The MLP Arena
Pony Talk => Off Topic => Topic started by: tuneful87 on November 08, 2018, 02:14:17 PM
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It's no secret that Connecticut is in fiscal ruin, and now that I'm ready to buy a home, it just doesn't make sense to buy in CT. Since we have members in pretty much every state and I'm not terribly well-traveled, I'd be most indebted for any advice you might be generous enough to give (cities/counties/states). I work from home 80% of the time and would do so 100% of the time in another state, so the right home and land is incredibly important to me since I'll be spending almost all of my time there. I'll provide some of my general criteria below.
Weather - Winters here are harsh and long, so a more moderate winter would be ideal. I don't mind a bit of rain and I love the heat (though not the humidity), as long as we're not talking Death Valley temperatures.
Housing - I'm a big fan of contemporary and mid century modern homes, none of which are common in CT. I would like a nice chunk of land as well, and houses not too close together. Property taxes are insane here...$6-10k on average! A town/city with substantially lower taxes would be ideal.
City Size - I'd prefer the suburbs or a more rural setting, but with easy access to a larger city.
Amenities - I'm a fan of the arts and a variety of good restaurants, and it would be nice to have some decent options for when my friends from out of state visit.
Community - While I'm a loner, I'd still like to easily make new friends in whatever community I belong to! So, a friendly and welcoming community wouldn't hurt.
I can't think of anything else at the moment! I know that no city/state is perfect, but there are an infinite number of better options than Connecticut right about now!
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I am in NY and our taxes are about 5K a year or so, winters are not too bad in the finger lakes, unless you go towards Buffalo or Rochester NY. Victor NY is very expensive, and houses around here are usually 80K or less if they need a ton of work, and most start at 120K and up. However water town is another big snow area, and it gets really cold up there.
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Welll if you don’t like Death Valley temperatures central Arizona might not be for you, but I have a feeling you might like northern Arizona. The weather is perfect, they get very mild winters with just a little snow and the summers aren’t nearly as bad as they are in the valley. I think they average around 90 degrees in the worst of summer.
The arts have a huge presence up north too! Sedona and Jerome are especially built from a community of artists, and seem to have a strong sense of community. Since Sedona is a big tourist area they have lots of great food around too, though it can be pretty pricey!
I’m not sure how property taxes run in northern Arizona. Sedona I know is a fairly expensive area, but there are less popular cities like cottonwood that might be reasonable. Cottonwood is ideal because it’s nestled right by Jerome and Sedona, which are the coolest cities in my opinion! Flagstaff is probably the biggest city up north, but it still has a close knit community feel. My friend has an apartment in flagstaff and she finds it to be fairly affordable.
The only bad thing is Arizona is pretty boring when it comes to architecture in homes. I also love mid century homes but they’re pretty rare here too. A lot of them have also been gutted and made really boring :( Places like Sedona have a lot of custom builds though, so it might be more interesting than Phoenix!
I’ll be clear I’m pretty biased to Arizona though. I’ve lived here my whole life and I love it here, even when it does get to be 115 degrees in the summer. :P I’m also super biased toward Sedona because it’s only about an hour and a half from the city so I visit a lot! Even though I’m no where near retirement my goal is to retire up north near Sedona!
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Depending on your price range, you could consider buying land and then building a home on it.
I live in Northern Utah, so we do get winters, but since we're not on the coast like CT, I would be willing to bet it isn't quite as bad as you're used to. Humidity is generally low and the summers are pretty nice. Right now the weather is in the 40s, but sometimes we do get snow in October--really it depends on the year how bad the winters get but usually they're manageable. Or if you want warmer weather, head to Southern Utah. I have a friend who lives in St. George and they close everything down when they get 1/2" of snow because they don't have snow plows and for them that's a lot of snow. She once sent me a picture of a 5" high snowman her kids made and they had to gather every bit of snow on their lawn to make it.
The area I live in is rural, there are 2 acre lots in the area for sale for building and there are new houses that have been built that are up for sale. I have no idea what the property taxes are as it kind of depends on where you live and what your property has on it. (for example looking at a house down the street on Zillow: 2 acre lot, 2,000 sq ft home, costs $342K and they list the property tax as $2k).
I work in town, which is about 16 miles away. Salt Lake is about an hour and a half away and they have a great Comic Con (which they had to rename FanX because San Diego Comic Con threw a tantrum after Stan Lee said ours was better). Utah is pretty big on theatre and the arts, so you'll find that almost everywhere you go here (one of the first buildings built in Salt Lake was a theater). There's a random theater kind of in the middle of nowhere out here called "The Barn" and it is a "theatre in the round" in an old barn. There are lots of chain restaurants as well as locally created restaurants to choose from.
As far as friendliness goes, I think the community I live in is friendly, but they're not in your face about it. Our neighbors have used their tractor to shovel our driveway before and if my parents aren't home our other neighbors will bring in our trash can for me while I'm at work (we have a long, steep driveway and they tow it up with their 4-wheeler). If you need help with anything all you have to do is ask and someone will show up.
It's a nice little place.
I'm a military brat so living here for 5 years has made me antsy to move but it's still a nice place to live.
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Come to Indianapolis!! We have all kinds of weather, moderate winters and hot summers with not as much humidity as say FL which is 90-100% from what I remember when I was a part time resident there. :hot: The place I live currently is classified as Carmel West so I'm not exactly in the heart of downtown or anything but I like it that way bc there's so much green grass and trees and I just moved into a new apartment which makes me feel like I'm in a rural setting when really I'm only minutes away from Keystone at the Crossing, Castleton Square Mall and tons of other dining and shopping locations. I know that there are a LOT of other MLP Arena members that also call Indy their home so you would have a small community already here (I know this from when the MLP Fair was held in Indy a few years ago hehe) I'm originally from the city of Kokomo which is an hour north of the city and I absolutely LOVE it so much more now that I moved here permanently back in June. The neighborhood seems to be friendly for the most part but I'm sure there are inconsiderate/rude people no matter where you go tbh bc sometimes strangers are just jerks lol :enraged:
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Thanks all!
@invaderhorizongreen - NY is a bit too close to home for me!
@Minty_Magic - I'll do more research on the Sedona area. Shame about the lack of mid century homes. In looking at southern Arizona a few weeks back, I came across from decent options. How do you manage when it gets really hot? I assume AC becomes a necessity to survival!
@Pokeyonekenobie - That's funny about the snowman. Your property tax example seemed VERY reasonable. Here, a similar house would be 10k+ in taxes. I'll do some more research on Southern Texas.
@SunnyDazeAhead - What are winters typically like? I have a medical condition that I'm taking into account (Raynaud's) so being so northerly does worry me a bit to be honest!
Building a home is definitely an option as well. I'm a big fan of MA Modular and similar modular companies, and they operate in many Southern and Western states.
I'm also very interested in knowing more about states without income tax, specifically the Austin and Dallas areas of Texas. A few years back I was seriously considering Austin, but I think Dallas might suit my temperament a bit better.
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Hm.
If you could do colder temps (20s-40s from Nov-March), I'd recommend NEO because it hits a lot of what you are looking for. MCM (a bit harder find but it's here) / Affordability / Access to big city (Cle), little city (Akron) and within 2 hours two other big cities (Pittsburgh and Columbus).
I'm just googling for fun.
Look at cute house in Indiana: https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3513-Allens-Ln_Evansville_IN_47720_M34970-98574
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If it's in fiscal ruin it might make sense to buy a cheap place and hope it rises in value. :P
Don't move to Western Washington unless you have a looot of money saved up for a house. Amazon has caused the financial ruin of our housing market. Median price is 660k or something crazy like that. Literally the cheapest thing you can find (small condos) are $300k and up. Even the suburban and rural "commuter areas" have been affected and are expensive.
Eastern Washington is much cheaper. It has a "cold in the winter / hot in the summer" climate, but not excessively so. Like, it's no midwestern winter! Summer has a dry heat. However, not as much industry as the west side and not as many big city amenities. I grew up in the largest city in Eastern Washington (Spokane) and the traffic / public transit is pretty bad. Also IMO there is really no sense of community.
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Well, you could do what it seems like half of New York has done and move down to the Carolinas. Winters here can get bad if you're in the mountains, but I'd imagine they're far more mild than in New England, you just have to get used to the fact that most Southerners are genetically hardwired to go into Panic Mode at the slightest hint of snow. It stays warm to hot here most of the year. Spring/Fall seem to only last 2 weeks before going straight to Summer/Winter. Summers can get pretty harsh, and it does get humid here.
Land down here is dirt cheap and taxes are going to be much lower. I'm not sure how much property taxes around here are, though. Upstate SC is mostly rural, but there are a few cities with things to do, but Charlotte is the only one that really fits into the category of 'larger city' (give Greenville a few years, though, it'll get there). If you're into the arts, you'd probably like going to Asheville. I can't really say much about Community around here, I tend to keep to myself.
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Oh its cheap where I live but you would not like the weather! Super hot and humid in the summer and very cold in the winter time. I live in South Dakota, have been here my whole life!
I live in a very small town, I bought my home back in 2005 (built in 2001). I paid $62,000 for it and its about 800 Square feet. Has four bedrooms and two full baths! To buy my home now would be around $100,000. My taxes for the year is around $1300. Very nice neighbors and love the country living. We also have no state taxes!
But like I said the weather can get very cold!
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Do NOT come to NY. It is ranked 50/dead last in EVERYTHING from personal freedoms, finances and it is the worst state to retire in. We are stuck here because hubs has a good job, but I am constantly encouraging him to look at TN. Here is a good site to help you learn about where the states rank:
https://www.freedominthe50states.org/
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I live in Rhode Island and wouldn't recommend it. It's not far from Connecticut though anyway. I'm with you, I can't stand the cold or the intense heat. I feel like with global warming no place is safe, because the weather and temperatures are out of wack everywhere. I think for a while I've wanted to try living in Oregon, but I don't know what it's like there.
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New York sucks so much, I ran off to a communist country..TWICE! This time, I might not return...
I have lived in NY, Alaska, Virginia, florida and Arizona. I spent the most time in Alaska but its cold and dark most of the year and there is a HUGE alcohol problem. I was born and raised in New York City but also lived in the Adorondacks - no jobs/only seasonal..minimum wage
I liked Northern Arizona the best and Norfolk, Virginia.
Right now, Im in a small city in the Northwest of China in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous region. Teaching English kinda sucks but I like my life here much more then I did in NY. I get to keep about 95% of my paycheck.
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I never put in my 2 cents on this one. Wisconsin all the way Tuney. We've got all the seasons you know and love, plus road construction!
Plenty of new construction, and places to rent (and not at nearly the same cost as your coastal states).
Plus we've got satellite internet now! We also have 15 on the air channels, Public Television is quite entertaining.
If you like football, head to NE WI. Packer fans are die hard around here. ha ha ha.
I think we've got a lot to offer. Plenty green space, lots of lakes/rivers. Heck, people from Illinois come up here to vacation, we must be doing something right!
We've got the small town feel, but are not so much behind on the times...
Must go my lunch is done.
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I’m from the UK but I love this thread! It’s making me want to move to the US sooo much! It’s a shame teachers aren’t paid more over there :( (and you know...Trump XD)
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I’m from the UK but I love this thread! It’s making me want to move to the US sooo much! It’s a shame teachers aren’t paid more over there :(
I mean... it depends on the state and district... the US is pretty big, and not all states/districts are the same...
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Thank you all for the advice. So far I'm thinking Arizona, mostly due to the weather. I want HEAT. My Raynaud's affects me so badly...it's torture living anywhere that experiences winter, however mild.
I'm hoping to visit AZ over the winter, specifically Tucson area. I like that it's spread out with a decent population, and there are affordable housing options in styles I actually LIKE unlike the East Coast which are all colonial types with siding (which is not me at all). I'm not worried about it surpassing 100 degrees, but since having lasik surgery, my eyes tend to dry out in winter with the dry indoor heat. So I'd have to see how I do in summer which it's severely hot.
A few "back up" cities are Santa Fe, Dallas, and Austin, but Tucson appeals to me the most. I guess I'll see what I think when I visit...
Whatever I decide, I'm not sure the best way to go about it. I guess it would be better to move out there and rent for a little while so I can actually view houses, but that raises all sorts of other issues...putting my excess furniture in storage, having to deal with potentially noisy tenants (I vowed I'd never rent again after the current situation I'm dealing with). Has anyone else ever bought a house across the country? If so, how did you do it?
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I grew up in the largest city in Eastern Washington (Spokane) and the traffic / public transit is pretty bad. Also IMO there is really no sense of community.
The Tri Cities aren't that bad. It is really dry though.
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Has anyone else ever bought a house across the country? If so, how did you do it?
My dad was in the Air Force so we moved every two years or so. When we were about to move and we were sure we weren't getting Base Housing, my parents would take a trip out to where we were to move and look at houses, sometimes contacting realtors over the phone ahead of time so that they could look only at houses that fit our needs and were in the budget allowed by the military. If they knew someone in the area (we lived in Great Falls, MT three times so by the third time we had friends waiting for us to come back) they would put out feelers for available houses.
Since we now have internet listings, you could probably start there and then contact the appropriate realtor. Or if you happen to know someone in the area whose judgement you trust they could probably scout out places for you.
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Thank you all for the advice. So far I'm thinking Arizona, mostly due to the weather. I want HEAT. My Raynaud's affects me so badly...it's torture living anywhere that experiences winter, however mild.
I'm hoping to visit AZ over the winter, specifically Tucson area. I like that it's spread out with a decent population, and there are affordable housing options in styles I actually LIKE unlike the East Coast which are all colonial types with siding (which is not me at all). I'm not worried about it surpassing 100 degrees, but since having lasik surgery, my eyes tend to dry out in winter with the dry indoor heat. So I'd have to see how I do in summer which it's severely hot.
A few "back up" cities are Santa Fe, Dallas, and Austin, but Tucson appeals to me the most. I guess I'll see what I think when I visit...
Whatever I decide, I'm not sure the best way to go about it. I guess it would be better to move out there and rent for a little while so I can actually view houses, but that raises all sorts of other issues...putting my excess furniture in storage, having to deal with potentially noisy tenants (I vowed I'd never rent again after the current situation I'm dealing with). Has anyone else ever bought a house across the country? If so, how did you do it?
If you're thinking of heading out to Arizona, Himmie has moved back out there and may be able to throw some more info at you....
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I’m from the UK but I love this thread! It’s making me want to move to the US sooo much! It’s a shame teachers aren’t paid more over there :( (and you know...Trump XD)
Do not be fooled. Trump is NOT our only problem. ALL of the politicians, on both sides of the aisle, are trash. They sold their souls to the highest bidder for money and power. None of them represent the people who elected them. It does matter if you are on the left or right, they are ALL bad!!!
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I’m from the UK but I love this thread! It’s making me want to move to the US sooo much! It’s a shame teachers aren’t paid more over there :( (and you know...Trump XD)
Do not be fooled. Trump is NOT our only problem. ALL of the politicians, on both sides of the aisle, are trash. They sold their souls to the highest bidder for money and power. None of them represent the people who elected them. It does matter if you are on the left or right, they are ALL bad!!!
My main point was that compared to teachers in the U.K., teaching isn’t as well paid in the US in every state that I’ve looked at. I don’t want to get into politics but I’ll have to disagree that they are all as bad as each other!
Tuney have you decided where you want to move to yet?
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I haven't decided yet. Still exploring all my options, including renting here another year or two while I save up a bit more.
But I'd like to start planning to trip to AZ to check things out, maybe in March or April.