Information/Advice on moving to Central Northwest Alabama (Florence, Russellville: property taxes, house)

[staffawind]

My husband & I currently own the home I grew up in, in a very small town in central NW Alabama called Phil Campbell. It is about 30 mi. south of Florence or Tri-Cities area.

We currently live in Florida & had planned to retire in Phil Campbell but the closer it gets to retirement time the more & more depressed & sad the area looks. It seems that in as little as 10 years it has changed drastically. Since I grew up there & some of my family still lives there I know that there is not much to in the way of entertainment (nearest movie theater 30 mi. away!) but recently we have heard that drugs have really become bad & that since a chicken processing plant moved into Russellville, there are a lot of illegal immigrants (Mexicans) & it's beginning to look more like Mexico than the small southern town we remember.

We are getting more & more worried about moving back. Can anyone tell me more about what is happening in that area & give us their opinion?

[jsherman9901]

Originally Posted by staffawind

We are getting more & more worried about moving back. Can anyone tell me more about what is happening in that area & give us their opinion?

I don't live in Phil Campbell, but I recently looked at a home for sale there. Liked the area a lot. Spent some time in town checking out grocery stores, etc. Ended up buying a place in another town because of commuting distance, but I personally liked what I saw there. The proximity to the Dismals, the Bankhead National Forest, and to the Bear Creek lakes was attractive.

As for drugs, well, that (meth) is the scourge of rural America. No way to get away from it, really. Anywhere you might want to move, you can do lots of research, but in the end it is a crap shoot.

[staffawind]

Thank you for your help Jsherman9901. I grew up in Phil Campbell & lived there until I married. I have very fond, good memories of how lively & pretty the down town area used to be. Breaks my heart to see how it looks now.

Where did you move too instead & where were you commuting to? What exactly did you like about Phil Campbell? My husband used to fish Bass tournaments at Upper Bear & Bear Creek, etc. & word is now that it is overfished and not as good as it used to be.

When we visit our house & family there we can't tell that food, etc. is any cheaper there than in Orlando FL where we live now but traffic (or lack of!) is definately better. Taxes & insurance on our house don't seem any cheaper either really. It is also hard to think of moving there when the nearest good hospital is 30 miles away & I am only 2 mi. from a very good one here. Having heart bypass surgery 4 yrs. ago made me more concerned about hospitals. Guess I have just gotten spoiled when everything I need is within a 5 mi. radias of me!

But to me Phil Campbell is still home & I dream of living in my old home again, being close to my family, planting a little garden & enlarging the fish pond my Dad built years ago.

[harry chickpea]

"Taxes & insurance on our house don't seem any cheaper either really."

I have a hard time with that. Our insurance and property taxes were far more in Florida.

We drove through Phil Campbell last month, on the way to Guin. It seemed like a fine little place.

[jsherman9901]

Originally Posted by staffawind

I have very fond, good memories of how lively & pretty the down town area used to be. Breaks my heart to see how it looks now.

Since I didn't grow up there, I have no idea how it used to look. But I understand your feelings; the town I grew up in no longer bears any resemblance to what it did when I lived there and it is sad.

I can't tell you exactly what I liked about Phil Campbell. But, I've looked at dozens of small towns across the South trying to find one that I thought would be a good place to settle down, and Phil Campbell is one of the few that gave me a good "gut feeling". If you want to see a good example of a dead town, look at Hackleburg, just a few miles southwest of PC. Over half of the buildings in the downtown are empty. But I know people who live there and like it

[tallrick]

Originally Posted by jsherman9901

Since I didn't grow up there, I have no idea how it used to look. But I understand your feelings; the town I grew up in no longer bears any resemblance to what it did when I lived there and it is sad.

I can't tell you exactly what I liked about Phil Campbell. But, I've looked at dozens of small towns across the South trying to find one that I thought would be a good place to settle down, and Phil Campbell is one of the few that gave me a good "gut feeling". If you want to see a good example of a dead town, look at Hackleburg, just a few miles southwest of PC. Over half of the buildings in the downtown are empty. But I know people who live there and like it

Yes I know someone who moved from south Florida to hackleburg and is very happy. He did also mention the abundance of Mexicans in some other areas.

[Threestep]

Might get myself into hot waters here.

As soon as a person has latino features he is "an illegal Mexican and drugs are moving in with them". Legal or illegal is not the point here. Most of the ones I have come in contact with are hard working people. They stick to themselves which makes them different to us. Ever lived in a country without speaking the language or understanding the culture? Not a lot of fun.

[Keeper]

I have to agree with the property tax and HOI, there is no way it is the same as FL having moved up from FL myself. Even if you are under the 'save our homes' tax it is still much more in FL, not to mention HOI is high and you never know if you are going to have it the next year especially if it a name ins.
I came 'home' to AL to get away from the traffic, crime and just plain busy life style. I wouldn't go back to live in FL for any amount of money. Just me..
Drugs are a problem everywhere not just in AL. Illegals are also in every state/county, small town or big city. Fact of life now a days. Most don't cause problems.