[LyndseyW]

Hi, my family and I are from Southern CA and will be moving soon to either to NW Ar or TN. We would like to get away from the big city but still live somewhere that their is culture, shopping, colleges etc nearby. I would like to know if AR or TN has more employment, lower cost of living, housing and friendly people. What cities would you all recommend in AR or TN? Any advice would sure be appreciated. Thanks, Lyndsey

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by LyndseyW

Hi, my family and I are from Southern CA and will be moving soon to either to NW Ar or TN. We would like to get away from the big city but still live somewhere that their is culture, shopping, colleges etc nearby. I would like to know if AR or TN has more employment, lower cost of living, housing and friendly people. What cities would you all recommend in AR or TN? Any advice would sure be appreciated. Thanks, Lyndsey

wow, when we got ready to retire we had considered Tenn, one reason,the no state income tax and we spent about a week in the state. We absolutely loved it, we drove from the Nashville area to Memphis and down to Tunica MS for a couple of days. We eventually ended up in NM as we thought it was want we wanted. Long story, we are now in NWA and wouldn't move unless we were forced out. As I said, we like TN as well. In many ways they are similar.

We live in bella Vista and have all that you are wanting. It was designed as a retirement community, but is rapidlly changing into a place which is attracting many families. It is quiet, low cost of living,good weather (well that depends on what you call good weather) but offers all kinds of activities, both cultural and out door types. An example of the charnging demographics, when we moved here there were 3 homes for sale in our area (within 3 blocks of our house) all have now sold, 2 sold to families with children, one to a senior couple. One of the families with kids, left Southern CAlifornia to escape hussle/bussle, crowds, crime, etc.

The employment issue could be something else again, what type of jobs would you being looking for? Of course if you want to move where the action is you would be thinking of Nashville, but the cost of living would be higher.

NWA does have some business, a couple of major companies and yes, they are hiring in some cases.

Hope this does help a little.

Nita

[PurpleLove08]

Nashville has PLENTY of colleges.
The cost of living is lower in AR but TN doesn't have the state income tax. I'm not sure how much of a factor that will play into your decision.

I think Nashville would offer more in terms of cultural opportunities and things of that nature.

What field/sector do you work in?

[TNRyan23]

Nashville is a great city. I can't really say much for Arkansas because I've never been there.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by TNRyan23

Nashville is a great city. I can't really say much for Arkansas because I've never been there.

Nashville is a great city, but it is exactly that a big city, it does not offer the slow life. It is certainly slower than, say Los Angeles, and less expensive but still much higher than NWA. The no state income tax could be a real bonus, if the property taxes are not like Texas. Most states with no income tax sock it to the residence in the form of property tax or sales tax. They have to find a way of paying for whatever. I understand that.

As for cultural activities, I think again, that depends on what someone means. We have the Walton Center for performing Arts in Fayettvile which offers great mucicals, play,etc. We have special productions going at several locations constantly and soon to open will be the Crystal Bridges Art Center. It will be a premium center with art work from the colonial days to the present days, featuring famous works from around the world. On the grounds will be the water way, hicking trails as well as other nature ventures. It will be the best of all worlds.

Downtown Fayetteville offers lots of great fun with the campus being right there. I think people really need to spend time in NWA to realize all it does offer.

Nita

[Tambo12]

Hi - I have been posting recently here regarding my pending move to Fayetteville, AR. I have lived in Tennessee nearly my entire life. My family moved to Tennessee due to the Mountains of East TN and the easy way of life. They retired to TN after living in Florida...strangely. But, it allowed me to grow up in a great place with plenty of activity. Tennessee is truly three different regions and I've lived in all of them. I spent my adolescent years in East TN and went to college at UTK. I absolutely loved my experiences growing up there and cannot think of a better place to grow up. However, it took a LONG time for my family to be accepted...they are not open to outsiders in the upper corner of E. TN. If you're not a cousin of a cousin or some other relation...it can be tough to gain their trust. However, once you gain it...you've got it for life. I do know that my Dad now talks like a lifer..."all kinds of new folks moving in - driving property prices up...even in down economic times!" Its weird. If you like the outdoors - E. TN is a great place - I don't know a better place to spend fall (except Napa Valley, which I do visit every fall!). Now, on to Nashville...I moved to Nashville right out of college and spent two years working for the state of TN's General Assembly (Legislature). I must say - its a darn great city. It is progressive and growing like crazy. When I first moved to Nashville I didn't really worry about commuter traffic...now it's crazy. I WOULD highly recommend a trip south of Nashville to the small town of Franklin (which is the area the CMT stars tend to gravitate towards). If you like to be within an hours drive to one of the best cities I've ever visited (friendly, clean and progressive) then stick with Southern Middle TN. Great areas. The beautiful thing about Middle TN is that in less than 2.5 hours you can be in the mountains, yet you still get the ammenities of a large city. (mind you, nothing is large in TN, like in CA) Now, once you get to Jackson - which is about and 1.5 hr West of Nashville - it becomes like a different state. Seriously. I've been living in Memphis for about 7 yrs due to my job...and I wouldn't recommend anyone move to West TN. The area is flat delta and is so miserable starting about a week ago until late October...when you can finally go outside and breath (also mosquitos finally take a break). There is very little in the way of outdoor activity...very unhealthy city and dangerous too. Now, the kicker is...we live in Memphis and built a lakehouse 3 hours away in Central Arkansas and love the place. Oh and by the way - memphis has a real problem with race...it just won't go away. It may have started many many years ago...but no one "whites" or "African Americans" are willing to do anything about it. So, my advice...if you are thinking about TN - think middle to east TN. Lastly - TN does not have a state income tax...and honestly it does come in handy if you have an above avg. income. But - we pay terrible state sales taxes and property taxes. Please feel free to ask further, more detailed questions...what interests you about NWA and TN? I think Arkansas does a much better job at conservation and preservation...as well as promoting their natural resources...just my opinion.

[TNRyan23]

Originally Posted by nmnita

Nashville is a great city, but it is exactly that a big city, it does not offer the slow life. It is certainly slower than, say Los Angeles, and less expensive but still much higher than NWA. The no state income tax could be a real bonus, if the property taxes are not like Texas. Most states with no income tax sock it to the residence in the form of property tax or sales tax. They have to find a way of paying for whatever. I understand that.

The property taxes in Middle Tennessee are actually very low. I don't know anyone that pays more then $2,500 a year and the taxes on the house I used to own in one of the nicer neighborhoods in Nashville ( Hendersonville ) I had a 3,000 sqft house on Old Hickory Lake and only paid $1,200 a year on taxes. We get nailed by sales tax. Our sales tax is nearly 10%.

The things I loved about Nashville may be different from other people but I liked the fact that Nashville was a big city with a population less than 1 million but at the same time is a major league city with 2 professional sports teams ( Titans NFL, Predators NHL ) and has four Universities within a 45 minute drive with sports teams in major and semi-major conferences ( Vanderbilt SEC, MTSU Sun, TSU & APSU in the Ohio Valley ) not to mention the countless other colleges and universities including Lipscomb, Belmont, Trevecca, and other big universities like Tennessee Tech that wasn't too far away.

The Grand Ole Opry, The Ryman Auditorium, The TPAC, The Sommet Center, and the Nashville Auditorium are all great entertainment venues and we also have the new Schermerhorn Symphony Center downtown added in with the Frist art museum and the Parthenon, Our replica of the Parthenon in Athens.

Downtown Nashville and East Nashville are also going through major construction and gentrification. They are building several skyscraper apartment buildings downtown and are planning to revive downtown Nashville and make it a 24 hour downtown.

We have plenty of lakes, our biggest being Percy Priest Lake to the East and Old Hickory Lake to the North as well as Radnor Lake to the South. Our county to the South of Nashville-Davidson ( Williamson County ) was named one of the most wealthy counties in the entire country and Nashville is home to several fortune 500 companies including Dollar General and Nissan, not to mention three health care giants in Caremark Rx, HCA, and Community Health in Franklin, TN.

If not for the poor job situations and the fact that my wife misses her family in Louisiana, I can't think of anywhere I'd rather live. Despite being a big city, Nashville has some of the best scenery in the country as well as the many waterfalls and mountains not that far to the East.

Edit: Just read that the O.P. wanted shopping, Nashville has 5 shopping malls including ( Opry Mills, Cool Springs Galleria, Green Hills Mall, Rivergate Mall, and Hickory Hollow Mall. The downtown area is starting to develope downtown shopes as well. Plus being from SoCal the O.P. would have the option to shop at a familiar Kroger grocery store.

Also wanted to add that Nashville has a ton of hospitals for a city its size with 15 mid to major hospitals in the Middle Tennessee area - http://nashville.about.com/od/localm..._Hospitals.htm

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Tambo12

Hi - I have been posting recently here regarding my pending move to Fayetteville, AR. I have lived in Tennessee nearly my entire life. My family moved to Tennessee due to the Mountains of East TN and the easy way of life. They retired to TN after living in Florida...strangely. But, it allowed me to grow up in a great place with plenty of activity. Tennessee is truly three different regions and I've lived in all of them. I spent my adolescent years in East TN and went to college at UTK. I absolutely loved my experiences growing up there and cannot think of a better place to grow up. However, it took a LONG time for my family to be accepted...they are not open to outsiders in the upper corner of E. TN. If you're not a cousin of a cousin or some other relation...it can be tough to gain their trust. However, once you gain it...you've got it for life. I do know that my Dad now talks like a lifer..."all kinds of new folks moving in - driving property prices up...even in down economic times!" Its weird. If you like the outdoors - E. TN is a great place - I don't know a better place to spend fall (except Napa Valley, which I do visit every fall!). Now, on to Nashville...I moved to Nashville right out of college and spent two years working for the state of TN's General Assembly (Legislature). I must say - its a darn great city. It is progressive and growing like crazy. When I first moved to Nashville I didn't really worry about commuter traffic...now it's crazy. I WOULD highly recommend a trip south of Nashville to the small town of Franklin (which is the area the CMT stars tend to gravitate towards). If you like to be within an hours drive to one of the best cities I've ever visited (friendly, clean and progressive) then stick with Southern Middle TN. Great areas. The beautiful thing about Middle TN is that in less than 2.5 hours you can be in the mountains, yet you still get the ammenities of a large city. (mind you, nothing is large in TN, like in CA) Now, once you get to Jackson - which is about and 1.5 hr West of Nashville - it becomes like a different state. Seriously. I've been living in Memphis for about 7 yrs due to my job...and I wouldn't recommend anyone move to West TN. The area is flat delta and is so miserable starting about a week ago until late October...when you can finally go outside and breath (also mosquitos finally take a break). There is very little in the way of outdoor activity...very unhealthy city and dangerous too. Now, the kicker is...we live in Memphis and built a lakehouse 3 hours away in Central Arkansas and love the place. Oh and by the way - memphis has a real problem with race...it just won't go away. It may have started many many years ago...but no one "whites" or "African Americans" are willing to do anything about it. So, my advice...if you are thinking about TN - think middle to east TN. Lastly - TN does not have a state income tax...and honestly it does come in handy if you have an above avg. income. But - we pay terrible state sales taxes and property taxes. Please feel free to ask further, more detailed questions...what interests you about NWA and TN? I think Arkansas does a much better job at conservation and preservation...as well as promoting their natural resources...just my opinion.

you certainly covered all the bases and know from experience. It is interesting you brought up the part about being accepted. That was one of the things that stopped us, we worried about that as well. As for Memphis, hubby almost took a job with Holiday Inn, headquartered in Memphis about 20 years ago. We were advised not to live in Memphis. One of the positive things about NWA is acceptance. I think, because most of the people who live here are from somewhere else no body cares if you were born and raised here. Even those in small towns. Our grandson in law is from a small town not far from here, he is a redneck from word go but his family and his friends accepted our granddaughter with open arms. If anyone had a concern it was his mom, not because granddaughter was born and raised in Texas but because she isn't southern baptist and never will be.

We did think it was as pretty as any state we had ever seen, of course so is NWA.

Nita

[strumpeace]

I've lived in both TN and AR.

TN is, quite honestly, light years ahead of AR when it comes to culture, shopping, job opportunities, etc. In particular, as someone already noted, Middle and East TN are growing by leaps and bounds. Nashville is a great city. Knoxville and Chattanooga are great. The Tri-Cities not so much, imo. The mountains in East TN are beautiful -- and they are mountains, not glorified hills like we have in the northern part of AR. No state income tax in TN.

AR has its own strengths, too. There are some very pretty rivers, hills, and other natural areas here. We are lacking in some areas such as shopping; stick around on this board long enough and you'll hear plenty from 'the miserables' about how awful the state is. Little Rock is a neat town with enough to keep you busy for a day or two, and no matter where you live in the state, you're never more than three or four hours from Little Rock.

TN is much more diverse in terms of geography than AR is. TN is also less conducive to quick travel. It takes eight hours to get from the flat delta land in Memphis (southwest corner) to the mountains of Johnson City (northeast corner). Compare that to the four hours it takes to get from Texarkana (southwest corner) to Jonesboro (northeast corner). If you work in sales or for a state office that requires statewide travel, keep that in mind.

TN is more urban-oriented than AR. TN has six cities with populations greater than 100,000, whereas AR has only one -- LR -- which is considerably smaller and less urban (again, read posts from 'the miserables') than most of the larger TN cities.

If you like pretty scenery, both are great.
If you're looking for an urban scene, TN is for you.
If you're looking for a more rural lifestyle, either can work.

Best wishes.

[BlueyedCat]

I would suggest Arkansas in a heartbeat. I moved to Nashville a year and a half ago. It's like it's in it's own little world. TN doesn't have State income tax but the Sales tax makes up for it. It's not as cheap here as one would think. Where we are we pay 9.25% sales tax and ANOTHER 7.75% tax on Food. We moved from California and our Vehicle Ins/Health Ins went up when we moved to TN. With the way people drive here now can understand why.

I am a very out going individual and it is very hard to make friends here. They just don't accept outsiders very well.

There is the Grand Ole Opery. Which is nice. But once you go you really never feel you have to go back. It is beautiful here but that is about all TN has going for it. Also if you have allergies you may want to re-think TN. We have really had a hard time with Allergies, Asthma etc. Our Physician explained it to us. TN sits in a bowl and the pollution stays put along with the everything else when everything is blooming.

I have relatives that live in Arkansas that moved from TN. They say that was the best move they ever made. They were born and raised here in TN and couldn't wait to get out. My husband and I are in the process of leaving TN also. I have talked to so many transplants here in Nashville that are really unhappy here. It's like the life is getting sucked out of us as one person stated.

I would suggest calling both areas checking to see what cost are on your car/health etc. Also Gro's are not that cheap here.

Please DM me if you have any more questions.