surviving in Chattanooga (Athens: foreclosure, renting, car registration)

[jadafly]

we moved here from Florida because hurricane Frances , damaged our house there were moles growing behind the walls we were sick, we spent all our saving renting another house and paying mortgage at the same time, The insurance company refused to pay us. so we sold our house for pennies on the dollar and moved here, we love it here in Chatt Town . He found a truck driving job, was working ,until last year ,he was without work for 9 months. He Found another job in same field working for half of what he made before,i am on a fixed income ,just know that if anyone is reading this ,just know you are not alone , we have kids in college , bills to pay , it's hard to choose what you really need to get when in the store, because you can not afford clothes or basic stuff,, It kinda hard to get to know new people when your new to the area, we are Christian and go to church, we still have not really made a real connection with anyone there,everyone seems to be always busy to notice , i am not asking for advice or anything but a prayer, thats all we can do is pray that things get better,,

[lookin4mayberry]

Prayers sent for you and your family..keep your head up, it's bound to get better.

[BlueCuzco]

Actually, it could get worse. But we're all hoping it doesn't.

Here's to you and your family. Glad you like Chattanooga.

[BlueyedCat]

Originally Posted by jadafly

we moved here from Florida because hurricane Frances , damaged our house there were moles growing behind the walls we were sick, we spent all our saving renting another house and paying mortgage at the same time, The insurance company refused to pay us. so we sold our house for pennies on the dollar and moved here, we love it here in Chatt Town . He found a truck driving job, was working ,until last year ,he was without work for 9 months. He Found another job in same field working for half of what he made before,i am on a fixed income ,just know that if anyone is reading this ,just know you are not alone , we have kids in college , bills to pay , it's hard to choose what you really need to get when in the store, because you can not afford clothes or basic stuff,, It kinda hard to get to know new people when your new to the area, we are Christian and go to church, we still have not really made a real connection with anyone there,everyone seems to be always busy to notice , i am not asking for advice or anything but a prayer, thats all we can do is pray that things get better,,

You are in my heart and prayers.

[shinestx]

Originally Posted by jadafly

we moved here from Florida because hurricane Frances , damaged our house there were moles growing behind the walls we were sick, we spent all our saving renting another house and paying mortgage at the same time, The insurance company refused to pay us. so we sold our house for pennies on the dollar and moved here, we love it here in Chatt Town . He found a truck driving job, was working ,until last year ,he was without work for 9 months. He Found another job in same field working for half of what he made before,i am on a fixed income ,just know that if anyone is reading this ,just know you are not alone , we have kids in college , bills to pay , it's hard to choose what you really need to get when in the store, because you can not afford clothes or basic stuff,, It kinda hard to get to know new people when your new to the area, we are Christian and go to church, we still have not really made a real connection with anyone there,everyone seems to be always busy to notice , i am not asking for advice or anything but a prayer, thats all we can do is pray that things get better,,

Likewise with the prayers... it seems that things are tight everywhere these days. Just a quick point about your church: if everyone is too busy there to even care about you and others (fellow church members!!!) then IMHO, you should find another church to join. Just keep in mind, it is key to actually "join" a church, as you will get on their roster and be recognized as such. There are many great churches here in Chatty. It took us several months, but my family found one where we felt welcome before we actually joined.

[ColleenTr]

My husband and i are hoping to sell our house in Pa, and we have considered moving to Chatt b/c everyone says how nice it is to live there. What scares us is leaving a good job, and getting paid less money. We need to know if we can afford to move to Chattanooga and that we can pay the bills if we do this. We are 45 and 41, and it's scary to start over. We hate where we are, due to overpopulation and the weather. We bought a house in the country but the City moved around us, not in a good way. if we want to live in a city, it will be on our terms. We want to be able to walk and ride bikes and enjoy the outdoors. You post makes me think and wonder if it is worth even trying. Do the Natives want any more people moving in? i don't want to feel like an intruder.

[BlueCuzco]

Do the Natives want any more people moving in? i don't want to feel like an intruder.

Oh, jeez, don't worry! It's not like that at all. I don't even know what to say in response other than that people around here just aren't like that.

Now, I'll personally be ticked if you move into certain subdivisons being built on certain mountainsides that I used to enjoy the woods on but then discovered would be clear-cut, but other than that, you're good. (FYI, I'm talking about the Emerson properties like the Vineyard.)

It's my understanding that wages are lower in Chattanooga but that the cost of living is also much lower. So it comes out about even, I think. It's probably easier to move into Chattanooga than out. But I don't know how many people are interested in the latter.

You're definitely set in terms of the outdoors. We got plenty.

[shinestx]

Originally Posted by ColleenTr

My husband and i are hoping to sell our house in Pa, and we have considered moving to Chatt b/c everyone says how nice it is to live there. What scares us is leaving a good job, and getting paid less money. We need to know if we can afford to move to Chattanooga and that we can pay the bills if we do this. We are 45 and 41, and it's scary to start over. We hate where we are, due to overpopulation and the weather. We bought a house in the country but the City moved around us, not in a good way. if we want to live in a city, it will be on our terms. We want to be able to walk and ride bikes and enjoy the outdoors. You post makes me think and wonder if it is worth even trying. Do the Natives want any more people moving in? i don't want to feel like an intruder.

Please, please, please, wait until the economy improves, both in PA and in TN. You'll have a better transition job-wise and (theoretically), you'll get a better price for your house. Homes in Chattanooga never shot-up like in many other cities.

[peppermint]

Colleen, where in PA? You make it sound like NEPA.

My husband and I moved here from Northeastern Pennsylvania (Poconos) in 2008. We are native southerners (him - Alabama and me - Mississippi). We didn't have any problems with acceptance.

The economy in our area of PA was very, very weak. We technically lived in the NYC metropolitan area, and when the housing market burst, our area was a disaster zone. We were lucky. Our house was a foreclosure when we bought it and we remodeled the whole thing so we ended up making a little money off our house.

The market in Chattanooga is much stronger than where we left so comparatively, we didn't see any "great deals" here in Chattanooga. Renting here was much higher than PA, but other things (taxes, gas, insurance, car registration and tags) are much cheaper.

If you can line up a job, moving can be a wonderful way to increase your income. My husband is an engineer and was laid off in PA. We were willing to move anywhere in the country, and he got some great offers. For us, the best was the one here.

Good luck, Colleen!

[angelfish70]

I would like to thank you for the information that you provided. (I use to live in the Poconos; attended schools in Milford/Matamoras area - what a small world!!!)

I visited Chattanooga this past August - flew there to adopt a pound puppy from the Humane Society in Athens. Everyone was extremely friendly -
Is that typical for that area of Tennessee??? (friendly people). I'm thinking of located elsewhere. The job market in Massachusetts is horrible and I'd like to movedown south, where typically the weather is more mild.

Any information anyone could provide me with...would be so greatly appreciated!!!

Originally Posted by peppermint

Colleen, where in PA? You make it sound like NEPA.

My husband and I moved here from Northeastern Pennsylvania (Poconos) in 2008. We are native southerners (him - Alabama and me - Mississippi). We didn't have any problems with acceptance.

The economy in our area of PA was very, very weak. We technically lived in the NYC metropolitan area, and when the housing market burst, our area was a disaster zone. We were lucky. Our house was a foreclosure when we bought it and we remodeled the whole thing so we ended up making a little money off our house.

The market in Chattanooga is much stronger than where we left so comparatively, we didn't see any "great deals" here in Chattanooga. Renting here was much higher than PA, but other things (taxes, gas, insurance, car registration and tags) are much cheaper.

If you can line up a job, moving can be a wonderful way to increase your income. My husband is an engineer and was laid off in PA. We were willing to move anywhere in the country, and he got some great offers. For us, the best was the one here.

Good luck, Colleen!