Roanoke or Richmond? (Blacksburg: real estate, foreclosures, rent)

[StuckinTX]

Hi!

I am a single mother of two young (elementary school) kids. We now live in Texas coastal area, and I can't see myself living here. It is too hot and humid. Kids spend summers indoors, which is not only wrong, but very stressful. I am not a beach goer, or bird watcher, or fish catcher, or anything that takes going out into 100* air.

There is little to do with kids unless you are willing to drive to San Antonio, and this is not something you would do even on a monthly basis.

I am also not very thrilled looking at the job market here.

But first and foremost, I want 4 seasons. I looked at New Hampshire, but rent and houses there are way too expensive. Besides, winter may seem too long after all.

I wonder if VA will be good for me. I am pretty sure I don't want to live close to DC. It must be expensive, and I am not looking forward to live in a big city. So I am trying figure out which one of the two - Roanoke or Richmond - is a better fit.

Wherever I move, it is going to be not earlier than in 1.5 - 2 yrs. I am in HR/accounting and expect to be making somewhere around $38K a year. Maybe more, but I am being conservative.

I am looking for:

- Affordable rent. A dog-friendly 3br house for $1000 or so.

- Good public schools, at least elementary and middle for now. I can move again later.

- Nice parks where we can ride bikes, places like a children museum or anything of that nature.

- Reasonable commute. I would think driving to work for more than 30 minutes is already too long.

I would also appreciate some culture - art, history, theater.

First, I sort of leaned towards Richmond. It is bigger and should have more opportunities. But then I got concerned about the weather. I understand, Richmond gets more severe weather from the ocean. Is that right? How often are hurricanes? Here in the Gulf area we are expecting them every summer (May - November), and it is no fun at all.

My other concern about Richmond is real estate. If you go to remax.com and search for 3br/2bath homes, your low prices start at 7000 and very slowly go up to 20K, to 50K. What kinda homes are these??? Are there that many foreclosures in Richmond? Is this a bad area that people get rid of real property like crazy?

And what is that muddy river in Richmond? I saw it in the picture thread.

Prices in Roanoke also start low, but not that low. I understand, it is very realistic to purchase a 1500 sq ft home in a decent neighborhood for under 100K. Is that so? Some houses are offered for 50K, but I find it too good to be good.

I understand, Roanoke is safer hurricane-wise. It also has more beautiful scenery.

I already like it more.

But my concern with Roanoke is that it is a smaller town. I saw job ads that I would apply for (something I don't come across very often here). But still.

So, what is good about Richmond and what is bad about Roanoke?

[roanoker 4]

In my opinion, both cities have their positives and negatives. These days, it seems if you can find a good job in either place that would work for you. Cnnnnnber when Richmond was hit by a hurricane but like Roanoke, flooding can be a problem sometime. Because of the mountains in western VA, the humidity level in summer doesn't seem quite so horrendous, although when it gets hot it gets hot. Was that a song by Jerry Reed? We had a snowstorm last winter of over 20" here!
I think you will find people in Roanoke and surrounding areas more southern like and a bit more slower geared than the bigger urban areas. We have a famous hot dog stand in Roanoke called "Texas Tavern", it is famous for its "cheezy western" btw. Richmond has a proud history as a former capital of the U.S. and confederate capital. The schools are very good in this state.

[StuckinTX]

Thanks, Roanoker, for your input. What areas are usually flooded around Roanoke? What neighborhoods are to be avoided?

Humidity. How high is high and how hot does it get? I think it is gonna be hard to beat Texas Coastal Bend.

Originally Posted by roanoker 4

We have a famous hot dog stand in Roanoke called "Texas Tavern", it is famous for its "cheezy western" btw.

I am a vegetarian By the way, are there good health food stores in Roanoke?

What about Richmond?

[roanoker 4]

The best health food store is called the Roanoke Natural Foods Cop. It is

tops in vegan food, also the Roanoke City Market with fresh produce daily.

BTW, the Market building is now u/c so look for more next Spring!!

For flooding, avoid areas near Tinker Creek which flows through the Roanoke

Valley or creeks which flow into the Roanoke River basin. The Army Corps of

Engineers did a great job of flood control and I think the locals are pleased!!

Humidity is less of a problem in higher elevations. Roanoke is in a valley around

1000', but if you go to nearby town of Blacksburg it is 2080' so Blacksburg

tends to be about 10 degrees cooler in summer but it also gets more snow

and colder temps in winter, so I guess you can't have it both ways!! Ha Ha.

No worry about hurricanes or tornadoes, the mountains take care of those

issues, we have too many trees around here anyway!!

Check with the City & County on flood prone areas, I don't live in one of

areas myself and I wouldn't move to an area that is prone.

Good Luck!!