Thinking of moving to VA Beach area (Virginia Beach, Norfolk: best cities, apartment)

[mindsman]

Originally Posted by summers19

There are a few reasons I say VB is conservative. First, the city keeps electing very conservative Republicans to city office as well as congressional office. They've elected Drake two terms in a row and she rubberstamps everything Bush proposes.
Secondly, Pat Robertson and his 'university' and tv station are located in VB, which leads to a saturation of evangelicals living in this area. When I moved here, one of the first questions out of people's mouths upon meeting me was "What church do you belong to?". People in this area are way too interested in other people's religious business. If you're a woman with children and work outside the home, you better come up with a clever defense to their words of apocolypse and damnation and doom. I've never before lived in a place where people so blatantly and unabashedly try to categorize you with your answer to this question. It really is creepy and very Stepford wife-like. Coming from FL I don't think I was ever asked what church did I go to upon first meeting someone new.
Thirdly, yes, a lot of people in the military are very open minded and demonstrate the 'live and let live' motto to life. However, there are a great deal of military individuals and families who are completely intolerant of someone who does not support the war or the president. And a lot of the military guys are misogynistic and power hungry sexist jerks. And we have military friends who also agree with us about the misogyny of many of the military guys.
So that sums up my 'VB is a conservative, religious, military town' post from before.

Talk about close minded. You stereotype people like there is no tommorrow. I see how progressive you are by stereotyping anybody that doesn't agree with your narrow minded way of thinking. There are plenty of democrats who are very religious. You have no independent thoughts as your tolerance level is very low to someone who believes in god. You rip on military men. Yes your a typical closed minded liberal who believes that your way of thinking is the only right way. The military in Virginia beach is a plus where as the crack addicts and welfare liberals have brought the crime rate way up. The more progressive its gotten here the more the crime rate has risen.Thanks to the military for fighting for a great cause and zero terror attacks in the usa since you have been in Iraq.

[Mark and Lisa]

Im not from the south but my wife and I have the oppurtunity to relocate to VA beach within the next 2 weeks....... So i am in decission mode. The economy here in Michigan has driven down in spiral that gonna take another 10 to 15 years to recover. Ever heard of STIHL corp. They offered me a way there financially and we are really thinking about it. They sent me and my wife to VA beach for the weekend all expensis paid for 4 days. So they treated me well and we both want to go just so leary on my home hee in michigan since homes are not selling....... What to do I am lost for words......
just let the house go and just leave or try to sell it while we are dwn there I dunno......... Its great to be able to network thoughts like this cuz i sure need some good advice on this......

[Mark and Lisa]

Ok heres what i have to say........ My wife and I are from michigan I applied over the internet to a company ther in VA beach named STIHL, they make chainsaws. So to make a long story short, they flew me and my wife out and paid for the weekend 3 days that was so I could interview on a friday, and offered me a position there with relocation money and a decent starting wage. Does anyone have any insight on this company, and is it worth the move? I love the ocean and grew up in the mialtary so I am acustomed to the milatary surroundings. My only problem is here in michigan our economy has taken a serious hit and I own a home here and dont know what to do.......SOMEBODY GIVE ME SOME INSITE ON VA BEACH......goood move or bad move with this company??????????

[54321]

Obviously it's your decision. I check online for jobs for my husband regularly, I always see positions for Stihls. I don't know what that means, just throwing my 2 cents in since no one has replied. Housing is expensive here, but that's individual too.
Too bad about the Michigan economy, can you afford the loss? Maybe you can take whatever you can get, a cut you losses approach. Don't know your financial situation.
We have great winters here, lots of traffic, lots of tourists memorial day until labor day, lots of traffic, very poor planning of roads, no public transportation, lots of traffic, a lot of banks, a lot of gas stations, cigarettes are cheap, lots of traffic and great winters.
If you guys liked the area and want out of the long winters, come on down.

[Mark and Lisa]

Well I do appreciate the reply and i see there is lots of traffic to contend with I do see that homes or apartments are up there in price. STIHL offered me a a decent relocation package with decent comps and benefits. And my wife may be flying down soon to talk with geico. So these are the positive things that r happening. I do like the idea of easy winters that are not to harsh versus what we get up here. I just bought a home here just under 1.5 yrs and now its on the market and homes here and not moving at all unless you cut the home value by 20% and thats taken a pretty good hit. It looks like i have to do some soul searching and figure what to do.....decissions decissions.....lol.

[amybeth79]

i am from va and i love it there i even loved the ocean front..people there are awsome and friendly. and i did not think crime was that bad at all.. I moved away 4 years ago when my hubby got out tof the navy to oklahoma and let me tell you this i miss va beach and the areas around it...

[VirginiaGirl]

Yes, we have lots of traffic, lots of tourists, and no public transportation but Virginia Beach has a lot of things to do for families and adults. Movies, bookstores, malls (two in Va Bch, three more nearby), shopping centers, historic houses/sites, museums, state park, beaches (quiet and busy), art festivals, music festivals, craft shows, car shows, boat shows, computer shows, antique shows, and more. They're in the process of finishing the new Sandler Center for the Performing Arts at Pembroke. On top of that, we're relatively close to lots of other things (30 min-1hour). Chrysler Hall, Scope (hockey and more), ODU basket ball, concerts (Amphitheater, Constant Hall). The historic triangle (Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown), Busch Gardens, Water Country USA, artsy Ghent (in Norfolk), big mall in Norfolk, military bases galore, some country type towns in surrounding counties. There's lots of things to get involved in from school activities to social volunteering, craft classes, cooking classes, and more. Just depends on what you're interested in and how far you want to go. There's 13 fire stations, 4 police precincts, several major hospitals, and lots of development. If you like a busy and boombing city, this is the place to be. If you're more the quiet home-town type, you may think about another area. The whole region here is growning. But, if this is the place you want to be: Welcome to Virginia Beach!

P.S. Fleas and ticks haven't been that bad as long as you keep up on the pet treatments. Mosquitos though, that's a whole 'nother ball game.

[Lethal_Poison]

Dont come to Virginia Beach unless you are an executive, and have a cushy 80k a year job waiting. Period. Average Joe cannot afford to live here. Companies will balk about paying over 30k, but as it was mentioned before, just a starter house in a decent neighborhood is going to run 250k+. If you come down here, drive through just about any neighborhood, and youll see 15 houses for sale. Nobody wants to stay here, and theyre dumping their overpriced houses, and getting out of dodge.

[ChessieMom]

Originally Posted by Lethal_Poison

Dont come to Virginia Beach unless you are an executive, and have a cushy 80k a year job waiting. Period. Average Joe cannot afford to live here. Companies will balk about paying over 30k, but as it was mentioned before, just a starter house in a decent neighborhood is going to run 250k+. If you come down here, drive through just about any neighborhood, and youll see 15 houses for sale. Nobody wants to stay here, and theyre dumping their overpriced houses, and getting out of dodge.

Good grief. Don't know why you think 80K is "cushy"!!! It ain't!!

Anyhooo...I live in Chesapeake, which is next door to Va Beach, and I am amazed at all the complaints. I go down to the beach during the summer, park just fine (yes you have to go in the morning to park close, but why is that surprising in a resort town???) I shop all over VB, manage the traffic just fine. Have you people never lived anywhere else?? I've lived in Southern Fla, and the DC area, and believe me, this area is great!!! I love the military presence, and there are endless local restaurants (certainly there are chains, but many many local spots!!). I work in VA Beach as well, so I am very familiar with the traffic and other issues. As far as housing, yes, $200K is rather low for a nice place, probably $250 is minimum.

You guys need to try it elsewhere for a while, then let's see how you feel.

[Lethal_Poison]

Originally Posted by ChessieMom

Good grief. Don't know why you think 80K is "cushy"!!! It ain't!!



You guys need to try it elsewhere for a while, then let's see how you feel.

Gladly. If I could ever save up enough money in this dump to move, I wouldnt hesitate for a second. Unfortunatley, my pittance wage hardly covers my basic neccesseties.