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I was thinking Providence as well. Yeah, I’ll throw any suggestions their way!
Based on the criteria, and adding in a few more, I'd give them this ranking:
-Springfield/Northampton, MA: this is a good area. Northampton has a terrific downtown but high rental and home prices. Springfield's downtown is larger but less vibrant. The Forest Hills neighborhood is nice. Other cities in the metro with decent downtowns are Westfield, Easthampton, and Amherst. This area has a decent job market, is practically next door to the Berkshires and VT for hiking, and is very affordable. Of all the places, I think they'd get the most of what they're looking for in this area for the most reasonable prices. Westfield might be a good compromise. Downtown isn't as vibrant as Northampton but is far safer than Springfield. They could easily find a good house in a walkable area here for an affordable price.
-Middletown, CT: close to good hiking in the CT River valley. Very walkable and vibrant downtown. Berkshires not too far. Close to good job markets in Hartford and New Haven. Winters aren't as bad as northern New England.
-Charlottesville, VA: winters aren't as bad as the northern cities. There's good hiking nearby but it's far from the coast. It's relatively isolated, though.
-New Haven, CT: vibrant and walkable downtown, good job market. Housing is affordable but there's less available in safe, walkable areas. The city has good suburbs. Nice hiking in the city and CT is nearby and the Berkshires/VT are an easy drive up 91. Winters are mild by New England standards.
-Providence: vibrant and walkable downtown, large job market but not a very good job market, close to Boston. It's not very close to good mountain hiking, though. If they're into beaches, then this is a good place. Traffic is a problem getting anywhere though.
-Worcester, MA: larger city by New England standards but, in my opinion, not a very vibrant downtown. Give it a little more time though, because it's improving. On the plus side it has easy access to hiking in the Berkshires and to Boston.
-Ithaca, NY: has a very vibrant and walkable downtown and is very close to excellent hiking (like within city limits). But it's more isolated (maybe that's a plus) and a smaller job market than the other cities. Harsher winters.
-Bethlehem, PA: I'd pick Easton over Bethlehem if they like this area. The area is affordable, not too far from NYC, and has nice hiking. Job market isn't the best but housing prices are good.
-Burlington, VT: very nice city with excellent hiking nearby. Downtown is vibrant and walkable. The problem is housing prices in the walkable area are quite high because of limited supply. They might have to live further out and it can get quite isolating. There are a lot of rentals because it's a college town. Another thing to look into is VT was offering remote workers $10,000 to move to VT. Not sure if that program is still active but worth looking into.
-Annapolis, MD: vibrant downtown. Close to DC and Baltimore. To get to the best hiking they'd have to drive through those cities, which might get tiring.
-Portland, ME: vibrant and walkable but small and isolated. Close to Boston but may as well be a thousand mils away in summer because of the traffic on 95. Personally, I'm not impressed with the hiking immediately nearby. Bangor has better hiking.
Other places to consider:
-Hartford, CT
-Lancaster, PA
-Pittsfield, MA
-Brattleboro, VT
-Salem, MA
-Morristown, NJ
-Fredericksburg, VA
I didn't rank the following cities because I don't know enough about them:
- Troy, NY
- Saratoga Springs, NY
- Kingston, NY
- Manchester, NH
- Roanoke, VA
- Knoxville, TN
- Chattanooga, TN
- Asheville, NC
- Greensboro, NC
- Greenville, SC
- Charleston, SC
-Wilmington, DE
- Lowell, MA
Based on the criteria, and adding in a few more, I'd give them this ranking:
-Springfield/Northampton, MA: this is a good area. Northampton has a terrific downtown but high rental and home prices. Springfield's downtown is larger but less vibrant. The Forest Hills neighborhood is nice. Other cities in the metro with decent downtowns are Westfield, Easthampton, and Amherst. This area has a decent job market, is practically next door to the Berkshires and VT for hiking, and is very affordable. Of all the places, I think they'd get the most of what they're looking for in this area for the most reasonable prices. Westfield might be a good compromise. Downtown isn't as vibrant as Northampton but is far safer than Springfield. They could easily find a good house in a walkable area here for an affordable price.
-Middletown, CT: close to good hiking in the CT River valley. Very walkable and vibrant downtown. Berkshires not too far. Close to good job markets in Hartford and New Haven. Winters aren't as bad as northern New England.
-Charlottesville, VA: winters aren't as bad as the northern cities. There's good hiking nearby but it's far from the coast. It's relatively isolated, though.
-New Haven, CT: vibrant and walkable downtown, good job market. Housing is affordable but there's less available in safe, walkable areas. The city has good suburbs. Nice hiking in the city and CT is nearby and the Berkshires/VT are an easy drive up 91. Winters are mild by New England standards.
-Providence: vibrant and walkable downtown, large job market but not a very good job market, close to Boston. It's not very close to good mountain hiking, though. If they're into beaches, then this is a good place. Traffic is a problem getting anywhere though.
-Worcester, MA: larger city by New England standards but, in my opinion, not a very vibrant downtown. Give it a little more time though, because it's improving. On the plus side it has easy access to hiking in the Berkshires and to Boston.
-Ithaca, NY: has a very vibrant and walkable downtown and is very close to excellent hiking (like within city limits). But it's more isolated (maybe that's a plus) and a smaller job market than the other cities. Harsher winters.
-Bethlehem, PA: I'd pick Easton over Bethlehem if they like this area. The area is affordable, not too far from NYC, and has nice hiking. Job market isn't the best but housing prices are good.
-Burlington, VT: very nice city with excellent hiking nearby. Downtown is vibrant and walkable. The problem is housing prices in the walkable area are quite high because of limited supply. They might have to live further out and it can get quite isolating. There are a lot of rentals because it's a college town. Another thing to look into is VT was offering remote workers $10,000 to move to VT. Not sure if that program is still active but worth looking into.
-Annapolis, MD: vibrant downtown. Close to DC and Baltimore. To get to the best hiking they'd have to drive through those cities, which might get tiring.
-Portland, ME: vibrant and walkable but small and isolated. Close to Boston but may as well be a thousand mils away in summer because of the traffic on 95. Personally, I'm not impressed with the hiking immediately nearby. Bangor has better hiking.
Other places to consider:
-Hartford, CT
-Lancaster, PA
-Pittsfield, MA
-Brattleboro, VT
-Salem, MA
-Morristown, NJ
-Fredericksburg, VA
I didn't rank the following cities because I don't know enough about them:
- Troy, NY
- Saratoga Springs, NY
- Kingston, NY
- Manchester, NH
- Roanoke, VA
- Knoxville, TN
- Chattanooga, TN
- Asheville, NC
- Greensboro, NC
- Greenville, SC
- Charleston, SC
-Wilmington, DE
- Lowell, MA
Awesome write up! Northampton, MA area was at the top of my list as well—it really does offer a lot. I agree with basically everything you said as well. I don’t think they mind isolating as long as there’s swimming holes and lakes around. I included some coastal areas just to add some variety and they mentioned they’d maybe like to take up surfing but they also said that about rock climbing and fishing as well lol.
Awesome write up! Northampton, MA area was at the top of my list as well—it really does offer a lot. I agree with basically everything you said as well. I don’t think they mind isolating as long as there’s swimming holes and lakes around. I included some coastal areas just to add some variety and they mentioned they’d maybe like to take up surfing but they also said that about rock climbing and fishing as well lol.
In terms of the bolded, while it is better when it gets colder or quite windy, there are people that surf the Great Lakes. https://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/...he-great-lakes So, with the NY locations mentioned, that could be an option, if your friend is open to it.
Rock climbing, swimming holes and fishing are definitely available near those cities as well.
I ranked the listed cities by research on stats. Cities with a * before are ones I added or were suggested
I'm assuming this is by city proper, so
*Hartford, CT
- Wilmington, DE
- Troy, NY
*Providence, RI
- Chattanooga, TN
*Vineland, NJ
- Roanoke, VA
- Worcester, MA
- Knoxville, TN
- Lowell, MA
- Greensboro, NC
*Myrtle Beach, SC
- Kingston, NY
- Manchester, NH
- Bethlehem, PA
- Greenville, SC
- Portland, ME
*Annapolis, MD
*Athens, GA
- Charleston, SC
- Burlington, VT
- Saratoga Springs, NY
- Ithaca, NY
- Northampton, MA
- Charlottesville, VA
*Gainesville, FL
- Asheville, NC
*Portsmouth, NH
I ranked the listed cities by research on stats. Cities with a * before are ones I added or were suggested
I'm assuming this is by city proper, so
*Hartford, CT
- Wilmington, DE
- Troy, NY
*Providence, RI
- Chattanooga, TN
*Vineland, NJ
- Roanoke, VA
- Worcester, MA
- Knoxville, TN
- Lowell, MA
- Greensboro, NC
*Myrtle Beach, SC
- Kingston, NY
- Manchester, NH
- Bethlehem, PA
- Greenville, SC
- Portland, ME
*Annapolis, MD
*Athens, GA
- Charleston, SC
- Burlington, VT
- Saratoga Springs, NY
- Ithaca, NY
- Northampton, MA
- Charlottesville, VA
*Gainesville, FL
- Asheville, NC
*Portsmouth, NH
So Asheville is last? Fascinating metrics given general consensus.
Awesome write up! Northampton, MA area was at the top of my list as well—it really does offer a lot. I agree with basically everything you said as well. I don’t think they mind isolating as long as there’s swimming holes and lakes around. I included some coastal areas just to add some variety and they mentioned they’d maybe like to take up surfing but they also said that about rock climbing and fishing as well lol.
The job market and Springfield are misrepresented. Unless you’re employable at a university or health care, the job market is miserable. Both universities and health care employ a lot of IT so that it’s possible to live well in Northampton with that job skill. Springfield is a failed city. If you live in Northampton, you’re unlikely to use Springfield much. And you have hell hole Holyoke along the way. Northampton is the county seat and has Smith College. It has a vibrant Main Street and is a nice place to live if you like living in activist college towns with a new age and lesbian vibe. I lived there for a few years. Other than Baystate Medical as the major hospital, I was rarely in Springfield. You have skiing within day trip distance. Mount Snow and Okemo share a season pass. The Skyeship gondola parking lot at Killington is less than 2 hours from Northampton. With all the colleges, there’s a lot going on locally. Bradley is the best regional airport in New England with long haul flights to the West Coast, Denver, etc. The other New England regional airports go to eastern hubs and Florida.
The New England list for places like Northampton usually includes Burlington VT, Portland ME, and Portsmouth NH which wasn’t mentioned. I went to college in Burlington. I lived in Portsmouth for a decade. I’ve spent a lot of time in Portland. I personally like Portsmouth best because of the proximity to Boston. Off hours, it’s less than an hour. The proximity to Boston also makes for a much stronger job market. The downside is housing cost.
It is about 25 minutes north of Saratoga Springs and would be close to companies in that immediate area, with some in that area as well. Close to Lake George and the Adirondacks.
This other city is home to General Electric, Union College, a community college, MVP Health Care, Rivers Casino, with Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory nearby, among other potential employers: https://www.discoverschenectady.com/
Pretty much anything in the Union Street Corridor will be close to the college of the same name and will be a solid/nice, walkable area. Parts of it are close to Downtown and it’s Little Italy is off of that corridor. Again, close enough to the Adirondacks and the Catskills as well.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 09-06-2021 at 07:07 PM..
In South Carolina, both Greenville and Charleston have vibrant, highly walkable downtowns. Charleston is much more historic and more touristy; Greenville feels much newer and seems to cater more to residents. Charleston is flat as a pancake; Greenville is pretty close to the mountains. Overall, the climate seems more moderate in Greenville, especially in the summer. Greenville has better access to Atlanta and Charlotte; Charleston has better access to Savannah and Myrtle Beach. I don't know about metro area, but at least in the city proper, Greenville is more affordable.
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