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As long as I’m close to a big city I’m fine, I don’t have to be right in the city. I’m not trying to live in NYC, near it within 2-3 hours is fine with me. I don’t hear good things about Baltimore so I’m definitely not trying to live there.
Another outside of the box suggestion may be the main cities in the Albany-Schenectady-Troy area of NY. It is relatively affordable, you can take a train into NYC within that time period: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Alba...40.7527262!3e3
If you like art, you also have a bunch of artsy type of communities along the way going south towards NYC, some of which have been mentioned already. Hudson, Saugerties and New Paltz are a few others that weren't mentioned.
Does anyone know anything about Columbia, Maryland? I know it’s not too far from DC.
I think Columbia, Maryland is in a nice location. Good access to Baltimore and also not that far from DC. Howard County in general is a good place to live and is the most affluent county in Maryland.
Wherever you decide to live, I suggest you look in an area that's in a good school district if you're worried about safety or crime. That usually weeds out the undesirable areas.
CT. you would be within 2 hours to two of the five alpha cities. Boston and New York
Try the Hartford and New Haven MSAs. Cheaper and stunning beauty.
CT is a bad place to live if you want to have an urban environment without the hassles of urban living. There aren't even a lot of walkable small towns.
I'm still somewhat confused about what sort of place you'd like. Near a big city, but... a small city? Town? Suburban expanse? Some combination of those? (Especially in the northeast, many suburbs have town centers.)
Also, you may be a little too worried about violent crime in large cities. Federal surveys show that 1 in 130 urban residents experienced "violent crime excluding simple assault" in 2020, vs. 1 in 179 suburban residents and 1 in 222 rural residents. In addition, violent crime is usually very geographically concentrated within cities, with most areas experiencing fairly low rates.
I'm not just talking about downtown. The last two times that I've been there (pre and post pandemic) DC is busier than what I've seen in Philly. It was quite as busy as Boston, but it wasn't far off. Philly was borderline dead aside from South Street.
Just basing it on what I saw.
Here we go with you again...
I was just in Philadelphia for 9 days, and made a point to walk A LOT all over Center City and surrounding areas, your statement is not true. I was pleasantly surprised at how busy Center City was, at times felt like I was back in Manhattan.
So I live in NC right now, but I want to move, I’m single and it’s just me and I’m in my mid 30’s. I’m a respiratory therapist so I don’t think I’ll have a problem finding a job.
I wouldn’t mind PA because it’s not far from NYC and DC and I LOVE big cities.. I just don’t know WHERE to live in PA, I was considering living in or near Philadelphia, but hear the violence there is really BAD. Is that true?
I like Maryland, I don’t want to live in DC though because it’s super EXPENSIVE.
I don’t know much about NJ except for to stay away from Camden and it’s not far from NYC.
Does anyone have suggestions on good areas to live in for these states? I’m of course going to visit these places before I decide to move there.
You've already have a good deal of replies, but my two cents...
I'd imagine you can find a good job in any big Northeastern city based on your job title.
I would seriously look into Philadelphia. It checks every box for a big vibrant city with a lot to offer, it's walk-able, very connected to other large cities, a huge medical scene, and relatively affordable compared to DC and especially New York.
Obviously New York doesn't need explanation since you love big cities, the downside is COL. DC is a large vibrant city, but Philadelphia has a different big city feel when on foot in Center City (downtown).
And while crime is at unsettling highs (not unique to Philly), you will be perfectly fine in Center City and many other neighborhoods. Philadelphia is similar to Chicago in that it gets an unfair bad rep because some people and the Media love to generalize or sensationalize their problems while ignoring the positives.
My final advice is to research career opportunities in your cities of interest, then plan a few days in each to get an initial feel.
New 1-BR apartments in both Uptown Charlotte and Paoli PA are both around $2000/month. But Paoli has eight trains a day into NYC, and just two hours -- perfect for a day trip.
Before I escaped to New Mexico, I lived for 4 years in a very quaint town in New Jersey, called Medford, less than a half-hour from central Philadelphia. Very pleasant and bucolic at that time. If I was forced to move back to the northeast, I would probably return here, or Shamong, which is the next town over. Very underrated area.
Yes. KodeBlue nonchalantly disses Philadelphia at every opportunity. It’s odd. I think it’s anger over Philadelphia bouncing back while Baltimore languishes.
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