Recommend me a place to live... that is warmish + plus other requirements!

[JBT]

I have the opportunity to work from home. We previously lived in Tucson for 8 years, while it wasn't my favorite, I got pretty use to the warmth and being sun 360 days of the year. This year we moved to NH, which is closer to family, but we realized it just isn't right for us. We (my wife and two children) really like being able to go outside just about any time we want with out having to worry about the cold keeping us in or some nasty storm that seems to go on for days.

The house hold makes about 130K annually, with my wife part time also working form home. We are heavily considering Austin, or maybe Scottsdale, but something on the east coast might be nice to stay at least kind of near the North East. We would most likely want to RENT a home in an area with a good school district and plenty of out door activities like hiking, rock climbing, running type events. A large yard is NOT required but a community play ground etc would also be a plus. Size wise I'd like a 3 bed room with an office. I NEED an office space, so nothing super small is going to work. We currently pay 2.1K for rent of a 2100 sqft home with no utilities included,. I'd prefer not to go that high with the rent, but if its worth it to step up to that I'm OK with it.

Is there some place on the South East that fits what we are looking for that does't break the bank? Maybe some other area in the south west? A Costco and something like a Trader Joes near by are musts for the wife...

 

[sdifox]

Baltimore?

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Baltimore?

I would go more for Columbia or maybe outskirts of Silver Spring or the likes. Maybe a nice small town southwest of Glen Burnie or northwest of Annapolis although I don't know those areas that well. Maryland in general is expensive though and still gets winters and storms although not every year is bad and you get breaks in the seasons.

 

[JBT]

Thanks for the recommendations guys, I'll have to take a look at them.

 

[purbeast0]

i work in columbia md and really don't like columbia. i just hate how congested it is and the design of the town. they designed it in a way where they never expected it to get as crowded as it is now, and because of that, it just seems like the worst designed town.

like pretty much every little shopping center/strip mall you will see from the major roads. but, there is only 1 entrance into it, and the entrance is like 1/2 mile away from where you see it. so you have to drive all the way around to some back road to get into the 1 lane entrance to the place. it just gets congested to all shit. i do hear the schools are good though in howard county, and i know montgomery county is some of the best in the country.

northern va i believe has the #1 school district in the country.

this winter has been ass though that's for sure. this isn't usual for the area though.

i'm in rockville and there is definitely a lot of stuff to do. i live 5 mins away from a lake that i go fishing in all the time, and about 20-30 mins from other bodies of water. you got great falls about 20-30 mins away which is nice for hiking and some rock climbing. then i have 2 different metro stations about 5 minutes away from me and can go down to dc whenever i feel like it. just a lot to do in general in the area and i enjoy all of the seasons.

 

[JManInPhoenix]

Charlotte is pretty cool. I lived there for 13 years before I moved to Phx.

 

[KB]

Don't let people push you toward Maryland. Here in Maryland it is still cold 5 months of the year. Maybe not NH cold, but still cold enough to keep you from enjoying the weather. Its also expensive and taxes are high. I would start heading further south like Ashville, NC, beer Mecca of the East. The Great Smokies will fulfill your climbing, hiking dreams. Trader Joe's opened recently, but no Costco that I can find. Or try western Florida where its always warm.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Did you guys have no interest in skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing or ice climbing?

If you started getting into those activities you could head toward Bar Harbor, ME and the Acadia area and still be not too far from NH. Alternatively, the New Paltz, NY area has similar activities.

The only problem with both is that to be active in the winter you have to like winter sports. During the warm months, though, both areas are spectacular.

 

[akahoovy]

Dallas is congested and there's a ton of construction everywhere.

 

[MongGrel]

Costa Rica ?

 

[smackababy]

I would recommend Austin. The cost of living is down and the weather isn't terrible.

 

[akahoovy]

Most of Texas gets fairly hot in July and August, usually near 100 and sometimes up to 110.

 

[GasX]

http://www.fishhawkranch.com/

Just outside of tampa
best elementary school in the state (sometimes #2)
15 minute drive to here: http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-trails/winter-break-singletrack-adventure-in-sunny-florida/

 

[alkemyst]

I agree with GasX...I love S. Florida. There are great deals to be had. The weather is great. If you want snow, there are cheap flights from our airports to most major cities.

 

[purbeast0]

should consider hawaii too. if i could just up and move keeping my current salary i'd move to hawaii for a couple years.

 

[MongGrel]

Hawaii is great lived there from 1981-1984.

Currently in Clearwater FL myself.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

i work in columbia md and really don't like columbia. i just hate how congested it is and the design of the town. they designed it in a way where they never expected it to get as crowded as it is now, and because of that, it just seems like the worst designed town.

Columbia is only congested from like 3:30 to 5 same as the entirety of the rest of Maryland/DC/NoVA and not even as bad as a lot of places. Also, that whole omg the entrances are hidden thing is exaggerated and you get used to the couple of places it's true very quickly. Really, I just love that you can walk from one end of the town to the other without ever leaving the shade of a tree.

 

[Demo24]

Maybe Athens Ga? Gets kinda warm and humid in the summer, but otherwise quite nice. Lots of good places to eat, reasonably close to the mountains, and not too far from ATL either. You'll have no trouble getting a large house for that rate, and cost of living is fairly cheap here.

 

[Jeeebus]

Your choices are somewhat limited if you want year-round warmth. As others have said, Florida might be an option. Wife and I grew up down here, spent 10 years in DC, and moved back in 2010. I'm done with the cold. Probably going in the swimming pool tomorrow, taking an intercoastal ride on a boat, and likely going to the beach in the evening.

I own one pair of jeans and rarely wear em. Flip flops/shorts 90% of the time I'm not in work clothes.

 

[Slew Foot]

Orange county CA or San Diego. Would be at the upper range of your rent though.

 

[spaceman]

manchester vt

 

[MongGrel]

Your choices are somewhat limited if you want year-round warmth. As others have said, Florida might be an option. Wife and I grew up down here, spent 10 years in DC, and moved back in 2010. I'm done with the cold. Probably going in the swimming pool tomorrow, taking an intercoastal ride on a boat, and likely going to the beach in the evening.

I own one pair of jeans and rarely wear em. Flip flops/shorts 90% of the time I'm not in work clothes.

+1

Our pool still a bit cold atm.

I don't go to the beach too often, but the option always there of course, as it's like a 15 minute drive from the house tops, depending on if it's Spring Break etc, he he.

Moved here 25 years ago and my grandparents moved here in 1969, so spent almost ever vacation in the Tampa Bay area myself then.

I'm not a cold fan.

 

[Jeeebus]

+1

Our pool still a bit cold atm.

I don't go to the beach too often, but the option always there of course.

Ours is solar heated so the season is extended a month or two on either end. My preference is damn near 90 degrees, but the water is tolerable now.

 

[Markbnj]

Don't let people push you toward Maryland. Here in Maryland it is still cold 5 months of the year. Maybe not NH cold, but still cold enough to keep you from enjoying the weather. Its also expensive and taxes are high. I would start heading further south like Ashville, NC, beer Mecca of the East. The Great Smokies will fulfill your climbing, hiking dreams. Trader Joe's opened recently, but no Costco that I can find. Or try western Florida where its always warm.

Have to agree with this. MD/VA/DE aren't that warm in the winter. My wife and I are looking at the Carolinas for retirement, if we don't just keep going south to the keys or Bahamas.

 

[Leros]

I have the opportunity to work from home. We previously lived in Tucson for 8 years, while it wasn't my favorite, I got pretty use to the warmth and being sun 360 days of the year. This year we moved to NH, which is closer to family, but we realized it just isn't right for us. We (my wife and two children) really like being able to go outside just about any time we want with out having to worry about the cold keeping us in or some nasty storm that seems to go on for days.

The house hold makes about 130K annually, with my wife part time also working form home. We are heavily considering Austin, or maybe Scottsdale, but something on the east coast might be nice to stay at least kind of near the North East. We would most likely want to RENT a home in an area with a good school district and plenty of out door activities like hiking, rock climbing, running type events. A large yard is NOT required but a community play ground etc would also be a plus. Size wise I'd like a 3 bed room with an office. I NEED an office space, so nothing super small is going to work. We currently pay 2.1K for rent of a 2100 sqft home with no utilities included,. I'd prefer not to go that high with the rent, but if its worth it to step up to that I'm OK with it.

Is there some place on the South East that fits what we are looking for that does't break the bank? Maybe some other area in the south west? A Costco and something like a Trader Joes near by are musts for the wife...

Austin seems like it might work. You can get a nice 3 bed 2,000 sqft house for $1500. We certainly have good schools in some areas. Lots of outdoors activities, especially biking and rock climbing. Lots of trails. We have plenty of marathons if you're into running. Only downside is that it does get hot here during the summer, but you've lived in Tuscon, so you know what that's like.