Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Appreciate the insights that the forums brings - appreciate the thoughts.
Currently live in the PNW and love it here. However, the dark winters are a wee bit taxing. My job is flexible that I would have 5-7 days off at a time.
My folks are retiring in the next 3-5 years and looking to potentially buy on the West Coast so that they can be closer to me and my family. They own their current house valued ~ 240K in the midwest.
This would potentially be managed by my family as we live on the west coast - until my parents retire out here. This would be a "partial vacation house" for my family also - would love to visit my folks with the kids often in the winter when we crave some sunshine.
Would look for a 2-3 bedroom most likely.
Price range ~ 400-500K
Requirements:
1) Good weather - of course this is relative; 50s-90s would be ideal with good amount of sunshine
2) Good gardening - my rents love to garden - and would be ideal if they could garden 7-8 months out of the year
3) 2-3 hour flight to Portland or Seattle; and as such, decent access to a major airport (1 hour drive?)
4) Water/Coast access would be very nice of course
5) Reasonable access to good healthcare
I am thinking CA (duh!) but may be out of our price range?
AZ? But gardening might not be great except in the north?
TX? A little bit more of a flight but good RE options?
Appreciate the insights that the forums brings - appreciate the thoughts.
Currently live in the PNW and love it here. However, the dark winters are a wee bit taxing. My job is flexible that I would have 5-7 days off at a time.
My folks are retiring in the next 3-5 years and looking to potentially buy on the West Coast so that they can be closer to me and my family. They own their current house valued ~ 240K in the midwest.
This would potentially be managed by my family as we live on the west coast - until my parents retire out here. This would be a "partial vacation house" for my family also - would love to visit my folks with the kids often in the winter when we crave some sunshine.
Would look for a 2-3 bedroom most likely.
Price range ~ 400-500K
Requirements:
1) Good weather - of course this is relative; 50s-90s would be ideal with good amount of sunshine
2) Good gardening - my rents love to garden - and would be ideal if they could garden 7-8 months out of the year
3) 2-3 hour flight to Portland or Seattle; and as such, decent access to a major airport (1 hour drive?)
4) Water/Coast access would be very nice of course
5) Reasonable access to good healthcare
I am thinking CA (duh!) but may be out of our price range?
AZ? But gardening might not be great except in the north?
TX? A little bit more of a flight but good RE options?
Thanks again for all the thoughts!
Your parents could buy a nice house in many parts of Texas for 400-500 grand although personally I would stick to a 2-3 bedroom for much lower due to property taxes.I think most of Texas has average highs in the 90's in the summer.The two major airports in Texas are DFW and Bush Intercontinental in Houston.Both metros have secondary airports that Southwest flies out of (Love Field in Dallas, Hobby in Houston).Houston is close to the coast with good healthcare.I bet you could garden there.DFWA has a number of lakes in the area and good healthcare also. Dallas and Houston are not known for their good climates by most people.I would advise them to not buy in a top ranked ISD or suburb in either metro because that drive up prices and taxes.The traffic is major in those metros.Small towns beyond the suburbs would be better probably but beware sooner or later they will become suburbs or exurbs too.Gardening is bad for Arizona because it wastes water.Cali may be out of your price point.I think it would be more than 2 hours flight to the Pac NW but it may be around 3 I dont know.Houston would add a good deal of time to the flight compared to Dallas.Northern Arizona may be too cold for you.Also, Northern Arizona is a long ways from airports.Its for sure more than a hour way from Vegas and Phoenix.best of luck,Op.
Would look for a 2-3 bedroom most likely.
Price range ~ 400-500K
Requirements:
1) Good weather - of course this is relative; 50s-90s would be ideal with good amount of sunshine
2) Good gardening - my rents love to garden - and would be ideal if they could garden 7-8 months out of the year
3) 2-3 hour flight to Portland or Seattle; and as such, decent access to a major airport (1 hour drive?)
4) Water/Coast access would be very nice of course
5) Reasonable access to good healthcare
Check out Bakersfield CA
It checks off pretty much all of the boxes in terms of offering up plenty of quality homes within budget in a beautiful area with a great climate, especially for gardening.
Your parents could buy a nice house in many parts of Texas for 400-500 grand although personally I would stick to a 2-3 bedroom for much lower due to property taxes.I think most of Texas has average highs in the 90's in the summer.The two major airports in Texas are DFW and Bush Intercontinental in Houston.Both metros have secondary airports that Southwest flies out of (Love Field in Dallas, Hobby in Houston).Houston is close to the coast with good healthcare.I bet you could garden there.DFWA has a number of lakes in the area and good healthcare also. Dallas and Houston are not known for their good climates by most people.I would advise them to not buy in a top ranked ISD or suburb in either metro because that drive up prices and taxes.The traffic is major in those metros.Small towns beyond the suburbs would be better probably but beware sooner or later they will become suburbs or exurbs too.Gardening is bad for Arizona because it wastes water.Cali may be out of your price point.I think it would be more than 2 hours flight to the Pac NW but it may be around 3 I dont know.Houston would add a good deal of time to the flight compared to Dallas.Northern Arizona may be too cold for you.Also, Northern Arizona is a long ways from airports.Its for sure more than a hour way from Vegas and Phoenix.best of luck,Op.
TX is not their first choice. But thanks for the opinions. They do have relatives out there so may be a possibility. Any other thoughts?
It checks off pretty much all of the boxes in terms of offering up plenty of quality homes within budget in a beautiful area with a great climate, especially for gardening.
I hear Bakersfield is not a nice place to live though? Too dry?
I will have to do more research.
Don't think they could find something in Ventura or Oxnard? Ability to garden there?
I hear Bakersfield is not a nice place to live though? Too dry?
I will have to do more research. Don't think they could find something in Ventura or Oxnard? Ability to garden there?
Too dry? We had better hope not as the area is a major producer of fruits and vegetables for the entire US. It's a very fertile area with an ideal dry Mediterranean climate (think Greece) for growing/gardening.
From Wikipedia: Although the region hosts abundant green and leafy vegetation due to the hydrology of the Tulare Basin, Bakersfield has a desert climate with long, hot, dry summers, and brief, cool, moist (but not wet) winters. In fact, Bakersfield enjoys more clear days than the majority of the U.S. (averaging 191 days a year). Bakersfield enjoys long-lasting, mild autumns, and warm springs, giving the region a unique climate suitable for growing a wide variety of crops (ranging from carrots to citrus, almonds, and pistachios). Rainfall averages only 6.5 in (165 mm) annually, mostly falling during winter and spring. Typically, no rain falls from May through September.
To answer your question they could do either Oxnard or Ventura. I personally was going to recommend Oxnard but thought perhaps it could be too remote in terms of the airport criteria.
To answer your question they could do either Oxnard or Ventura. I personally was going to recommend Oxnard but thought perhaps it could be too remote in terms of the airport criteria.
It is an hour to Burbank or Santa Barbara, a little further to LAX. I think that is fine.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
