Why Did You Move Out Of Maryland.... (Odenton, Crofton: house prices, utilities)

[treu79]

And to think that all of the research I did to relocate soon is probably out the door. Interesting....so where is the best place to live? I want to get out of MN, cold, too much snow, and my body can not handle the weather here anymore. We need some place warmer. Thanks, Laurie

[vivo]

Originally Posted by Alexus

That is very kind of you. Your family's observations are indeed correct about the area. The weather is beautiful here. But at what price? Very expensive. Nice areas are highly sought after and very expensive. The somewhat affordable areas have problems like crime. Asians don't get along with Mexicans. Mexicans as a whole don't respect education. Asians are obsessed with high academic achievement, foregoing social interaction with non-asians in an intense quest to achieve top honors. Colleges are flooded with applications from asians with perfect GPAs and perfect entrance exam scores. To give the appearance of social interaction, many asians learn stringed instruments to play in orchestras. This way, they participate in a social, group activity where they don't have much verbal communication. The orchestras are great because they perform for audiences and sometimes at homeless shelters. Mexicans don't appear to respect Blacks and this is unfortunate. Gang activity is ever-present.

Employers of course want qualified employees for minimum pay. Indians have flooded the area to take many jobs and essentially keep to themselves. This is understandable though because they have undoubtedly encountered unwelcoming responses to the reality that they are taking jobs from qualified local residents, forcing those residents to either re-create themselves or leave. The result of all this is that a person who has lived here for almost 20 years, feels like he has moved to a foreign country as the population has been replaced by foreigners, asians, and indians. But the weather is nice.

I am preparing to leave, finishing up law school. I have made my fortune in this increasingly strange place. I was fortunate to have invested in real estate before the dot com boom and I could live very well for the rest of my life by moving to a cheaper area. In a couple of years, I will leave after I pass the CA bar exam. Not sure where I'll go, but something is pointing me back to the east coast (DC/MD/VA, Philly, NY, CT). Who knows? Maybe a visit there during the winter months will make me reconsider. I miss the interesting people back there though and I am increasingly feeling that it is where I belong.

Thanks for the well wishes.

hehe are u sure u won't find too many immigrants in some of those places? try the bmore area.

[Tom Lennox 70]

Alexus, I'm afraid Maryland, at least Montgomery County will be more and more like what you describe. I'm an assimilated Asian American who does have good grades, but though I'm good at biology, I'm even better at beer pong. I play some piano but suck at it while I listen almost exclusively to country music.

[RoadTripGurl]

nickluva I was told the same thing about the laid back atittude in SD from friends and family who have visited. Frankly i think people here are getting more and more aggressive and uptight.

[mom2boys37]

Originally Posted by RoadTripGurl

nickluva I was told the same thing about the laid back atittude in SD from friends and family who have visited. Frankly i think people here are getting more and more aggressive and uptight.

I agree totally

[Mont. Co. Princess]

Well I’m still here but the cost of living is ridiculous!

I love Montgomery County but I don’t believe in over accommodating to the point where we destroy all that is great about our county.

I’m definitely a suburban girl and I’m looking to move to a place that’s similar to the DC Metro area (population must be diverse, educated, open minded yet intolerant of riff raff) but A LOT more affordable.

Houston, Texas?

Phoenix, Arizona?

Raleigh, North Carolina?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Grizzmeister]

I now live just outside of Raleigh, NC in the little town of Wake Forest. Moved out of Maryland because I could read the writing on the wall and realized in 2003 that the area was becoming unaffordable to normal middle class people. Consider that my house in Crofton doubled to twice what I paid for it in less than ten years and you see the problem in a nutshell. While the price of my home doubled, my salary didn’t! Also, PEPCO and all the other utilities were threatening to increase their rates at a time when my house already seemed like an overpriced luxury. So I sold my 2500 sq ft house in Maryland and downsized to a new 2000 sq ft house near Raleigh and I have zero regrets.

When I look back at my last few years in Maryland, it’s almost as if I was living in a prison. Stress getting to work, stress at work and racial tension that is incomprehensible given the diversity of the area.

[Mike Jones 1999]

Originally Posted by Mont. Co. Princess

Well I’m still here but the cost of living is ridiculous!

I love Montgomery County but I don’t believe in over accommodating to the point where we destroy all that is great about our county.

I’m definitely a suburban girl and I’m looking to move to a place that’s similar to the DC Metro area (population must be diverse, educated, open minded yet intolerant of riff raff) but A LOT more affordable.

Houston, Texas?

Phoenix, Arizona?

Raleigh, North Carolina?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Try ATL, GA also..... cost of living is low, job market is ok, and you still have the "Metro" feel. My wife and I are counting the days down because I have to wind down my business. The cost of living here is a joke!

[Mont. Co. Princess]

Mike Jones 1999,

Thanks for the response. Any particular areas to consider that are affordable (homes below $200,000) yet populated by good, decent people?

I'm really trying to live way below my means. I'm in my early twenties and I've decided that living paycheck to paycheck is simply not the life for me.

[Mont. Co. Princess]

Grizzmeister,

It's good to hear that you're happy in Wake Forest, thanks for sharing.

I think one thing that's delaying my move is the fear that I'll hate my new state.