Anyone from MA know about Murfreesboro, TN (Salem, Florida: fit in, sale)

[Troyty]

Hi, I'm from Salem, MA.. moved to So. Florida a few years ago(4 years). Want to move out of this area. We considered moving back home, but realized it's just too expensive for our family of four. We came close to moving to Cary, NC. we loved it there, but our sale of house here (FL) backed out. Now we are considering Murfreesboro, TN. Outside of Nashivlle. We've heard great things, the cost of living is less than NC and much less than home(MA) - just thought I would ask if any one here knows of the area, how a Northerner would fit in there, any thoughts would be appreciated.

[michael.willers]

It all depends on what you like...

I am living in New Haven, CT, now -- I am a transplanted Southerner, having grown up in Nashville until the age of 18 years, and now I have lived in New England/New York for the last 17 years.

My mother now lives in Murfreesboro. It used to be beautiful farm land, but is now a developer's heaven, for the most part -- most of the family farms are getting eaten up for cookie-cutter houses. A lot of families who work in Nashville are moving there, despite the fact that the commute is an hour long, with quite significant traffic along the interstate into Nashville during rush hour, and there is no public transportation to speak of. Tennessee as a whole is quite culturally and politically conservative -- Nashville is one of a very few exceptions, but Murfreesboro follows the rule. If you don't go to church, you are in the minority there. Bush/Cheney probably enjoyed no more solid support in the 2004 election (and for the most part still do) than in Murfreesboro. Personally, as I enjoy the open-minded cultural climate of the Northeast and the diversity of the population up here, I would find Murfreesboro quite difficult to live in -- but again, as I said at the beginning, it really depends on your viewpoint and who you are. I hope this helps!