considering TN but where? (Johnson City, Kingsport: house, employment, buy)

[wrat]

We are considering leaving South Florida to get away from hurricanes and the extreme heat .
would like to be semi rural , we live in the last semi rural part of palm beach county on 1.24 acres and dirt road but very near a main artery thats crazy busy.
we carry ZERO debt but would need access to office/admin type employment and housing in the 200k range
not looking for acreage BUT not urban either
restaurants/bars nightlife is of ZERO interest
access to boating/fishing is important
several years back we spent some time around johnson city it was ok but way to urban for us

what say you?

[DubbleT]

I say that I think your request is a bit broad. You could probably find what you are looking for just outside many of the smaller cities and towns in all areas of TN, if you're willing to make the commute to work.
In northeast TN, if JC is too big you might look at Piney Flats, Church Hill, Bluff City, Blountville, Fall Branch, Elizabethton, etc.

[wrat]

Originally Posted by DubbleT

I say that I think your request is a bit broad. You could probably find what you are looking for just outside many of the smaller cities and towns in all areas of TN, if you're willing to make the commute to work.
In northeast TN, if JC is too big you might look at Piney Flats, Church Hill, Bluff City, Blountville, Fall Branch, Elizabethton, etc.

I am sorry if I am being to broad perhaps help me to narrow things down? with the housing market in south fl on FIRE you literally cant buy a livable home for under 200K unless you want a commute of 2-3 hours daily we would like to avoid that

[JRR]

You could take a look at the Livingston area as it might check some of your boxes. Easy access to Cookeville for employment and whatever you might need from a larger town. Only fly in the ointment is the $200k housing budget. Depending on what kind of house you are looking for, that might be a bit of a squeeze.

[DubbleT]

Western TN is probably going to be the least expensive area of TN for housing, but it will probably be the most restrictive as far as finding an area that is rural but close to jobs.
There's also a fair amount of difference in climate and topography between east and west TN, meaning something of a small difference in the types of outdoor activities. It makes a difference to some people, not so much to others.

[suzytx]

Originally Posted by DubbleT

In northeast TN, if JC is too big you might look at Piney Flats, Church Hill, Bluff City, Blountville, Fall Branch, Elizabethton, etc.

Agree that these are good alternatives to Johnson City/Bristol/Kingsport. Boating and fishing are very popular around here.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by wrat

We are considering leaving South Florida to get away from hurricanes and the extreme heat .
would like to be semi rural , we live in the last semi rural part of palm beach county on 1.24 acres and dirt road but very near a main artery thats crazy busy.
we carry ZERO debt but would need access to office/admin type employment and housing in the 200k range
not looking for acreage BUT not urban either
restaurants/bars nightlife is of ZERO interest
access to boating/fishing is important
several years back we spent some time around johnson city it was ok but way to urban for us

what say you?

Originally Posted by JRR

You could take a look at the Livingston area as it might check some of your boxes. Easy access to Cookeville for employment and whatever you might need from a larger town. Only fly in the ointment is the $200k housing budget. Depending on what kind of house you are looking for, that might be a bit of a squeeze.

I agree with Livingston. I would also look at Gainesboro which has easy access to Cookeville and is probably a smidgeon cheaper than Livingston. But both areas fit what the OP is looking for. In addition, the Gainesboro and Livingston areas are serviced by Twin Lakes which has gigabit internet. It's one of the few rural areas in the state with fiber optic internet connections even way out in the boonies.

Within 40 minutes of Cookeville there's 1200 miles of lake shoreline. Fishing and boating are wildly popular here.