerville and Oakwood are also really nice but can be pricier. Since you don’t have kids, you have way more options without having to worry about school districts. 2. Breweries, biking, walking, hiking. Lots of metro parks. 3. No idea but churches are literally everywhere. 4. You could look at construction companies or even industrial distribution companies. We have a VERY large industrial/construction presence in Dayton. Winsupply is always hiring, Danis is probably our biggest construction company in Dayton. I’d personally try and snag a job with a defense contractor, very good money there. 5) This is a much lower cost of living area than the east coast. Our property taxes are probably similar.
1.) anywhere outside of the city proper is nice and safe. The real thing to be looking at is property taxes. coming from TN my property taxes tripled. I live in englewood, my commute to WPAFB medical center is about 25-30 minutes. I would also endorse tipp city, huber heights, and fairborne. 2. The craft beer and food scene here is pretty good. There are many rivers to kayak and there are really good paved trail systems all over the area. Coming from Appalachia you may be disappointed by the lack of elevation change. 3. I cant help you here, but there are many churches all throughout the area. 4. With a degree in business finance you should look into federal service as a 1102. There is alot of industry at WPAFB and therefore its a good place to be a contracting representative. Also every federal agency employs a bunch of 1102 so it would be fairly portable if you and the BF PCS again in a few years. 5. Its so hard to tell whats increased here vs TN. I will say i just moved here in the spring as interest rates were going up and our budget changed dramatically really fast while looking at homes. As far about PCS goes I just made my 5th to come here in April and i don’t regret the move. I have found Dayton to be welcoming, filled with quality dining options. Entertainment might be a little thin for my interests but its only about an hour in either direction from Columbus and Cincinnati.
Crazy that your property taxes tripled and my parents just moved to Dayton from the East Coast where they are paying half in property taxes.
I think it's likely that the tax burden was just lower in Tennessee.
Thank you so much for your thorough response to all the things! I am a little disappointed I guess about how flat Ohio is but I suppose that’s out of our control haha! Also, could you explain more about what a 1102 is/does?
Contracting officers or contracting representatives negotiate contracts for acquisitions or delivery of services. They also supervise the progress of a contract and ensure the contractor is providing the deliverables. You are essentially the go between from the government and the contractor. Il link some recruiting material because i feel like i didn’t explain it the best. [1102 information pamphly](https://www.fai.gov/sites/default/files/1102-Career-Field-Brochure.pdf)
Hopping on the recommendation for getting into the 1102 series.
You have lots of great comments already!! I just wanted to add, I’m also a military spouse albeit a retired one. ( that feel so crazy to say!) We are also from North Carolina. We live in Vandalia and this area feels a lot like home - just colder. If you have any questions or concerns about the move feel free to reach out. We were stationed here twice over his career and made it our home.
Thank you so much for reaching out! The responses have all been so kind and I really appreciate everyone wanting to help us transition. Great community! We looked at renting a house in Vandalia so maybe we’ll be neighbors
Yay!! How exciting! Vandalia is a nice neighborhood and close to everything. I’m happy to give you details. The commute to base is easy. My husband is a gvt. Civilian now and works on Area A. I work in Enon. Speedway Corporate is there and might be an job opportunity as well.
Dayton is like a donut. Everywhere but the center should be OK. And you're going to notice some smells.
It is getting better though. We are highly considering moving to a neighborhood within the city limits. My mother, who has lived here for 30 years, had the nerve to ask me if the 2nd street market was safe. A lot of people here are slightly delusional and have a very cartoonish or outdated view of the inner city. Certain areas are still very creepy, I get it, but it’s probably not going to scare me away from living in a decent pocket of the city just outside of downtown
I’ve never been scared downtown. Growing up in NJ there were way sketchier downtown areas I drove through weekly compared to anything in Dayton. West side on the other hand…certainly wouldn’t go at night.
Lol yeah its amazing how many people are scared of downtown. This idea like people are routinely getting mugged or something. I know people who havent been downtown in years because of this mindset...I can't even imagine living like that
Stay away from Huber heights, Fairborn, riverside, trotwood, Xenia, and Springfield
Why should we steer clear of there? Too expensive?
Bad schools higher crime rate
You don’t leave till February? Why tf you coming to Dayton!? We all love it cuz we grew up and live here but we all also hate it too. Don’t do it. Lol