[mustmove]

Yup. I was leafing through a stack of VT life magazines from the 60's and 70's same story 'prosperity is right around the corner' VT will be a leader in new clean tech, greenie goodness etc etc. Sad thing is it was some of the same people saying the same stuff.

Originally Posted by flu189

Sad indeed! As I type this I am at a hotel in Christiansburg, Va and though I only have a few days this trip to spend in this region, from what I have seen, research I have done, and folks I have spoken to here, it looks pretty good that this region will become home after I deal with issues and commitments back in Vt. Three years in Vt and after hearing the same mantra time and time again with no signs that there will be any real and significant efforts to work towards affordibility, well, it just has gotten old. With the markets in a yearlong tailspin decimating my efforts to add to my eventual retirement I just find it harder and harder to take the bogus talk and no action to rein in costs much less work toward reducing taxes in Vt. On the contrary, the costs each year leap well ahead of the cost of living index. Yes, sad indeed. I wonder within the next five years and after where in the world the state expects to glean their revenue from?

[68vette]

Housing prices have stayed fairly consistant, but the news released yesterday was that the real estate market is down over 17%. We are seeing what other states were going through earlier in the year where people selling don't want to take less than what the homes are really worth in this market.

[Alt Dach]

Originally Posted by 68vette

Housing prices have stayed fairly consistant, but the news released yesterday was that the real estate market is down over 17%. We are seeing what other states were going through earlier in the year where people selling don't want to take less than what the homes are really worth in this market.

True ,very true vette. If you want see reality drive along the NY-VT border from Bennington to Fairhaven.Most of the land on NY side is being
farmed-2 miles away in VT the land is vacant and idle just being held for
"development" by people who have the money to just sit on it.

[Playball40]

Originally Posted by Sherylcatmom

I hope you're not basing your sad conclusion on the posts here. Everyone must determine for him/herself where it works to live. My husband and I each moved to Vermont because it's where we wanted to live. We are nowhere near to being yuppies/trustfunders (nor are the vast majority of Vermonters we know) and we do fine here.

We know many other plain folk who also enjoy Vermont and have no plans to leave. We also know people struggling to make ends meet, and not always succeeding. Of course, that happens everywhere.

Generalizations and stereotypes about the entire state of Vermont make no sense to me. While there are obviously people who fit into any stereotype, I don't believe that such exaggerations represent an entire state or region. And the stereotypes and generalizations I've read about here simply don't reflect my experience living and working in Vermont.

When I visit other places, I'm always grateful to come home to Vermont. I'm originally from South Florida and I wouldn't go back there for anything. I've been to many U.S. states and several other countries. Years ago, with an eye toward possibly relocating just to try something new, we checked out a few beautiful places that also had people and culture we could relate to. While we enjoyed them all, we realized we just plain prefer Vermont. It's home for us and we're staying.

I hope that one would decide for oneself. I hope that one wouldn't decide based on endless naysayers or sunny-side-up types either. Rather, I hope one will get the facts, run the numbers, and check in with the gut.

I appreciate your post. I've been to Vermont many times as my Aunt has a home there. However after researching moving there, I realize there simply isn't industry where my husband and I could work. We are in neither technology or education so our options are limited. I, too, am from Florida and am counting the days to get out, but until I sell our RE holdings, its not going to happen. We are leaning towards moving to Virginia......but my heaven on earth has always been Vermont. And probably always will.

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by Playball40

I appreciate your post. I've been to Vermont many times as my Aunt has a home there. However after researching moving there, I realize there simply isn't industry where my husband and I could work. We are in neither technology or education so our options are limited. I, too, am from Florida and am counting the days to get out, but until I sell our RE holdings, its not going to happen. We are leaning towards moving to Virginia......but my heaven on earth has always been Vermont. And probably always will.

I hear you. I'm sorry Vermont doesn't offer what you need to work and thrive here. I have always enjoyed being in Virginia, whether the coast or the mountains. I hope you sell your property, find what you seek, and enjoy it so thoroughly that it becomes your heaven on earth.

[seanpecor]

I'm a Vermonter now living in "Western" Virginia (Boones Mill, Franklin County). I've flirted with the idea of moving back to Vermont but - like those who live in and love Vermont - I've discovered that I love Virginia. I hope everyone finds their special place and won't have to take on too many burdens to do so. For those who live there, Vermont may be a wonderful place perhaps because of what it lacks. Lacking in the things that many non-Vermonters find so necessary nurtures a setting that is idyllic for a minority of Americans quite happy to enjoy Vermont as it is.

We were back in Orwell / Middlebury for a week (my wife's parent's 50th anniv.) this August and enjoyed our time there. We spent some time in Middlebury and they've made some progress making the town more convenient for everyday shopping. It's still a far cry from the convenience of where we live currently, but it's an improvement for that area. I half-expected more progress, but we _are_ talking about Middlebury, where it's my understanding that you need to pay a fee and apply for a zoning permit just to fart inside town limits. Okay, I'm just kidding, you don't have to pay the fee

Some other observations. This last trip we discovered that we really preferred to spend a week in Vermont during the late summer. It was cooler than we like our August to be, but not by much. The only drawback were the bugs. The bugs were bad. So very, very bad. We like to sit on our outdoor furniture here in Boones Mill, drink sweet tea, read and watch the sun wink out in the west, and we couldn't do that in Vermont without an industrial sized can of Off! and other repellants. Still, we'll take the bugs over winter weather. Thanksgiving in Vermont feels more like January does back home in Boones Mill. Christmas is beautiful in Vermont but ohmigod, rock salt and black muck gets on everything and everywhere. And it's cold. It's so cold, and for so very long. I think I'm beginning to understand what drives affluent folks to "dip their toes" in Vermont for summers, while retreating to warmer climes the remainder of the year.

Sean

[vter]

Originally Posted by seanpecor

The bugs were bad. So very, very bad. We like to sit on our outdoor furniture here in Boones Mill, drink sweet tea, read and watch the sun wink out in the west, and we couldn't do that in Vermont without an industrial sized can of Off! and other repellants. Still, we'll take the bugs over winter weather.
Sean

Thats why we have a large screened in porch! We can still enjoy sitting "outside" while not being eaten alive. Went out to pick some tomatoes earlier this evening and the bugs were biting something fierce!

[tkln]

Sean - are you saying the bugs are worse in VT than VA??? I would've figured it'd be the other way around...

[Alt Dach]

Originally Posted by tkln

Sean - are you saying the bugs are worse in VT than VA??? I would've figured it'd be the other way around...

No-the further north you go in N.America the worse skeeters and some other flyers get.Shorter time to live so they have to get with it
Now the REALLY nasty stuff like cckroaches is anoyher story.

[seanpecor]

tkln, the bugs are much worse in Vermont. I also would have thought they would be as bad or worse in Virginia but that's not the case. Perhaps the harsher winter climate spurs flying insects to reproduce in greater numbers to compensate for the populations lost during winter? I know that up in New Brunswick, Canada, where winters are even harsher than in Vermont, the bugs are even worse during summer! And I recall a photo in National Geographic taken in Alaska; the photographer tooks his shoes and socks off during the daytime, and sat town and waited 10 minutes before taking a picture of his feet. By then so many skeeters had gathered on his feet you could barely see them!

Sean