recommendations for S. VA pre-relocation reconnisance road trip please. (Virginia Beach: for sale, real estate)

[EWKMLT]

Hi,
For the past three years my wife-equivalent and I have been looking for a place to live. We are both from the east coast and currently rent a home in the SF bay area.
We are sick of the crime, the traffic, the ridiculous cost of living, the selfish busy body people and most importantly we need to get closer to our aging relatives who need our help around the house.

We originally looked up in N. Virginia to be closer to our parents but the traffic is worse than here, and the cost of living is comparable.
S. Virginia is as far south as we can go and still be within a days drive although, with the price of gas going up who's to say we will be able to afford the trip.

So I guess this is where I tell you what we want, huh?

We have been looking for someplace where we can settle down, buy a house with a couple of acres, make some new friends and relax.

We would love to be surrounded by mountains and national forest, or perhaps be within walking distance of a body of water big enough not to get bored of.

I am an electrician and my lady is an editor/ admin assistant, we expect we will need to be within 40min commute of a city.
We expect we can afford to spend up to $250,000 for a starter home. We figure it will be a fixer-upper. We want space, acreage is very important.

We cant have kids so unless we decide to adopt someday schooling is only important to us in the effect it has on the community.

Here's a tuff one, anyone know of a community where everybody knows each other but doesn't get in each others business or tell them what not to do? This is our biggest peeve with the bay area, everyone screams freedom and tolerance and tells you to live the way they do. Were not weirdo's or druggies, but I do like to play with fire, and tinker with engines and the things that they make go, and yes I own a (gasp) firearm. Also, in our garden, we actually grow vegetables that you cant smoke.

We like hiking and to go to rock concerts, we like good ethnic cuisine, we like good American cuisine, a martial arts school nearby would be nice, maybe just a martial artist. A police force with the discression to tell the difference between a violent criminal and someone test driving a go kart would also be nice.
Also, if we own 3+ acres can I shoot cans in my own backyard?

Pie or cake huh? Thats tuff...as much as I love warm apple pie...Cake...Cheese cake. Unless the pie is homemade and comes with a scoop of vanilla icecream served on a warm summer night with a nice view.

Next weekend we will be driving from MD to Roanoke, Charlottesville, Richmond and leaving from Norfolk airport. There is a show in Richmond Saturday night we think will show us some people. And, we have a few restaurants in mind, but as far as the rest of the trip we would like some advice.
Can someone recommend a few areas to check out? A restaurant or pub we should visit. Anyplace we should avoid.
Is there more work in some areas than others?

Sorry that got so long, I didnt want to post another vague thread.
Thanks
-Eric

[seanpecor]

Once you get out of Northern Virginia you won't have to settle for up to a 40 minute commute. We're pretty well out in the country in the Boones Mill zip code but we're still only 25 minutes from downtown. There are still country house fixers within 15 minutes of the heart of Roanoke for well under $250K (even houses not in need of much fixing like 120 Summer Circle) Honestly, the best fixer I know of is this one: Boones Mill, VA 24065 Real Estate: MLS # 726029 - this 1900s farm house is only $125K and its on Naff Rd, about 5 miles from Roanoke. It would definitely need work but even if you dumped $50/sq ft into the renovation you'd still be under your budget. Plus it comes with a milking parlor (read: shop). It's been on the market for about 2 years and if you wave $99K under the realtor's nose I bet they'd take it.

If you like to play with fire, and wrench on engines, and hunt and what not then you'll be in good company virtually everywhere in rural Virginia. Roanoke is the original HQ for Advance Auto Parts and they have 24 hour parts stores.

Here where I'm at, we're less than an hour from a dozen or more hiking trails. We're about 30 minutes from Smith Mountain Lake (500 miles of shoreline, big time fishing lake w/ nationally televised fishing championships etc) and 45 minutes from Philpott Reservoir (also good fishing and camping). Lots of small rivers and big creeks in Franklin County:

Google Map for Illustration

There are a goodly amount of rock/country concert events at the Roanoke Civic Center, plus we're just an easy 2 hour drive down Route 220 to Greensboro Coliseum. Plus there is a neat music scene in downtown Roanoke with cozy venues that attract indie acts etc.

I'm not too familiar with martial arts resources in the Roanoke area but I hear/see them advertised and drive by a few regularly so I assume you'll find what you're looking for. There is a pretty popular regular MMA event called Ruckus in the Cage (?) that goes on at the Roanoke Civic Center and I understand there are a couple MMA style training centers locally.

As far as work goes you'll do fine in both of your industries in the three places you're going to visit. All three metros are growing. Charlottesville is a smaller metro than Roanoke, which is a smaller metro than Richmond. Richmond at least in my opinion doesn't really get you the "surrounded by mountains" vibe but it's definitely going to offer a bigger more cosmopolitan metro vibe if that's your thing. It stands to reason that you'll have more traffic headaches in Richmond particularly since the metro land area is so large; you've got people commuting 50+ minutes into Richmond so its bound to bottleneck as you get closer to the metro although it won't be anything as bad as NoVA.

Electricians are definitely in demand in the Roanoke area. Here in Franklin County there is a shortage. Or, at least, it feels like a shortage from the consumer side Of the two larger electrician shops in my area I called when we were having some arcing issues in a barn lighting system, one was literally booking one month out on _emergencies_. One thing to consider is that Roanoke is not a big union area. We've got an extended family member who is a 20+ year electrician from Winchester (Northern VA) and he ranks well enough to go on recruiting expeditions for their union which reaches from D.C. all the way to SWVA. The last time he was here (about a month ago) he was saying that there isn't as much drive to go union down here because the shops support their electricians pretty well already with good pocket money, benefits and so on. The shops themselves are all family owned and not too large so apparently its a good work environment. He was saying that the union pocket money for new electricians in Roanoke is $19/hour, if that helps.

I presume you'll be heading down I-81S to get to the major Roanoke exit (143). If so, and since I presume you want to check out the downtown area but also check out some country, here is a route I recommend:

- Head down I-581S to exit 6 and follow signs for downtown. Find the Market Square building off Campbell Avenue and find nearby parking (easy to do). If you're arriving around lunch check out the Market Square options (my favorite burgers in the universe are at Burger in the Square) or any number of other options downtown like 202 Market, etc.

- After the downtown trip, find your way back onto I-581S and head south on what will turn into Route 220. About 15 minutes past the Lowes/Home Depot you'll enter Boones Mill and see a stoplight. Take a right at the light onto Bethlehem Road. It's a pretty drive on the southeast side of Cahas Mountain. Keep going until you run into Callaway Road and take a left. Another pretty country drive. Stay on Callaway until it ends on Grassy Hill Road. Take a right turn. At this point you'll be heading toward Rocky Mount. Another pretty drive. Then you'll find yourself at a stoplight with a KFC on your right. You can take a right turn and then navigate into downtown Rocky Mount (cross the bridge at the goofy intersection) and check out the neat little Main St vibe. Rocky Mount is about 35 minutes from Roanoke. Or, at the light near the KFC, you can skip Rocky Mount by turning left and then watch for the Route 220S exit. Take 220S until the next exit, and take that exit. Then take a right. You'll be on VA Route 40E at that point. A couple few miles later and you'll see signs for Route 122. Take a left on 122 (after the left, stay left, the right lane instantly turns into a right turn only lane in the wrong direction) and you'll be on your way to Smith Mountain Lake. Maybe a 15-20 minute drive and you'll be crossing SML. At the SML bridge you'll be about 40 minutes from downtown Roanoke and a 2 hour drive to Charlottesvile and you'll be driving through a few isolated country towns but its a pretty drive. You'll skirt Lynchburg (and not its most attractive side) and Amherst and eventually you'll start seeing the sort of houses that really crank up Charlottesville median home prices At that point you'll know you're getting close.

Hope this helps,

Sean

[EWKMLT]

Thank you very much!
We look forward to seeing Roanoke now. After bouncing around these forums for a while I was starting to worry that as outsiders we wouldnt be welcome.
I had relatives in Roanoke for a while but they moved away saying outsiders werent welcome. Mind you he was a VP for IBM whose job was to fire people to make IBM more profitable. I visited them once in there "castle" back in the 80's and although I was young I remember them as snooty. Maybe thats why they werent welcome. They were the only people I met in Roanoke until years later while on a motorcycle trip when I ducked out hurricane Fran in one of Roanokes motels. Anyway...
Again thanks!

[j1n]

Yeah, sounds like you'd like the Roanoke area. You're around 3 hrs fom Richmond here if there's a show there that's not passing through Roanoke. (Who are you seeing, by the way?)
Sean covered it pretty well on the housing front. I was going to tell you that $200k will put you in a nice non-fixer-upper here!
If you like the outdoors, there's a lot to be had here. I hiked a little on the Appalachian Trail last weekend. It goes through the whole region here. There is a lot of water stuff to do. I have a personal pet peeve concerning the bigger lakes around, as they are man-made. But there are a lot of streams and small rivers. There are also some spectacular waterfalls around to be hiked to. I was at one a couple weekends ago that looked like something straight out of a Hawaiian island scene.
As far as the acceptance thing, I have two pieces of advice. First...remember it's the South and some of the stereotypes are true. Second...don't be "that guy" that throws around things like "...well back in California we did it this way" or "...up North we did this" etc.
The whole region is nice...Charlottesville, Roanoke, Blacksburg, etc. Enjoy your trip!

[vamtncat]

You might want to look at the charlottesville, area. More particularly Greene County which is Northeast of C'Ville, around Standardsville. You are about 1.5 hour drive to No VA. Beautifull views, affordable housing, good schools (getting better) and about 15 min drive to n. C'ville for major shopping needs. There is also a direct rail line from C'ville to DC.

[kwsulton]

Hey Sean,

My wife, 2 daughters, and myself just moved to Charlottesville (central VA) from New Hampshire. We literally looked at hundreds of places before being recommended to Charlottesville.

I'd be happy to talk to you about why. Feel free to give me a call on my cell: 434-964-7474 or e-mail me at Fulton@kw.com

We can be at 4000ft in 25 minutes, the big city of Washington is close enough that our kid's school goes there for field trips, we've got the 2nd best university and all it offers at our fingertips, we've got the Chesapeake 2 hours away (where we keep our little boat), and we've got longer spring, longer fall, and mild winters. I love the diversity of the populace, employment is strong, and we love the rolling hills, pastures and horse farms, rivers and lakes. We L-O-V-E it here, no end. We're going on 3 years and we'll never leave.

From here everything is accessible, whereas living in Roanoke would keep me away from the ocean on a regular basis just by adding 2.5 hours to the trip...

Look forward to discussing further.

All my best.

Fulton

[seanpecor]

Er, kwsulton, I wasn't the original poster. I was doing my part to help out the OP.

I do agree with you in that I think Charlottesville is certainly a wonderful place to live. Like you I came from New England (Vermont) and moved to Virginia recently (in 2004). What our family was looking for we found in Boones Mill, Virginia (20 minutes south of Roanoke). Being a 2.5 hour drive closer to the ocean doesn't make a difference to us. When we do coastal vacations my whole family are big swimmers and we prefer warmer water temperatures. And east coast Atlantic doesn't get warm enough to swim in for us until you're down in Florida. And since I'm not a huge fan of Florida, you're more likely to find us in Costa Rica, Grand Cayman or Saint Thomas than you are in Virginia Beach or Cape Hatteras. You know all those people stacked up on Virginia Beach lying down and roasting themselves on the sand? Yeah, that's not us. We're the family out tossing eachother around in the water. And sadly at Virginia Beach or down in the OBX we're more likely to have blue lips and goosebumps

We did recently flirt with the idea of downsizing and we looked back to New England and, failing to find anything comparable to what we have here, we looked back again to the Charlottesville area (we're horse people). It was the same story as it was back in 2004 when we were looking for a larger horse property. Too much money for not enough property. And in our case, the many extra thousands a month in mortgage wasn't worth living in the Charlottesville area, particularly when for us Roanoke and Charlottesville basically stand on equal footing when it comes to quality of life. Here in the Roanoke area, a typical horse farm-ette with +/- 20 acres and a very nice house is at least 30% less than a comparable property in Charlottesville. For horse folks, that might mean you're paying an extra $1,500 a month (or much, much more depending on what market you're in) in mortgage in Charlottesville. At that point it really becomes a no-brainer, particularly if you can live anywhere like we can.

Both Charlottesville and Roanoke have their strengths and weaknesses. Which place is "better" for a particular family depends on the particular needs and desires of the family. For you, you prefer a slightly longer Spring, Autumn and Winter so Charlottesville is nicer than Roanoke in that way. I frame it differently. I frame Charlottesville as, it's always about 4 degrees colder there than it is in Boones Mill. Therefore, Spring shows up earlier in Boones Mill, and Autumn starts later. I garden, and I keep lots of horses, so I prefer a growing season that starts earlier and ends later. So from your perspective, the strength of Charlottesville in that regard, is actually perceived from my perspective as a weakness. But that's what makes VA such a neat place. So many different climates, so many different lifestyle options!

Sean

[kwsulton]

Thanks for your understanding, Sean, (and Eric, too). It was late, I'm getting old, I realized I had posted to Sean's name AFTER I read your most recent post. Woops.

Vermont, eh? I was born and raised in Hanover. The last 20 living in and out of Boston and Nashua. I was telling somebody the other day that it was so awesome to be able to swim in the Chesapeake 'cause where we summered in Maine, the only reason to be in the water was 'cause you were trying to commit suicide or your boat blew up. Just last weekend we went a swimmin' in the bay waters--soooo nice. But then they tell me "ohhhh, watch out for them stingin' nettles..." What the ? What are nettles and what do you mean stinging? Yikes. Well, turns out that come July/August there's a far spread carpet of these slimy li'l jellyfish. Just what I need, to have the girls get stung...they'll never go in the water again. Some people say they're awful, others say to go out and get some meat tenderizer and rub it in the sore??!! Meat tenderizer? What, basting for the sharks?

This past winter was the 2nd worst on record up in NH--and I wasn't living there--YEAH! Love the longer spring, the summer is bearable 'cause we have A/C down here--didn't have that in NH. And I think the falls are just as gorgeous. And of course the winters are milder and shorter. I haven't shoveled snow for 3 years, now.

We looked into Roanoke, Lynchburg, Harrisonburg, Staunton/Waynesboro, Fredericksburg, etc. But it seemed to us that C'ville was in the heart of everything culturally and geographically. But you know, moving to a place doesn't make you a different person, you've gotta' make the changes inside, if you want to change at all. I think we were just ready for what Charlottesville offered and so we made the change to move away from New England. Living almost 50 years in New England and with the prospect looming of dying there? Well, we felt it was time to try something new. Our families had all moved,so there wasn't anything really holding us there. And we felt the time was right before the girls got boy crazy and esconced in their routines.

I wanted to go to California but the wife said too far from most of the family. We couldn't do midwest 'cause we have a boat and NEED the ocean, and we couldn't do the deep south 'cause we're Yankees and we'd get eaten alive! So here we are, by the Grace of God!

By the way, I have a couple gorgeous homes (still) for sale up in NH if you're truly serious about moving back up there! I'll give you a terrific deal!

Keep me in the loop. I'm enjoying your style and look forward to reading more!

Fulton

[EWKMLT]

Originally Posted by vamtncat

You might want to look at the charlottesville, area. More particularly Greene County which is Northeast of C'Ville, around Standardsville. You are about 1.5 hour drive to No VA. Beautifull views, affordable housing, good schools (getting better) and about 15 min drive to n. C'ville for major shopping needs. There is also a direct rail line from C'ville to DC.

A direct rail line to dc sounds promising. Not that I have much interest in spending time in dc, but if its the only work around for a while...

We'll try to refrain from pointing out why the place we left is better than the place we are, it bothers me to.

Thanks for all the advice
Eric and Michele

[EWKMLT]

Oh yeah Sean,
Those are nice places to go for vacation, I've been worried that living in a lower income area we wouldnt be able to afford such luxuries. Are we wrong?