I lived in Charleston in my 20s. The older section of the city is insanely priced but the outer suburbs up into Dorchester County aren't bad at all. My XH and I built a 4 bd/2 bath home for $170K. Google has a satellite campus there.
But, caveat, it's South Carolina. I couldn't get out of there fast enough.
I lived in Charleston in my 20s. The older section of the city is insanely priced but the outer suburbs up into Dorchester County aren't bad at all. My XH and I built a 4 bd/2 bath home for $170K. Google has a satellite campus there.
But, caveat, it's South Carolina. I couldn't get out of there fast enough.
my mom lives in Myrtle Beach. I think Charleston would be too close to her.
Post by ellipses84 on Apr 23, 2017 21:20:54 GMT -5
I am all too familiar with your plight. I'm from Seattle and would love to move back, but there's no way we could afford it or want to deal with the traffic. My family lives 45 mins south and there are nice areas around Tacoma with more reasonable cost of living if you like the PNW.
We have to be near a major city for my job and in an area with decent weather for DH's job (rare snow). We moved to TX for lower COL and job opportunities but it's the same COL as SoCal in the city, unless we want awful commutes. The PP who said don't consider Austin was spot on. DH said he'd move anywhere he could afford if we each have a 30 minute or less commute. We are considering Phoenix next. I'd move back to CA in a heartbeat but he's against it and I know COL would still be an issue. I'm at the point where I'm ok in a townhome or condo or renting an apartment, to get out of TX. Don't move somewhere just for COL. Move there because it's somewhere you really want to be. Being further from family with kids has been hard.
Don't move somewhere just for COL. Move there because it's somewhere you really want to be. Being further from family with kids has been hard.
I think H and I are the kinds of people who'd find the good in nearly anywhere.
and, in reality, we're about as far from our families (who are almost all on the east coast) as we can be here. Any move we make would make them closer.
Consider Houston. Still the bullshit tx politics but Harris county/Houston are liberal. You have access to an international airport, you can buy a house in your price range (though not right in the city) and there is a ton of tech here. My dh is in IT. There are always new employees moving here bc the salary to COL difference comes out in our favor, easily. But, if you are looking for jobs, Houston has a bunch.
TBF, I tl;dr this whole post, lol. I just know we're extremely LCOL compared to most everywhere else. There may be tech opportunities in Louisville, but other than that, I am posting superfluously.
I love pittsburgh, and it's gotten considerably cooler since I left (they're doing good stuff with their transportation system, the downtown has totally revitalized, etc). Real estate has gone up a bit, but I think there would still be stuff in your price range.
Post by darthnbjenni on Apr 23, 2017 21:48:11 GMT -5
Greenville, SC. We have a decent amount of international companies around here, a giant hospital system, and it's consistently on top 10 places to visit and live lists. The food scene is also excellent, and our schools are some of the best in the state, and rank nationally, as well. We're a short drive from both the mountains (we're in the foothills) and beach. Our city has a big focus on biking and provides parks and other green spaces. I've lived in 4 other states up and down the east coast, and this is by far my favorite place. You can get a nice house with land for $200k, easily. There are also a growing number of liberal pockets here, too.
We have been looking at Winston Salem because the housing is super affordable. I have no idea about the job market though as this would be a semi-retirement move. I really liked it when we visited.
Consider Houston. Still the bullshit tx politics but Harris county/Houston are liberal. You have access to an international airport, you can buy a house in your price range (though not right in the city) and there is a ton of tech here. My dh is in IT. There are always new employees moving here bc the salary to COL difference comes out in our favor, easily. But, if you are looking for jobs, Houston has a bunch.
I suggest Houston as well. I was terrified to move here from liberal Portland, but I'm surprised by how much I like it here.
I'm not in Houston proper but in a very popular suburb. Many people that live in my town commute to downtown Houston.
We do have a tech industry. We also have affordable homes - $250-300k will get you 2,500+ SF in a newer home in a nice neighborhood - and in my surrounding school districts the schools are very good. Houston also is diverse and has museums and culture and some amazing parks. In my area there are a lot of expats and Mexican nationals so there is some cultural diversity.
Aside from cheap housing, our gas prices are always significantly cheaper than the national average, and food prices are lower. And we have HEB.
The cons are the property taxes. They can be high depending on what area you live. And it's still Texas so there are the conservative politics to deal with, but you'd be surprised by how many liberals there are around. Houston government is liberal, however.
We left Northern Virginia for SE Michigan (we are about 25 minutes north of Ann Arbor). We just bought a 4 bed/2 bath for $275 on 3/4 acre and we are across the street from a lake. My H is in IT, our main reason for moving here was to live closer to my stepdaughters. The recession hit so no jobs for a long time but a few years ago we started reading about an IT boom happening here. DH started looking and found a job fairly easily. Right now he makes 20% more than he did in DC with a much lower cost of living. We were in Toledo OH for 3 years but spent a lot of time up here intending to buy and I've been really happy here.
I know I've adjusted to living in Silicon Valley because this seems perfectly reasonable.
:::ducks and runs back into lurking::::
I grew up in San Francisco and had a similar thought. You're not really buying the house in a listing like that; you're buying the lot with plans to teardown/renovate because of the location.
We have family friends who did something similar in Palo Alto in the early 90s -- bought a crappy house for half a million back then, did a total remodel years later, and now the most recent comps on their street are in the multi-millions.
share.memebox.com/x/uKhKaZmemebox referal code for 20% off! DD1 "J" born 3/2003 DD2 "G" born 4/2011 DS is here! "H" born 2/2014 m/c#3 1-13-13 @ 9 weeks m/c#2 11-11-12 @ 5w2d I am an extended breastfeeding, cloth diapering, baby wearing, pro marriage equality, birth control lovin', Catholic mama.
I know a couple of people who moved to Pittsburgh for tech jobs and the LCOL. They really like it.
I'm in Pittsburgh and there seems to be a good deal of cross-pollination with the PNW. Just last week had another announcement from a couple that they are moving to Portland.
There are some nice things about Pittsburgh. I feel like the house prices are going up a lot. They are probably still pretty affordable by outside standards. Our houses are really old generally and I'm often shocked at how unrenovated homes are.
I just went to an open house down the street from me today that I was curious about because I also saw it three years ago. They managed to paint the bathroom, but it still had the terrible fake paneling and the maybe terrible or maybe charming green tub and toilet. The kitchen was also still 1950s.
Despite basically no upgrades, the price went from 65k in 2007, 96k in 2014 to asking 140k today.
We really enjoy Des Moines. There's a reason it pretty consistently tops the lists of best places to live/work. There are some things about Iowa that are disturbing in politics right now (*cough*SteveKing*cough*), but I've found we're generally pretty balanced and the urban areas are largely liberal leaning.
Property values are great, our downtown has a decent cultural scene (Hamilton is coming soon, arts and music festivals), one of the best farmers markets in the country, a very entrepreneurial vibe. There are some fun startups based here, and several large companies have headquarters or major presence here, lots of tech roles.
We're surrounded by a thriving cycling community with lots of trails, several lakes for boating, wineries, microbreweries. And traffic is a breeze, even at the height of rush hour on the busiest of routes.
Kansas City if you can find a good job here. I can't speak to that industry. Plenty of houses in the $200-$275k range in great school districts. Reasonable commutes and a pretty strong arts and culinary scene. You are super landlocked but that's what vacations are for. Liberal pockets to be found for sure. Great place to raise kids.
On zillow check out Parkville area (64152) and Lees Summit on the MO side. Lots of great areas on the KS side depending on if you want a newer vs. older house. Shawnee, Overland Park, Olathe, Prairie Village...
I grew up there, just so you know where I'm coming from. There are very pretty views, but you have to be looking the right direction.
I know.
Yeah, we're in the NW, so I can see the mountains from all locations at my house. My parents are in Henderson, so not so scenic. Lol Still want to go back to Henderson though.
I grew up there, just so you know where I'm coming from. There are very pretty views, but you have to be looking the right direction.
I know.
Yeah, we're in the NW, so I can see the mountains from all locations at my house. My parents are in Henderson, so not so scenic. Lol Still want to go back to Henderson though.
I rode my bike down rainbow and Cheyenne when they were dirt. I'm afraid to ask where you live - lol.
Yeah, we're in the NW, so I can see the mountains from all locations at my house. My parents are in Henderson, so not so scenic. Lol Still want to go back to Henderson though.
I rode my bike down rainbow and Cheyenne when they were dirt. I'm afraid to ask where you live - lol.
Lol
I remember a time when Stephanie was a vast wasteland and Russell was a swamp.
Or when Sunset road contaiined only Sunset park and the airport.
We really enjoy Des Moines. There's a reason it pretty consistently tops the lists of best places to live/work. There are some things about Iowa that are disturbing in politics right now (*cough*SteveKing*cough*), but I've found we're generally pretty balanced and the urban areas are largely liberal leaning.
Property values are great, our downtown has a decent cultural scene (Hamilton is coming soon, arts and music festivals), one of the best farmers markets in the country, a very entrepreneurial vibe. There are some fun startups based here, and several large companies have headquarters or major presence here, lots of tech roles.
We're surrounded by a thriving cycling community with lots of trails, several lakes for boating, wineries, microbreweries. And traffic is a breeze, even at the height of rush hour on the busiest of routes.
No one enjoys Des Moines...they just merely tolerate it!
I'm sure there will be a decent amount of jobs popping up soon with those huge facilities that are being built out in Altoona off of I-80. I know FB is one of them but do you know who the others are?
When is Hamilton coming? I've got to head back to Des Moines for a wedding and I'm pretty sure that it will be cheaper and easier to get tickets to see it in Des Moines than out in CA.
Des Moines has some good bakeries, a decent albeit small Indian grocery store, a few mexican grocery stores (they are a little overpriced but they have the basics) and some pretty darn tasty italian food.
You lie!!! There is no rush hour traffic in Des Moines. The street I live off of out here has more cars on it at rush hour than I-235. The only traffic jams I encountered were on the back roads when I would get stuck behind a combine or tractor.