Chattanooga compared to Boston? In size that is.... (Knoxville, Springfield: cheap house, find a job)

[serenityisadog]

Hello!

I am trying to get a feel for how big Chattanooga is, can anyone tell me how big it is compared to say Boston? How about Nashville?

Big THANK YOU!

[peppermint]

WAY smaller than Boston and smaller than Nashville. Is there something specific you'd like to know?

I absolutely LOVE Boston. Chatt is a nice, small city/big town. There are a few museums and some history - mostly Native and Civil War, not Revolutionary like Boston. The libraries are pretty good here, especially if you utilize the university library (at $50/year), which gives you access to all TN state college books. It's also much cheaper and less populated than Boston.

[serenityisadog]

Thanks Peppermint. I know Boston best as I live in NH and was just trying to get a feel for how big/small Chattanooga and Nashville are.
We are exploring moving to TN and I don't want to live in a large city what so ever but would like to be in driving distance to shopping/jobs/hospitals etc. I hate traffic and congestion and want land, nature and quiet. My dream is to sit outside in my yard and hear nothing but nature, no cars or screaming kids or construction.
It sounds like I might be able to find this in Chattanooga? What do you think? Should I bother looking at other areas of TN or is the Chattanooga area the place for me??
Thank you for any input.

[peppermint]

Yes, I think you can definitely find this in TN. We live on a 4.5 acre farmette (less than $200K) and hear birds, insects, and our neighbors geese. It's quite lovely, though on occasion we do here the neighbors' grandkids in the yard. Not bad at all. Lots of nature here, great hospitals, little traffic (comparatively), and TN's largest mall within 30 minutes of most anywhere in town.

Jobs are a different matter, depending on your specialty. Our family is likely going to have to move because my husband's job is awful and there aren't many jobs in his field here. This is a problem anywhere outside Silicon Valley though (for us). What do you do?

[serenityisadog]

I like that, 'farmette' never heard that before lol!

My husband is a heavy equipment operator and up until recently I owned a dog bakery. From what I hear it doesn't sound like TN would have much use for dog bakery!! I am planning to go back to school to become a vet tech. In your opinion would we have a hard time finding jobs? I would take anything, I have retail experience etc. My husband pay would probably be hard to match in that area but that's not too much of a worry since we are planning on buying a house out right for around 230K. So at least we wouldn't have a mortgage!

Is there much nature and farmland in the Nashville area where it might be easier to find jobs?

[peppermint]

Hmmm, I don't know about jobs. My gut reaction is that you could find a job fairly easily, but you'd want to check out the classifieds and other sites. For $230K, depending on your desired location & type of house, you should be golden down here. Remember that you should still haggle over price, even if it seems like a dream to you (due to the costs in the Boston area).

I know nothing about Nashville, really. I've only lived here for 2 years, and we're gearing up to move (see above posts about hubby's crappy job), probably to your neck of the woods! haha! Have you posted on the Nashville forum? Someone there can better answer your questions about that city.

[serenityisadog]

I haven't posted on the Nashville forum yet, but plan to do so. Yeah, I can't believe the cheap house prices in TN, it absolutely floors me!! I'll remember your advice though, thanks! Can't wait to move, wish we could now! Getting sick of all this snow here in NH.

[El Passeaux]

Chatt is more like a Worcester or Springfield.

[serenityisadog]

Thank you, that helps a lot!

[knucklehead_vol]

Originally Posted by serenityisadog

I haven't posted on the Nashville forum yet, but plan to do so. Yeah, I can't believe the cheap house prices in TN, it absolutely floors me!! I'll remember your advice though, thanks! Can't wait to move, wish we could now! Getting sick of all this snow here in NH.

From reading your posts, you would be better suited for Chattanooga or Knoxville. Nashville has a lot more traffic for one, and you have to go way out to get away from the hustle and bustle. That doesn't mean you can't find what you are looking for, but it will be more expensive. Besides, if you move to the right place near Chattanooga, you won't be far from Nashville, Huntsville, or Atlanta.