Rural/semi rural areas outside Roanoke & Salem?

[kabinda]

I live in Thaxton/Montvale which is in Bedford county. Honestly, if you want the rural life, I suppose it is not bad, the people are friendly and fairly relaxed. But, if you want to live on enough acreage to keep a horse, be prepared to live at least 10 - 15 miles from anywhere. Bedford city and county both have very affordable homes with acreage for sale and to rent. We own a home in the Montvale elementary area and we do have a horse on our land. But finding decent employment can be a bit of a challenge. The schools are OK. Public transportation is almost non-existent in the county, so a car is an absolute must. I think Bedford city has some, and I know Roanoke city has some. As far as other amenities such as high speed internet, unless you live closer to the main road, dial up or satellite is pretty much what your going to get. Electricity used to be MUCH MUCH cheaper, but in the past couple of years, both the local electric companies (AEP and Southside) have had their rates go through the roof. Car insurance is still much lower than other places I have lived. I can't say what the water bills are like since my home is on a well, which is very commonplace when you live in the rural/semi rural areas. Weather isn't too bad, we did have a rough winter, but this year was an exception. However, since we are not as prepared (budget wise and other. . .) to remove snow and ice from our roads, our schools are much quicker to close because of poor winter weather conditions. As far as activities for the family, Virginia is pretty good. We have a terrific state park system, and Roanoke city as well as Lynchburg has some decent museums.

Salem and Roanoke county have some rural areas but they tend to be expensive. Botetourt County also has plenty of rural areas, but it too can be a bit pricey. I don't know enough about Franklin county to pass any judgement as to property prices or the costs of living down there.

[Cary Mebach]

Siamesecat,
I'm a newby to the area as of 3 years ago, although a VA native from another region. I've lived in many areas of the US over the last 40 yrs due to job relos, BUT this is a real find.
I was on a relo to Roanoke, so wanted to find something in the metro area for the commute, the rural amenities, fine people & beautiful vistas. A real gateway to treats of nature for me was Craig Cnty.
When I first looked, I had a map on which I drew circles at 10, 15, 20, & 25 miles, as I wanted a reasonable commute to work. The 25th mile circle included New Castle, the seat of Craig Cty. A small but charming town, we have almost everything but a stoplight. There's about 2k population in the wider area, but the Town is @170 folks. How cool is that. As the county is @65% national forest, population remains 5700. Sperling ranks air at 99 and water at 100, so how can you do better?
As to careers, that's always an unknown anywhere until you land that new position. Catawba does have a large State hospital that may be able to use your skills and is but a short drive away(12 miles).
Roanoke & Salem have lots of retail as you know, which I use when in the city.
Winters for you will be almost nonexistant (compared to NY), although we just had a duzie no one had seen for 4 or 5 decades. Usually very mild. Good luck on your search.

[Doc4azma]

Our Chickens, ducks, turkeys, geese and guineas have been welcome in Botetourt County. We are 25min from down town Salem or Roanoke. Just a thought.