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Why are San Fransiscan's always trying to portray their city as perfect? It is like they are not truely conviced... so they have to try and convice everyone else. SF is filthy, the cime for a city its size is disturbing, there are homeless...literally EVERYWHERE, your summers are horribly chilly, and the bang for your buck is laughable.
This remindes me of the South Park episode, where the San Fransiscans are smelling their own farts.(The point of that joke on that episode, was to address the issue that San Fransiscans think their s**t doesn't stink).
Well, to answer a few questions; We have been in SF quite a bit and though beautiful it is very expensive and maybe a bit too trendy, if you know what I mean. It does have all the points I initially mentioned but we just didn't fall for it for some reason.
NY is also great - but for us , visiting NY occasionally will do just fine.
Ok, as to not wanting a too high living cost. In SF you have to pay around 3000 for a not that great two bedroom which to me is crazy high. The same goes for NY - if not even more. (Especially since I have a big thing about germs...) DC is bit better but you still have to go at least above 2000, 2500 for a clean and nice looking place. Remeber, I am talking walkable distance to restaurants so of course you can pay less further out, but we love walking and hate driving. So basically, any place that is not in those obscene price ranges is fine. We would love to buy our own place and fix it up and property prices seem to go hand in hand with renting so cities like the ones I just mentioned are definitely out.
Even though we are Swedish we do not have any need to be near Scandinavians. Not that we mind them, but we are open to meeting anyone.
As to the weather, maybe Minnesota etc is a bit too much like Sweden... We do love having four seasons, but maybe the winter one can be a bit shorter...
We were just yesterday recommended to try Providence, RI or Hartford Connecticut or basically any place around there? Do you have any more ideas about that?
I think the 'college' town posting sounds great. We just don't know which college towns to try. Even though we would love to, we can't visit every town and we are trying to narrow our search down to a smaller area.
All your advice is great and we are initially frenetically checking out all the places you are mentioning online. Basically, we own a car and have our stuff in storage and are free to go anywhere. One would think that that is the ultimate freedom, but sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming and staying in hotels or with friends gets old quite fast. We are really anxious to settle down and start a new life somewhere.
Finding inexpensive places where you don't have to drive is a big problem in the USA; we're so car-dependent. Places like Charleston and Savannah are unusual in being smaller cities yet still walkable. Hartford is impossible (and quite typical of medium sized US cities); you could live downtown, there are some apartments there, but there's nowhere to buy food, no movies, no scene. The municipality contains all the poor people and the people of color; everyone else drives home to the suburbs. The only really walkable place there is in suburban West Hartford. A sad state of affairs but very typical. Providence is much better; maybe you should check it out. I think Boston is great--more expensive but less than N.Y. and S.F. and has loads of charm but maybe ruled out on cost. Philadalphia is great, too, and less expensive. Northampton, Mass., is a lively town, and not just a college town either. Worth a look. Southern New England is accessible to lots of places for quick trips, including New York City.
Location: New Albany, Indiana (Greater Louisville)
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You should defiantly consider Louisville, KY- unless you want really mild winters
L'ville has a very laid back vibe, lots of nice historic neighborhoods, pedestrian friendly shopping districts, and is among the safest cities in the US (8th safest over 500K, 22nd safest over 250K)
Well, to answer a few questions; We have been in SF quite a bit and though beautiful it is very expensive and maybe a bit too trendy, if you know what I mean. It does have all the points I initially mentioned but we just didn't fall for it for some reason.
NY is also great - but for us , visiting NY occasionally will do just fine.
Ok, as to not wanting a too high living cost. In SF you have to pay around 3000 for a not that great two bedroom which to me is crazy high. The same goes for NY - if not even more. (Especially since I have a big thing about germs...) DC is bit better but you still have to go at least above 2000, 2500 for a clean and nice looking place. Remeber, I am talking walkable distance to restaurants so of course you can pay less further out, but we love walking and hate driving. So basically, any place that is not in those obscene price ranges is fine. We would love to buy our own place and fix it up and property prices seem to go hand in hand with renting so cities like the ones I just mentioned are definitely out.
Even though we are Swedish we do not have any need to be near Scandinavians. Not that we mind them, but we are open to meeting anyone.
As to the weather, maybe Minnesota etc is a bit too much like Sweden... We do love having four seasons, but maybe the winter one can be a bit shorter...
We were just yesterday recommended to try Providence, RI or Hartford Connecticut or basically any place around there? Do you have any more ideas about that?
I think the 'college' town posting sounds great. We just don't know which college towns to try. Even though we would love to, we can't visit every town and we are trying to narrow our search down to a smaller area.
All your advice is great and we are initially frenetically checking out all the places you are mentioning online. Basically, we own a car and have our stuff in storage and are free to go anywhere. One would think that that is the ultimate freedom, but sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming and staying in hotels or with friends gets old quite fast. We are really anxious to settle down and start a new life somewhere.
Thank you for all your help!
College Towns ideas:
Ann Arbor, MI
Marquette, MI
Columbia, MO
Madison, WI
Iowa City, IA
State College, PA
Even though Minnesota (Minneapolis) is around 45N latitude the winters would probably be far more tolerable due to a decent amount of sunshine. Minneapolis has more sunny days in the winter compared with areas of the Great Lakes like Chicago. In terms of landscape southern MN looks fairly similar to Iowa, but northern MN has more of a nordic feel with dense pine forests and many lakes.
Joden. I am from the Hartford area. West Hartford is people friendly and has plenty of shops and restaurants in the center of town. It also has an ample number of rental units near the downtown area especially along Farmington Ave.
Downtown Hartford is seeing a rebirth of sorts thanks to the new apartments, condos, restaurants and shops. You can live, play and work downtown and not need a bus but if you want to get to a supermarket then you will have to travel at least a couple of miles to the nearest markets. But there is talk of adding a supermarket in or near the new Hartford 21 tower.
My personal recommendation would be Pittsburgh. Much less expensive housing than Hartford. With Pittsburgh, you will find housing is cheap, it has plenty of history and wonderful architecture and the economy is not nearly as bad as some people claim it to be. It has lots of cultural and recreational opportunities and the downtown and surrounding neighborhoods seem pretty walkable. Mass transit is excellent thanks to a subway system that complements their bus system.
I almost forgot to mention, whatever you do, DO NOT move to Kansas City. If you have to move to Missouri then perhaps, St. Louis is passable but take my word for it, Kansas City is not what you are looking for. I've lived here long enough and know this place quite well. It is for some people and not others. This place is not right for you.
Another question that would help narrow things down would be what size city you're looking for? If you want a larger city, would a smaller community with local shopping and restaurants within walking distance, and located near a larger city, work for you? The suggestion of college towns is a good one, if you don't necessarily need to live in or near a large city. Some college towns are near large cities, but you'd have many more choices if you did not need to be near a large city. Also, are there specific natural features or outdoor recreation possibilities you would prefer to have nearby?
North Carolina has been suggested several times. A couple of specific places you might consider in that state would be Asheville, if you don't need to be very close to a larger city, and Chapel Hill, site of the University of NC, if it would work for you to live in a somewhat smaller (though not tiny) community that may have the local character you're looking for, and is located near a moderately large city (Raleigh).
Why are San Fransiscan's always trying to portray their city as perfect? It is like they are not truely conviced... so they have to try and convice everyone else. SF is filthy, the cime for a city its size is disturbing, there are homeless...literally EVERYWHERE, your summers are horribly chilly, and the bang for your buck is laughable.
This remindes me of the South Park episode, where the San Fransiscans are smelling their own farts.(The point of that joke on that episode, was to address the issue that San Fransiscans think their s**t doesn't stink).
Hey, we're not all created equal and neither are our cities. Hate to break it to you.
I didnt say it was perfect, but aside from cost, its perfect for this couple. Am I wrong?
I mean,
Ive read at least a hundred threads here from people asking what's the best place for them and obviously the answer is San Francisco and The Bay Area, filth and homeless notwithstanding, your hardpressed to find anywhere as desirable as this area. The one and only detractor time and time again is cost of living. I wonder when people are going to realize that in order to live in such a place, youre going to have to pay for it. Such is life.
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