Looking for paradise in tn! (Jackson, Cookeville: how much, house, job market)

[momojojo]

We're 50 something, life long CA residents, looking for retirement property.
My husband likes hunting, fishing, just hanging out. I like outdoors, crafting, and my animals.

We would love to find:
5-100 acres
House & barn/shop (doesn't matter what condition)
Near a small town, but close enough to amenities (decent shopping, medical)
Doesn't get a lot of snow
Under $300,000

We are also looking at Hill Country in Tx, but I want to get away from drought conditions. Also, I'm done with super hot summers. I'd like to see 4 seasons.

Also looking for clean air, abundant water, taxes that aren't sky high.

We're conservative, God-fearing but not regular church-goers.

We don't want a dry county.

Besides the occasional tornado, what can we expect in Tennessee? Weird, scary bugs?

Based on our criteria above, what would be the best area for us?
Job market wouldn't be an issue. Thanks!

[alleycat]

It will probably take a while to come up with some good choices for you because there are quite a number of places in Tennessee that fits most of your needs and wants.

I'll take a couple of your questions just to get the ball rolling.

Besides the occasional tornado, what can we expect in Tennessee? Weird, scary bugs?

We do have quite a few bugs around in the warmer months, but that's true of most of the country. From what I've seen, I'd rather have our bugs than those swarms of black flies and mosquitoes I've heard about in the northern states and Canada. It might take you a while to adjust if bugs freak you out; otherwise they're just a minor nuisance. How much of a nuisance they are does vary from place to place; I've been places where if you're outside you barely notice the bugs or insects, and I've been places where the bugs and insects made it unpleasant to even sit outside during certain times of the year.

I notice you're in central California. The difference in weather from there to Tennessee won't be as drastic as if you were from southern California, but it will be different. Not only do we have four very distinct seasons, sometimes we seem to have four distinct seasons within the same week! This week is a good example of the extreme; yesterday and today it was sunny and in the 70's and 80's, tomorrow they are predicting we might get a little snow and sleet (probably nothing to worry about though).

Prices of land will vary. My family recent sold some land in Montgomery Country (about 40 miles northwest of downtown Nashville). It would have been a location that would have met many of your needs. It was mostly heavy woods and fair to very good farmland. We sold the land itself for $7000 an acres (the market for property was slightly depressed at the time, but not extremely so). This too will vary from place to place, but that might give you a clue as to what you will have to pay for land. You could probably easily find an old house (or small-ish 60's ranch style house) and 30 or 40 acres within your price range in an area that would suit you.

Just a personal note. Tennessee is officially divided into three Grand Divisions: East, Middle, and West Tennessee. I prefer Middle and East Tennessee over West Tennessee (no offense meant to my friends in WT). You might first do a little research and think about which of these three areas would suit you best, then focus on a location within that particular division. It would make the job somewhat easier than searching within the whole state from the start.

I'll scratch my pointy, little head and see if I can come up with some suggestions for you to start your search. Until later . . .

[Psychop1]

You might consider Crossville.

Finding a home/land in your price range shouldn't be too difficult, and Crossville boasts some of the lowest property taxes in the state. My parents own 4 1/2 acres outside the city limits and pay less than $100 a year. I live in the suburbs just inside the city limits, and I pay around $300 a year.

Also, there are some decent lakes here, and plenty of places to go hunting.

Crossville does get more snow than surrounding areas; it would simply depend on what you think is a lot of snow. The biggest snow here this winter was three inches. I used to live in Michigan, so that's nothing to me, but may be a big deal to you. The flip side of that is that Crossville's summers are a bit milder than the surrounding areas.

Cumberland County (seat) was a dry county, but is expected to open three package liquor stores in Crossville this summer.

As for bugs, we have lots of bees, hornets, and wasps. I'm not sure what kind of bees you have in California, but as far as bugs go, that's probably the worst you have to worry about here. As far as spiders go, the black widow and brown recluse spiders are all you have to worry about here. Much less common, but we also have scorpions. Snakes... lots of snakes. rattlesnakes, cotton mouth snakes, and copperhead snakes are the most dangerous, with copperheads being the most common among venomous snakes.

[Psychop1]

Originally Posted by alleycat

From what I've seen, I'd rather have our bugs than those swarms of black flies and mosquitoes I've heard about in the northern states and Canada.

I think the mosquito should be the state bird in Michigan.

Yeah, there are no where near the amount of mosquitos here. The swarms look like clouds up north.

[momojojo]

Originally Posted by Psychop1

You might consider Crossville.

Finding a home/land in your price range shouldn't be too difficult, and Crossville boasts some of the lowest property taxes in the state. My parents own 4 1/2 acres outside the city limits and pay less than $100 a year. I live in the suburbs just inside the city limits, and I pay around $300 a year.

Also, there are some decent lakes here, and plenty of places to go hunting.

Crossville does get more snow than surrounding areas; it would simply depend on what you think is a lot of snow. The biggest snow here this winter was three inches. I used to live in Michigan, so that's nothing to me, but may be a big deal to you. The flip side of that is that Crossville's summers are a bit milder than the surrounding areas.

Cumberland County (seat) was a dry county, but is expected to open three package liquor stores in Crossville this summer.

As for bugs, we have lots of bees, hornets, and wasps. I'm not sure what kind of bees you have in California, but as far as bugs go, that's probably the worst you have to worry about here. As far as spiders go, the black widow and brown recluse spiders are all you have to worry about here. Much less common, but we also have scorpions. Snakes... lots of snakes. rattlesnakes, cotton mouth snakes, and copperhead snakes are the most dangerous, with copperheads being the most common among venomous snakes.

Thanks for replying. As far as snow goes, we just don't want to get snowed in, or have to dig out our driveway. I'm not worried about bugs, we've got them here. Do you have ticks & chiggars? Can you spray for those or something. I've got dogs.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by momojojo

We're 50 something, life long CA residents, looking for retirement property.
My husband likes hunting, fishing, just hanging out. I like outdoors, crafting, and my animals.

We would love to find:
5-100 acres
House & barn/shop (doesn't matter what condition)
Near a small town, but close enough to amenities (decent shopping, medical)
Doesn't get a lot of snow
Under $300,000

We are also looking at Hill Country in Tx, but I want to get away from drought conditions. Also, I'm done with super hot summers. I'd like to see 4 seasons.

Also looking for clean air, abundant water, taxes that aren't sky high.

We're conservative, God-fearing but not regular church-goers.

We don't want a dry county.

Besides the occasional tornado, what can we expect in Tennessee? Weird, scary bugs?

Based on our criteria above, what would be the best area for us?
Job market wouldn't be an issue. Thanks!

Check out White County or Jackson County. They're a little over an hour from Nashville's airport which could be very convenient if you plan on flying back to California for visits. Nashville's airport is a hub for Southwest Airlines so has the cheapest air fares--by far--in the state, particularly to California.

White County and Jackson County are rural and have plentiful land at reasonable rates, but they're only 10-15 minutes from Cookeville which is the hub of the region with tons of shopping (Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, JCPenney, Sears, TJMaxx, and others), restaurants (Olive Garden, Outback, Red Lobster, and a ton of excellent locally-owned restaurants), and with the largest hospital for 80 miles in any direction.

Cookeville itself is one of 9 communities in Tennessee that the state is promoting as excellent retirement areas. Cookeville ZIP codes go into Jackson and White counties so either of those places would be a great choice.

Good luck!

[alleycat]

Yes, we have ticks and chiggers. This too will vary from place to place. If you're in a wooded or brushy area, assume they will be bad.

There are all sort of things you can do for dogs: flea and tick collars, or your vet can give them a shot or those more advanced applications of repellents. You can also get the dogs a bed filled with red cedar shavings. Red cedar is a natural bug repellent.

[Tinman313]

You forgot the mad cows.......

[Bones]

Originally Posted by Psychop1

You might consider Crossville.

Finding a home/land in your price range shouldn't be too difficult, and Crossville boasts some of the lowest property taxes in the state. My parents own 4 1/2 acres outside the city limits and pay less than $100 a year. I live in the suburbs just inside the city limits, and I pay around $300 a year.

Also, there are some decent lakes here, and plenty of places to go hunting.

Crossville does get more snow than surrounding areas; it would simply depend on what you think is a lot of snow. The biggest snow here this winter was three inches. I used to live in Michigan, so that's nothing to me, but may be a big deal to you. The flip side of that is that Crossville's summers are a bit milder than the surrounding areas.

Cumberland County (seat) was a dry county, but is expected to open three package liquor stores in Crossville this summer.

As for bugs, we have lots of bees, hornets, and wasps. I'm not sure what kind of bees you have in California, but as far as bugs go, that's probably the worst you have to worry about here. As far as spiders go, the black widow and brown recluse spiders are all you have to worry about here. Much less common, but we also have scorpions. Snakes... lots of snakes. rattlesnakes, cotton mouth snakes, and copperhead snakes are the most dangerous, with copperheads being the most common among venomous snakes.

I don't think you'll see any cotton mouth snakes this far east of the TN river.....

The snow we get on the plateau is usually gone the next day, but we normally only get an inch or two a few times a year....

[momojojo]

Originally Posted by Tinman313

You forgot the mad cows.......

Say what?