[eschaton]

Speaking as someone who grew up in Connecticut and moved out, I'd say the state is losing out on both ends.

On one hand, there's the conventional "sun belt" demographic. Young people with high school to college level degrees, looking for work and a reasonable priced house. Connecticut is a loser for these people because of the high tax levels, high cost of living, generally long commutes, and cold winters. I don't think any state in the Northeast has real luck keeping these people.

On the other hand, there's the "creative class" demographic. These people want to live in a walkable urban environment and tend to have higher levels of education (quite often at least a Masters Degree). Their sorts of jobs tend to be concentrated in major cities as well. Connecticut loses out here because not a single one can compete with Boston, NYC, or DC (or options further afield). There are nice urban areas of New Haven, Stamford, Norwalk, and even Hartford now, but except for New Haven there's arguably less for a young professional to do than in a medium-sized college town like Northampton. And when these young urbanists get older, even if they do decide to move out of NYC or Boston due to cost, there's no reason why they'd pick expensive Connecticut suburbs instead.

I think Connecticut will turn around at the point where enough of the older empty nesters and retirees die off that there is a glut in the local housing market, driving down costs fairly rapidly. Given what I've read about local demographics, this seems set to happen sometime in the next 10-20 years.

[RunD1987]

That report seems like a joke. It's basis is how long one can live in a state. Well yes more money means longer living and you need a higher income to live in CT, they even say on average resident's make $75-$75K a year. Most of those making lower income move out lowering our poverty level. Very inaccurate data.

[galejuniper]

My husband and I are 28 and we are moving out in two weeks. I was born and raised here- and have run a business out of CT for 10 years. For us though we are leaving because the cost of living is just too high. Our business is out of Fairfield County and we find the area to just be way too expensive, too stressful, and too busy. It definitely feels like a rat race to raise a family here.

We have decided to move back close to his family in NE Ohio. Truth be told- it's not a glamorous area. The town is fine but the area definitely offers less "amenities" compared to CT. It has it's fair share of issues like any state- but we are looking forward to our housing costs being 1/5th of what we have here. Right now we pay 2k per month in rent. In Ohio we just bought a cute little home for 39,000- making our monthly mortgage 396.00 with property taxes included. Sure- it's much smaller- and yes we will only make about 60% of what we make here in CT- but at the end of the day it's just a lot more manageable. It's very hard as a young family to really get started in CT and to get ahead.

I will miss a lot about CT. The close proximity to nyc, the coastline, the restaurants, the scenery... It all will be very missed. But for us the way of life here is just a bit too intense and stressful.

[galejuniper]

Ps. I still know a lot of people my age heading to the sunbelt. While I see the appeal- I can't help but think its unwise to move there now. We've missed the boom and moving now would make us late to the game. I personally think if people can make it work career wise- a lot of the rust belt cities are the way to go. Sure- they leave a lot to be desired- but the cost of living and housing market can't be beat and with some patience- I'm sure in 10-15 years the area will be on the upswing with so many young people priced out of formerly inexpensive places ie: the Carolinas.


One of the little towns we considered was Poland Ohio. Housing is very inexpensive due to it being a suburb of Youngstown Ohio- but the actual town is very quaint, safe, and pleasant. In fact it was founded by people from Connecticut so it had a lot of New England charm.

[CTDex]

Originally Posted by galejuniper

My husband and I are 28 and we are moving out in two weeks. I was born and raised here- and have run a business out of CT for 10 years. For us though we are leaving because the cost of living is just too high. Our business is out of Fairfield County and we find the area to just be way too expensive, too stressful, and too busy. It definitely feels like a rat race to raise a family here.

We have decided to move back close to his family in NE Ohio. Truth be told- it's not a glamorous area. The town is fine but the area definitely offers less "amenities" compared to CT. It has it's fair share of issues like any state- but we are looking forward to our housing costs being 1/5th of what we have here. Right now we pay 2k per month in rent. In Ohio we just bought a cute little home for 39,000- making our monthly mortgage 396.00 with property taxes included. Sure- it's much smaller- and yes we will only make about 60% of what we make here in CT- but at the end of the day it's just a lot more manageable. It's very hard as a young family to really get started in CT and to get ahead.

I will miss a lot about CT. The close proximity to nyc, the coastline, the restaurants, the scenery... It all will be very missed. But for us the way of life here is just a bit too intense and stressful.

Too bad Galejuniper. You're the type of couple this state needs and should encourage more of.

[RunD1987]

Originally Posted by CTDex

Too bad Galejuniper. You're the type of couple this state needs and should encourage more of.

Encourage more is key, but they won't

[mlassoff]

Originally Posted by galejuniper

My husband and I are 28 and we are moving out in two weeks. I was born and raised here- and have run a business out of CT for 10 years. For us though we are leaving because the cost of living is just too high. Our business is out of Fairfield County and we find the area to just be way too expensive, too stressful, and too busy. It definitely feels like a rat race to raise a family here.

We have decided to move back close to his family in NE Ohio. Truth be told- it's not a glamorous area. The town is fine but the area definitely offers less "amenities" compared to CT. It has it's fair share of issues like any state- but we are looking forward to our housing costs being 1/5th of what we have here. Right now we pay 2k per month in rent. In Ohio we just bought a cute little home for 39,000- making our monthly mortgage 396.00 with property taxes included. Sure- it's much smaller- and yes we will only make about 60% of what we make here in CT- but at the end of the day it's just a lot more manageable. It's very hard as a young family to really get started in CT and to get ahead.

I will miss a lot about CT. The close proximity to nyc, the coastline, the restaurants, the scenery... It all will be very missed. But for us the way of life here is just a bit too intense and stressful.

Good luck with your move.

I just looked on Zillow-- I've never heard of a $39 House before-- and found there are some surprisingly livable properties in that price range... Are the neighborhoods ok?

I think that one thing that the expensive housing does do for you is forced savings... If you sell a $39K house at retirement, you get $39K-- not a lot. However, I know several people here whose retirement included a great deal of profit from real estate.

I know nothing is guaranteed, however, living here does give you more financial flexibility when you retire, because, chances are you've accumulated some wealth. If you live in an inexpensive environment chances are less that you've accumulated a great deal of wealth in your working years.

[Mr_250]

Originally Posted by EUPL

Lack of things to do.
Crappy weather.
High Taxes.
Boring.

This is why young people leave.

Maybe I'm just different but none of what you described are reasons I want to leave.

Crappy Weather - By what standards? Sure, this isn't south florida and I'll be the first to admit I hate the snow but it keeps me on my toes. Also, I like how the cold kills all the bugs. Summer and Fall are the best.

High taxes - Nothing we can really do about it. Income tax stinks but there is ways to shelter it. Sales tax is mediocre and property taxes are high. Property taxes are the pits for young people. Taxes are equivalent to putting insulation in your home, you can't see it and feel it's a waste of money but it helps keep everything stable.

Boring - You always bring this up. What is so boring? Until I joined this forum "boring" is never a word I heard to describe CT. I like it boring, it keeps people away. I am never bored. If I am bored it's because I'm not taking advantage of what's around me. CT has a lot going on you just need to take advantage of it. Different stuff too not just drinking (because to me THAT is boring).

Do I think CT needs to figure out how to run it's checkbook?...yes. My hope is that they are finally starting to realize there mistakes and acting on them. My hope is that the momentum keeps building on itself.

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

Young people don't give a rats ass about tax rates, for the most part.

Depends what you mean by young people... We are talking about millennials, a generation that is now in there 20's and 30's. The ones who don't care about it yet will start caring about it real soon.

I never thought about taxes in college. I did when I got my first real job though, and saw what kind of coin is taken out of my pay check. Also made me really start to wonder what happens to all that money. That's when grumpy old me was born When you really start caring about taxes is when considering buying a home. When you start to despise taxes is when you actually buy the home. In CT, the taxes also smack you in the face when you sell the old 3rd-hand car you got for your 17th birthday from grandma and buy a new one. 2k sales taxes. Another $500-800 in some invented tax they take iteratively on a yearly basis for the privilege. Millennials are growing up now and will experience this more and more as they start to build their own lives.

The ones who don't care yet are the ones who are still renting, still driving their HS graduation present, still haven't landed a good paying job...

[galejuniper]

We follow the Dave Ramsey approach so spending less money on a home allows us to just put more money into retirement. We are relaunching our business in the Cleveland area where there is more money- and fortunately only commute 1-2 days a week so the one hour drive won't be too bad. Hell- that's what I drive here in CT due to traffic. Again- our income will go from about 150,000 per year to about 100,000 per year- so we will take a hit there- but when your housing and utilities are only 6k per year vs the 30,000 per year that we pay now- it makes a big difference in terms of long term savings.

The home is in a town that feels similar to Winsted with a slightly better school system. Not the best town- not the worst- but plenty safe. It's 800 square feet so very small- but very cute. Needs about 5k worth of work to be done on it. We are seeing it as just a three year starter home- so in a few years we will likely take our equity from the home and either build something in a town we like better- or look for a 4 bedroom home in one of the nicest towns- which would cost us about 120,000. This is just not a reality for us here in CT- so sacrificing to a less appealing part of the country is worth it for the financial gain for our particular family.