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I have been a lifelong Floridian (Tampa Area) and am absolutely sick of all the heat - we have been setting a lot of record highs lately and I see this as the new normal.* Our*area in Florida is also getting insanely congested.* So I am ready for a change and am looking at relocating to somewhere near or in the Smoky Mountains.* I am just starting to do my research on potential areas.* Making the move with me would be my wife and my two young boys (6 and 9).**
Having young kids, a good school system is very important, so I am trying to find a smaller town (at least smaller than the Tampa Bay area) with a slower pace but that also has good school options for our kids and some infrastructure.* We frequently vacation in the North Georgia mountains near Elijay/Blue Ridge, and we love the area, but I just don't think it offers great school options (but I could be wrong).* *
I am kind of leaning towards Tennessee because of the no state income tax similarity to Florida, but I am open to north Georgia or North Carolina.**
My wife works from home and I am also looking for a work from home job or possibly a career change into financial planning.* I was an exec at a health insurance company running a corporate development (mergers & acquisitions) team but our company was recently purchased, so I think this is the right time in life to make some changes for the better.
Hopefully what I am looking for does exist.* Thanks in advance for the recommendations.**
After many visits to the area over the past twenty years we made the leap and moved to the Asheville / Weaverville area in 2017. Like you we had a younger family at the time (7, 12 and 15, married 25, together 31) and were coming from central Florida (Melbourne area) where we had moved to from Maryland due to our careers.
Although initially drawn to the outdoor lifestyle that the area had offered, we found the best fit for our family was here in TN as the Asheville area had lost its luster for us for various reasons, most importantly the feeling of living in a tourist area versus living in a community, which we never felt we had in AVL. Also lived in Key West, FL for a while and had the same feeling living there that we had in AVL if that says anything.
Not to burst your bubble, but most schooling systems here in Appalachia are fairly lousy to mediocre at best as the area has a high concentration of poverty and lousy / distant parenting. If you’re moving here anticipating finding great school systems you’ll quickly be disappointed, although we’ve done alright with our three as we’re very involved parents.
Your experience may differ, but the school system in Johnson City, TN is as good or better then anything you’ll find in Asheville, and the tax advantages, housing costs (cut in half) and the proximity to the outdoors and even Asheville itself (under an hour) made it a no brainer for our family of five.
Finding a job in your field or making a career change though may be a challenge so do your homework as the job market here in TN / NC can be tough (we came with good resumes and options). Hope that helps and good luck.
Last edited by VinceTheExplorer; 06-29-2020 at 04:19 PM..
I have been a lifelong Floridian (Tampa Area) and am absolutely sick of all the heat - we have been setting a lot of record highs lately and I see this as the new normal.* Our*area in Florida is also getting insanely congested.
I was just down in the Tampa area (Oldsmar) for two weeks doing some corporate training and was pretty miserable. It was hot, humid, congested and the people there were obnoxious. Felt like being in a hamster wheel and couldn’t wait to get back home.
Despite having a $50 daily per diem I had no desire to go out and use it. Walked to a few places next door and got takeout then back to the room. Did have a pretty good seafood fest one night and that was about it.
A few out of the group went to the HR casino but I happily passed. Didn't even visit the beach as the mountains were calling me back.
I was just down in the Tampa area (Oldsmar) for two weeks doing some corporate training and was pretty miserable. It was hot, humid, congested and the people there were obnoxious. Felt like being in a hamster wheel and couldn’t wait to get back home.
Despite having a $50 daily per diem I had no desire to go out and use it. Walked to a few places next door and got takeout then back to the room. Did have a pretty good seafood fest one night and that was about it.
A few out of the group went to the HR casino but I happily passed. Didn't even visit the beach as the mountains were calling me back.
You pretty much nailed it - hot, humid, congested with angry and crazy people. But our beaches and fishing are second to none. I am right down the road from Oldsmar.
Expect to trade heat and humidity for lots of year round rain and copious gray winter/spring days. The area had 81 inches of rain in 2019 and the winter/spring gets gloomier every year we've been here (moved here in 2016). If you're coming to the Asheville area, I would strongly suggest private schools. I've spent the last 4 years as a substitute teacher in both Asheville City and Buncombe County schools, and was pretty astounded at what I saw there on a daily basis (taught all levels, K-12). Bring lots of money for private schools, though, because they know there are few alternatives in the area and price tuition accordingly (ours has nearly doubled in the 4 years we've been here). While I don't know much about Eastern TN other than a few brief visits, I would strongly suggest checking it out due to overall COL and tax savings. Love the mountains and the cooler temps at night in summer, but I can't say I'll miss much else about the area. Happy to be heading back to FL!
M5allen We made the move from collier county to WNC - Yancey county 23 years ago . We could see the congestion coming , property values were sky rocketing so we made the move and still love it here . Krazicat needs to know his 81" of rain and nothing special in much of florida and here we had a lot to but our yearly was closer to 50" .
Just a weather cycle thang !!
I'm old enough to remember seeing ice at our airboat camp off gator alley and ficus trees with 20 foot heads getting killed back to stumps do to the cold in Golden Gate and even a lite snow fall back in the '70's . Don't miss the afternoon down pours during summers heater months or the heat for 6 months a year . BUT I sure do miss a bike ride up to Ybor city for some cuban food and a fresh cigar but most of those days are long gone .
I would like to say most small rural county's here can provide a very good life style and small student counts per class room and good teaches along with a safe place to live work , WE have that here but not sure around the state or in TN but you my find the hill counties of TN offer you all that you need and more . Might be more about you finding your job of choice and then find an ideal area to live in .
I have been a lifelong Floridian (Tampa Area) and am absolutely sick of all the heat - we have been setting a lot of record highs lately and I see this as the new normal.* Our*area in Florida is also getting insanely congested.* So I am ready for a change and am looking at relocating to somewhere near or in the Smoky Mountains.* I am just starting to do my research on potential areas.* Making the move with me would be my wife and my two young boys (6 and 9).**
Having young kids, a good school system is very important, so I am trying to find a smaller town (at least smaller than the Tampa Bay area) with a slower pace but that also has good school options for our kids and some infrastructure.* We frequently vacation in the North Georgia mountains near Elijay/Blue Ridge, and we love the area, but I just don't think it offers great school options (but I could be wrong).* *
I am kind of leaning towards Tennessee because of the no state income tax similarity to Florida, but I am open to north Georgia or North Carolina.**
My wife works from home and I am also looking for a work from home job or possibly a career change into financial planning.* I was an exec at a health insurance company running a corporate development (mergers & acquisitions) team but our company was recently purchased, so I think this is the right time in life to make some changes for the better.
Hopefully what I am looking for does exist.* Thanks in advance for the recommendations.**
Another perspective - we looked TN over East to West and North to South - nothing in TN compares to the small mountain towns in NC. TN is much more rural, generally much less scenic, less zoning, more mobile homes, lower socioeconomically, etc.. I encourage you to take a look at towns such as Hendersonville, Brevard, and Boone. WNC does have drawbacks as every place does, but its positives far outweigh the negatives. We spent 20 years travelling over the entire U.S., and I can tell you western NC is one of the most scenic, special places we visited. It was the ONLY place we kept returning to. I encourage to take a close look at total tax and not just state income tax. When we compared FL to NC on a TOTAL tax basis, NC was only slightly more than FL. TN is less expensive, tax-wise, but for us, it didn't matter. I wouldn't want to live in east TN - completely different feel. You need to read some of the posts from a frequent poster on this forum. He's from east TN, and not a fan at all.
You pretty much nailed it - hot, humid, congested with angry and crazy people. But our beaches and fishing are second to none. I am right down the road from Oldsmar.
Yes the beaches and fishing there are great! Spent my fair share of time there, around Clearwater and all the way down through the Keys and Key West (still a favorite place of ours to visit.)
That’s about it though for me as I personally prefer the beaches of the Mid Atlantic and Hatteras over those in FL as I’ve been a lifelong waterman growing up surfing those areas, although we’re a bit removed from them here lately.
Good luck in your search and we hope you find what you’re looking for. We found the Hendersonville and surrounding area to be rather dumpy when scouting the area, with lots of trailers, unregulated sprawl and trashy looking businesses on top of each other (can you say Pay Day Loans and used tire stores.)
You’ll find more of the same in the areas surrounding AVL such as Canton (fragrant paper mill), Swannanoa (run down meth town) and Woodfin (storage building and trailer haven). Be sure to visit these areas with the family for a special treat when scouting the area.
Knowing this, folks will still want a premium ($300k+) for their 900 square foot 2 bed, 1 bath borderline tiny homes (with carports) just because they’re “near” Asheville.
Most of the homes will be in crappy school districts and where you won’t want your children walking around alone during the day in your own neighborhood. Sounds like the mountain paradise that you’ve been looking for, right?
So if you want REAL advice from two involved parents raising their three children in the area, we’re here to help. If I were you though realize that certain types here on the forum offer advice from afar but have never lived in AVL, made a living there or raised children in the area. They’re essentially tourists themselves so be careful with who / what you listen to. Good luck on your search.
Last edited by VinceTheExplorer; 06-30-2020 at 09:58 PM..
The bottom line is you all have to make the best decision for your family. There is simply no substitute for visiting an area. If you find an area that you like, I would visit many times for extended periods of time, if possible. We have friends who live in the Blue Ridge area; It's a beautiful area, but would be too small/remote for us. We all weigh things differently...
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