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Winter is coming and I'm getting ready to go have a look at warmer southern destinations. If I like an area, and if it seems to like me, I may stay long term. I'm in PA now and really dislike the winters here. For the last five years or so I've gone to warmer places for most of the winter.
I'm in my mid-50's and single. I've lived in many places over the years and my favorite was So Cal. for weather reasons as well as having things to do and a great many restaurant choices. Hiking, biking, sailing, and San Diego's Wild Animal Park were just some of the things that I enjoyed.
However, the cost of living, taxes, and politics finally got to be too much for me, and I don't see myself ever living there again unless things change a lot.
Politically I consider myself a centrist, though I do admittedly lean a bit right.
So, what I'm looking for is a city of at least 40,000 but nothing as big as NYC or LA. I spent some time in Las Angeles, Boston, NYC, and Bangkok; don't really care for the big cities.
Near a coast would be nice for sailing but... I can't really afford a boat anyway, so not a must.
Must have a great variety of restaurants. I really like having the availability of foods from all around the world. Mexican, Thai, Indian, Sushi, Seafood, Vietnamese, Italian, Cuban, Greek, et al.
A lower cost of living area since I'm living on a pension, though I may return to work if opportunity knocks.
I could probably swing $150k for a house. Probably be looking for a foreclosure since I can do all repairs; plumbing, electric, drywall, windows/doors, minor carpentry, etc.
A sizeable airport within 25 miles or so.
Trader Joe's
Not a high crime area.
Traffic not too bad off-peak. I can wait till after rush-hour to go where I need to.
Biking and hiking a plus
Hunting access a plus
I used to work in electronics, both medical and aviation. Recently have been getting into PLCs and robotics, but admittedly haven't been keeping up with the latest tech and may look for a whole new career if I return to work.
I'll keep my place in PA, for now at least. I hear the summers in the south can be brutal, but PA summers are no picnic either. As long as I have A/C, all's well.
I'm mostly looking at South Carolina, and Florida. Never spent time in S.C. but spent many weeks in Florida during the winter, all on the gulf side. I was thinking North Carolina would be too cool in the winter and farther south would be better. Don't know anything about Georgia.
So, what I'm looking for is a city of at least 40,000 but nothing as big as NYC or LA. I spent some time in Las Angeles, Boston, NYC, and Bangkok; don't really care for the big cities.
Near a coast would be nice for sailing but... I can't really afford a boat anyway, so not a must.
Must have a great variety of restaurants. I really like having the availability of foods from all around the world. Mexican, Thai, Indian, Sushi, Seafood, Vietnamese, Italian, Cuban, Greek, et al.
A lower cost of living area since I'm living on a pension, though I may return to work if opportunity knocks.
I could probably swing $150k for a house. Probably be looking for a foreclosure since I can do all repairs; plumbing, electric, drywall, windows/doors, minor carpentry, etc.
A sizeable airport within 25 miles or so.
Trader Joe's
Not a high crime area.
Traffic not too bad off-peak. I can wait till after rush-hour to go where I need to.
Biking and hiking a plus
Hunting access a plus
I would say St Petersburg FL fits your criteria quite well. In your price point you might check out the north/northwest side around Magnolia Terrace, Allendale/Five Points and Fossil Park which has some decent housing stock in fairly safe/established neighborhoods on the upswing that aren't foreclosures within your price range. There's also a Trader Joe's that's recently opened in the area (Allendale Terrace on 4th Street) which is a very good sign typically.
Consider Greenville SC in the western part of the state near the Blue Ridge mountains. The weather tends to be a little cooler than most of the southeast.
I think either Charleston, SC or Savannah, GA would also fit the bill since they both have a sizable airport (ie Southwest, JetBlue, and Frontier fly into Charleston and Jet Blue and Allegiant fly into Savannah), both cities have huge restaurant scenes, and it never really tends to get cold in the winter there (average high is around the 50's-60's for the winter months). Charleston even has a Boeing factory and Savannah is home to Gulfstream Aerospace there so there would be plenty of jobs as well in the aviation sector for both cities.
Last edited by beasley106; 11-18-2017 at 10:38 AM..
Location: Live:Downtown Phoenix, AZ/Work:Greater Los Angeles, CA
27,606 posts, read 14,596,838 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Neosec
Winter is coming and I'm getting ready to go have a look at warmer southern destinations. If I like an area, and if it seems to like me, I may stay long term. I'm in PA now and really dislike the winters here. For the last five years or so I've gone to warmer places for most of the winter.
I'm in my mid-50's and single. I've lived in many places over the years and my favorite was So Cal. for weather reasons as well as having things to do and a great many restaurant choices. Hiking, biking, sailing, and San Diego's Wild Animal Park were just some of the things that I enjoyed.
However, the cost of living, taxes, and politics finally got to be too much for me, and I don't see myself ever living there again unless things change a lot.
Politically I consider myself a centrist, though I do admittedly lean a bit right.
So, what I'm looking for is a city of at least 40,000 but nothing as big as NYC or LA. I spent some time in Las Angeles, Boston, NYC, and Bangkok; don't really care for the big cities.
Near a coast would be nice for sailing but... I can't really afford a boat anyway, so not a must.
Must have a great variety of restaurants. I really like having the availability of foods from all around the world. Mexican, Thai, Indian, Sushi, Seafood, Vietnamese, Italian, Cuban, Greek, et al.
A lower cost of living area since I'm living on a pension, though I may return to work if opportunity knocks.
I could probably swing $150k for a house. Probably be looking for a foreclosure since I can do all repairs; plumbing, electric, drywall, windows/doors, minor carpentry, etc.
A sizeable airport within 25 miles or so.
Trader Joe's
Not a high crime area.
Traffic not too bad off-peak. I can wait till after rush-hour to go where I need to.
Biking and hiking a plus
Hunting access a plus
I used to work in electronics, both medical and aviation. Recently have been getting into PLCs and robotics, but admittedly haven't been keeping up with the latest tech and may look for a whole new career if I return to work.
I'll keep my place in PA, for now at least. I hear the summers in the south can be brutal, but PA summers are no picnic either. As long as I have A/C, all's well.
I'm mostly looking at South Carolina, and Florida. Never spent time in S.C. but spent many weeks in Florida during the winter, all on the gulf side. I was thinking North Carolina would be too cool in the winter and farther south would be better. Don't know anything about Georgia.
TIA
Just a suggestion, but since you lived in Krung Thep(Bangkok) at one point, have you considered Chiang Mai? There is a sizeable American expat community there
Just a suggestion, but since you lived in Krung Thep(Bangkok) at one point, have you considered Chiang Mai? There is a sizeable American expat community there
Sabai dee mai krap?
Lived in Chiang Mai for a while too. The smoke in the spring got to be too much; as were other things that I won't go into. Had an OA visa (retirement visa) for Thailand, but my last trip there wasn't as enjoyable as the first ones. It is nearly impossible to get eggs over-easy in Thailand. Thailand is a love/hate relationship for me. So many awesome and amazing things, yet some just really put me off.
Winter is coming and I'm getting ready to go have a look at warmer southern destinations. If I like an area, and if it seems to like me, I may stay long term. I'm in PA now and really dislike the winters here. For the last five years or so I've gone to warmer places for most of the winter.
I'm in my mid-50's and single. I've lived in many places over the years and my favorite was So Cal. for weather reasons as well as having things to do and a great many restaurant choices. Hiking, biking, sailing, and San Diego's Wild Animal Park were just some of the things that I enjoyed.
However, the cost of living, taxes, and politics finally got to be too much for me, and I don't see myself ever living there again unless things change a lot.
Politically I consider myself a centrist, though I do admittedly lean a bit right.
So, what I'm looking for is a city of at least 40,000 but nothing as big as NYC or LA. I spent some time in Las Angeles, Boston, NYC, and Bangkok; don't really care for the big cities.
Near a coast would be nice for sailing but... I can't really afford a boat anyway, so not a must.
Must have a great variety of restaurants. I really like having the availability of foods from all around the world. Mexican, Thai, Indian, Sushi, Seafood, Vietnamese, Italian, Cuban, Greek, et al.
A lower cost of living area since I'm living on a pension, though I may return to work if opportunity knocks.
I could probably swing $150k for a house. Probably be looking for a foreclosure since I can do all repairs; plumbing, electric, drywall, windows/doors, minor carpentry, etc.
A sizeable airport within 25 miles or so.
Trader Joe's
Not a high crime area.
Traffic not too bad off-peak. I can wait till after rush-hour to go where I need to.
Biking and hiking a plus
Hunting access a plus
I used to work in electronics, both medical and aviation. Recently have been getting into PLCs and robotics, but admittedly haven't been keeping up with the latest tech and may look for a whole new career if I return to work.
I'll keep my place in PA, for now at least. I hear the summers in the south can be brutal, but PA summers are no picnic either. As long as I have A/C, all's well.
I'm mostly looking at South Carolina, and Florida. Never spent time in S.C. but spent many weeks in Florida during the winter, all on the gulf side. I was thinking North Carolina would be too cool in the winter and farther south would be better. Don't know anything about Georgia.
TIA
Sounds like you are looking for Florida. You won't go wrong with SC, if you choose the right city/town, but you really can't go wrong with Florida given your criteria. Check out Tampa Bay.
If you're going to keep the place in PA, then Florida 100%. Winters in SC will be too cool to give you that relief you're searching for.
As for Chiang Mai, it's a cute tourist town but these days it's 50% backpackers looking to party, do drugs and prostitutes. I'd say the best days for Chiang Mai are in her past. When it comes to SE Asia, Malaysia has some 'virgin' areas. So does Burma (Myanmar) but that places has additional problems.
You might actually really like Redding, Ca. Not as ethnically diverse as you might like as far as cuisine, but otherwise hits all your markers.
Don't completely dismiss CA, without considering the upsides. Property tax increases are regulated to no more than 2% per year, per Prop 13. Also, CA does take care of its citizens, and will likely make sure that you have healthcare in your old age - even if federal funding is vastly diminished.
Sales taxes are lower in most lower-income counties in CA, including Redding. Redding area votes mostly republican.
Redding also actually has a lot of entertainment that comes through town, including name acts to the arena, and downtown theater. It has an airport, and is right on I-5.
I moved there because it was affordable, but the summers were too hot for me. Other than that, I really liked it overall. But, I also lived many years around hunters and fishermen in WA state. Great fishing and hunting in Redding, and it's a great area of outdoor recreation overall. Maybe not sailing, but you could get a river boat and fish for salmon. You'd also only be about 4 hours away from the ocean, where you could go sailing or just get out of the heat in summer. And in November, you're just 4 hours away from fresh crab - yum!
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