Moving from south lake tahoe CA to Lynchburg VA? (Richmond: ski resorts, real estate)

[aespinoza805]

hello, I'm 23 years old & i live in south lake tahoe right now with my husband, pug & cat. i love it up here, however I'm looking to raise a family in the next couple years and have always wondered what it would be like to live in Virginia. My husband is from there & A LOT of his family lives in the lynchburg area. Ive been in lake tahoe for about a year and I'm already kind of bored to be honest... there's only so much you can do.
If you've lived/visited either of these places, what is your opinion? Is it a good idea to move from south lake tahoe CA to lynchburg VA?

Somethings to consider when responding;
-QUALITY OF LIFE
-WEATHER: i need to have four seasons. it snows a little TOO much in SLT. I LOVE how leafs change colors in VA! Also, i know its humid. I was born and raised in Cancun Mexico so the humidity doesnt bother me. I actually kind of like it.
- SMALL TOWN FEEL: i definitely want the small town/country feel, but SLT is wayyyy smaller than i anticipated, i feel like i cant go anywhere and just drive with out going off the hill into ugly carson city
- EMPLOYMENT: well, its obvious that its hard to find a decent job up in the mountains here in SLT, so how is employment in lynchburg? hard or easy to get a job?
-HOUSING: I'm aware of the pricing (looked on craigslist) but what areas are the best/prettiest yet affordable to live in? i want something affordable that has scenery preperfably near a lake (ive been looking in boonsboro)
- COST OF LIVING: how is cost of living in lynchburg compared to south lake tahoe CA? (gas, groceries, utilities, etc)
-PEOPLE: obviously this isnt at the top of my list but i still would like to live in a friendly town. SLT locals are notoriously friendly how are people in lynchburg? i know it'll definitely be more conservative but thats ok.

I pretty much want a nice place to raise our kids, a nice house with land, somewhere i can work part time and spend the rest with family, 4 seasons, small town BUT not only 5 miles long type of small, a place with good family/friend values etc..

[finalmove]

When did you last visit Lynchburg? My family is from that region, and I would have no interest in living there.
When you come for a visit, spend a couple of days in Roanoke as a comparison.

[LynchburgLover]

Quality of life is very subjective. Generally, Lynchburg is a small, conservative (although pockets of more liberal) city with all of the basic amenities. There is a small mall and a strip of the usual Target, Walmart, Olive Garden, etc etc. There are small independent shops in the Peakland area and downtown. There are also plenty of clubs -- Rotary, Lions, garden clubs, scout troops, soccer, baseball etc etc. Obviously, there are lots of churches that offer all kinds of activities. There are several colleges -- Liberty, Lynchburg, Randolph, Sweet Briar -- that all offer opportunities to attend sporting and cultural events.

Weather -- definitely four seasons. You're not far from mountains (small ski resorts nearby) and several hours to the ocean. Smith Mountain Lake is a very large large between Lynchburg and Roanoke for boating activities.

Small Town feel -- yes, especially once you get involved in activites and find your niche.

Employment -- depends on your education/skills. You'd have to be more specific.

Housing -- depends on your income.

Cost of living -- I have no idea about Lake Tahoe (I've been there; it's gorgeous) There are on-line calculators where you can compare two cities. For Virginia standards, Lynchburg is very reasonable. But, again, that is subjective. I may feel a $200,000 house is "affordable", while someone else thinks $600,000 house is.

People -- yes, this is the South, after all. You will be welcomed. How you act after that will determine how friendly it continues to be. Overall, people are very polite.

Best of luck.

[novanwbie]

Well, I'm from Lynchburg, too, and would move back in a heartbeat if my husband could find a job there. My parents still live in Boonsboro. I love the pace there, living in Lynchburg is pretty easy. Nothing like living in a big city. There are neat cultural opportunities, and the four colleges/universities in town enhance that. We do have four seasons, and Lynchburg is a truly beautiful city. The cost of living, to me, seems incredibly low for the quality of life. The area has wonderful outdoorsy things to do.

I think the biggest drawback is that "small" feeling -- you see people you know all the time. I would love to live there now, and would absolutely raise my family there, but in my early 20s I'm not sure I would agree. Lynchburg City Schools have some issues. Not insurmountable, but they do need to be addressed. There are good private school options, as well.

I think the people are friendly, but you do have to make an effort to get out and meet people, as you would moving anywhere. I think the myth of southern friendliness is that people think the politeness exhibited by most southerners toward strangers is actually friendliness.

I would not say it is particularly easy to get a job, but it really depends on your field.

If you can give us more detail about your interests, job field, and budget, we can provide more specifics.

[spencer114]

I just spent a week working in Lynchburg. I was very pleasantly surprised by how nice, and pretty, the area is. It seems to be growing at a pretty good rate. The new development looks really nice too.

There is a pretty good amount of young people (20-30's) too. I wasn't expecting this. I assumed that the region was slipping into obscurity and had an aging population. I guess all of the colleges keep it young.

The city is really close to a lot of other small cities which would help keep it interesting.
Roanoke is a cool city about 45 minutes away. Charlottesville is about an hour. The drive between cities is very pretty and takes you through small towns so it seems like a quick trip. Richmond is about 2.5 hours away. I guess DC is about the same distance. VA is great with so many places very close by.

[sregorat3]

Originally Posted by finalmove

When did you last visit Lynchburg? My family is from that region, and I would have no interest in living there.
When you come for a visit, spend a couple of days in Roanoke as a comparison.

Lynchburg is outpacing Roanoke in growth, even without you! Great quality of life, beautiful scenery- I prefer Lynchburg, but both cities are great, IMHO.

[roanoker 4]

I think the small cities of Lynchburg, Roanoke are unique in VA in that we have not had the runaway growth of other parts of the state. We are now consistently ranked by many lifestyle media to be among the best places to live in the U.S. due to our better
Quality of life. With increasing technology the future of jobs is questionable for folks who live in overcrowded places and areas like ours may become too irresistable. I foresee major changes in the years ahead. I don't have any confidence in local
Governments to plan for the future of what Roanoke, Lynchburg will look like 25 years hence.

[LynchburgLover]

Lynchburg was perserved as a small city when I-64 was built to go through Charlottesville.

I think I've posted this before but at one time (not sure if still), Lynchburg was the largest small city in America without an interstate. It's kept it a bit provincial.

[roanoker 4]

I can't speak for Lynchburg but in Roanoke there is still a "power elite" who want to keep out change to continue the status quo.
I think the Railroad money had a direct impact on what Roanoke was to become, not so much on the interstate. Also, the local governments with their elected business people zoned land so heavily against new industry in favor of their interests it stifled growth. There was simply not a view that growth for growth sake was a good thing in VA, unlike NC's approach of stealing
Companies from other states with tax incentives. A recent example was Advance Auto Parts and Sierra Nevada who were ready to expand in Roanoke. There are many reasons why Lynchburg and Roanoke remain small.

[aespinoza805]

Originally Posted by LynchburgLover

Quality of life is very subjective. Generally, Lynchburg is a small, conservative (although pockets of more liberal) city with all of the basic amenities. There is a small mall and a strip of the usual Target, Walmart, Olive Garden, etc etc. There are small independent shops in the Peakland area and downtown. There are also plenty of clubs -- Rotary, Lions, garden clubs, scout troops, soccer, baseball etc etc. Obviously, there are lots of churches that offer all kinds of activities. There are several colleges -- Liberty, Lynchburg, Randolph, Sweet Briar -- that all offer opportunities to attend sporting and cultural events.

Weather -- definitely four seasons. You're not far from mountains (small ski resorts nearby) and several hours to the ocean. Smith Mountain Lake is a very large large between Lynchburg and Roanoke for boating activities.

Small Town feel -- yes, especially once you get involved in activites and find your niche.

Employment -- depends on your education/skills. You'd have to be more specific.

Housing -- depends on your income.

Cost of living -- I have no idea about Lake Tahoe (I've been there; it's gorgeous) There are on-line calculators where you can compare two cities. For Virginia standards, Lynchburg is very reasonable. But, again, that is subjective. I may feel a $200,000 house is "affordable", while someone else thinks $600,000 house is.

People -- yes, this is the South, after all. You will be welcomed. How you act after that will determine how friendly it continues to be. Overall, people are very polite.

Best of luck.

So far, sounds like what I'm looking for.
As far as employment, for now i am in the administrative field (reception, admin assistant) but plan on becoming a real estate agent, i want to look into it if i ever move out there. As far as housing, i guess i didnt mention that i meant more along the lines of what areas of lynchburg would you suggest living in? I have been looking into boonsboro & appomattox.
Since you are probably the only one that has visited Lake Tahoe that has replied, how does Tahoe compare to Lynchburg? i mean, everything aside... which one do you prefer?