"Why would you ruin perfectly good peanuts by adding candy corn? That's like saying hey, I have these awesome nachos, guess I better add some dryer lint." - Nonny
We have a pretty reasonable COL, and we wouldn't be able to afford an equivalent home in a neighbourhood like ours, with some of the top schools in our area, if we were in the area we grew up in. Our families are all here now too. There's a big university (how I originally came to be here) and a college in our city, which brings in some new life and much-needed diversity too.
We are still only 2 hours from Toronto - making a day trip for a game/concert/event possible, and only an hour from the Michigan border (or 2.5 from NY state border). We are 35 mins from either Lake Erie or 45 from Lake Huron, and lot of provincial campgrounds nearby.
I sometimes joke that we are a city randomly dropped in the middle of farm land, but it also means only a few mins to take DS to the pumpkin patch/play farms/Christmas tree farm. DH can also golf for about 1/3 of the rate he used to pay in the GTA.
ETA - someone above mentioned health care: we have multiple teaching and research hospitals in our city, including one of only a handful of children's hospitals in the province. As much as ER wait times and things in general aren't great across the province and country, we have access to facilities 10 minutes away that people are otherwise air lifted to, and we have had wonderful and quick experiences with the paeds ER.
I can't pick one thing. I am one of Washington's biggest fans and the town I live in is in my top 5 favorite places in Washington sooo...
Low crime, breathtaking scenery, almost every city amenity you could want but in a 15k population town, great community, good food, one of the lower COL areas on the water, beautiful weather (but I like rain), less than an hour from a major international airport. It didn't used to be so awesome, but it's grown extensively over the last 5-10 years.
The things I do not like are all transit related. Poor freeway infrastructure, bridge tolls, and most areas leave much to be desired in terms of public transportation options.
The beaches and the fact that we are within day trip driving distance to Philly, NYC, Baltimore and DC.
The economy has hit this area hard, so in recent years there've been some unpleasant growing pains, but while many people are very doom and gloom about this region's future, I am hopeful
I'm in the Philly area. We're two hours from everything.
Same answer.
As to my specific suburb, the best thing is my neighbors. We have a great group with similar aged kids, who all hang out a lot. I don't ever plan to move.
Low cost of living, friendly people and a relatively safe community, great schools.
Our town had been working it's ass on improving the culture and it's paying off big time. There is a awesome food scene and tons of new attractions. The Thunder have also helped to boost the lifestyle changes.
LCOL. We live in a cute little town, and can walk to downtown and the farmers market. 2-2.5 hours to bigger cities or the beach. I generally hate living in this state though.