Retirement: Very Small Houses as Opposed to Condo or CCRC (tax, place)
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Time to find a small undiscovered town somewhere with a low profile. I'm truly sick of lifestyle places including those around me.
I know where you are coming from, but, I have found over the years it was real nice living in or near a resort town, not tourist, but" summer people" type of setting. Ya we paid a little more for basics, but no crime or small children to contend with ether. It can be nice living around the wealthy who had summer homes in our hills. many a time the benefits were great places to eat, theater, other activities only subscribed to by the rich. ....Striking a happy balance is hard to find at affordable prices for those of us who spent it all living, now we search for that whole to crawl into for the remaining years. I wish I was Canadian, there are some really nice small towns and cities , especially in BC on the Pacific Rim that I would kill to be able to live out my sun setting years in friendly, liberal solitude.
Hickory, North Carolina is kind of on the brink of discovery, I think. It's pretty close to Asheville and other attractions in the NC mountains--but not so high in elevation as to get the snow and ice in winter.
Value is there. Take a look at this cutey for $79,900. Could use a bit of updating (look at the colors of tile in one of the bathrooms), but lovely arches and woodwork. Even a workshop.
Hickory, North Carolina is kind of on the brink of discovery, I think. It's pretty close to Asheville and other attractions in the NC mountains--but not so high in elevation as to get the snow and ice in winter.
Value is there. Take a look at this cutey for $79,900. Could use a bit of updating (look at the colors of tile in one of the bathrooms), but lovely arches and woodwork. Even a workshop.
Hickory, North Carolina is kind of on the brink of discovery, I think. It's pretty close to Asheville and other attractions in the NC mountains--but not so high in elevation as to get the snow and ice in winter.
Value is there. Take a look at this cutey for $79,900. Could use a bit of updating (look at the colors of tile in one of the bathrooms), but lovely arches and woodwork. Even a workshop.
I have known several people who moved to Hickory. Yes housing is cheaper there, but when the mills were running making furniture, not so much.There are a lot of older homes that need fixing up.
When the weather fronts come in strong, Hickory can get a lot of snow, more so Ice. I-40 can be a dangerous road, its always packed. If someone likes the area I would rather pick Lenoir, NC. Much nicer, cooler in summer, gateway to the Mts. to the northwest which is some real high less traveled country, up around Linville, etc.... Asheville is always a good pick, and they do not get real bad winters as a rule. Its one of the few Liberal bastions in the South ! I lived in Highlands for 18 years, we DID get many horrid winters at 4,100 feet.Long Falls were great though, something I miss here in upper Mi.we go from summer right into winter most years. So far mild here, no snow.
Hickory, North Carolina is kind of on the brink of discovery, I think. It's pretty close to Asheville and other attractions in the NC mountains--but not so high in elevation as to get the snow and ice in winter.
Value is there. Take a look at this cutey for $79,900. Could use a bit of updating (look at the colors of tile in one of the bathrooms), but lovely arches and woodwork. Even a workshop.
Hickory is about 75 miles from Asheville - 60 miles from Charlotte - and 70 miles from Winston-Salem. There are a ton of dinky little towns like this in North Carolina. And the houses there aren't good value at all - because they're not tourist/second home towns - and there are few if any jobs to speak of that would attract young people. I mean how is a small place that's almost 70 years old in a town in the middle of nowhere a good value at this price? And one thing I'd wager a good deal on is that this house is being sold because someone old got sick or died - and that not much maintenance has been done in the last 20+ years. Also note that places that are not in the western NC mountains are hot as heck all summer - worse than Florida. Plus - they get ice storms in the winter (IMO - ice storms are worse than snow storms - although I'd rather deal with neither).
FWIW - I used to spend a lot of time in NC (my late in-laws had a house in Southern Pines - which is next to Pinehurst). Southern Pines is probably a lot less dreary than Hickory - but we still had a heck of a time selling my in-laws' much nicer/newer house on a much larger/nicer lot there in 2003 or so (we eventually sold it as a "fixer upper" to a military couple from Fort Bragg). Robyn
Well, since the thread is about affordable housing--and small homes--in retirement, I don't think jobs are a criteria...I've always enjoyed my stays in Hickory..and yes, it could use a renaissance but it has quite a bit of cuteness. But your mileage may vary...
My current house is 1200 square feet. Including the house I grew up in, it's the largest house I've ever lived in. "Downsizing" would be about 700 to 800 square feet, two bedrooms and one bath. Maybe a basement, if my knees are still in order.
Before choosing an undiscovered town anywhere I would be sure to check out what is available to do in that town, especially if it is a final destination. While some of us do not need many of the "amenities" of lifestyle places like Portland OR, there ought to be some rudimentary forms of entertainment that is your style. My little town has the college, an excellent bookstore, and a small movie theater. If I want symphony, jazz, opera, chamber music, theater I would go to Boston or Hartford or into NYC for the weekend; however many of the college campuses bring in top quality performing artists on occasion. A small town that is accessible to a metro (with reputable medical facilities) but not close enough to be that expensive would be a good bet.
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