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After exploring the US for the last year, I *think* we finally narrowed down our choices to Boise and Nashville (specifically Brentwood). I'm not sure how to pick because they are very different. Please provide any insight and which one you would recommend for us.
- Family with 2 children (middle & elementary school) so looking for good schools
- Low crime, safe environment
- Homelessness not a huge problem (not to be rude, but look at downtown Seattle and you'll see why it's a concern of mine)
- Outdoor activities
- Better weather than Seattle (need more sun & warmer weather although still prefer 4 seasons)
- Pretty scenery (close to lakes)
- I prefer a smaller city feel but my husband wants it to be large enough to have cultural opportunities to see plays, opera, pro sports games, etc.
- Moderately conservative
- Opportunities for tech jobs
- Christian faith so would want to have a church home
- Friendly people where we can easily make friends since we won't know anyone in either city
Of course it all depends on where my husband ultimately gets a job, but this will at least help us figure out where we should start looking first. Thanks for any insight!
Boise seems like a good fit based on your criteria, but Brentwood seems like a great fit. It's one of the nicest communities in all of Tennessee with some of the best public schools.
- Family with 2 children (middle & elementary school) so looking for good schools
Brentwood
- Low crime, safe environment
Brentwood
- Homelessness not a huge problem (not to be rude, but look at downtown Seattle and you'll see why it's a concern of mine)
Brentwood
- Outdoor activities
Boise
- Better weather than Seattle (need more sun & warmer weather although still prefer 4 seasons)
Brentwood
- Pretty scenery (close to lakes)
Even for both
- I prefer a smaller city feel but my husband wants it to be large enough to have cultural opportunities to see plays, opera, pro sports games, etc.
Brentwood
- Moderately conservative
Brentwood
- Opportunities for tech jobs
Brentwood and Nashville area is much larger than Boise, more opportunities.
- Christian faith so would want to have a church home
Brentwood opportunities abound.
- Friendly people where we can easily make friends since we won't know anyone in either city
Easily Brentwood and Nashville. Extremely friendly people everywhere.
Nashville and the Brentwood area, easily. Boise is growing nicely, but is a much smaller area than Nashville. Nashville will have more opportunity for everything really.
What's the OP's budget? Brentwood is expensive these days. It's a great place to get your Ferrari or Lamborghini serviced, though.
Personally, I would prefer Franklin walkable to the center of town over Brentwood, not that anywhere in Williamson County is a bad spot.
I ski. That makes Boise mildly interesting. Without looking at prices, I'd think Boise would be a heck of a lot more affordable than Brentwood.
You would be surprised how expensive housing is becoming in Boise. We could get way more for our money in Brentwood than Boise. The good news is the Seattle market is also insane so after selling our house here, either city will be fine.
Brentwood. Boise use to be more affordable, but is now a good bit over the national average in COL following the lead of most areas of the West. Brentwood is a nice area and located in a great metro with so much to offer. Bright future. Very family oriented. I do like Boise as a small metro. Brentwood/Nashville is awesome as well with more to offer.
Speaking as someone who lives in Boise, is from GA and has spent time in TN but not necessarily Brentwood:
- Family with 2 children (middle & elementary school) so looking for good schools
Boise is definitely a great family oriented city. Schools in Idaho aren't amazing in general but the Boise area's are pretty good.
- Low crime, safe environment
Boise is very, very safe. No 'bad' areas to speak of.
- Homelessness not a huge problem (not to be rude, but look at downtown Seattle and you'll see why it's a concern of mine)
Boise definitely has them, but they're rare and definitely not a huge problem as of now.
- Outdoor activities
Boise easily.
- Better weather than Seattle (need more sun & warmer weather although still prefer 4 seasons)
Brentwood easily. Boise has six months of amazing weather and six months of really cold weather, far colder than Seattle. I'd take the southern humidity and milder winders of TN for sure.
- Pretty scenery (close to lakes)
Boise has very pretty scenery. The foothills/mountains are literally minutes from downtown, there's an amazing river that runs right through the city, and there's a reservoir called Lucky Peak Lake up in the foothills. Further out, you have the jawdropping Sawtooth mountains and Redfish Lake. Coming from Seattle, none of this scenery is going to be super impressive, but it's far more interesting in my opinion than anything near Nashville or even Eastern TN, which to be fair is very nice in its own right.
- I prefer a smaller city feel but my husband wants it to be large enough to have cultural opportunities to see plays, opera, pro sports games, etc.
Brentwood is probably a better bet for the cultural opportunities due to its proximity to Nashville. Boise has stuff, but it's lacking, especially if he needs pro sports. Personally I love going to concerts, so it hurts that so many bands skip Boise due to its size and isolated position.
- Moderately conservative
Both work for this. Idaho tends to be a little more on the libertarian side of conservatism, but you might prefer the bible belt-ish brand, so it depends.
- Opportunities for tech jobs
The Nashville area is bigger, so there will be more jobs. Boise definitely does have them though.
- Christian faith so would want to have a church home
I'd say Brentwood. Again, bible belt. LDS is the largest religion in the Treasure Valley, so keep that in mind.
- Friendly people where we can easily make friends since we won't know anyone in either city
My opinion on both Idaho and the South in general is that people are very outwardly friendly, but it can be hard to break into that inner-circle. That might just be because of my personality though. I think you'd do fine in both places.
Do you want snow? Can you live through a couple months of high humidity? Do you prefer to stay closer to Seattle? Those would be some good questions to help you decide.
We live in Brentwood, and it has top notch schools and pretty much every family activity you could want. Tons of great churches. And it’s really pretty. The city has done a great job maintaining green space and historical homes. Lots of parks connected by trails. Plus Nashville of full of activities- 3 major league teams, tons of concerts, etc.
But if you want snow or can’t stand humidity, then it wouldn’t be a great fit.
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