Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
You could live quite happily without a car in lots of Midwestern cities. Chicago, Milwaukee, Twin Cities, Cleveland, Detroit, and Pittsburgh in the North East. And for the few times you need one you can rent one or get a Zipcar.
My husband uses his vehicle about once a month and that's mostly just to move it and keep the gas flowing. We will likely go down to one vehicle later this year.
Besides, the OP didn't say no car, just walkable. I use my car a few days a week but enjoy biking to work and being able to walk to everything when I get home. We walk to the grocery store, diner, coffee, school, pool, park, beach, etc. I prefer not to spend much time in my car.
Speaking personally of my experience living in Pittsburgh, although I have always had a car, I haven't generally used it much. I have a job downtown, where parking is expensive and scarce, and it's much cheaper and less stressful to take the bus (or bike in good weather) than it is to drive. I think I drove to work maybe five times in the 13 years I've lived here - basically only when I had a flight later in the afternoon/evening. I typically lived in walkable neighborhoods where I could access a lot of stuff on foot, so I didn't need to drive around much in the evenings unless I was meeting friends across town or needed to make a grocery run.
There was a period when my wife and I lived in our old neighborhood we went down to only one car - largely because mine was driven so little it was rusting out, and parking was scarce in the neighborhood. We have two again mostly because my mom gifted us her old car, but we don't really need the second car. I drive maybe once a week. Honestly it would be more, except my wife is a control freak and doesn't like anyone else being behind the wheel, so basically any time we're in the car together she insists on driving.
You could live quite happily without a car in lots of Midwestern cities. Chicago, Milwaukee, Twin Cities, Cleveland, Detroit, and Pittsburgh in the North East. And for the few times you need one you can rent one or get a Zipcar.
My husband uses his vehicle about once a month and that's mostly just to move it and keep the gas flowing. We will likely go down to one vehicle later this year.
Besides, the OP didn't say no car, just walkable. I use my car a few days a week but enjoy biking to work and being able to walk to everything when I get home. We walk to the grocery store, diner, coffee, school, pool, park, beach, etc. I prefer not to spend much time in my car.
If by walkable you mean a nice downtown to walk around then ya lots of places have that. If by walkable we mean living with no car that is another matter. Life in the south or Midwest generally means car ownership. Can you live without one? Yea you can but it takes ALOT of effort. Things like getting groceries or going to work are difficult, most who do it only do it because the can’t afford a car or have no license. This is different from those in big northeast cities who live full lives without one.
Of the cities listed Chicago is likely the only one where a good quality of life with no car can be had. However it is one of the few places in the Midwest where COL is too high for the OP. Detroit, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are very car centric places IMO. I cannot imagine living there without one, or walking miles to work in 10 degree weather there. No, just no.
If by walkable you mean a nice downtown to walk around then ya lots of places have that. If by walkable we mean living with no car that is another matter. Life in the south or Midwest generally means car ownership. Can you live without one? Yea you can but it takes ALOT of effort. Things like getting groceries or going to work are difficult, most who do it only do it because the can’t afford a car or have no license. This is different from those in big northeast cities who live full lives without one.
Of the cities listed Chicago is likely the only one where a good quality of life with no car can be had. However it is one of the few places in the Midwest where COL is too high for the OP. Detroit, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are very car centric places IMO. I cannot imagine living there without one, or walking miles to work in 10 degree weather there. No, just no.
I’m not arguing that the city is midwestern, but you can easily live in the East End of Pittsburgh without a car. That may sound limiting, but more than 50% of Pittsburgh’s population lives in the East End. The OP’s price range would actually even work in Chicago, but he’d have to settle for a neighborhood without rail. Well not necessarily transit friendly by Chicago standards, these neighborhoods would still be walkable and have better bus transit the 95% of other US cities.
If by walkable you mean a nice downtown to walk around then ya lots of places have that. If by walkable we mean living with no car that is another matter. Life in the south or Midwest generally means car ownership. Can you live without one? Yea you can but it takes ALOT of effort. Things like getting groceries or going to work are difficult, most who do it only do it because the can’t afford a car or have no license. This is different from those in big northeast cities who live full lives without one.
Of the cities listed Chicago is likely the only one where a good quality of life with no car can be had. However it is one of the few places in the Midwest where COL is too high for the OP. Detroit, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are very car centric places IMO. I cannot imagine living there without one, or walking miles to work in 10 degree weather there. No, just no.
Walk Score of this location: 88
Very Walkable
Most errands can be accomplished on foot.
Multiple bus lines run directly through town.
And we live in a suburb!
One could live anywhere along the lake from Bay View to Shorewood without a car if they so chose. It's nice to have one as we have two but they're not a necessity and they're certainly not used as much as when we lived in various towns across multiple states.
If by walkable you mean a nice downtown to walk around then ya lots of places have that. If by walkable we mean living with no car that is another matter. Life in the south or Midwest generally means car ownership. Can you live without one? Yea you can but it takes ALOT of effort. Things like getting groceries or going to work are difficult, most who do it only do it because the can’t afford a car or have no license. This is different from those in big northeast cities who live full lives without one.
Of the cities listed Chicago is likely the only one where a good quality of life with no car can be had. However it is one of the few places in the Midwest where COL is too high for the OP. Detroit, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are very car centric places IMO. I cannot imagine living there without one, or walking miles to work in 10 degree weather there. No, just no.
Since the OP didn't indicate they had no car (few people who aren't poor lack one entirely in Connecticut) I think it's safe to say they don't need to live somewhere where they are entirely reliant upon walking and transit.
IMHO if you want to live a "car light" lifestyle the following two things are key:
1. Can you get to work without a car?
2. Can you walk out of your front door and be at a vibrant business district with a mixture of everyday staples and destination businesses within 5-10 minutes?
If you own a car, chances are you'll drive in cases where you don't absolutely need to. For example, I could take the bus to see a movie on the weekend, but I'd have to wait around for the right bus to stop in front of my house, and the bus ride would take longer than driving. Since I'm past the point in my life of getting ****-faced drunk, there's no reason to take the bus, so I don't.
On the other hand, if I can walk to a coffeeshop, bar, or restaurant in 10 minutes or less, I'm going to do that over driving every time. I'll almost certainly preferentially use the local options as well, which will cut down on my overall car usage.
Of the cities listed Chicago is likely the only one where a good quality of life with no car can be had. However it is one of the few places in the Midwest where COL is too high for the OP. Detroit, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are very car centric places IMO. I cannot imagine living there without one, or walking miles to work in 10 degree weather there. No, just no.
Most Midwestern cities actually are very walkable and have good transit because they developed before WWII (much denser than most Sunbelt/cities cities). Detroit I'll definitely give you, but Cleveland and Minneapolis can easily be lived in without a car.
Minneapolis, for instance, has a walk score of 69, which is basically quite good (the walk score is generally in the 70s/80s for much of the city and 90s in several neighborhoods). Minneapolis is the best major city in the country for biking and bike infrastructure; there are bike lanes on most major streets and an extensive off-grade bike trail network throughout the entire metro area. Pretty much anything can be accessed by bike in the city, and while there is some mildly hilly terrain, generally the city is level enough that biking should not be a chore.
Most Midwestern cities actually are very walkable and have good transit because they developed before WWII (much denser than most Sunbelt/cities cities). Detroit I'll definitely give you, but Cleveland and Minneapolis can easily be lived in without a car.
Minneapolis, for instance, has a walk score of 69, which is basically quite good (the walk score is generally in the 70s/80s for much of the city and 90s in several neighborhoods). Minneapolis is the best major city in the country for biking and bike infrastructure; there are bike lanes on most major streets and an extensive off-grade bike trail network throughout the entire metro area. Pretty much anything can be accessed by bike in the city, and while there is some mildly hilly terrain, generally the city is level enough that biking should not be a chore.
My general experience with walkscore is a neighborhood needs to have a walkscore of over 80 to be walkable, and close to if not over 90 for "no car needed."
Bigger and mid sized Interior Northeastern cities/areas would fit or at least most of the criteria. For instance, here are a couple of city neighborhoods in Syracuse that would fit: //www.city-data.com/forum/52549503-post114.html
You would be within close proximity to most of the criteria as well. The first neighborhood isn’t far from these areas: https://westcottsyr.com/org/wna/
Doesn't have to be one of the big Cities and weather isn't a factor.
All we need is healthcare facilities to work at for wifey & I, near a lake or ocean to swim/kayak, easy to walk around explore, has good food, decent COL (A 3bdrm can easily be purchased for $350K or less), good public transportation system (Busses or Train or Subway), good library & ample supply of bookstores, tattoo shops, Metaphysical shops, and a healthy living vibe (Good Park & Rec. Department, Running Clubs, and so forth.)
Does a City like this exist?
As others stated, there are many cities this is possible. People aren't mentioning California, but you could still find homes in Sacramento up to $350k (https://www.redfin.com/city/16409/CA...max-price=350k) in areas that check off all your other criteria easily...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
