take a look and see what you think -------------------------------------------- Here's my recommended list from FindYourSpot.com's quiz: Bend, Oregon Carson City, Nevada Fayetteville, Arkansas Missoula, Montana Medford, Oregon Frederick, Maryland Charleston, West Virginia Albuquerque, New Mexico Salem, Oregon Loveland, Colorado Portland, Oregon Fort Collins, Colorado Eugene, Oregon Provo-Orem, Utah Corvallis, Oregon Sheboygan, Wisconsin Danbury, Connecticut Idaho Falls, Idaho St. George, Utah Reno, Nevada Santa Fe, New Mexico Ogden, Utah Cape Cod, Massachusetts Hartford, Connecticut See what places FindYourSpot.com recommends for you! Take the FREE quiz and get your list at: http://www.FindYourSpot.com This is what I got, the order from top to bottom is most desireable to least. Anyone in these places what do you think? I am afraid of going to Montana, but my wife is from there so she would be more at home. I got my heart set on Colorado... well, maybe peace
Just bought 3.3 acres on Flathead lake (just north of Missoula). 600 ft of lake front to the east, and the Mission range in the backyard (home to 400 grizzlies). Can't wait to start on the house. Have friends in Bend. They love it. Have spend a lot of time in Carson City. It's *close* to some good scenery, but it's an ugly desert itself. Worked in Albuquerque for a year or so. Some wonderful mountain biking on Sandia peak. It's HOT. Worked in Twin Falls, Idaho (not too far from Idaho Falls) for almost 2 years -- loved the area. Have many friends and relatives on the Front Range -- lots of sun, even in the winter. Can't go wrong if you love the outdoors. JB
thanks.. we are still trying to decide where to live... much harder than we thought... I lived in New York, been around the whole state..... it sucks big time and only getting worse.... so I moved to South Florida. first to Aventura, beautiful but total land "area" of the city is 1.0 sq mile... wtf? and its surrounded by ghettos. So then I move to Boca Raton. Too many darn people... too many old people getting in your way, and a bunch of dumb ass people working at every store down here... Home prices went up 30-50% in the last year.. insane!!! Can't even get a doctor's appointment anywhere here because there are too many people and doctors are too darn slow. I have driven all over Florida (from what it seems like, almost every single street) It sucks, but it's still better than NY. My wife and I have no clue where to live in the country anymore Its going down hill really fast and we are thinking about moving to another freakin country! I have traveled all over the US and have almost given up any hope of finding a normal place to live. Just seems like there really is no place to live any more to enjoy life. You either have to live in/near an overcrowded/overpriced city, and stress out all day, not getting anything done but at least you have a higher paying job. Also pay way too much for no property and a run down home. Or you could move to the middle of bumfark nowhere, have a decent house with land, where the quality of life is somewhat better.. but--- You have to deal with stupid slow people who can't make friggin change at the register and work in slow motion. Not be able to shop at nice malls, shopping centers, etc. Also nothing for the kids or yourself to do but drink beer, pick your nose and sleep with your cousin. No activities, no nightlife, no culture, no arts and leisure... This to me is just as frustrating as living in a dirty city. Either way, you can't do much of anything or get anything done. My wife and I sit down at dinner and discuss this topic every night and each night it just becomes harder and harder to make a decision. If you want a safe area.. you have to give up nice weather and live in a cold climate. If you want to be able to walk around all year in shorts and relax on the beach or by your pool, you have to deal with dumb slow stupid people and horrible schools. If you dont mind paying 2.60 for a gallon of regular unleaded, dealing with the inevitable 10.0 earthquake, watch your house slide down the side of a mountain, or catch on fire when it hasn't rained in 2 years.. I heard California is nice...lol All I want is to live somewhere warm, with plenty of activities (outdoor/indoor), be able to buy a decent home with some property size, be able to afford food/gas/clothes, window shop at high end retailers, be able to have a car and not worry about driving in the snow and ice, getting up 1 hour earlier to scrape the darn ice off my car windows because the defroster doesn't clear 1" thick ice off glass, have kids grow up around friendly people, go to great schools, live in a suburban area, close enough to a major city, low taxes, no $8.00 verrazano bridge tolls, nice, clean movie theaters, and have plenty of cultural activities going on, no backward, slow, hillbillies to deal with, low crime rate, low car insurance, plenty of healthcare facilities available,.... I could go on but its pointless imo Tell me where I can find all the above and I will move there tomorrow
Personally with the exception of SOCAL I wouldn't live west of the Mississippi River. And further given the choice, particularly on a dollar equivalency basis, I'd rather live in South Florida than California. That being said IMO the Carolina's are the only place where you get ok value (though places like Charleston have exploded in value), decent but not great people, and better than Chicago/NYC weather. Have you looked further north. Vero, Stuart, Port Saint Lucie all seem nice. Really in my opinion though you live in one of the best places in the U.S. I mean strolling around those cafe's at Mizner on a balmy January night is pretty good living.
thanks for the great insight... while I tend to agree, I just cannot get over the fact that the education here in so fla, even FL as a whole is lacking when compared to the Northeast. Very frustrating when trying to get normal every day chores done..lol Want to buy our first home, but afraid to do so, as the prices here have gone up 30-40% over the last year... scary if you ask me. The ant problem here in so fla is too out of control for us, and just way to many people , "snow birds", in the winter, and way too much rain in the summer. In the winter you wait for everyone to leave (summer) and in the summer you wait for the rain to stop (winter) As far as further up north.... just slow and nothing going on. Have friends that lived in the areas you decribed and can't wait to leave (vero beach, Melbourne) thanks again for the help.. we are just trying to come to some type of answer using sound reasoning..lol
I live near Portland, Oregon. Bend is pretty nice, but I think it would be better for a retired couple. The only needs Bend will meet is cheap housing. Bend is pretty much out in the sticks. Portland is ok. Crime isn't too bad. It does snow here, but maybe a few days out of the year. It hasn't snowed here this winter though. Last winter was a different story. I live in West Linn. West Linn and Lake Oswego are the wealthiest city here. Average home prices are around 300K. Well there are some prestigious neighborhoods in Portland (West Hills), but I don't like to live that close to the city. We are minutes from the freeway, and about 10-15 minutes from downtown portland. West Linn/Lake Oswego have the best public schools in the state. Although I heard that they're not as good as they were due to budgets. Portland public schools aren't as good as ours. When I graduated from my high school I think it was 98% of the class graduated. People in oregon are down to earth people. I remember visiting cali and I'm accustomed to saying hello to strangers. They thought I was crazy!! We are more liberal people. Lots of hippies and homosexuals here. To some people this is a concern. Overall, people are very friendly here and it's pretty safe to live. The only drawback imo is that it rains here quite a bit, and the night life isn't the greatest. Downtown pretty much gets quiet by midnight during the week. Fridays and Saturdays are allright. Downtown Portland has some of the high end retailers that you desire. I personally want to move somewhere like San Diego, or Phoenix. Once I hook up with a fine wife, I will bring her back here. I think this is a pretty nice place to raise a family. Outdoor activities are nice here. We got Mt Hood for snow sports, camping, hunting, etc. There are some nice golf courses here. Lots and lots of trees No sales tax here. Cost of living isn't too bad. Oh and another thing. We've got great microbrews hope my rambling helped. shoot me anymore questions if you have any Andy
I have lived in Palm Beach, Boston, and visit Portland frequently. I call Houston home though. I would say Houston. Texas is the best place I have ever lived. Cost of living is good, southern hospitality, no state income tax (traders dream) , top health centers, very diverse and benefiting from globalization. If I didn't want to help, I wouldn't tell you Houston is the best kept secret in the USA. Come on down and visit. P.S. Real estate is not out of control here yet either. Consider it, if you have any more questions feel free to PM me.
Wow, sounds great. No income tax is a great incentive too. What are the cons of Houston though? Is it pretty diverse there? Andy
New Mexico is a GREAT outdoor state. Good camping, fishing, skiing and a hundred different terrains and ecosystems within any five hundred mile radius. Plus, Albuquerque has a change of seasons and some snow, but all with low humidity. I know several people from Arizona who want to move there just for those reasons... The biggest negatives for me: lack of culture (although that's improved when you include Santa Fe) and ultra-liberal politics.