[momtothree]

I do have to disagree with one thing the above poster said about how anywhere in the world you will encounter natural disasters.

I lived through 7 hurricanes including Andrew and the string of them in Orlando unfortunately. While yes you get "notice" but then you have to endure the worst part which is the aftermath. Weeks as in plural weeks without electricity in over 90 degree humid weather is absolutely miserable and enduring that over 7 times. NO THANKS.

I live in NC and the worst we get is a day of a few inches of snow. Rainstorms here are quick and soft. Not the heavy frequent thunderstorms in Florida. With that said, Florida weather does have beautiful warm sunny weather most of the year so that does help offset a bit the miserable weather.

[SoFLGal]

Being a native Floridian, I agree that FL has had its fair of hurricanes but many other areas have also had several natural disasters-blizzards, earthquakes, etc. I've lived in SW FL my whole life and have never left due a hurricane and I've never been without power due to one. If things looked bad, I'd get outta Dodge so I wouldn't have to deal with that.

Not sure if you were living in NC when Hurricane Floyd ripped through but that was pretty devastating. NC ranks #4 in the number of cyclones that produced hurricane force winds in a U.S. state. List of North Carolina hurricanes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia My point is, natural disasters are in every state, it's just how you prepare for them.

I'm guessing some people from Boston are pretty sick of their weather currently....

[momtothree]

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

Being a native Floridian, I agree that FL has had its fair of hurricanes but many other areas have also had several natural disasters-blizzards, earthquakes, etc. I've lived in SW FL my whole life and have never left due a hurricane and I've never been without power due to one. If things looked bad, I'd get outta Dodge so I wouldn't have to deal with that.

Not sure if you were living in NC when Hurricane Floyd ripped through but that was pretty devastating. NC ranks #4 in the number of cyclones that produced hurricane force winds in a U.S. state. List of North Carolina hurricanes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia My point is, natural disasters are in every state, it's just how you prepare for them.

I'm guessing some people from Boston are pretty sick of their weather currently....

I was born and raised in Miami Beach and other parts of Miami.

You are lucky that you got to leave during the storms, we didn't. The worse were Andrew and the 4 in a row in Orlando. Ironically enough, I had moved to Orlando to get away from Hurricanes. lol I moved there the very month the 4 hurricanes started. That was the longest I didn't have power too, it was over a month.

And Charlotte is actually largely unaffected by hurricanes thankfully, I think they mentioned they got a little flooding during one hurricane but made pathways to divert any future flooding issues.

I am not trying to say Charlotte is so much better, I am just saying it's not a place with extreme weather of any kind other than the inch or two of snow I mentioned that we get once or twice a year.

[Spring Hillian]

Originally Posted by froglipz

Orlando comes to mind, fits most of your wants but not all. Health care jobs won't pay anyway near what you probably make in Maryland, but I'm sure you already know that.

Median salary for an RN in Baltimore is about 71k
Median salary for an RN in Jacksonvllle is about 64k.
Not a huge difference - in fact if you throw in a COL calculation
it is net zero difference.

[Redgrasshat]

Originally Posted by momtothree

I do have to disagree with one thing the above poster said about how anywhere in the world you will encounter natural disasters.

I lived through 7 hurricanes including Andrew and the string of them in Orlando unfortunately. While yes you get "notice" but then you have to endure the worst part which is the aftermath. Weeks as in plural weeks without electricity in over 90 degree humid weather is absolutely miserable and enduring that over 7 times. NO THANKS.

I live in NC and the worst we get is a day of a few inches of snow. Rainstorms here are quick and soft. Not the heavy frequent thunderstorms in Florida. With that said, Florida weather does have beautiful warm sunny weather most of the year so that does help offset a bit the miserable weather.

Despite your insistence to the contrary, natural disasters are indeed a serious threat in Charlotte, North Carolina. At any time, a string of dangerous and deadly F5 tornadoes could violently sweep through the city leveling everything in their path, including your house. In Charlotte you're also under tremendous threat of getting hit by a massive ice storm, which could leave you and your family without electricity for weeks. If you thought spending some time in Florida without electricity was a bit difficult because you were somewhat uncomfortable, surviving without electricity in the arctic wasteland created in the wake of the ice storm may just prove to be too challenging for you.

[momtothree]

Originally Posted by Redgrasshat

Despite your insistence to the contrary, natural disasters are indeed a serious threat in Charlotte, North Carolina. At any time, a string of dangerous and deadly F5 tornadoes could violently sweep through the city leveling everything in their path, including your house. In Charlotte you're also under tremendous threat of getting hit by a massive ice storm, which could leave you and your family without electricity for weeks. If you thought spending some time in Florida without electricity was a bit difficult because you were somewhat uncomfortable, surviving without electricity in the arctic wasteland created in the wake of the ice storm may just prove to be too challenging for you.

[NiquePBC]

I am from South Florida and have lived in North Florida as well. While living in Tallahassee I never saw one snake...not one. What drew me to Tallahassee was the weather, area and diversity. I without a doubt would recommend Tallahassee. The crime you read about is most likely due to one area, one of which I worked in and still had no concerns with safety when I went there. There are two large hospitals which would give you and your husband options for employment in that setting. Your daughter will love it just as my kids did, the cost of living is low, the area is big enough and small enough. I truly believe that Tallahassee has what your looking for on your list.