Possible move to Roanoke area from Ca. (home, live in)

[zugor]

Originally Posted by Lagreen63

You've all been very helpful...thank you so much. Zugor....moving from Ca. can you tell me why you chose to retire in Va. and what are the things you like about the area you are in?.

I had hoped to retire to the Sierra foothills near Mariposa, Sw of Yosemite but could not find any property that had year round surface water (pond or creek) for my labradors to enjoy at a price that I could afford. Found an ideal place but the price in 2004 was $1.2 million - just a tad out of my range.

Here I have 28 acres, with both a 1/3 acre farm pond and about 1,000 foot of nice creek running through the property, as well as a 2800 sq ft house and a 24 x 48 garage for less than a 1/3 of the place near Mariposa. Summertime high temps are not as high here as they tend to be up in Mariposa and I've discovered that I can not tolerate the heat as well as I did in my younger years. Brief afternoon rains and thunderstorms often cool things down for a bit.

Country life agrees with me and I'm content with what life here has to offer - except for the lack of Chinese food near home - LOL. There are a couple of good places in Roanoke and Radford that I've found and so if I'm in the area I make a point of eating there.

I got involved with the local humane society and most of my friendships stem from that so I do have a bit of social life. Making new friends had been a bit of a concern and the fact that I came here from CA and had grown up in NY was not much of a problem.

[loveautumn]

I live in CA too and have checked out lots of areas in VA, most of which ended up being too high COL for me. I love Virginia and the vibe there. Roanoke is certainly a reasonable COL and beautiful mountains nearby. You're kind of used to a more isolated area anyway since you live in Palm Desert. If you can stand the heat there, you'll be OK in Roanoke.

Not to change lanes here, but have you thought about Boise ID. It's similar to Palm Desert in that there is alot of desert landscape surrounding Boise. They get 4 seasons but not terribly extreme. You might want to check out Eagle or Meridian on line.

[Lagreen63]

Thanks guys!!, I'll look into those towns.

When I lived in Mich for 10 years, the dogs were plagued with fleas. Are fleas a problem there as well?.

Sorry for all the questions. I think we'll have to make several trips over the next few years. A visit during each season to get a better feel for the Virginia climate and lifestyle.

[Lagreen63]

Loveautumn, thank you for the suggestion about Idaho. I may look into that, but I am leaning more towards moving out of the "desert". Have lived in the desert for over 15 years, and miss the color "green"
BTW I didn't think the COL was very high in Va. compared to Ca. Are you talking Northern Va.?.

[Lagreen63]

Wow, your place sounds wonderful!. We have a lot in common. I too am a dog lover, and love the outdoor, lifestyle. I hike or bike with my dogs almost every day, and am looking into volunteering at the Palm Springs Animal Shelter as soon as their next orientation comes around.
Are fleas a problem out there?. I haven't seen fleas since moving to the desert from Mich over 15yrs. ago.

[zugor]

Sad to say but YES, fleas are a problem here and a number of the local vets are recommending that we go to dosing with Frontline Plus every 3 weeks, not once a month. So that means an extra 5 doses per year.

Deer ticks a a problem year round too and they carry Lyme's - two of my dogs have come down with it. Both made a good recovery but I upped my dosing to the recommended 3 week interval. So far heart worms are not very common here but the number of cases has grown a tiny bit, mostly it's been in dogs that have moved up here from further south. I think my vet said she had 6 cases last year.

Lagreen - how soon can you be here - we need more animal lovers here who want to help make life a little better for the homeless critters as we work to find them them new forever homes. Think you'd like to live in a county with one traffic light, 15,000 people and about 40,000 cows? Disclosure: occasionally some cows who have decided that the grass is greener on the other side do bust out of a pasture and cause a bit of a traffic jam. Common courtesy is that everyone stops their trucks and helps the farmer round them up.

[Lagreen63]

Hmmm...disappointed to hear about the ticks and fleas. I remember living in Mich. and having to bomb the house a couple of times because I was being bitten :-/

zugor, your town sounds great!. I actually did a search to see what is available (and affordable) in that area.

What ever area we end up in, I am not looking to spend more then 250,000 on a smaller home in a nice area, where I don't have to be apprehensive about walking my dogs at night. Hiking/biking trails close by. Small, dog friendly towns to visit on occasion.

Can't wait for our first visit!!.

[Life'sABeach]

I have two cats and two dogs, and have had no problem with fleas or ticks. The dogs are on Sentinel year round and the cats get a few rounds of Frontline in the summer in case one of the dogs happens to carry a flea inside with him.

As far as the area goes, I love living in the city. The area where we live is family-friendly with tree lined streets, and very quiet. The neighbors are great. We're close to everything. Just minutes from Valley View Mall, downtown, restaurants, movies, the civic center, etc. My husband and I both work in the SML area, so we're familiar with it as well. If you're looking for land, SML is your best bet. However, there aren't many neighborhoods with sidewalks and street lamps to walk your dogs at night (none that I've seen, as we're house hunting as well - the 90 minute daily commute is wearing on us both). The congestion in SML certainly picks up in the summer months, but not enough to deter me from living there. That said, if our current home wasn't so far from work, we wouldn't be moving at all.

[loveautumn]

yes, I was referring to NoVa primarily. Loved Leesburg area but now it's very expensive to live. I visited the west side of Richmond last fall (Glenn Allen, Short Pump, Midlothian areas) and really liked it. Richmond area is still pretty good COL as far as Virginia goes but it is growing area so prices are increasing too. Glenn Allen is good because you have all the amenities you could want (Short Pump area) and then in about 5 minutes you're out in the middle of a pretty rural area. Housing prices vary, so there seems to be something for everybody.

Housing prices in Virginia (except for NoVa and close to DC) are do-able especially compared to California. We are so used to those inflated prices.

You might also research Winchester, which is more north than Roanoke. Smaller town I think but basically a closer drive to NoVa and the amenities offered there.

I know how you feel, when I retire I have to live someplace green!

[Lagreen63]

Life'sAbeach, are you in the SML area?.