[simpleup]

My husband, my two small boys, our dog & myself are looking to relocate from Plymouth, MA to Killington VT. My profession - web designer - i can work from anywhere so i will already be employed with a good salary. My husband has a nitch for always finding work - he can sell - he has land surveying experience - he has also owned his own businesses previously. we want to move because we feel VT is a more simple, family-oriented place to raise our family. Both my husband and i have worked the high stress, long commute, rat race for quite sometime now, we would love to simple it up. we feel VT could be that place for us. we have heard the school systems are fantastic - here in plymouth the schools are over populated with teachers that can not do their jobs correctly because of class size & budget cuts. My husband & I want our kids to have a pleasant child hood without 2 parents that just work & stress ALL the time we feel that VT could be our answer? has anyone relocated from MA to VT - MA is expensive to live in - i keep seeing on these posts that VT is also - i'm curious if its THAT expensive?

[vter]

Yes, Vermont is expensive. However, if you can keep your same MA salaries up here, then you'll do better than most most likely. Salaries in Vermont are generally much lower than what you would make downcountry, making a disparity between salaries and housing costs. It's a struggle for many up here.
One thing to keep in mind, since you have a web based job, is availability of high speed internet access-not all places have it. Generally, the more rural of an area, the less likely it will be available. When you start scouting properties, I'd put that question at the top of your list since your job depends on it!!
Sherylcatmom, a frequent poster here, lives in Rutland. Hopefully she can chime in on what life in Rutland is like for you - Rutland is just down the mountain from Killington.
Killington as you know is a resort town, but there are some nice non-resort towns in the area. Mendon, Rutland Town, Bridgewater, and Plymouth come to mind. Not sure about school districts in that area. Hopefully someone else can chime in. I do know that Rutland High is big (for Vermont standards).
Some other VT/MA comparisons...I grew up in Vermont and moved to greater Boston where I lived for 6 years before coming back north (5 years ago, so keep that in mind). My car insurance is much cheaper up here. Food, about the same. Housing about the same (I took a pay cut by moving back, so even though real estate looks cheaper, salaries don't necessarily keep up). Utilities are all about the same cost.
What do I miss about living in Mass? The variety of different restaurants and the shopping LOL. Thats about it. I don't miss the hectic pace of life, the traffic, the lines everywhere, etc.
Moving up here is really a lifestyle choice-just be sure to do your research and don't come up here with rose colored glasses...many do after spending years coming up for ski weekends only to find out that life in rural Vermont is not what they thought it would be. Some love it, some don't.
Good luck!

[tkln]

I second the high speed internet access - I too will be working from home and it is a requirement for me...you'll find even within the same town some areas have it and some don't...it has become a bit of a frustration for us as we've been looking and there are so many homes that don't have access to high speed...the cable company 'claims' that some areas will have it by the middle of this year, but I'm not banking my income on the cable company!

[GypsySoul22]

There are some things you may miss or have limits on (cable/high speed) and don't forget cell phone service. The deeper you go in to parts of Vermont, the more dead zones you have. While I think it's nice they want to keep out cell towers and so forth, Vermont is a very isolated state with few stops between exits on the highways.
You can get some carrier service but I found it spotty at times.

Another thing you may find is that you become isolated unless you get involved with your child's school activities. Having a social life is a bit of challenge unless you are very outgoing and find a hobby or club to join (or volunteer). Even then, you may get a pleasant nod from locals but little else. Hooking up with other ex-MA (and other transplants) might be a better bet.

Of course you know the shopping (in places) is limited and you may have to travel farther for your basic weekly shopping. (I am not familiar with Killington).

[mustmove]

The stress level can be plenty high up here. Wondering if you have enough wood to make it to spring, wondering if you will make it to work/school/shopping etc. Lots of $ related $tre$$ Prepare to be disappointed in the schools. Moderator cut: inappropriate

[simpleup]

thank you all for you input. my husband and i are very outgoing people and are not afraid to say hello. we've made some local friends already in our past travels. we are also very involved in our children's activities & lives - so that will work out well.

right now my major concern will be the high speed internet - and its "actual" speed. the gentleman we have been chatting with regarding a house we may rent in killington said he already has comcast at his house - so i will research the outage/speed when we meet with him.

the walmarts & large chains can stay as far away from me as possible, not a big shopper we are previous owners of a local small business - prefer to give my business to those. one of the major factors in our relocation is to slow it down - enjoy life & children - what is important to us, family.

[simpleup]

mustmove -Moderator cut: the content you are referring to has been removed- i heard very positive feedback on the school system in killington from other posts on here. we are gonna take a tour of the elementary school next week, so we shall see for ourselves.

[flu189]

Killington is a nice area, but you have to understand that the town (formerly named Shelburne) consists primarily of seasonal homes. Check the tax rates to see if it fits into your economic plan. I appreciate the notion of family time and if you have the means Vt can be great. I was fortunate that when my kids were school age my wife was able to be there for them and coordinate activities, but this was in of all places, Alaska. I assumed that I would see a substantial drop in COL by coming back east to Vt and have actually found that in sevral areas the COL is notably higher coupled with a higher tax burden across the board. To be honest with what we make here this luxury of a single employed parent household would not be possible. The cost of living can and does bust many dreams and ambitions here for the quest for simple life. The cost of living is high especially in relation to income levels, but for some this is not an issue. I just found out today that my military housing allowance which I'll draw on my upcoming deployment jumped substantially and in fact falls into the top twenty rates nationwide out of several hundred geographical rates. This is a good indicator as to cost of living as the rate is calculated annually based upon two separate cost surveys linked to housing, insurance, and utility costs and not heavily weighted to rank as basic pay is.

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by flu189

Killington is a nice area, but you have to understand that the town (formerly named Shelburne)

Sherburne, actually.

[GypsySoul22]

Comcast is very good where I live...very reliable. It's the best service (for my computer) I have ever had!