Small cities with four seasons and affordable house prices (>$225K)? (buying, new construction)
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My husband and I have become increasingly frustrated with the incredibly high cost of housing in our area, and in many places around the U.S. really. We are looking for somewhere that would offer us the following:
Four seasons.
A small city (flexible, but ~45-80,000 population as a guide) - towns just outside these cities by ~15 minutes would work too.
A decent sized house (i.e., 3 bed, 2 bath) with some property can be purchased for under $225,000 - we would prefer under $200K but it seems like this is difficult if you want to be near a small city.
Thank you for ANY thoughts on this. We are open to all different ideas and variations, but have been having a hard time coming up with good options on our own.
In NY, the Utica-Rome and Binghamton metro areas would work. Utica has 60,000 people with some nice suburban areas/school districts just outside of the city. Binghamton has 45,000 people and also offers some nice suburban areas/school districts outside of the city. In the Utica area, I would look into suburban areas like New Hartford, Clinton, NY Mills and parts of the Whitesboro area.
In the Binghamton area, I'd look in Vestal, Endwell, the Chenango school district to the north(Valley and Forks) and parts of the Union-Endicott and Johnson City areas(areas to the north are generally nicer within these SD's). Maybe the Park Terrace area south of the city within the Susquehanna Valley SD as well.
Out of the suburbs mentioned, New Hartford and Clinton in the Utica-Rome area and Vestal and Maine-Endwell are school districts that are highly regarded on the state level.
Keep property taxes in mind, but you could get homes that fit your criteria well below your price limit in those areas.
In PA, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Reading, Altoona and York may work.
Perhaps Charleston and Huntington in WV are worth a look.
Battle Creek, Kalamazoo, the Saginaw-Midland-Bay City, Holland and Muskegon are areas in MI that fit much of the criteria.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 01-14-2016 at 10:36 AM..
I don't associate having acres of property with being in a city - even a small one. That's more a suburban/rural thing. If I were buying in a city, I wouldn't expect to get more than a quarter acre, if that.
I'll second that, almost all of Michigan fits your criteria (small towns, cheap houses). The condition of the cheaper houses are really bad, but you can get some sort of house within 15 minutes drive of almost anywhere for $200-225k, and depending on the area you pick, that budget could get you something pretty nice. For comparison, brand new construction starts around $250k in some Michigan areas).
Eastern Washington might also fit the bill, in the Spokane region. A bit milder than Michigan weather, similarish housing prices, similar type of market / city / density / etc.
Cedar Rapids or Iowa City, Iowa. Many smaller towns surrounding these cities with acreage for under 200K with older homes in decent condition. Very nice homes (new or near new) in the $200-225 range ... but probably less than an acre but lots of open country.
Excellent university research/teaching hospital in Iowa City and two highly rated hospitals in Cedar Rapids. Excellent public schools throughout the region including small towns. Very good infrastructure. Educated population. Friendly, hard-working people.
Also check out Dubuque, Iowa ... located on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River in a beautiful setting in NE Iowa. Near Minnesota and Wisconsin. Homes tend to be less expensive than the two previous places I mentioned.
Last edited by smpliving; 01-15-2016 at 08:08 AM..
Oklahoma City. Among the lowest home prices in the nation.
Too big of a city based upon the criteria, as the city they are looking for is in the 45000-80000 range.
Also, in NY, you have cities within that range that are secondary central cities of bigger metros that may work. Troy, Schenectady and even Niagara Falls fit the city criteria, but if you don't want to be within those cities, all 3 have nice suburban areas adjacent to those cities. Scotia, Rotterdam and Niskayuna near Schenectady; the Niagara-Wheatfield and Lewiston-Porter areas next to Niagara Falls and the East Greenbush, Brunswick/Brittonkill and Averill Park areas next to Troy come to mind.
I don't associate having acres of property with being in a city - even a small one. That's more a suburban/rural thing. If I were buying in a city, I wouldn't expect to get more than a quarter acre, if that.
I understand what you're saying here. I actually purposely left this property requirement vague since I know most places close to cities won't be able to offer too many large land parcels, but maybe I should have been more specific.
Even an acre or two would be nice, so that's why I was hoping for some ideas for cities where living "just outside" of them might be possible.
Seems like there are some good suggestions here so far - thank you to everyone for your thoughts on this!
Cedar Rapids or Iowa City, Iowa. Many smaller towns surrounding these cities with acreage for under 200K with older homes in decent condition. Very nice homes (new or near new) in the $200-225 range ... but probably less than an acre but lots of open country.
Excellent university research/teaching hospital in Iowa City and two highly rated hospitals in Cedar Rapids. Excellent public schools throughout the region including small towns. Very good infrastructure. Educated population. Friendly, hard-working people.
Also check out Dubuque, Iowa ... located on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River in a beautiful setting in NE Iowa. Near Minnesota and Wisconsin. Homes tend to be less expensive than the two previous places I mentioned.
Thank you for the suggestions! We have actually thought about Iowa on and off for a while. Could be a good fit!
Edit: Seems like there are a lot of mixed reviews on Iowa cities...interesting.
Is there anything else you are looking for, OP? Walkability, schools, amenities, parks, etc...?
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