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The trend with aging is to live in Less, less big house, less big grass to take care and just less...and I've lived this way for over 50 yrs and can't imagine needing MORE. I live my city as it's got everything, stores close by and nice people around to see and chat with in our complex.
You want BIG, move to Texas...and more house in AZ and even NV for less money.
The trend with aging is to live in Less, less big house, less big grass to take care and just less...and I've lived this way for over 50 yrs and can't imagine needing MORE. I live my city as it's got everything, stores close by and nice people around to see and chat with in our complex.
You want BIG, move to Texas...and more house in AZ and even NV for less money.
I agree. I have an acre and a half. A big 1929 arts and crafts type home and i am planning on giving that up and moving into a semi small house. No yard work, etc.
But i'm staying here in my small country town! I love the slow pace.
I never said the people in working-class towns were bad. In fact, I respect the hard physical work they dod and how down to earth they are. But a town that is wealthy and full of college-educated professionals have a different vibe. Opera and fine dining vs Nascar. French Food and Saks Firth Avenue vs Burger King and Walmart. You get the idea!
Why do you keep starting these kinds of threads boasting about yourself and how you need to decide living within a working class or upper class neighborhood?
Me thinks your mom needs to monitor your internet usage a little closer
I agree. I have an acre and a half. A big 1929 arts and crafts type home and i am planning on giving that up and moving into a semi small house. No yard work, etc.
But i'm staying here in my small country town! I love the slow pace.
When I think of my life living back East before I came West, and everyone's house had Huge yards, lots of grass and weeds to take care and I scratch my head about it all now. It is so normal back East. If one wants to have their own veggie gardens that is wonderful Nothing like home grown anything. Here we have orange and lemon and other fruit trees.
Why do you keep starting these kinds of threads boasting about yourself and how you need to decide living within a working class or upper class neighborhood?
Me thinks your mom needs to monitor your internet usage a little closer
Who cares, does NOT impress me. Lots of money made in today's working classes.
I moved from one KC suburb to another after retirement. Town #1 is over-developed, shop-till-you-drop, clogged with chain restaurants. Too many traffic lights and I always hit every one when it's red. (Still have doctor, dentist and other things there.)
Town #2 has 1/3 the rate of college educated adults over 25 that Town #1 does. Higher proportion of younger people. Seven Dollar-type stores (Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, etc.) in a town of less than 10 square miles. Schools are so-so. My neighborhood is a slightly out-of-place enclave built around a lake, on a cul-de-sac. Homes are architect's originals but still reasonably priced. I LOVE my house and the neighborhood.
Good things: less traffic, we DO have a good library and some good grocery stores although specialty places such as Whole Foods and Costco are further away. So are any decent restaurants, but I don't eat out a lot.
Drawbacks: most residents are less prosperous and tax increases get voted down because people just don't have the money. The police force has had to cut its numbers. While violent crime seems to be restricted to drug deals gone bad rather than attacks on strangers, your car may be broken into if you leave it out at night and mailbox theft (and fraudulent use of checks and information obtained) have been going on for years. I never leave anything sensitive in outgoing mail and never leave incoming mail in my box overnight. It's a real PITA. Crime has been a problem at the nearby Wal-Mart, where there's a bus stop going between there and KC. While it's been good for people who work there and who come in looking for lower prices, there's also a lot of crime, drug use and panhandling by the homeless nearby. It takes up a lot of our limited police resources. I avoid that area. I suppose the house won't sell as easily when I'm ready for that because the schools aren't well-regarded.
So- keep looking. You might find an area that gives you what you want, wth drawbacks you can tolerate.
Both towns are working class. One has a higher average income than the other. Just because someone puts on a white shirt in the morning before leaving the house, it doesn't make them wealthy, privileged or special. Skin color also doesn't fit into the narrative and why you would bring it up is beyond me.
BTW, I'm pretty sure the guy who drives the garbage truck in my city probably makes a lot more money than the teller at the local bank wearing a white shirt. The guy driving the trash truck also gets a nice pension.
Yep.
I know a guy who operates a large crane, makes 190k per year with benefits to die for. Has time for hobbies and family.
It depends on what you mean by working class neighborhood. In some it means neighbor's RV parked in front of your house regularly, dogs running loose & pooping in your yard, neighbor working on a car in his driveway for months, cars parked on neighbor's front lawn and/or always in front of your house due to adult children living there with their families, trash blowing into your yard, barking dogs throughout the night, etc. Also only chain restaurants & big box shopping. If that's it, no thanks.
My wife and I are always driving around trying to find the perfect town for retirement in a few years.
We decided that it would be nice to have a larger home and at least a quarter acre of land with grass and trees, instead of the cramped townhouse we are living in today because it is the only place we can afford in our white-collar dominated high cost of living community. We live in Bethesda MD.
Because we live in a suburban city that has excellent demographics (Rich people), we get many of the benefits. We get: Well laid out neighborhoods, lots of trees and professional landscaping, great schools, wonderful libraries, parks, low crime and tons of shopping and restaurants.
But in retirement, we could get twice the home at nearly half the price if we moved to a "working class" community outside the Washington Metro Area. For example, Roanoke VA is a nice enough town but has fewer nice restaurants, poorer schools, less landscaping, rougher looking neighborhoods, less shopping, poorer libraries, more poverty, and social problems. There are some nice neighborhoods but the community does not offer as much as our current hometown of Bethesda MD.
When I have traveled to working-class communities, like Roanoke, I am so happy to see such nice folks and their lack of ego and friendly personality.
BUT THE HOME WE COULD GET AT HALF THE PRICE and the money we could save for travel and hobbies.
Sounds like you want to move into a comparable home at half the price. Not a 2x home at equal price.
So, you want to liquidate half your current equity for spending money that will never return. I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that.
My take? Rework your budget or find a way to add income to support travel and hobbies.
Retirees are moving to Nevada from California to release the equity from their homes. They end up with a nicer house that’s much cheaper and they have money in the bank. Some people in the trades make more money than people with advanced college degrees depending on the field. Ask me how I know ((:
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