Is there a town in TN that would fit me (Memphis: apartment, rentals)

[desert sun]

I have been interested in Tennessee for a while now, I have a friend who lives about an hour south of Nashville and he really likes it. I have only been to Memphis once and the city seemed kinda dirty, anyways I have heard good things about TN and the pics I have seen look like a place that I would like.Im trying to convince my g/f in moving next year, I would like to try something different and see what life is like outside of the southwest.

Is there a town that has all of the following or that comes close---

friendly welcoming people
population around 50,000 people ( a little smaller or bigger is alright)
somewhat of a hispanic population/more diversity the better(Im spanish)
cheap rentals
safe town with a fairly low crime rate
lots of jobs
and some good scenery is alright, I just wasnt into the look of Memphis

[Mike in TN]

I don't think you'll find anywhere in TN that meets all of your criteria.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by desert sun

I have been interested in Tennessee for a while now, I have a friend who lives about an hour south of Nashville and he really likes it. I have only been to Memphis once and the city seemed kinda dirty, anyways I have heard good things about TN and the pics I have seen look like a place that I would like.Im trying to convince my g/f in moving next year, I would like to try something different and see what life is like outside of the southwest.

Is there a town that has all of the following or that comes close---

friendly welcoming people
population around 50,000 people ( a little smaller or bigger is alright)
somewhat of a hispanic population/more diversity the better(Im spanish)
cheap rentals
safe town with a fairly low crime rate
lots of jobs
and some good scenery is alright, I just wasnt into the look of Memphis

What do you consider to be "cheap" rentals?

Franklin is a beautiful town of just over 50,000. It's in a beautiful setting of rolling hills about 20 minutes south of Nashville. Franklin has a booming job market, particularly white collar jobs (Nissan just moved its North American HQ and 1300 high-paying jobs to Franklin from L.A., for example). Being near Nashville might be fun for you, too. Nashville is nothing like Memphis.

If you want a town that's not quite as manicured or as expensive as Franklin, check out Hendersonville which is a town of about 45,000 just north of Nashville on the shores of a big beautiful lake. It's a suburb like any other suburb (there's no downtown Hendersonville) but it's in a nice setting, has lower rents than Franklin, and it's convenient to Nashville. I mean literally a few feet from Nashville.

Johnson City (62,000) or Kingsport (44,000) in the NE corner of the state are also worth checking out. They're in the mountains and have spectacular views. However, they're also pretty isolated; the airport up there has very limited service and outrageously high air fares. But if you don't mind that, you might want to look into it. Kingsport is home to Eastman Chemicals which is in a huge hiring mode right now as hundreds of engineers are getting ready to retire in the next few years. Johnson City is growing faster and has a state university and more retail. The two cities are only a few miles apart.

There are Hispanics all over Tennessee, so I wouldn't worry about finding a town that's more friendly than others towards Hispanics. People in Tennessee are pretty welcoming of just about anyone.

Good luck!

[desert sun]

by cheap rentals I meant around the $500 range for an apartment or house.
Thanks for the info so far.

[Mike in TN]

That's going to be tough in most places I'm familiar with.