[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by nhyrnut

well both there's are at that 4000 Sq ft limit even though Half is storage for tractors ect because it is attached to the house they use that in the house size.

No kidding, my in-laws own Stonewood Farm (www.stonewoodfarm.com) and their old farmhouse is just over 4,000 sq ft. They own 1,000 acres (nearly all of it conserved by the VLT) and already get pinched $14,000 a year in property taxes. This is no gentleman's farm, that flipping property tax is probably 50% of their personal incomes for the year.

Sean

[Dwatted Wabbit]

Thanks for the feedback. I hope the NE has not priced itself out of our pocketbooks. We are willing to pay no more than $2400/year in prop taxes, and consider that excessive. We now pay less than $1200/year, we'd probably be paying at least $4000 in Merrimack where we last lived. Twenty eight hundred bucks pays a lot of sales and income taxes, since we're retired at present and not pulling a huge income.
What's Colebrook like? I like John Harrigan and his newspaper columns, figure if he lives there it must have some ++ qualities. And the Northeast Kingdom could be reasonable?
I have a cousin in Saxtons River, she loves it there. Have kin near Camden ME too, they seem to like it.

VLT? What's that?

[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by Dwatted Wabbit

I have a cousin in Saxtons River, she loves it there.

Wyndham County real estate taxes range from +/- $1.30 in Stratton to +/- $2.60 in Brattleboro. So that would put your real estate value ceiling at $180,000 in Stratton and $90,000 in Brattleboro, for example.

Speaking in generalities, New Hampshire's property tax burden is higher. For a taxpayer filing singly the state income tax burden is lower if your taxable income is < $30K (NH's flat 5% compared to VT's 3.6% up to $30K). Vermont also has larger standard deductions. So it can be said that the income tax burden on lower income folks is lower in VT than in NH; but that's because wealthy Vermonters and businesses pay a hell of alot more in taxes in VT. So, overall the NH income tax burden is much lower than VT when you look at the entire population. Health care in general is slightly cheaper in VT. So is electricity.

The places you mention are quite far from advanced medical care facilities with the resources to deal with serious illnesses. I thought that was worth mentioning.

Originally Posted by Dwatted Wabbit

I hope the NE has not priced itself out of our pocketbooks.

Originally Posted by Dwatted Wabbit

We are willing to pay no more than $2400/year in prop taxes, and consider that excessive. We now pay less than $1200/year, we'd probably be paying at least $4000 in Merrimack where we last lived.

Then I'm guessing your property value is assessed at +/- $200,000. Down here, in Franklin County, Virginia (just south of the Roanoke Valley, home to a not-so-big city with a top notch health care community), the property tax on a $200,000 home would be around $1,000. And electricity is about 50% cheaper. And the state income tax is lower (by alot). You have four distinct and beautiful seasons (and Mud isn't included among them). I thought I'd just throw that out there Here is the view from my webcam as of 7am this morning:



One of the great things about winter along the Blue Ridge in Boones Mill, VA is that you'll get several moderate snowfalls but you'll very rarely need to shovel it out of the way. It also tends to melt off within a day or so. I feel like there is more nature around me here, although that's entirely subjective. As I'm typing this there are seven deer hanging around the "secret garden" I see from my home-office window

Originally Posted by Dwatted Wabbit

VLT? What's that?

Vermont Land Trust. They buy the development rights of farmland, particularly farmland visible from major roads, in an effort to help conserve Vermont's pastoral open lands.

Sean

[Mustard]

SeanPecor,

How did you end up in Virginia from Vermont? It is certainly a tempting mix of benefits you have there, but to most people from New Engalnd moving to Virginia is like moving to a foreign country.

Cheers.

[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by Mustard

How did you end up in Virginia from Vermont? It is certainly a tempting mix of benefits you have there, but to most people from New Engalnd moving to Virginia is like moving to a foreign country.

We picked Virginia because I (being an internet entrepreneur and one man army) could move anywhere; and my wife was a Dressage rider, competitor and instructor so we went job shopping for her and focused on more temperate climates. We considered jobs from all over, in Washington, in North Carolina, in Virginia, etc. We picked this area more for it's outward similarity to Vermont. You'd be surprised how well you'd fit in down here.

I'm at the foot of Southwest Virginia and the head of the South Central piedmont highlands. The mountains and valleys here remind me of the Champlain Valley of Vermont. In fact, Vermont's Green Mountains are at the northern point of the Appalachian range while I'm more on the southern side. Vermont's foliage season is quite beautiful, but I've got to be honest, it's just as beautiful down here, and the major difference here is that fall foliage season takes place about 4 weeks later. Here is a Cahas Mountain valley on 10/20:



And the whole mountain on 10/30:



I remember the leaves being long gone in Vermont by the end of October. But here they'll stick around a month longer. Below is a photo of what we call our "secret garden" with four Maples (one Black and three Japanese varieties, and one Oak) on 10/31:



So, the type of pastoral beauty I came to love in Vermont is also here in Boones Mill, Franklin County, VA. It's different of course, with it's own flavor, and some trees that thrive in Vermont can't tolerate a warmer Zone 7b where I am. However, some trees that can't tolerate a Zone 4 very well thrive down here. And you can even have Birch down here; the paperless variety thrives here.

Spring here is like eight weeks of heaven and begins in late March. The flowering trees that thrive in Virginia gives you the sense that you're walking in Tolkein's Rivendell at the heigh of ascendency. Here is our same secret garden in April:



Now on to population and economy releated comparisons. The biggest city by far in SWVA is Roanoke, 20 minutes to the North of me. It's population is 90,000 for the city alone, or 180,000 for the city and county combined. It's a bit bigger than Chittenden County but not by much so in some ways it's quite comparable to Burlington, where I grew up. Roanoke itself leans liberal, much in the same way Burlington leans liberal also. Rural counties, such as the county I'm in, lean conservative. That's not different than Vermont at all. As for the economy, well it's much stronger down here. People get paid more than they would in Vermont for a comparable job and because the cost of living (according to Money magazine) is about 20% cheaper in Roanoke then in Burlington, the increased pay goes even further.

As for small town living, it's hard to beat Rocky Mount, which is 15 minutes from me. Rocky Mount is the county seat and its population is 5,000; our county population is about 51,000. In Rocky Mount you have a historic main street community that is quite attractive. It's hard to picture a comparable county in Vermont, but imagine a county in VT with a population of only 51,000 that had: a thriving main street community; a huge and newly renovated public library with dozens of internet enabled computers; a technology center to re-train older folks for the new economy; a YMCA facility with an indoor pool, a gym, two basketball courts and more in ONE building, and a SECOND building for kids 12 and under with dance studios, classrooms, a performing arts theatre, a huge activity room w/ rock climbing walls - and around both buildings a 40 acre nature preserve with trails; in one area designated for large commercial development you have a Lowes, a Super Walmart, family restaurants, a Kroger, dozens and dozens of shops; a 500 acre county park.

And for a cultural comparison... The people I interact with on a daily basis here are very friendly and we've had no trouble fitting in. The only complaint I hear from locals here is that some city folk from up north move down here and aren't very friendly. The key is not friendly, not that they're from up north. People down here are more outwardly friendly; they WANT you to make eye contact. They WANT you to share a laugh.

Okay, got to run and do horse chores and get back in time for my birthday party! I'm 34 today and my girls have a snow day so we're celebrating early

Sean

[nhyrnut]

Originally Posted by seanpecor

Wyndham County real estate taxes range from +/- $1.30 in Stratton to +/- $2.60 in Brattleboro. So that would put your real estate value ceiling at $180,000 in Stratton and $90,000 in Brattleboro, for example.

Speaking in generalities, New Hampshire's property tax burden is higher. For a taxpayer filing singly the state income tax burden is lower if your taxable income is < $30K (NH's flat 5% compared to VT's 3.6% up to $30K). Vermont also has larger standard deductions. So it can be said that the income tax burden on lower income folks is lower in VT than in NH; but that's because wealthy Vermonters and businesses pay a hell of alot more in taxes in VT. So, overall the NH income tax burden is much lower than VT when you look at the entire population. Health care in general is slightly cheaper in VT. So is electricity.





.

Sean

What the he!! are you talking about? I live in NH and can say without a doupt that we have NO income tax OR Sales Tax. Neither of these apply to NH don't know where you got your info but it is incorrect.

[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by nhyrnut

What the he!! are you talking about? I live in NH and can say without a doupt that we have NO income tax OR Sales Tax. Neither of these apply to NH don't know where you got your info but it is incorrect.

My bad! I transposed my numbers and used NH taxes on interest and dividend income. I still think the tax burden for low income fixed income folks is somewhat smaller in VT despite NH having no state income tax, but I did make an error and I apologize!

I didn't refer to sales taxes at all in my message. VT does have a sales tax but there is no sales tax on food items in VT, which is largely what a low income fixed income family would be purchasing.

Sean