Anywhere but Michigan! (insurance, condos, crime)

[bhw2]

Hey everyone, my girl friend and I are from Michigan, we have lived here all of our lives. We are looking to relocate to a warmer state, preferably a coastal state, California is too expensive and the other west coast state are too rainy... So I guess that leaves the East coast. I have a degree in finance and she has a degree in criminal justice. We are both young(in our mid 20s). Where in a warmer climate is a good place to settle down and possibly start a family in a couple years? We want something near the water(nice beaches), and obviously with us being younger price is an issue. My girlfriend is set on FL but I'm a little nervous due to the hurricanes and increased property taxes. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks to everyone in advance!

[flyingwriter]

I don't know why you don't like Michigan. I love it and I wish I could stay here.

However, in response to your post - pretty much anywhere on the east coast is prone to hurricanes, that includes FL, SC, NC, VA, and the Gulf Coast. If you want someplace truly tropical, check out Hawaii. Beautiful islands, warm weather, hurricanes are rare (but do occur). If you don't mind Southern culture and lifestyle, then the GA coast gets very little in the way of hurricanes. Oregon and Washington are coastal, and not as cold as you think.

[city_data91]

I'd recommend Georgia as well. Kazoopilot is right that they don't get too many hurricanes; the hurricanes either hit Florida or bypass Georgia and hit the Carolinas. Atlanta is booming. Keep in mind that in any Southern coastal state, if you go inland hurricanes aren't as much of an issue.

[flyingwriter]

Atlanta's over five hours from the coast. Might as well be in Iowa.

[needing more]

I wouldnt recommend FL at all. My dad lives in Ft. Lauderdale and with the crime, HIGH unemployment and cost of living... Its quickly becoming unlivable... What they dont tell you about FL is to get anykind of insurance is thru the roof then if you have to make an actual claim... forget-about-it.. you'll pay twice the cost next yr for insurance.. My dad got hit by hurricane Wilma in 05 and got so sick from all the mold in the air from being w/o power for almost a month...Not worth it!!

The gulf states still get hurricanes and lots of rain in LA,MS & AL too.. Sugar Land, TX is rated one of the best places to live right now.. Its outside of houston. It might be far enough away from the coast to not get the weather so bad either.. I dont know because I havent looked into TX.. Too HOT for me..lol

Savannah, GA is beautiful. North of there all the way to VA is hurricane prone. VA is very nice too...
The west isnt as bad as it seems to be. OR/WA is more expensive then MI is (but everywhere is for that matter..lol) but if you get off the coast an hr or two the rain isnt as bad. Corvalis & Eugene are nice towns for younger people.

Everyplace on the coast is going to be about close to twice the cost of MI.. Our houses here are so cheap that its hard to afford to go anywhere else..

Good Luck on your search...

[jtur88]

If you want ready access to beaches, there aren't many choices in Georgia. As for Hurricanes, anywhere on the warm waters of the Atlantic, the risk is pretty uniform wherever you go.

Be careful what yo wish forl. A friend of mine was checking out Rockport, Texas. He asked locally, what are the advantages of Rockport?" "It's right on the Gulf!?" And what are the disadvantages? "It's right on the Gulf".

[bhw2]

I'll definitely look into Georgia never really considered it before, seemed like a boring state to me with not much to do. I guess I'm just assuming haha. I have been also looking into Colorado, seems a little expensive though, especially around Denver. To your response about Michigan, I just think it is getting too old for me need to find something new and there are no jobs at all! I'm pretty open to moving anywhere that isn't crazy expensive, like Chicago or NYC. I'm just trying to make my girl friend happy with the warm weather. I don't mind the snow or anything like that. I'm really hoping to find an area that just jumps out at me and I have yet to find that, that's why i came on here to see what other people thought of different areas. Thanks to everyone that responded it is greatly appreciated.

[beachmouse]

Anyone who says that you can avoid hurricane damage by going 30 miles inland obviously hasn't lived in the Southeast. A hurricane is a huge amount of energy and it doesn't dissipate easily. It's common for areas 100+ miles inland to get heave flooding and moderate tornado damage from a storm (taking it to an extreme, my inlaws in south-central Michigan had about $10K worth of basement flooding damage from the remnants of Hurricane Ike last year) I'd rather take my chances down closer to the coast- once the winds die down it's not as bad since the sandy soil drains a lot better than the clay you find further inland.

Having said that, most tropical storm and minor hurricane weather is more of annoyance than anything else. More than 80% of the time a tropical storm is the Southeastern equivalent of a snow day.

We're in a low property tax part of Florida. Admittedly we got in before the boom, but we pay $1200/year in property taxes, and we'd pay more than three times than that for a similar value home in the Grand Rapids area if we'd stayed in Michigan. Insurance costs can vary hugely, but if you're not on a barrier island, at least 30 feet above sea level and your area doesn't have drainage or sinkhole issues, it's not too bad.

[th3vault]

Florida's fine....just go on the Gulf coast or North-Central Florida and avoid the uber-expensive South Florida metro.

You'll be pleasantly suprised by Florida, don't listen to all the bashers. Florida offers advantages over Michigan that go way beyond sun and weather...

For example, Roads are excellent down here, no potholes at all..... I'm sure you are tired of MI roads by now.....

Check out the I-4 corridor, especially Tampa...

[bhw2]

Originally Posted by th3vault

Florida's fine....just go on the Gulf coast or North-Central Florida and avoid the uber-expensive South Florida metro.

You'll be pleasantly suprised by Florida, don't listen to all the bashers. Florida offers advantages over Michigan that go way beyond sun and weather...

For example, Roads are excellent down here, no potholes at all..... I'm sure you are tired of MI roads by now.....

Check out the I-4 corridor, especially Tampa...

Tampa was were I was thinking, is Clearwater similar to Tampa. I have heard it's a really nice area, but what about crime and things like that? Are there any affordable condos/homes in the area(lower than 200,000)? Are there any other areas that I should look into around the Tampa area as well?