Kentucky vs. West Virginia, pros & cons of both? (Lexington: low crime, house)

[nightwishfan]

I'm planning to move to one of these states when I'm done with my elementary ed. degree (Virginia *might* be an option too). I've visited WV a couple of times, but mainly only the Wheeling area. Since KY and WV are neighbors, perhaps you can post what you feel are some general pros and cons of each state (or just one of them if you know very little of the other). I have a ton of other questions, but this is a good one for starters. Thanks!

[dixiegirl7]

If you are going into the field of education, West Virginia ranks 48th in teacher's pay. Kentucky's is better with a relatively low cost of living at 35th place.

[kentuckydad95]

I would pick Virginia, but that's me.

Dixie, is KY ranked 35th in cost of living or 35th in teachers pay?

[bw87a]

yeah, i'm sure kentucky is ranked very near the top for cost of living (cause it's really low here).

[dixiegirl7]

Originally Posted by kentuckydad95

I would pick Virginia, but that's me.

Dixie, is KY ranked 35th in cost of living or 35th in teachers pay?

35th in teachers pay, Virginia is ranked about 33rd but the cost of living is more than Kentucky.

[nightwishfan]

I'm not too worried about pay. the cost of housing in most parts of WV that I've seen, and some parts of KY, are still lower than housing in rural northern NM, for the type of house I'd like (OLD). So teacher pay is not a big decider for me. Quality of schools overall, progressiveness, etc. however does play a part.

I've heard from some sources on these forums that KY schools are actually ranked really low, but I've also read sources on these forums, and on outside sites that some of their schools are really spectacular (such as in Lexington). It's rather confusing! I haven't heard a lot about WV schools yet, except that many are cutting budgets from losing students (so maybe not the best place for a teacher to look for a job).

So what other pros and cons do these states have? If you were (or are) planning on moving to one of these, which would it be and why? For example, I currently live outside a very small town in Northern NM. Some pros are it's beautiful, clean, very low crime, and lower cost of living. Cons, it's a 30 mile drive to the closest grocery store, and 100 miles to any other major stores, there's very little room for dating (there's literally like 3 single men anywhere near my age group in a 20 mile radius), the closest college is 100 miles away, and the population while friendly, isn't very pop. culturally diverse.

It seems somethings between the two states are quite similar, such as climate, scenery, and cost of living to an extent. What are some ways they are not the same?

[Blue Grass Fever]

Originally Posted by nightwishfan

I'm planning to move to one of these states when I'm done with my elementary ed. degree (Virginia *might* be an option too). I've visited WV a couple of times, but mainly only the Wheeling area. Since KY and WV are neighbors, perhaps you can post what you feel are some general pros and cons of each state (or just one of them if you know very little of the other). I have a ton of other questions, but this is a good one for starters. Thanks!

Since you asked for general pros and cons, i think i can give my two cents. ...

First, i used to live in southeastern Kentucky. Also spent alot of time around Huntington, W.V. all the way down through Logan, W.V. My good friend was from that area of W.V. so i somewhat got to know W.V. intimately over time.

Both are geared towards outdoors, at least that general vicinity within the states. A big pro, at least in my book. It's generally scenic through-out the areas mentions, (a pro) but people tend to be litter-bugs in both states, which pisses me off. (a con) Such a beautiful area to dump on. Both areas have a religious fervor (see the Baptist denomination and the 50,000 variations through-out ) in the air about, but doesn't bother me. ( a pro, IMO) There is a homogenous culture within the area. (pro and con) It can get really hairy riding the back mountain roads with the coal trucks and drunk drivers, unfortunately. (a con) Think about going through a horseshoe-bend on the road not knowing what lies ahead, it definitely takes some time to get used to.

Well, i'll cut it short here for now. Just a few to get started....

[nightwishfan]

Originally Posted by Blue Grass Fever

Think about going through a horseshoe-bend on the road not knowing what lies ahead, it definitely takes some time to get used to.

That sounds like my area of NM, though we have oil trucks. Though it helps that they all have tall orange flags mounted on their trucks.

Outdoors activities are always a plus. I could do without religious fervor, but I'm aware that area of the country is predominantly Christian. I actually live in a very conservative (politically and religiously) town now, and because it is such a *very* small community, pretty much everyone knows that I'm pagan, but we are all friendly to each other, and I didn't have trouble landing a local job. While it would definitely be nice to live in an area where there are at least a handful of similarly minded people in the beliefs sector, I know that might be hard to find in some of these areas. So, as long as myself and my children aren't threatened or harassed if our beliefs come up, I'm sure we'll get along fine . I have no problem respecting the beliefs of others, as long as they respect mine.

[censusdata]

WV's overall economy is much worse. Since 2000 WV has only grew by 0.6% (a net increase of 10,000 people) while Kentucky has grown by 4.1% (a net increase of 164,000 people). KY also offers much larger metro areas. The Louisville and Lexington Metros alone have nearly as many people as WV.

Kentucky QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

[InLondon]

I think Kentucky is more beautiful. The land varies greatly here compared to West Virginia. Kentucky has horse farms, mountains in the East, rolling hills and flat land.