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Old 06-15-2019, 07:35 PM
 
Location: New Port Richey, FL
54 posts, read 74,427 times
Reputation: 63

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Hi everyone,

I’m a single mom of a 9-year old big baby and work from home as an accountant. I’ve been looking for a place to put some roots down. My dad is close to needing dialysis. I want him to move close to us, so I need to find a permanent home.

I moved to Asheville last summer as you can see in my previous posts. Asheville is beautiful with friendly people and so many things to do, but I absolutely hate the Buncombe county schools. So, schools are a big deal breaker. I never knew it could be so bad. The school system here hardly gives homework because they say the kids work enough during the school day. Yeah…No. I want a school that believes in giving homework and expects the best from the students. I want above average work to be recognized, whether it's my daughter or not. I want her to strive for more, not to settle for mediocrity. So sorry I went off the rails for a bit. I have thought about finding a private school here, but I moved here based on other circumstances/family/friends, and I just want to make a decision based on what I want and think is best.

I have narrowed it down to 4 cities…Prescott, Arizona; Bend, Oregon; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Spokane, Washington. I’m going to post this in each of these state’s forums to reach the most people.

I have always loved the Pacific Northwest (in the summer). I've never been there in the winter. My Colorado Springs option is because I had a wonderful dream that we were there and we were loving it and happy. Then I looked into it and saw that it really is beautiful. I've read it has some of the best weather. I'd like to know if that's true. I think Prescott could be a good compromise, and my daughter was already accepted at a charter school there (BASIS Prescott).

I’d like to be able to get either a house or townhouse somewhere between $200-$300k in a good and safe neighborhood for myself and my 9-year-old daughter. I am very middle of the road politically and don’t want to feel judged by either side of the spectrum. One of my pet peeves is littering. I don’t want to see garbage lying around throughout my neighborhood. I’d like to be around people that care what their homes and neighborhood looks like. I have taught my daughter to choose her friends based on their character, if they are nice to you, if they have your same interests. My daughter doesn't see color or sexual orientation because of this. I don't want people's differences being pointed out to her in school.
So I'm not okay with "social justice" like a charter school here has as it's mission statement. On the other side of the coin, I don't want to be hounded into going to church on Sunday by people who want to "help" me. All I want to make clear is that I don't judge people based on their personal beliefs, and I don't expect it to be done to me.

I just want to give a good idea of who I am, what I want, and what kind of environment I want to be in. I desperately want to find this place. I hope there are people out there that can help me work through all this.


Here are some things I am most interested in knowing about:
1. What are the safest areas/neighborhoods/suburbs/etc.?
2. What are the ones I should keep away from?
3. What would you say the political atmosphere is like? Please give me as much information as you can on this one. I would like to know if an area is extreme left or extreme right? Who did most people vote for? Trump, Clinton, or even Gary Johnson.
4. Are people all in your business or are they friendly and laid back? Any personal experiences will help.
5. How much does it snow exactly? Like how many feet of snow can you expect to walk in and for how many days? I’m a bit skeptical of statistics I have found online.
6. How cold does it get in winter and for how long? Does it ever go below zero?
7. How hot does it really get? How high does the temp go in the summer? Does it get very humid or is it dry?
8. How are the public schools? Would a private school be preferable? Any input from other parents would be very appreciated.
9. How is the medical care? Is there a good hospital close by?
10. Do you think there is an area where I can find a house in my price range?

Thank you all for listening. I hope I haven't offended.

Isa
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Old 06-15-2019, 10:11 PM
 
Location: Oregon Coast
15,228 posts, read 8,840,677 times
Reputation: 20247
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monaisa View Post
Hi everyone,

I’m a single mom of a 9-year old big baby and work from home as an accountant. I’ve been looking for a place to put some roots down. My dad is close to needing dialysis. I want him to move close to us, so I need to find a permanent home.

I moved to Asheville last summer as you can see in my previous posts. Asheville is beautiful with friendly people and so many things to do, but I absolutely hate the Buncombe county schools. So, schools are a big deal breaker. I never knew it could be so bad. The school system here hardly gives homework because they say the kids work enough during the school day. Yeah…No. I want a school that believes in giving homework and expects the best from the students. I want above average work to be recognized, whether it's my daughter or not. I want her to strive for more, not to settle for mediocrity. So sorry I went off the rails for a bit. I have thought about finding a private school here, but I moved here based on other circumstances/family/friends, and I just want to make a decision based on what I want and think is best.

I have narrowed it down to 4 cities…Prescott, Arizona; Bend, Oregon; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Spokane, Washington. I’m going to post this in each of these state’s forums to reach the most people.

I have always loved the Pacific Northwest (in the summer). I've never been there in the winter. My Colorado Springs option is because I had a wonderful dream that we were there and we were loving it and happy. Then I looked into it and saw that it really is beautiful. I've read it has some of the best weather. I'd like to know if that's true. I think Prescott could be a good compromise, and my daughter was already accepted at a charter school there (BASIS Prescott).

I’d like to be able to get either a house or townhouse somewhere between $200-$300k in a good and safe neighborhood for myself and my 9-year-old daughter. I am very middle of the road politically and don’t want to feel judged by either side of the spectrum. One of my pet peeves is littering. I don’t want to see garbage lying around throughout my neighborhood. I’d like to be around people that care what their homes and neighborhood looks like. I have taught my daughter to choose her friends based on their character, if they are nice to you, if they have your same interests. My daughter doesn't see color or sexual orientation because of this. I don't want people's differences being pointed out to her in school.
So I'm not okay with "social justice" like a charter school here has as it's mission statement. On the other side of the coin, I don't want to be hounded into going to church on Sunday by people who want to "help" me. All I want to make clear is that I don't judge people based on their personal beliefs, and I don't expect it to be done to me.

I just want to give a good idea of who I am, what I want, and what kind of environment I want to be in. I desperately want to find this place. I hope there are people out there that can help me work through all this.


Here are some things I am most interested in knowing about:
1. What are the safest areas/neighborhoods/suburbs/etc.?
2. What are the ones I should keep away from?
3. What would you say the political atmosphere is like? Please give me as much information as you can on this one. I would like to know if an area is extreme left or extreme right? Who did most people vote for? Trump, Clinton, or even Gary Johnson.
4. Are people all in your business or are they friendly and laid back? Any personal experiences will help.
5. How much does it snow exactly? Like how many feet of snow can you expect to walk in and for how many days? I’m a bit skeptical of statistics I have found online.
6. How cold does it get in winter and for how long? Does it ever go below zero?
7. How hot does it really get? How high does the temp go in the summer? Does it get very humid or is it dry?
8. How are the public schools? Would a private school be preferable? Any input from other parents would be very appreciated.
9. How is the medical care? Is there a good hospital close by?
10. Do you think there is an area where I can find a house in my price range?

Thank you all for listening. I hope I haven't offended.

Isa
Start by reading this. Then plan on visiting in the winter time to see how you like it, at that time of the year.

Bend, Oregon - Wikipedia
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Old 06-16-2019, 06:55 AM
 
Location: Redmond, OR
740 posts, read 1,243,987 times
Reputation: 472
The cities you cite were on our short list and we ended up moving to Redmond, OR. We are both retired and had been living in the mountains outside of Denver, so our choice was based on very different criteria from yours. We like central Oregon, but there is no interstate nearby nor an international airport. I believe the median price for a Bend home is now $464,000. For us the winters are much milder than Colorado, but we were used to an average of 138" of snow each winter there. I haven't been to Prescott, but the crime rate in Colorado Springs and the homeless problem in Spokane put us off a bit. Good and bad about everywhere, so if schools are your determining factor, start from that.
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Old 06-16-2019, 07:29 AM
 
9,229 posts, read 8,507,317 times
Reputation: 14765
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monaisa View Post
Here are some things I am most interested in knowing about:
1. What are the safest areas/neighborhoods/suburbs/etc.?
2. What are the ones I should keep away from?
3. What would you say the political atmosphere is like? Please give me as much information as you can on this one. I would like to know if an area is extreme left or extreme right? Who did most people vote for? Trump, Clinton, or even Gary Johnson.
4. Are people all in your business or are they friendly and laid back? Any personal experiences will help.
5. How much does it snow exactly? Like how many feet of snow can you expect to walk in and for how many days? I’m a bit skeptical of statistics I have found online.
6. How cold does it get in winter and for how long? Does it ever go below zero?
7. How hot does it really get? How high does the temp go in the summer? Does it get very humid or is it dry?
8. How are the public schools? Would a private school be preferable? Any input from other parents would be very appreciated.
9. How is the medical care? Is there a good hospital close by?
10. Do you think there is an area where I can find a house in my price range?

Thank you all for listening. I hope I haven't offended.

Isa
Isa, though I have visited each of those communities, I can not answer your questions, but I did want to offer this:

Your price range is going to be difficult and likely push you into a lower quality neighborhood for any of these. I know this because my range isn't much higher than yours, and the pickings are getting slimmer each time I review the market. I suggest running (and saving) searches in Zillow of each city and set them for email updates. When you look at the property in the site, if you are interested Google the address and look at the satellite view and look at the broader perspective. If you still are interested favorite it by activating the heart icon. Over time you will probably see a pattern of where your hearts are on their map view.

Zillow also provides school info and the school's rating, though I am not informed about how they get their info because I am not a parent and don't care.

Crime data is also available online: https://www.adt.com/crime

You can always look at the political map for any election using Google and following the election results for candidates you are interested in seeing. Here's one: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...-121.315/80230

As for the weather, I can tell you that all have snow in the winter, and are hot and dry (very dry) in the summer -- and as a weather weenie I am always looking at the actuals v the norms and the climatologists are correct: the norms are being ignored by Mother Nature. I suggest using an online provider of historic weather data to get an idea of the averages, and then just look at the peak months. One such provider:
https://www.usclimatedata.com/climat...or0031/2017/12

If you set up your searches and look at the results weekly you should be able to answer your own questions within a short span of time.

There are a couple of things you did not put on your list, like air and water quality -- and as for the water, it's long term availability. In my readings I've learned that Colorado has an imminent water crisis as the aquifer that holds its water table has been diminished to dangerous levels over the recent decades. Of the three you named, I would guess that Spokane is the most drought resistant because of the geographic proximity to the Canadian runoff. (Thank God for the Tundra!)

When you have narrowed it down to a specific area, contact a reputable real estate agent and talk with them about your specific needs. Talk with the school district representatives.

Best wishes.
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Old 06-16-2019, 07:45 AM
 
Location: North Idaho
32,517 posts, read 47,566,435 times
Reputation: 77890
Another huge wish list without the money to pay for it. I suggest that you try to find a place where you can afford a house and go from there.


You won't get anything in Bend for $200,000-$300,000 in a nice neighborhood. Schools are OK. Snow removal is abysmally bad. So you can scratch Bend off your list.


Isn't Colorado Springs an expensive place? If so, you can cross that off your list.


You can afford something in Spokane, but not in the nicer neighborhoods. There are lots of areas with small older houses where you could buy. Schools are OK. Crime rate is a bit high and homeless and drug problems are pretty noticeable. A call to the non-emergency line of the local police station should be able to tell you what the crime rate is in the neighborhoods with cheap houses.
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Old 06-16-2019, 08:47 AM
 
Location: Bend OR
811 posts, read 1,053,800 times
Reputation: 1733
I think the Redmond Oregon suggestion is a good one to consider.
Redmond is quietly building itself into a decent little town. They seem to be putting money into creating decent new schools. Roads seem to be in better shape than Bend, although they have no "bypass" for the main highway going right through town and I see that as a future traffic nightmare. Houses in Redmond tend to be about $100k less than Bend houses, although prices are going up there too. But your budget for a townhome is more likely to get a decent neighborhood there. Weather might be a tiny bit more temperate than Bend, although recent years with weather swinging to extremes everywhere, I haven't seen that difference being apparent.

In Bend, you might find something on the Northeast side, but that area has sadly been taken over by monster huge homeless camps with much garbage and skyrocketing crime rate. South Bend, on the very active railroad tracks, has some good deals, although I am not a fan of many of these "slowly upgrading" neighborhoods with freight trains running through your backyard at 3am.

Schools in Oregon are apparently not doing that great in general. I think a lot of that might be how much involvement the parents commit to support their kids at home and in schools. There are some good private schools in Bend, but might be too pricey. Our kids are grown up and were educated in Washington state, which was just ok, and we were pretty involved in their schooling. I you want to toss your kids into a school and say "see ya in 12 years" ....probably not good, but if you are involved, they seem to get the job done about as well as most places.

There are always tradeoffs, no matter where you go. Best of luck!
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Old 06-16-2019, 06:18 PM
 
Location: Oregon Coast
15,228 posts, read 8,840,677 times
Reputation: 20247
Quote:
Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke View Post
Another huge wish list without the money to pay for it. I suggest that you try to find a place where you can afford a house and go from there.


You won't get anything in Bend for $200,000-$300,000 in a nice neighborhood. Schools are OK. Snow removal is abysmally bad. So you can scratch Bend off your list.


Isn't Colorado Springs an expensive place? If so, you can cross that off your list.


You can afford something in Spokane, but not in the nicer neighborhoods. There are lots of areas with small older houses where you could buy. Schools are OK. Crime rate is a bit high and homeless and drug problems are pretty noticeable. A call to the non-emergency line of the local police station should be able to tell you what the crime rate is in the neighborhoods with cheap houses.
Yeah, I agree. That was my thought too. With a list like that, I wonder if the OP can be happy anywhere. This is apparently going to be their second move in a year, looking for their utopia, of a place with great climate, great schools, low housing prices, and a place where everybody shares their same political views.

Good luck to the OP. I hope their dreams come true, and they find their utopia.
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Old 06-16-2019, 08:42 PM
 
Location: WA
5,341 posts, read 7,614,251 times
Reputation: 8304
Moving across the country is incredibly expensive and disruptive. Just the real estate transaction costs are huge, not to mention the actual moving costs.

Asheville is an absolutely gorgeous community. I've been there several times. The OP would probably be better off looking for ways to make it work for her. There has to be a lot of like-minded parents who value education and other resources for augmenting what the schools are doing. Plus charter and private school options.

Every place is going to have its pluses and minuses. I've been to all the places on this list except for Prescott AZ. Frankly Asheville is as nice as any of them and has a prettier downtown area than all of them. I'd be looking hard at ways to make it work for you with the budget you have to work with. And look for community that can help with things like supplementing your child's education with enrichment experiences, summer camps, after school programs, etc. Bend is very expensive and will be a difficult place to start fresh as a single mom with a disabled parent in tow and limited resources.

I said this same thing over in the Spokane forum where you posted the same message.
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Old 06-17-2019, 07:13 PM
 
Location: New Port Richey, FL
54 posts, read 74,427 times
Reputation: 63
Thank you all for all your input.

Coniferian, I also read online about Spokane crime, but I figured sometimes it may be in just some areas. I am going to look into Redmond.

Thanks also Texasdiver. I do love Asheville, and I still am trying to find a better school. unfortunately, the 2 best charter schools in the area are both Very left leaning. one has social justice as their motto or mission statement. one of the better private schools here have also started saying things that I found questionable. i haven't stopped looking, but it's not looking too promising.

I may be able to go higher on a house. My father has money put away as well. But I do see your point and am taking it quite seriously.

I guess I thought there may be some outer suburbs that were less expensive.
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Old 06-17-2019, 08:17 PM
 
Location: WA
5,341 posts, read 7,614,251 times
Reputation: 8304
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monaisa View Post
Thank you all for all your input.

Coniferian, I also read online about Spokane crime, but I figured sometimes it may be in just some areas. I am going to look into Redmond.

Thanks also Texasdiver. I do love Asheville, and I still am trying to find a better school. unfortunately, the 2 best charter schools in the area are both Very left leaning. one has social justice as their motto or mission statement. one of the better private schools here have also started saying things that I found questionable. i haven't stopped looking, but it's not looking too promising.

I may be able to go higher on a house. My father has money put away as well. But I do see your point and am taking it quite seriously.

I guess I thought there may be some outer suburbs that were less expensive.
If you think Asheville North Carolina is too liberal, you won't be happy in Bend. I can promise you that.
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