[willow wind]

Well, to be near the water and smaller city or town, since you said you didn't like big cities I would suggest the following

New Bern, NC - not directly on the ocean but on a river not all that far inland.

MT. Pleasant SC- probably the most popular suburb of Charleston ( no, not at all poor) and on the ocean

Beaufort, SC - between Charleston and Savannah- again not on the ocean but on a peninsula near the ocean and surrounded by tidal rivers and bay leading to the ocean. Stunning beauty.

All very nice towns, with a mix of housing options, not provincial or backwoods. All very popular retirement areas, with lots to do . None are poor.

Finally Aiken, SC. Inland but two hours to the ocean and two hours to the mountains. Close to perfect town. Great charm, well planned and well run. Has everything you could want, from a mall to micro breweries, wine bars, theaters, galleries, a horse oriented area. Tons of horse farms and regular farms in the area. Horses have the right of way on streets. Still can see cotton farms in the area. Has an planned and maintained urban forest in the center of town. Always a playground for Northerners since the late 1800's, so lots of northern winter and permanent transplants there. Is in a micro climate area, so has far less summer humidity than you would expect.

These are all basically red and conservative areas, although the Charleston area may be more purple. However, there is a great influx of people from the north so many of these southern areas are becoming more mixed politically and you'll find plenty of people from CT in any of them. But it is the South and you're going to see tons of churches and people to whom church is important. Although now, the Unitarians and Buddhist temples are there too- lol.

[jane_sm1th73]

Originally Posted by elvisluvs

Wow- lots of good advice so far. I left out a pretty important point- we would prefer to be at least in a "purple" or "red" state. I know I'm going to sound like a whiner , but am a bit tired of rarely getting cadidates elected who I voted for. The caution on " vacation purchase fever" is much appreciated. We went to obx and didn't like it. Charleston we loved, but if I remember correctly- appeared quite poor in the surrounding areas. Am I remembering correctly? Maryland and Delaware- we have blown through them, but haven't really investigated them. I've been through the desert, forget the horse's name. Not for me either. Please, keep it coming (love)- m
Ps- I like some of the coastal New Hampshire areas- but it seems like an area on a similar path as southwestern Ct.

I live in the neighboring state. I'll just be direct here - look at MD with a skeptical eye. The population and political structure never saw an entitlement it didn't like, and it is another haven for illegal aliens. Taxes are commensurately high. A large contingent of resident Federal workers ensures that any statewide new "programs" are passed. There's a bit of self-interest here: any new state program, rule, or oversight mandate will carry with it a new department of government workers at the state level, and an addition to the Fed contingent with whom they must have lunch and to whom they will be required to send inward facing reports that have less value than the paper they are printed on.

None of the programs will benefit you, personally. You have to have kids to get the collateral bennies. The more the better.

Hence, regulation and oversight are not for the citizens' benefit, despite the hype and hoopla. They are jobs programs for white collar bureaucrats with whopping student loans, who couldn't otherwise make a living.

In sum, if exploring elsewhere is attributable to high costs and entitlement politics, I would consider viewing MD with a skeptical eye.

Best of luck to you - enjoy your exploration! Please let us know where and why you decide to settle, if you should decide to leave. I've got ulterior motives for asking - I'm working up a tote board of target destinations myself.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by ashlee470

I am trying to go to the Raleigh area of NC. Much less expensive than here! You still get the four seasons except much milder winters and summer is longer and hotter. The Raleigh area has always made the list of best places to live.

Yea, good luck with that. It's not what it was 20 years ago, and still too much of what it was 20 years ago in some regard.

Originally Posted by elvisluvs

Wow- lots of good advice so far. I left out a pretty important point- we would prefer to be at least in a "purple" or "red" state. I know I'm going to sound like a whiner , but am a bit tired of rarely getting cadidates elected who I voted for. The caution on " vacation purchase fever" is much appreciated. We went to obx and didn't like it. Charleston we loved, but if I remember correctly- appeared quite poor in the surrounding areas. Am I remembering correctly? Maryland and Delaware- we have blown through them, but haven't really investigated them. I've been through the desert, forget the horse's name. Not for me either. Please, keep it coming (love)- m
Ps- I like some of the coastal New Hampshire areas- but it seems like an area on a similar path as southwestern Ct.

You got it right pretty much. Charleston is nice, but you better have money or be prepared to live with the poor. Jane gave really good advice about Maryland, I concur. DE is nice, just kind of meh IMO.

If I were you, I would look into Williamsburg VA. You'll be close to the ocean, and a stone's throw from Richmond if you need the larger city.

[ashlee470]

[quote=JViello;24807688]Yea, good luck with that. It's not what it was 20 years ago, and still too much of what it was 20 years ago in some regard.

Actually it is. I know plenty of people that moved down there from CT and they see a huge a difference. CT is not for everyone.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by ashlee470

Actually it is. I know plenty of people that moved down there from CT and they see a huge a difference. CT is not for everyone.

Do you think you know something those of us who lived there don't know? Do yourself a favor, click on the search button, and do a lot of reading before assuming it's shangri la. You'll trade certain things that suck for other things that suck...and for you that might be a good thing, for some of us it's not. Crime stats alone will open an eye, nevermind traffic.

[ngrome]

Originally Posted by JayCT

Since you say you would come across as "real Yankee" types, I would suggest you stay north of Virginia. Maybe Deleware or Maryland.

One thing I would caution you when looking at places, keep in mind that vacationing in a place is a lot different than living there. When looking around, check out those little things that would make your every day life difficult. Things like what is rush hour like, what are the stores like, what are the real people that live there are like, will be a lot different than if you are there vacationing. Too often people move somewhere based on what they experienced during a vacation and are shocked ot find that things are a lot different when live there all the time. Jay

Definitely good advice. People were shocked what it was like when they moved to Florida, thinking it was going to be paradise every day like their vacation, then reality set in.

[JViello]

Aside from real estate, it's not that much cheaper in the triangle. Sorry, it's not. State income tax is higher, sales tax is higher, county taxes, HOA fees, groceries are more expensive, crime is much higher, education is much less credible, traffic is horrible, etc etc. If you want to stick your fingers in your ears and go "la la la la la" that's up to you. Just trying to give you some other reality. It's been discussed on here to death which is why I said search.

[retiree2011]

Unfortunately Delaware is solid Democratic; certainly not all the citizens there, but that is the way the elections seem to go. Otherwise, it is perfect, as far as I can tell. I knew just about nothing about it, having only driven through it a couple of times. Then I started getting mailings from the builders about these nice 55+ developments there and decided to look into it. The taxes on a pretty nice small house would be less than $1000 a year, no sales tax on anything, no property tax on your vehicles, etc. I think I have found my ideal place - good luck to you. I hope you find what you are seeking.

[mels]

Originally Posted by willow wind

New Bern, NC - not directly on the ocean but on a river not all that far inland.

That is definitely a small town! I have spent a lot of time in the area for work. The ticket agent at their airport also loads bags on to your prop plane (I am not kidding!). Also, said ticket agent saw I was flying to Hartford and talked to me about how exciting it must be, being from a big city and all

Very nice people there but VERY small town-ish. A little too small for me, and this is coming from someone who currently lives in a town of less than 6,000 people.

[willow wind]

Yes- little town- LOL. But very nice for a poster who said he comes across as very Yankee. Was trying to come up with some live and let live areas where you can get away, if you want, from the typical sprawl subdivision.

Raleigh/Durham/Cary, etc. NC would never do for the OP. Suburbia on steriods- yikes! Mile after mile of sprawl, strip malls, traffic, petty crime. Not only that, all that new and newer construction in that area (and in many places in the south) are the realm of the homeowner association, which often means HOA Nazis.

Didn't the the OP would be amenable to being told he couldn't leave the garage door up, or put a flag out front or park a pickup truck in the driveway,etc. Lots of decent,cheaper places to live in the south, actually, sometimes just have to get away from the usual choices.

I find South Carolina is much more tax friendly that NC or VA. What the OP should also keep in mind is that many areas outside of CT are on both a county and town/ city government. City government may have more amenities and also more rules and regulations. Get just outside of city/ town limits though and you can do a lot more as you choose in the adjacent, unincorporated areas. .