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The Philadelphia area could be a good option for you since it fulfills your wish list for milder winters and walkable suburbs. You can quickly access the city via commuter rail from very desirable pre-war suburbs like Wayne, Strafford, Bryn Mawr or Chestnut Hill...all of which offer rail stations in the heart of town that are walkable to surrounding neighborhoods and store/restaurants located nearby. You could virtually walk/utilize transit most of the time.
-Flexible in terms of relocation
-Suburbs
-You like the outdoors
-Not California
-No extreme politics, particularly liberal elitism
-Not Nashville
-Somewhat affordable.
That's incredibly broad and covers about 80% of the country.
Here are some questions to narrow your focus:
-What size metro area are you most interested in or is this not a factor?
-What did you dislike most about San Francisco (besides political elitism) and Nashville?
-Roughly what's your budget for houses?
-What are your hobbies/interests (apart from the outdoors)?
-Does topography/geography matter at all? i.e. desert, coastal living, hilly, flatlands
-Are there any cities you are particularly interested in?
If you are open to the Midwest there are numerous safe, suburban areas with great schools, lack of pretense/elitism, moderate politics and relative affordability compared to the coasts.
Some suggestions:
Dublin, Ohio or New Albany (metro Columbus)
Carmel or Fishers, Indiana (metro Indy)
Westlake, Ohio (metro Cleveland)
Metro size isn't a factor. No matter bigger or smaller, we will always look to live in the suburbs.
Geography isn't a concern either. As I mentioned earlier, if there is no "scenery" in a specific city, we at least want to be within driving distance to decent scenery (mountains, ocean, etc...) to be able to take weekend trips and such
Midwest is where we are from (Louisville, KY). And I'd have no problem going back.
Hobbies besides the outdoors... For me, I'll definitely look into a men's baseball league (recreational), I play ever Sunday now here in SF. But honestly, besides hiking/biking, and playing sports, those are the main hobbies. We like to stay at home a lot and enjoy down time, grill out, etc...Having a decent mall wouldn't hurt I suppose
Again, budget will depend on the city and the cost of living associated.
Current cities interested in...The only one would be Lexington, KY. Simply because it's close to friends/family in Louisville, and it's a decent affordable area.
The Philadelphia area could be a good option for you since it fulfills your wish list for milder winters and walkable suburbs. You can quickly access the city via commuter rail from very desirable pre-war suburbs like Wayne, Strafford, Bryn Mawr or Chestnut Hill...all of which offer rail stations in the heart of town that are walkable to surrounding neighborhoods and store/restaurants located nearby. You could virtually walk/utilize transit most of the time.
I'll look into it, I have an uncle that lives somewhere near Philly, and he seems to like it. He's been up there for a long time.
Metro size isn't a factor. No matter bigger or smaller, we will always look to live in the suburbs.
Geography isn't a concern either. As I mentioned earlier, if there is no "scenery" in a specific city, we at least want to be within driving distance to decent scenery (mountains, ocean, etc...) to be able to take weekend trips and such
Midwest is where we are from (Louisville, KY). And I'd have no problem going back.
Hobbies besides the outdoors... For me, I'll definitely look into a men's baseball league (recreational), I play ever Sunday now here in SF. But honestly, besides hiking/biking, and playing sports, those are the main hobbies. We like to stay at home a lot and enjoy down time, grill out, etc...Having a decent mall wouldn't hurt I suppose
Again, budget will depend on the city and the cost of living associated.
Current cities interested in...The only one would be Lexington, KY. Simply because it's close to friends/family in Louisville, and it's a decent affordable area.
I'll have no shame right now and suggest the eastern suburbs of Syracuse NY. You have a range of county and state parks in that area, with mountains only about an hour and 15 minutes away. You have a Great Lake within 40-45 minutes. Syracuse has the 6th biggest shopping center in the US(Destiny USA) and there is plenty of shopping in that suburban area. You have a range recreational leagues. The schools are some of the best in Upstate NY, if not the state as a whole(Fayetteville-Manlius and Jamesville-DeWitt in particular). Housing is relatively affordable in the area, but keep property taxes/tax exemptions in mind. You also can watch Louisville Cardinal games when they come to Syracuse University, as they are both in the ACC. It is about 80th in metro size and has over 1 million people in its region.
Albany may fit for similar reasons and for its close proximity to multiple mountain ranges.
I'll have no shame right now and suggest the eastern suburbs of Syracuse NY. You have a range of county and state parks in that area, with mountains only about an hour and 15 minutes away. You have a Great Lake within 40-45 minutes. Syracuse has the 6th biggest shopping center in the US(Destiny USA) and there is plenty of shopping in that suburban area. You have a range recreational leagues. The schools are some of the best in Upstate NY, if not the state as a whole(Fayetteville-Manlius and Jamesville-DeWitt in particular). Housing is relatively affordable in the area, but keep property taxes/tax exemptions in mind. You also can watch Louisville Cardinal games when they come to Syracuse University, as they are both in the ACC. It is about 80th in metro size and has over 1 million people in its region.
Albany may fit for similar reasons and for its close proximity to multiple mountain ranges.
This is a great help. I like how you pointed out that I can still watch University of Louisville games (in person), that's actually a big plus, as I am a die hard fan!
This info is good to know, I'll definitely look into this further!
I'll have no shame right now and suggest the eastern suburbs of Syracuse NY. You have a range of county and state parks in that area, with mountains only about an hour and 15 minutes away. You have a Great Lake within 40-45 minutes. Syracuse has the 6th biggest shopping center in the US(Destiny USA) and there is plenty of shopping in that suburban area. You have a range recreational leagues. The schools are some of the best in Upstate NY, if not the state as a whole(Fayetteville-Manlius and Jamesville-DeWitt in particular). Housing is relatively affordable in the area, but keep property taxes/tax exemptions in mind. You also can watch Louisville Cardinal games when they come to Syracuse University, as they are both in the ACC. It is about 80th in metro size and has over 1 million people in its region.
Albany may fit for similar reasons and for its close proximity to multiple mountain ranges.
So, there are suburban and exurban options with walkability in the area.
Also, looking at the affordability list, it looks like Cincinnati and Pittsburgh may also be a good fit and are close to family in Louisville.
I know nothing of Pittsburgh, but it is relatively close to Louisville. However, Cincinnati wouldn't be an option. While there are nice areas, Cincinnati as a whole, has quite a bit of crime & issues
Metro size isn't a factor. No matter bigger or smaller, we will always look to live in the suburbs.
Geography isn't a concern either. As I mentioned earlier, if there is no "scenery" in a specific city, we at least want to be within driving distance to decent scenery (mountains, ocean, etc...) to be able to take weekend trips and such
Midwest is where we are from (Louisville, KY). And I'd have no problem going back.
Hobbies besides the outdoors... For me, I'll definitely look into a men's baseball league (recreational), I play ever Sunday now here in SF. But honestly, besides hiking/biking, and playing sports, those are the main hobbies. We like to stay at home a lot and enjoy down time, grill out, etc...Having a decent mall wouldn't hurt I suppose
Again, budget will depend on the city and the cost of living associated.
Current cities interested in...The only one would be Lexington, KY. Simply because it's close to friends/family in Louisville, and it's a decent affordable area.
Greg, you are thinking too hard. Louisville is the nicest city that you are considering. Try Oldham Co, Norton Commons, Prospect, Crestwood
Greg, you are thinking too hard. Louisville is the nicest city that you are considering. Try Oldham Co, Norton Commons, Prospect, Crestwood
Haha Of course I'd like to be back in Louisville, I'm just not 100% sure If the company will have that spot open for me again in a year. I left Louisville for California, so they had to bring in a guy to replace me.
I have to be prepared to go elsewhere, which is why I made this thread. If Louisville is indeed available, I'll be there in a heartbeat!
Grand Rapids MI might be a good mix of what you're looking for too. Very strong economy, growing core city, attractive suburbs. 25 miles from Lake Michigan resort towns as well as all of the hiking nature and quaintness of NW Michigan. As someone who's in Louisville a couple times a month, it's a straight shot down US-31 through Indy. There are always things to do with good festivals and restaurants. If you like craft beer and spirits it's got a pretty strong scene for that too.
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