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Apologies if you've seen a similar post by me in the Coastal NC or FL forums.
Long story made short, I'm a 29-year-old single female who has landed a solid, long-term job with a 100% remote company, and can live and work from anywhere in the U.S. I want to. This is a pretty overwhelming amount of freedom, but I've been itching to move for the past year or so, and I'm ready to start doing some serious research on relocating to the beach. I'm planning several upcoming trips to check some of my top picks out, so yes, hands-on research is in the works, but I need suggestions on the best places to plan a visit to.
My Want List:
Southeast US/Atlantic Coast (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, possibly Texas or Alabama).
Not a complete retirement community. I need a town that is vibrant enough to attract a reasonable young professionals population, and all that entails--restaurants, a few bars, a target within an hours' drive, etc.
Activities! I'm active in my church and love water sports, volunteering, and getting involved in the community of wherever I am. Since I'll be working from home, finding a place that has an active community other than retirees and vacationers will be important.
Reasonable cost of living. I'll be looking to buy a house, and would love to be able to stay at/around $300k.
Great beaches! I'm a water lover and would love to find a community with that old school surf town vibe.
So...does this place exist? Do you all have any recommendations? I've already booked my first exploratory visit...Wilmington, NC (staying at Carolina Beach) next month
Hampton Roads (Virginia Beach) skews very young
Daphne/Fairhope/Orange Beach is one of the best values
Savannah/Tybee Island (Savannah is about 20 mins from ocean)
Pensacola
It's the best you're going to get in terms of opportunities for a young professional (thus other young professionals to meet), big city amenities and relatively low COL.
Last edited by citidata18; 05-27-2020 at 11:45 PM..
The bigger cities in FL will not provide the "old school surf town vibe" the OP is after. If looking for any semblance of a younger population in close proximity to such a place checkout the Melbourne FL area. The revitalized space program has brought in a number of young professionals and the beach communities of Cape Canaveral, Satellite Beach, Cocoa Beach, Indialantic and Melbourne Beach all have that non-touristy feel with a significant surfer population, especially in Cocoa Beach which is the home of pro surfer Kelly Slater and the world famous Ron Jon Surf Shop.
Thank you all so much for your responses!! There’s a lot to go on here.
I’ve considered Charleston, SC, though Folly Beach (their version of Carolina Beach in Wilmington) is significantly pricier than CB. Same kind of set up with Savannah/Tybee—Tybee doesn’t have much going on by itself, but it’s close enough to Savannah to go into town for most social events.
I’ve heard people throw Orange Beach out a few times, but honestly my closest experience with Alabama beaches is going to the coast in Mississippi a few times when I lived in Oxford. Anyone have any insights on living full time in Orange Beach?
Thanks for the vote for the Melbourne area of Fl! I’ve actually had my eye on Cocoa Beach for awhile as somewhere to check out. I spent a weekend there a few years ago and really liked the vibe, though I was exploring as a tourist more than as a resident.
This is a little out there, but does anyone have any experience living in Panama City Beach? I went there once for spring break in college (obviously NOT the same as living there!) and it was wild, though we stuck mostly to the party area of the strip. Really nowhere I’d want to live, especially since I’ve very much outgrown the party scene, but doing some quick real estate searches of that area, I was surprised by the affordability and how nice the neighborhoods look.
Thank you all so much for the feedback. Keep it coming
My wife lived in Myrtle Beach for a few years in her early-mid 20s before moving to join me in NYC. She worked as a registered nurse and her best friend worked at a local university, but most of her social circle worked in the service industry/tourism.
Based on my knowledge of the area, I think it checks everything in your want list, but my only concern would be that it is too touristy/transient to settle down in.
Myrtle Beach is quite lacking when it comes to the young professional population and is heavily retiree/snowbird/tourist-driven. I wouldn't recommend it given your criteria.
My suggestion, and one that tends to fly under the radar quite a bit but packs a nice punch for its size, would be Tallahassee. Another good suggestion would be Tampa/St. Petersburg.
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