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The pictures I've seen of Marietta are so pretty. One of my old co-workers is from there and the way she made it sound was heavenly. If my husband would be okay with snowy winters, I'd seriously consider it myself.
Northern California seems to fit the bill for much of this. There are plenty of towns where you can find houses (and certainly condos) for around $200,000. The sun if usually out, and if you stay out of the mountains, there's almost never any snow. Additionally, cities in California often top the lists of best places for allergy sufferers. However, I could understand if you're worried about the cost of living and don't want to head out there. But if you want to look into it, check out the areas around Redding, or Chico.
Since you mentioned lung problems, I'm just assuming you mean allergies. I looked around at where the best places for allergies are, and found a website you can check for what the "Allergy Capitals" of the US are. These are cities that are very problematic to allergy sufferers: AAFA 2013 Allergy Capitals Most of the best cities tend to be in the West, with the worst being in the South.
Boise, ID is surprisingly not bad for allergy sufferers. It obviously gets some snow, though - though I don't think nearly as much as Northern Utah. It also wouldn't be too bad of a move, since you wouldn't be going too far.
Here's a website where you can see what are the best and worst states for various allergies (just click the drop down menu to change the image): Current U.S. Allergy Maps - Mold Spores
I just left Redding, CA after living there 33 years. It is one of the worst places for allergies. I also lived in Chico, CA and it was really bad too. I wouldn't recommend them for allergy sufferers unless you are planning on taking allergy shots.
Summerville ,South Carolina is a beautiful town and area ( lived there as a child) . It is very humid though.
An area I would look into is the Chattanooga area of Tennessee , especially the area around Mont Eagle ( sp ?) ,The University of The South area .It is an absolutely beautiful area and you have the closeness of the college for things that go on culturally there and Chatanooga for other things .
One of the most charming, beautiful places I have ever seen was The University of the South.
Check out Nacogdoches, TX. Located in the heart of East Texas' Piney Woods. Climate is moderate, seldom freezing, highs in the summer in the 90's. Low crime, low cost of living. Plenty of local shopping as well as the usual Walmart, etc. Good local doctors and hospitals in town. If you need really heavy medical, you are about 3 hours north of Houston with its massive medical complex.
We used to live there, and it is a nice laid back community. There is a local college with about 15,000 students, so there's local college arts, music, etc for you at a very reasonable price, as well as craft shows, antiques, etc.
Ever think about Texas? Maybe the Alpine area? It's growing. Texas has more small towns than you can shake a stick at.
I would move back to West Texas in a heartbeat if I could. To me, it's not really the "West," and it's certainly not the South, yet it doesn't feel "Southwest," either. It's a very clean, open area, and EVERYONE is friendly. I've never felt such open hospitality; you're just immediately welcomed (if you reciprocate)! Beautiful area around the Davis Mountains Davis Mountains - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, and then there's Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg, Texas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia which is a fun place to go for a day or weekend trip. There's more history in that part of the state than one would think.
I guess the OP never came back to check out all these great ideas. Too bad. But for anyone else who is on the same quest I'd take a look at Ojai, CA (pronounced Ohai), about 45 minutes inland from Santa Barbara. Small-town feel, beautiful architecture, mild climate in winter and dry summers--on the hot side, but not desert hot. It is an orange-growing district (still), and in April all the orange blossoms are out. The fragrance is unbelievable.
Ojai is surrounded by low mountains, and ranches still dot the countryside. The Downtown area has lots of small restaurants. It has been considered an artists' colony for a long time, but the recession hit hard, and a lot of galleries closed. For the same reason it might still be possible to find somewhat reasonably priced smaller homes, although I have to say that real estate isn't exactly cheap. Santa Barbara is close enough that one can easily get to a fairly big city for shopping and entertainment, and UCSB is right there.
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