[love_life12]

Hey there, well I've lived in Florida most of my life and I do love Florida, but I've always been interested in Georgia as well. I'm getting tired of the area I'm in (west palm). I would either like to move to a better area in FL or GA. Does GA have more of the southern hospitality? What are some of the ways GA and FL differ in each other?
I would like an area with nice/newer homes (renting budget is about $1,200/month) and that would be a great match for people my age (early 20's).
Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

[kyle19125]

Atlanta would be a good match for someone younger looking for a new start and affordable living.

[mollybygolly]

A lot of areas in GA will have more of the "southern charm" than West Palm, but if that is what you are looking for specifically, you can get that same "charm" in almost any of the cities/towns in north Florida, without state income tax and having to switch your drivers license and car tags to GA

[love_life12]

Do you recommend any towns in North Florida I should check into?

[mollybygolly]

Originally Posted by love_life12

Do you recommend any towns in North Florida I should check into?

I'm in Tallahassee and I like it.
Jacksonville is nice.
I'm not a big fan of Pensacola.
There are lots of smaller towns all along I-10 that have "southern charm".
Really depends on what you're looking for.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by mollybygolly

A lot of areas in GA will have more of the "southern charm" than West Palm, but if that is what you are looking for specifically, you can get that same "charm" in almost any of the cities/towns in north Florida, without state income tax and having to switch your drivers license and car tags to GA

Median Income Atlanta - $54,628
Median Income Tallahassee - $30,571

Georgia Income Tax - Averaged $726 per person in 2012 with a top tier rate of 6%

So in summary avoiding well less than $1000 per year in taxes to potentially earn significantly more doesn't seem the wisest option does it?

[mollybygolly]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

Median Income Atlanta - $54,628
Median Income Tallahassee - $30,571

Georgia Income Tax - Averaged $726 per person in 2012 with a top tier rate of 6%

So in summary avoiding well less than $1000 per year in taxes to potentially earn significantly more doesn't seem the wisest option does it?

I wasn't advocating it as the wisest option
Merely trying to respond to the OP's question of "ways GA and FL differ in each other".
State income tax is one way.
Also, Tallahassee and Atlanta have very little in common, so it's not really an accurate comparison of median income.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by mollybygolly

I wasn't advocating it as the wisest option
Merely trying to respond to the OP's question of "ways GA and FL differ in each other".
State income tax is one way.
Also, Tallahassee and Atlanta have very little in common, so it's not really an accurate comparison of median income.

That's good!

[smarino]

I'm not sure that Southern hospitality exists anymore, and maybe it never did. Perhaps it was a myth created from novels and movies (I myself am an old time white male Southerner, married to a black woman from Hawaii). These days, the South just ain't what it used to be either. In some ways, that's good. When I lived on the gulf coast in Mississippi growing up, I thought we were mostly quite friendly, but go 25 miles up into the state and you encountered dry counties, extreme segregation, and rednecks that were far from hospitable, even to me. I think Oxford, Ms and parts of New Orleans are where you will find a FEW people w/ that old time friendliness. Maybe Savannah, but when I lived there I didn't see it, except very occasionally. And Texas, well, Texas is Texas. They can be polite, but I don't for a minute consider them Southerners.

As a liberal Buddhist, I can tell you for a fact that I basically cannot live in the South anymore. Like Hunter S. Thompson, I have met some wonderful Southern individuals, but as a class, it often comes down to military loving, Baptist church going, flag waving rednecks. There is often a palpable taste of racism that is unsaid, under the surface, and disguised as politics. Or worse, "family values", "the direction this country is going in", etc. For what it's worth, I see exactly the same prejudices in the East Coast Yankee retirees here in Northern Florida, so it's not totally a Southern thing. We were not like that on the coast, but then that was over 60 years ago. People change, regions change.

[Fl1150]

Try Jacksonville