tell me some nice places to live

[mum]

We live in hot central valley of CA. We're going to be young empty nesters in a couple of years, I'll be 43. we'd like to move to somewhere with a nicer climate, not too hot or cold, but some real seasons. Dh is a high school teacher. We've always lived on one income, so it needs to be a mid to low COL place. We eat organic, like simple living, access to good health care and a city within an hour. and recommendations?

Thanks!

[mum]

:rolleyes:

[gaillardia]

With it being a Saturday, people are busy!

There was a thread recently about this topic...I think Kentucky and Tennessee were on the list as far as mild weather but still having four seasons, low COL.

[indigomama]

Do you want out of CA? If not have you considered Northern CA, Redding area or east of Sacramento? They have more seasons than the Central Valley and are still lowerish cost :)

 

If you are wanting to go out of state. My in-laws moved to Nashville area and love it. 

[trulycrabby]

North Alabama has a robust economy and is lovely, but can get very hot in the summer. Winter is very nice here, though. I would think Tennessee would be just about perfect regarding four seasons.

[EmilyGF]

My in-laws live in the mountains of Virginia. (OK, Californians would call them hills.) It is beautiful. It is a college town so there are arts and culture available.

The thing is that the cost of living is low, but so are teacher salaries. My MIL is a teacher there and said that when she moved there from suburban IL, her salary was decreased by 30%.

 

Emily

[AmandaVT]

VT hits a few of your criteria, but we're not a lower cost of living and it's not a moderate climate. :-) It is nice though! 

 

What about a place like Asheville, NC? I think that hits your wants and it's gorgeous there too. 

[MeAndTheBoys]

I second North Alabama.  I grew up in the DC area and thought the south was going to be horrible, but now I love it--beautiful, lots of green, little mountains, close to the beach and close to bigger mountains, lots to do, family friendly--

 

B----

[Heatherwith4]

Another vote for North Alabama!

[Susan in TN]

If you are wanting to go out of state. My in-laws moved to Nashville area and love it.

Williamson County, TN. Awesome place. Good economy. Four distinct seasons. A bit humid in summer. Very organic/local food friendly.

 

Sumner County on the east side of Nashville also has some lovely areas.

[Ali in OR]

You've got to consider Oregon, though in the end it may not be the winner. I grew up in the Central Valley and am so much happier with Oregon's weather. Now you have to be okay with a little rain. Or a lot of rain. Mostly gray days, many rainy or misty, between mid October through May, sometimes June! You do get nice days in spring, they just don't last until summer begins. Some say that the nice weather doesn't begin until July 5. Summer and early autumn are beautiful here. Amazing. And not too hot--typically in the 80's for summer. Most years we get snow at least once--enough to be fun and beautiful but not make life too miserable. 

 

One plus to Oregon--you're still within driving distance of CA if you want to go back and visit. One downside is the COL may not be any cheaper than the Central Valley. It was definitely cheaper for us moving from the bay area, but the central valley is considerably cheaper than that. Another downside is that teaching jobs haven't been real easy to come by particularly since the economic downturn. State finances may be getting better, but in the past several years schools haven't had the money to hire teachers.

 

All the other stuff--organic, simple living, good healthcare--is bountiful in Oregon. For city access you probably would want to be within an hour of Portland, as far south as Salem maybe. Many, many options within that range.

[MolleenCarie]

Northwest Arkansas

[Alicia64]

We moved from No. CA to VA five years ago and love it. We're now looking into areas just outside of Atlanta which look very nice. The cost of living in both states blow CA into the ocean!!

 

Alley

[MelAR05]

Northwest Arkansas

I second this!

[Liz CA]

You've got to consider Oregon, though in the end it may not be the winner. I grew up in the Central Valley and am so much happier with Oregon's weather. Now you have to be okay with a little rain. Or a lot of rain. Mostly gray days, many rainy or misty, between mid October through May, sometimes June! You do get nice days in spring, they just don't last until summer begins. Some say that the nice weather doesn't begin until July 5. Summer and early autumn are beautiful here. Amazing. And not too hot--typically in the 80's for summer. Most years we get snow at least once--enough to be fun and beautiful but not make life too miserable. 

 

One plus to Oregon--you're still within driving distance of CA if you want to go back and visit. One downside is the COL may not be any cheaper than the Central Valley. It was definitely cheaper for us moving from the bay area, but the central valley is considerably cheaper than that. Another downside is that teaching jobs haven't been real easy to come by particularly since the economic downturn. State finances may be getting better, but in the past several years schools haven't had the money to hire teachers.

 

All the other stuff--organic, simple living, good healthcare--is bountiful in Oregon. For city access you probably would want to be within an hour of Portland, as far south as Salem maybe. Many, many options within that range.

 

Ahhh, Oregon. There is much to be said about Oregon. Brookings Harbor...I can dream at least. I am paying attention to this thread since I am in the same boat BUT I don't think we would venture too far except a little north and west. Anything but this heat in the summer.

 

[Tsuga]

All I know is that the Californians I meet hate it here in Seattle. Their complaints:

 

--Too little sun

--Too few seasons

--Low COL areas have too few amenities (to me this is a no-brainer... why would a place cost more for no more amenities, or conversely, how would the market support low COL with high demand for amenities? but apparently in CA things are so bad that it seems like this might be a local phenomenon--all I can say is, if so, then it also exists in Washington State)

--Things not as nice as in California

--People not as happy (funnily enough, the transplants seem more unhappy, so maybe that's a reflection thing)

--Water too expensive, utilities too expensive (how can it be less in California? I do not know, considering there have been droughts for the better part of 20 years!)

--Too much crime (we have very low rates of violent crime but high rates of property crime, I guess this has to do with the fact that if you think they won't shoot you, lifting a laptop seems to be a better idea?)

--High COL areas are too high COL.

 

All I can say about that is... if it's lower COL, you must be giving up something. The question will always be, what is that, and is it important to you.

[Ellie]

We live in hot central valley of CA. We're going to be young empty nesters in a couple of years, I'll be 43. we'd like to move to somewhere with a nicer climate, not too hot or cold, but some real seasons. Dh is a high school teacher. We've always lived on one income, so it needs to be a mid to low COL place. We eat organic, like simple living, access to good health care and a city within an hour. and recommendations?

Thanks!

 

Austin, Texas. :-)

[Liz CA]

 

All I can say about that is... if it's lower COL, you must be giving up something. The question will always be, what is that, and is it important to you.

 

I am willing to give up the relentless heat, the traffic, the heat, the badly maintained roads, the heat, and the political fighting (which is likely the same everywhere though).

[BigMamaBird]

Western Michigan is lovely!  The winters can be cold and the summers can get hot, but you get four distinct seasons and boy are they beautiful!  With the great lakes all around you are always just an hour or so from the beach.  Terrific agriculture and farmers markets for all that organic food you like.  Folks are nice and the cost of living is very reasonable.  

[AMJ]

Austin, Texas. :-)

 

I second Texas, if you are looking for a lower cost of living.

 

I grew up in northern IL and southern MN, and love the snow and cold.  I lived 13 years along the Front Range of CO and up in its mountains, and I ended up moving to SE TX because that's where DH and his folks ended up after college.

 

I do NOT like the climate here, as I have trouble with heat, humidity, and mosquitoes.  I've been told it only snows about once every 9 years in these parts.  However, in the northern half of the state, and in certain parts of the hill country as well, it is more temperate and there is snow at least once every winter.  When DH's folks pass on (likely well after DH retires) we might relocate a bit further north, but we will likely stay within TX.

 

I never expected to land in TX, or once I was here, to stay as long as I have.  However, in addition to our proximity to DH's family the COL is a very significant attraction for us.  Because of the low COL we can not only afford to live on just one income, we can do that and afford 1 or 2 major road trips each year to see far-flung family and friends.  These trips are vital to us, and mean the world to DH's grandmothers, both of whom are still alive and living 1000-1500 miles away from us.  We could never have managed to live on one income, or to make yearly trips to see dearly loved family, if we had stayed along the Front Range in CO.  The COL there has skyrocketed since our college days.

 

For a low COL yes, you are going to be giving up something, and it will likely be climate-related.  However, consider what you will be able to do wherever you might live, and what you can afford to do if you make some trade-offs.

 

 

One area I do NOT recommend is the SW quarter of CO.  We know this area well; DH's family came from there, I studied there a bit back in my college days, and we've been visiting family and friends there for many years.  The area is quite economically depressed and the quality of medical care is pretty poor.  It's hard to find work for a living wage, and the affordable places to live are quite some distance from any towns of significant amenities (meaning things like Walmart, more than one grocery store or gas station, a library, stuff like that).  The COL is lower in that corner of the state than in the mountains or along the Front Range, but not as low as in more affluent areas of TX.

[foxbridgeacademy]

Southern Indiana is low COL and if you are in the Bloomington area (a bit higher COL but great schools) you have a really nice University feel and close to Indy.  Jeffersonville/Clarksville is also nice and about 10 minutes (when they finish the bridge work) from Louisville.  COL is better the further away you get from L-ville. somewhere around 30-40 minute drive is good.  As for the school systems, there are a ton of small schools dotted all over the area but I would stay away from L-ville schools.  We have a lot of people down here for such a rural area.

Only problem is that the winters here can be harsh, we won't be here long term (it will always be "home" we'll just live somewhere else).

We loved NC/SC state line area just outside of Charlotte.  The drive into the city is a bit far but depending on exactly where you live there is a train. Summers really aren't all that bad they just last a long time (we got seriously spoiled by the long growing season).  Again though the school system in NC and particularly Charlotte is having a lot of trouble.

Eastern TN was nice (Bristol/Johnson City) but poor job prospects.  They keep closing the manufacturing down.  Some of the nicest people you will ever meet.  Winters can be brutal if you're close to the mountains, we lost power and were snowed in for almost a week.  If considering TN I would look more toward Nashville, higher COL but more jobs and activities. 

 

 

[DawnM]

Will your husband need to work when you move?  I am a former CA teacher.  I haven't worked here in NC yet, but the pay is very, very low compared to CA.  So much so that I honestly don't know how anyone with a family makes it.  Yes, CA was high cost living, but the pay was also much higher.

 

Also, I have no idea what he teaches, but teaching jobs can be difficult to find in many parts of the country right now.

 

I am not trying to be a downer, but I am a realist.  I am sure you will, but research, research, research, AND get a job first before moving anywhere.

 

 

[happypamama]

How big of a city?

 

I'm in south central PA, and I'd highly recommend it. We do have winter, but not like New England, and we do have summer, but not like the south. Fall and spring are big, glorious parts of the year. People are super nice and friendly here. COL isn't bad, especially compared to CA. Two people could live on a teacher's salary pretty decently, maybe even quite well.

 

We have DC within a couple of hours, Baltimore a bit over an hour, Harrisburg well under an hour, and Philadelphia within three hours. As for healthcare, we have Hershey Medical Center very close.

 

Food is fabulous here! We won't have the long growing season that CA does, but we grow amazing produce in season and wonderful organic meats and dairy. Farm stands and such everywhere.

[Hikin' Mama]

You've got to consider Oregon, though in the end it may not be the winner. I grew up in the Central Valley and am so much happier with Oregon's weather. Now you have to be okay with a little rain. Or a lot of rain. Mostly gray days, many rainy or misty, between mid October through May, sometimes June! You do get nice days in spring, they just don't last until summer begins. Some say that the nice weather doesn't begin until July 5. Summer and early autumn are beautiful here. Amazing. And not too hot--typically in the 80's for summer. Most years we get snow at least once--enough to be fun and beautiful but not make life too miserable.

 

One plus to Oregon--you're still within driving distance of CA if you want to go back and visit. One downside is the COL may not be any cheaper than the Central Valley. It was definitely cheaper for us moving from the bay area, but the central valley is considerably cheaper than that. Another downside is that teaching jobs haven't been real easy to come by particularly since the economic downturn. State finances may be getting better, but in the past several years schools haven't had the money to hire teachers.

 

All the other stuff--organic, simple living, good healthcare--is bountiful in Oregon. For city access you probably would want to be within an hour of Portland, as far south as Salem maybe. Many, many options within that range.

I agree that western Oregon is beautiful. I especially love Corvallis. I've not lived there, but I did live in Eugene, which is a bit south of Corvallis, for four years. Corvallis is the perfect size, in my opinion, about one hour from the lovely Oregon Coast, and about 1.5 hours from Portland. It rains there a lot, but I happen to enjoy the rain. There are seasons, but the extremes aren't as bad. Best of luck as you search for your new home.

[Carol in Cal.]

I'd stay in CA but move up into the foothills.  It's cooler there, you have the same access to services and good food, and you get more seasons.

Twain Harte is nice, and Sonora is very close by, for instance.

Housing prices are similar between the two.

[City Mouse]

The northern half of New Mexico might work-maybe Taos. There are teaching job available. A lot of them are rural areas, but the way teacher pay is set up by the state, the salaries are very similar. That being said, I know very few, if any families that can get buy on a single teacher's salary.

[mommymilkies]

Not here.  Unless you want to buy my house, then it's everything you need.  :coolgleamA:

[catz]

This is not where I live, but I've always thought Santa Fe, NM would be an awesome place to retire with moderate temps and season change.  COL and amenities are a really hard thing to balance. 

[Dynamite5]

We live in hot central valley of CA. We're going to be young empty nesters in a couple of years, I'll be 43. we'd like to move to somewhere with a nicer climate, not too hot or cold, but some real seasons. Dh is a high school teacher. We've always lived on one income, so it needs to be a mid to low COL place. We eat organic, like simple living, access to good health care and a city within an hour. and recommendations?

Thanks!

  

 

I second Asheville, North Carolina.  Not too far from Charlotte (the city you asked for), some real seasons and it's a great place.  Check it out!!

 

The other place that you might like is Carbondale, IL.  There are a few cities within driving distance...not one hour, but check it out.  It's in a beautiful part of the country!

[Catwoman]

Is it important to you to be near your children? Where do they live?