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Old 07-14-2012, 08:22 PM
 
6,343 posts, read 11,540,651 times
Reputation: 6312

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Pleasant Hill is its own little village with a school right across from the assisted living. There's a cafe next to the school and a dollar general out on the highway. There are cows grazing behind the post office - does that make it rural? The houses look like typical suburban houses with a wide range of ages from the 50s till now plus a few older houses.

The community runs vans into Crossville which has some of the typical sprawl stores, WM, KM, but no target.

 
Old 07-14-2012, 11:32 PM
 
Location: zippidy doo dah
915 posts, read 1,621,520 times
Reputation: 1992
Quote:
Originally Posted by creeksitter View Post
Oops it looks like I killed the thread. Was I rude for not introducing myself?

Are y'all aghast at the thought of a formal retirement community?

Rather not think about moving to TN?
no no - easily the most idea-adventurous/judgment free thread on city data
so nothing is off the table (or off the wall)

and welcome - formal intros not required but feel free to share your deepest secrets............

oh, and to everyone else, I have yet to weigh in on where I am just now and where I am going or trying to be and all that. /I started a response about a month or so ago when I was sitting in Richmond /maybe that was just two weeks ago - anyway back in richmond tomorrow or monday and maybe i'll get a breather to answer whatever the question was that was asked whenever it was asjked - wow one thirty in the morning - i'm giong to bed.............

Last edited by mzfroggez; 07-14-2012 at 11:35 PM.. Reason: fatigue
 
Old 07-15-2012, 10:12 AM
 
6,343 posts, read 11,540,651 times
Reputation: 6312
I just stumbled into the retirement forum recently and realized it applies to me because I am 56 and have been been semi-retired all my life!

I read many of the posts in the early part of the thread but obviously had to skip through most of it.

One thing occured to me is maybe I could use this thread to recruit some interesting neighbors. I live near downtown Knoxville (1 1/2 miles) in a neighborhood of smaller bungalows - mostly 700-1200 sf. Sorry, no bus service now, but there used to be and maybe we could lobby for getting it back. Rents run from $550-800/month for houses that are in good condition.

Right now the neighbors are working class people of all ages and college age students. Good people who may be sociable but they tend to have different interests than me.

For a while I had a neighbor my age who was an adjunct professor and while we didn't see eye to eye on some issues it was nice to have someone to pal around with.

I gather from this thread that most of y'all want a drier climate but if anyone is considering Knoxville now is the time to visit to see if you can handle the heat and humidity.

Moderator cut: snip

Last edited by Keeper; 07-16-2012 at 02:08 PM.. Reason: too much like soliciting
 
Old 07-16-2012, 03:53 AM
 
13 posts, read 189,986 times
Reputation: 61
It's been months since I've posted here, so lots of catch up to do in reading. But I thought I'd jump in for a bit and say that I *finally* bought a house on the other side of the US from here--in the most unlikely place for me to ever go: Flint, Michigan.

Truth be told, I'm going there for the house. I hate big cities, prefer the country absolutely, but the $2000 price tag on the Tudor fixer just captured me and held me prisoner until I negotiated a deal and paid for it (yes, you're reading that right, it's not a typo--I paid TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS for this beautiful 2000sqft, two story with attic and full basement Tudor house built in 1922, sitting on a well-groomed corner lot in what looks to be a nice clean neighborhood). Nevermind that I don't know anything about Flint, or Michigan, though I've done some homework and have a better idea of where I'm going.

The place is a fixer, just like Flint is a fixer after GM went bust. It's in dire need of restoration after its windows were all broken out and every fixture and scrap of copper stolen--i.e. wiring and accessible plumbing. Overall, though, the house is not in that bad of shape, and with a little professional help replacing windows and wiring, there is not that much else that I can't do myself. The roof is sound, the house very solid, and dare I say elegant even in its state of disrespect. If this house were anywhere else in the US of A, it would be worth a fortune. But because it is in Flint with it's extremely depressed economy (more than half of the city left when GM and other plants went bust) there are more houses than there are families to occupy them. If there ever was an unbelievable buyers market, Flint is the place.

This house is not the only one with such a giveaway price tag. There are literally hundreds of places available for next to nothing, and some of them are exceptional dwellings with style and grace. Granted, the extreme poverty of the area has increased crime a thousandfold, but one would think that if enough good people that had the means to live there without having a job for support could help the city re-imagine and rebuild itself into a better place.

So I'm leaving the farm here in Dairyville California and heading to Flint to restore one piece of that city. I'll record that epic here as it unfolds if that's okay with everyone. I'll even post pics of the future home before, during and after restoration (though I figure that is going to take some time and may never be truly finished *LOL*)

If anyone who lives in Flint reads this, if you have any suggestions of private contractors or skilled out-of-work good peeps that I can hire to help me, I'd *really* appreciate it!
 
Old 07-16-2012, 04:44 AM
 
Location: Edina, MN, USA
7,572 posts, read 9,000,633 times
Reputation: 17937
Quote:
Originally Posted by SoIrishly View Post
It's been months since I've posted here, so lots of catch up to do in reading. But I thought I'd jump in for a bit and say that I *finally* bought a house on the other side of the US from here--in the most unlikely place for me to ever go: Flint, Michigan.

Truth be told, I'm going there for the house. I hate big cities, prefer the country absolutely, but the $2000 price tag on the Tudor fixer just captured me and held me prisoner until I negotiated a deal and paid for it (yes, you're reading that right, it's not a typo--I paid TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS for this beautiful 2000sqft, two story with attic and full basement Tudor house built in 1922, sitting on a well-groomed corner lot in what looks to be a nice clean neighborhood). Nevermind that I don't know anything about Flint, or Michigan, though I've done some homework and have a better idea of where I'm going.

The place is a fixer, just like Flint is a fixer after GM went bust. It's in dire need of restoration after its windows were all broken out and every fixture and scrap of copper stolen--i.e. wiring and accessible plumbing. Overall, though, the house is not in that bad of shape, and with a little professional help replacing windows and wiring, there is not that much else that I can't do myself. The roof is sound, the house very solid, and dare I say elegant even in its state of disrespect. If this house were anywhere else in the US of A, it would be worth a fortune. But because it is in Flint with it's extremely depressed economy (more than half of the city left when GM and other plants went bust) there are more houses than there are families to occupy them. If there ever was an unbelievable buyers market, Flint is the place.

This house is not the only one with such a giveaway price tag. There are literally hundreds of places available for next to nothing, and some of them are exceptional dwellings with style and grace. Granted, the extreme poverty of the area has increased crime a thousandfold, but one would think that if enough good people that had the means to live there without having a job for support could help the city re-imagine and rebuild itself into a better place.

So I'm leaving the farm here in Dairyville California and heading to Flint to restore one piece of that city. I'll record that epic here as it unfolds if that's okay with everyone. I'll even post pics of the future home before, during and after restoration (though I figure that is going to take some time and may never be truly finished *LOL*)

If anyone who lives in Flint reads this, if you have any suggestions of private contractors or skilled out-of-work good peeps that I can hire to help me, I'd *really* appreciate it!
WOW!!! What a price and what a lot of guts you have - I'm very impressed Yes, keep us up to date as you go along. Some days you'll be thrilled and others you may want to rip your hair out - such is life when dealing with contractors & other repair people.

How did you happen to look in Flint?
 
Old 07-16-2012, 05:47 AM
 
6,343 posts, read 11,540,651 times
Reputation: 6312
How cool! It makes a lot of sense for retired people to move to Flint as jobs aren't the issue. Plus, keeping an irregular schedule cuts down on crime. You can certainly afford an alarm system.

Replace the plumbing with pex - less danger of freezing and it has no street value. And you're getting new wiring and windows - something you might want with an 80 yr old house anyway.
 
Old 07-16-2012, 07:04 AM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,939,523 times
Reputation: 15773
SoIrishly,

Great move, great idea. Retirees moving to places where jobs are not needed for them can make the depressed areas of our country come back. Fixing up places, paying taxes, bringing new people in, all good. Please do post pics. Also, a thought...if you need funds in fixing up the place, there may be grants available for that, such as weatherization. If it's in a historic district there may be funds for restoration. Maybe you could create a Flint blog, I bet you'll get followers all over the world...and maybe some contributions, too.
 
Old 07-16-2012, 08:17 AM
 
1,569 posts, read 3,397,785 times
Reputation: 943
SoIrishly - How exciting! Can't wait to hear how it goes and see pictures. Has anyone tried using Angieslist for local references?
 
Old 07-16-2012, 09:47 AM
 
Location: WA
2,829 posts, read 1,775,546 times
Reputation: 6770
SoIrishly,

As with the other Posters, am so happy for you and thank you for sharing such wonderful news!

Tudor homes, so enjoy them, as one Poster said, perhaps start a Flint blog and also check out the House Forum.
 
Old 07-16-2012, 01:12 PM
 
2,790 posts, read 6,110,610 times
Reputation: 2732
SoIrishly,
I too would love to see and hear about your progress with your house in Flint. I am still considering a move to Michigan when I retire. Please let us know if you decide to write a blog!
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