May be moving from NJ to Jellico, TN, Good idea or not? (Knoxville: sales, real estate market)
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I think most of us here understand what you're saying and no one suggested that you drive around before finding a "temporary" residence. The suggestion was to rent and "drive around" while renting/living in the Knoxville/Knox County area. We're just offering our personal experiences to help you and steer you away from making the same mistakes we made and/or offering success stories from our moves.
We hear lots of reasons people don't want to rent. I, for one, understand totally and that was EXACTLY my thinking when I first moved to TN. I HATE the thought of renting. But never again will I move to an unfamiliar area without renting first.
Let me, again, stress that this area is quite different from what you are accustomed. It's (probably) unlikely that your neighbor will blast the Grateful Dead at all hours - possibly George Jones or Kenny Chesney - just kidding . And I can't think of any area that traffic noise will be the problem you described. Maybe if your property backed I-4 or I-75, but still very little or no horn-honking I think, overall, noise is probably a minimal problem/consideration unless you're somewhere in a close-quarters, small lot, subdivision.
And, yes, there ARE many places to rent that accept dogs AND have a garage - especially if you want to extend your area beyond Knox County. Personally, in your situation, that's exactly what I would be searching for, but to each his own. A weekend visit to pick an area, find a house to buy and move to outside Knox County scares the beejeebees out of me. Just remember, that when you purchase property you are pretty much "stuck" for a while if it happens that you don't like the area. When you find great deals, extremely overall low prices in an area - there's usually a pretty good reason(s) and it's not usually good.
I don't care if they give you a house in Jellico. Unless you have some sort of steady income - like disability, something the locals rely on - you are not going to live.
You have to understand that whatever you do, it will not affect the people on this forum in any way. We will go on with our lives. But it will be a terrible shame for you to buy a house out in the middle of nowhere and not be able to get a job. How much money is that going to save you? None. Right. You will lose money.
I do understand your dilemma. I was in the same boat six years ago. We took 10 days to look around and were almost broke doing that. We rapidly figured out that we would go where the jobs were. Still, we ended up renting on the Knox County border, off of Raccoon Valley Road, in the north.
Even though I'm from a small town of 12,000 in the northeast I realized this wasn't for us. After three years we bought a house in the city limits. My surroundings look exactly like the small town I hail from.
Further, Knoxville is the most dog-friendly city in the country. Seriously! Okay, it's pet friendly. But it's really geared toward dogs. Wait until you see how many dog parks we have. Or go downtown. You'll never see so many dogs in your life.
You can find a rental, a house or an apartment that will accept pets and is what you need.
We see this all the time. People look for a cheap house in the middle of nowhere, hoping that they can somehow swing the cost of living. It's a great idea on paper. It really is and almost all of us thought of it at one time or another.
When I was a real estate agent I use to tell people to rent first all the time. My guess is I was far too honest. Those agents are going to tell you what you want to hear. But you asked for our opinions and we told you the reality.
Check out Knoxville. The cost of living is really great. And find a job. You haven't mentioned what you do, yet.
Seriously. Find a job in our area first, then find a place to live. I don't say "never" but the chances of any of you getting a job in Jellico or anywhere near there are slim to none.
OK, agreed, but the Drag Strip is in Kentucky about a 45 minute drive north of Jellico. The one you mentioned is only 1/8 mile track, not 1/4 mile, huge difference. My only other option is the Bristol area, which I have not ruled out yet either.
Like I said, I'm in no way tied to Jellico, The house just seemed to fit the bill. But I'm in no big hurry to have the worst scenes of "Deliverance" come to life either! lol
BTW As I had mentioned in my OP, my job, and NJ salary, come with me. I work from home via the Internet. So job availability is not a problem at the moment.
OK, agreed, but the Drag Strip is in Kentucky about a 45 minute drive north of Jellico. The one you mentioned is only 1/8 mile track, not 1/4 mile, huge difference. My only other option is the Bristol area, which I have not ruled out yet either.
Like I said, I'm in no way tied to Jellico, The house just seemed to fit the bill. But I'm in no big hurry to have the worst scenes of "Deliverance" come to life either! lol
BTW As I had mentioned in my OP, my job, and NJ salary, come with me. I work from home via the Internet. So job availability is not a problem at the moment.
...he said while he had a job in the midst of the worst economic downturn in 70+ years...
You are extremely fortunate to have work and a good salary to bring with you. However, there are 100,000s of people who purchased their homes while employed, lost their job, and are now in dire straights. Current employment is NO guarantee for the future. Employment opportunity should always be a location consideration even if you are currently employed. What if, 6 months, a year, or two years down the road you lose your job and you're in Boondoggle, TN?
This is someone speaking who has lived in Knoxville, via Boondoggle, and is now back in Boondoggle, speaking to one thinking of moving to Boondoggle. And, I had a job when I moved to Boondoggle... not so easy now...
The point is moot. There is no way that Jellico has high-speed internet.
I compared Edison, NJ to Jellico, TN. Wow.
Edison household median income $80,581
Edison family median income $92,451.
Jellico household median income $20,303
Jellico family median income $25,709
Of course, that's hardly fair since cost of living is very different. But there is a point to be made regarding poverty level and that will affect the community.
Edison: About 3.3% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.
Jellico: About 28.8% of families and 31.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 45.3% of those under age 18 and 23.2% of those age 65 or over.
Population: 99,967
Jellico population: 2,448
Now we haven't mentioned that the area is coal country, one of the most poverty-stricken in the country. Forty-five minutes to the north, you say? That area just might be worse. That's a dry area. Have any idea what that means? You won't be drinking your Budweiser at that strip, probably. I'm not sure about Jellico. But that is the buckle of The Bible Belt. It's the headquarters for The Church of God Mountain Assembly.
We're all looking for a deal but you almost always get what you pay for. There are no shortcuts.
There's a woman on this forum from Maryland. She retired to Oak Ridge after extensive research. In fact, she was a researcher for the feds. She has a theory that people tend to do well in an area similar to what they are use to. You can change some of your parameters but in the end if you go to far out of your comfort zone you will be miserable.
I believe that.
I'm from the northeast and don't care for a lot of the people up there. I was looking for something different, something more Mayberryish. And I found it. But one day I looked at my surroundings and realized I had bought my piano teacher's house. It looks almost exactly like the house I learned how to play piano in, albeit, 700 miles away. And the neighborhood looks like hers, too.
So in the end I got my friendlier neighbors, better weather, great cost of living, but I didn't stray too far out of my comfort zone.
You want less traffic, less of the rat race. Understood. But are you willing to move to that area, one of the most economically hard-scrabble in the country?
I have a friend from Harlan County, Kentucky and his life would curl your hair. He's gay so you can just imagine how that went.
And I have another friend that was born and raised in Clinton, TN to a wonderful Baptist minister. He tells me that he's afraid that his car will break down in that area when driving through. He tells of the meth labs and pot farms growing in the caves up there, of the guy that was found hung up there with a bullet in his back that was determined to be a suicide. And he's a very intelligent man.
I'm not going to belabor this. We are all adults. You asked for our opinions and we gave them. Best of luck to you in all of your endeavors.
[quote=TN Gal now;19603540
What if, 6 months, a year, or two years down the road you lose your job and you're in Boondoggle, TN?
[/quote]
I'm sorry to hear of your situation and I hope things turn around for you soon. But can ask you, while you were employed, where you happier in knox or in boondoggle?
Because what if I don't lose my job? I should spend the rest of my days living somewhere I hate on a "what if"?
I understand what your saying, that anything can happen and one should always be prepared just in case something like that should happen.
Nobody knows what the future holds for any of us. But living life miserable is no life, and right now my wife and I are miserable living here.
I'm sorry to hear of your situation and I hope things turn around for you soon. But can ask you, while you were employed, where you happier in knox or in boondoggle?
Because what if I don't lose my job? I should spend the rest of my days living somewhere I hate on a "what if"?
I understand what your saying, that anything can happen and one should always be prepared just in case something like that should happen.
Nobody knows what the future holds for any of us. But living life miserable is no life, and right now my wife and I are miserable living here.
You are not hearing us. Knoxville is in no way New Jersey. Not even close.
In fact, I hate to speak for TNGalNow but she's selling her house in that small town and moving to Knoxville because of the quality of life. She use to live here and she loved it.
The point is moot. There is no way that Jellico has high-speed internet.
I compared Edison, NJ to Jellico, TN. Wow.
Edison household median income $80,581
Edison family median income $92,451.
Jellico household median income $20,303
Jellico family median income $25,709
Of course, that's hardly fair since cost of living is very different. But there is a point to be made regarding poverty level and that will affect the community.
Edison: About 3.3% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.
Jellico: About 28.8% of families and 31.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 45.3% of those under age 18 and 23.2% of those age 65 or over.
Population: 99,967
Jellico population: 2,448
Now we haven't mentioned that the area is coal country, one of the most poverty-stricken in the country. Forty-five minutes to the north, you say? That area just might be worse. That's a dry area. Have any idea what that means? You won't be drinking your Budweiser at that strip, probably. I'm not sure about Jellico. But that is the buckle of The Bible Belt. It's the headquarters for The Church of God Mountain Assembly.
We're all looking for a deal but you almost always get what you pay for. There are no shortcuts.
There's a woman on this forum from Maryland. She retired to Oak Ridge after extensive research. In fact, she was a researcher for the feds. She has a theory that people tend to do well in an area similar to what they are use to. You can change some of your parameters but in the end if you go to far out of your comfort zone you will be miserable.
I believe that.
I'm from the northeast and don't care for a lot of the people up there. I was looking for something different, something more Mayberryish. And I found it. But one day I looked at my surroundings and realized I had bought my piano teacher's house. It looks almost exactly like the house I learned how to play piano in, albeit, 700 miles away. And the neighborhood looks like hers, too.
So in the end I got my friendlier neighbors, better weather, great cost of living, but I didn't stray too far out of my comfort zone.
You want less traffic, less of the rat race. Understood. But are you willing to move to that area, one of the most economically hard-scrabble in the country?
I have a friend from Harlan County, Kentucky and his life would curl your hair. He's gay so you can just imagine how that went.
And I have another friend that was born and raised in Clinton, TN to a wonderful Baptist minister. He tells me that he's afraid that his car will break down in that area when driving through. He tells of the meth labs and pot farms growing in the caves up there, of the guy that was found hung up there with a bullet in his back that was determined to be a suicide. And he's a very intelligent man.
I'm not going to belabor this. We are all adults. You asked for our opinions and we gave them. Best of luck to you in all of your endeavors.
Oh, and you have no idea how much I appreciate all the information. This is exactly what I was looking for.
OK, well the Crime thing is a bigger problem to me than anything else. So I'm convinced, Jellico is out.
I must say though, the prospect of going from nearly 100,00 people to less than 3,000 is very appealing. In my book, less is more where people are concerned.
But it is depressing seeing that I make only about half of the average for my area. No wonder I'm so broke living here!
BTW - I do know what a dry county is. Since I gave up drinking 18 years ago, that wouldn't be a problem to me at all.
I should have added a smiley face to the "I really am done now" statement. It sounded like I was ticked off and I'm not.
Okay, I really am done now.
Gawd, I'm strange.
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. And I can't think of any area that traffic noise will be the problem you described. Maybe if your property backed I-4 or I-75, but still very little or no horn-honking 
I think, overall, noise is probably a minimal problem/consideration unless you're somewhere in a close-quarters, small lot, subdivision. 
lol
