[vt.peanut]

Suzet,

If you find a house you're interested in, you can go to the town hall and look at a flood plain map. Someone in the planning office can help you determine if the house is in a flood-prone area.

Sometimes road washouts affect buildings, but as far as I know, it's pretty rare.

Another thing you could consider is buying a house that is over a hundred years old, because it has survived the flood of 1927 and the hurricane of 1938, etc.

[VTeratheart]

Just curious what it is, exactly, that draws you to VT? I'm a native, and I love it here, but I'm curious what expectations you have if you live here. Have you experienced long, cold, snowy winters? No ill-manners intended, just a question, as they can be harsh for transplants!! As for floods, yes, with a little research you can find flood-prone areas, but I wouldn't think of VT as a majorly flooded area. Hope you enjoy your time here in Oct., but make sure you check to see which regions are in "high peak" while you're here. You don't want to miss those beautiful glowing goldens and bright reds and oranges!!

[Suzet2262]

Thanks for the tip vt.peanut, I will look into that. As far as why I want to move there VTeratheart. Its is funny to me that you ask that. Because I ask that about people who move to my town. I want to know what brings them here. Everyone has a different reason. Since I live in Calif, it is very expensive here and a lot of people find they cant afford it, others cant handle the intense heat we get here, others hate the way over crowding etc...so they go back to where they came from. I want to move to some where else to experience something different, as does my family. My husband and I have always had a fascination about New England. Since we have the means to go pretty much where we want to, we decided to move to Vermont. Worst case scenerio, we hate it, we leave. I look at life as a huge adventure to be lived. Yes I understand that it gets cold there. I have lived in a very cold climate before and managed really well. My husband on the other hand might have a hard time, he is um well he has no hair on his head to keep him warm...LOL We live on the other end of the spectrum, heat!! For atleast 5 months out of the year I try to avoid going outside, haha. I hate the heat. Right now we are having one of our many heat waves, 100 for most of the week. We are going to be out there in the 2nd week of Oct. in the southern part of the state. I am so excited to see the foilage Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. I appreciate them.

[waverlyroot]

We're in a similar situation, Suzet. We're in LA now, depressed by the heat, drought and brown landscape (not to mention the other problems of living in a huge city -- see the threads in the California forum). We've been looking at upstate NY, western MA, NH, VT and even southern ME too. Good luck to your family. Our time frame is a little longer - hoping to go in the next two years.

Our main priorities are: excellent schools (I'll even try to land a job in a prep school if it means free tuition for the kids), proximity to cultural and arts meccas, and easy access to good restaurants and markets.

Compared to SoCal, Dorset doesn't seem out of reach. A friend of my fiance's said Dorset has a great summer stock scene, and it's close to the ski resorts, so there are things to do year round. Is it enough?

[skytrekker]

Originally Posted by waverlyroot

We're in a similar situation, Suzet. We're in LA now, depressed by the heat, drought and brown landscape (not to mention the other problems of living in a huge city -- see the threads in the California forum). We've been looking at upstate NY, western MA, NH, VT and even southern ME too. Good luck to your family. Our time frame is a little longer - hoping to go in the next two years.

Our main priorities are: excellent schools (I'll even try to land a job in a prep school if it means free tuition for the kids), proximity to cultural and arts meccas, and easy access to good restaurants and markets.

Compared to SoCal, Dorset doesn't seem out of reach. A friend of my fiance's said Dorset has a great summer stock scene, and it's close to the ski resorts, so there are things to do year round. Is it enough?

Wave

check out this prep school in northeastern CT

Please wait... The Pomfret Academy

Try looking into the nearby town of Putnam CT- 30 miles to Hartford and 30 miles to Providence

Putnam CT - The Heart of Connecticut's Quiet Corner

also some of our wineries
CONNECTICUT TOURISM - WINE TASTING - Chamard Vineyards, Stonington Vineyards, Haight Vineyard, Historic Towns (http://www.ctwine.com/eastern_trail.htm - broken link)

From the New York Times on the 'Quiet Corner' of CT
Touring the Quiet Corner - New York Times

Thanks for looking and considering Connecticut!

[Suzet2262]

Good luck to you and your family too waverlyroot. In my opinion southern calif just isnt as great as people make it out to be. I agree with your feelings on the downsides, way too hot, over crowding like I cant believe!! The gangs are making their way up to my city. It just doesnt feel that safe any more. Where I live, I am literally minutes from anything I could ever need, in some cases, walking distance. But to me, it isnt worth it anymore. Maybe it is because I am getting older, shh I didnt really say that... I just dont care for the hords of people that are moving into my city. I dont need a nail salon on every corner, a strip mall, a dept store, a pizza joint, medical buildings, etc...there is no land left to build on and yet they keep on building. This is why Vermont seems like a breath of fresh air (literally) to my family. I do have freinds in New York city, no thank you. Lol. Friends in Mass and Conn, but I just feel drawn to Vermont. I am so looking forward to coming out in Oct and seeing if my family and I can find a house while out there. Manchester, Dorset, and Bennington seem to be the places we are going to look. skytrekker, nice plug for Connecticut I'll have to check out the wineries

[citylover94]

If you would consider some townds that are more central you could check out Hartford VT. You would want to live near one of the villlage centers such as White River JCT. which has daily train service to NYC the train takes about seven hours currently but with upgrades being finished in the next year or so it will only take 6 hours. You would also be a 15 minute drive to Dartmouth collegge or a 20 or 40 minurte bus ride. There is also a regional theatre company called Northern Stage in town that pulls talent from Broadway and has local kids in their shows. Plenty of cafes and offbeat shops and an upscale hair salon and a barbershop are all downtown. Their is a co-op just outside downtown and the schools are decent. The largest shopping area in town is about a 30minute bus ride during rush hour it takes about 40 min. on the bus. If you have a car it is a 15 to 30 minute drive depending on the day and if there are events at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center or Dartmouth College. Plenty of culture it is possible to live without a car but it is a lot easier with a car. Housing in the area is expensive a house in town is about 175,000 and a condo can be up to 90,000- 100,000. The larger the yard the higher the price. Their are many new mixed use buildings with apartments on the upper floors if you don't mind living in an apartment and it is much cheaper.