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My husband and I want to leave NJ, but finding the right "spot" has proven to be quite difficult. Initially we wanted to move to South Florida, but are rethinking that based on research we are doing on the cost of living there and the problems that exist. We visit South Beach often and love the atmosphere there, but are well aware that the average joe can not afford to live there. What we love about it is the amount of outdoor activities, outdoor cafes, outdoor malls, people walking about, playing ball in the park, walking with their dogs, etc. Walking to pick up some groceries, walking to get a cup of coffee or a sandwich, taking an evening walk just to get out, walking to listen to some live music. We like the variety of stores, boutiques, shopping, restaurants and cuisine, music scenes. We like that there is a very active nightlife. We usually rent a car for only a day or so in a week spent there because it is so walkable, which we love. I know that cities like Boston and New York offer all of these things, but we'd like someplace not quite as crowded and we would like someplace where it doesn't cost a small fortune to live there AND we would prefer to be in a warmer climate.
Obviously it is not easy to find towns just like South Beach, but does anyone have any suggestions of other cities that have similar qualities?
Any suggestions would be welcome...even if they don't fit EVERY aspect of what I listed. No place is perfect, but a good combination of most of those qualities would do.
May I ask why you are leaving NJ to begin with? Is it cost of living issues? Weather? Are you and your husband retiring?
I'm just asking because Red Bank, NJ has everything you mentioned (on a smaller scale, of course). Great restaurants, antique shops, cafes, upscale shopping, jazz clubs, bars, 2 riverfront parks, festivals throughout the year, and just a few minutes to the beach.
Several reasons for leaving NJ. Housing costs, property taxes and other factors contributing to the high cost of living here are at the top of the list. We haven't ruled out other areas of NJ completely, but really feel we are ready for a new experience in a completely new place.
Thanks for your suggestion, though. Where do you think most people from Red Bank usually commute to for work and how far would that commute be? As I said, we'd consider all options.
Then go back and forth to Florida as required. The simple solution, lots of people in Ohio go to Florida in the winter. Many own houses in both states.
I will probably do that in most future years. My relatives have property in Florida so it is not a problem getting a place to stay. From SE Ohio to the mid area of Florida is about a 16 hours drive, can do it very comfortable in two days. Pretty good freeway shot all the way without many large urban areas to have to dodge.
You can usually find something that fits in Ohio, lots of different sized towns, living costs are pretty cheap in general. Monroe county, Ohio is a lot cheaper than even a small town in Florida like Lake Placid, Florida. Food is about half and they grow the stuff in Florida.
Lake Placid is like 2000 people year round. Expands to like 12000 in the winter, lots of them are those wild Ohio Yankees.
Is a nice fit. You can avoid Ohio winter months like January, February and avoid the hot Florida summers, plus have a four season climate.
Hi Cosmic - Thanks for your post. Nice idea if you can pull it off, but we are not in the position to "summer" here and "winter" there. We are in our late 20s/early 30s.
May I ask why you are leaving NJ to begin with? Is it cost of living issues? Weather? Are you and your husband retiring?
I'm just asking because Red Bank, NJ has everything you mentioned (on a smaller scale, of course). Great restaurants, antique shops, cafes, upscale shopping, jazz clubs, bars, 2 riverfront parks, festivals throughout the year, and just a few minutes to the beach.
My husband and I want to leave NJ, but finding the right "spot" has proven to be quite difficult. Initially we wanted to move to South Florida, but are rethinking that based on research we are doing on the cost of living there and the problems that exist. We visit South Beach often and love the atmosphere there, but are well aware that the average joe can not afford to live there. What we love about it is the amount of outdoor activities, outdoor cafes, outdoor malls, people walking about, playing ball in the park, walking with their dogs, etc. Walking to pick up some groceries, walking to get a cup of coffee or a sandwich, taking an evening walk just to get out, walking to listen to some live music. We like the variety of stores, boutiques, shopping, restaurants and cuisine, music scenes. We like that there is a very active nightlife. We usually rent a car for only a day or so in a week spent there because it is so walkable, which we love. I know that cities like Boston and New York offer all of these things, but we'd like someplace not quite as crowded and we would like someplace where it doesn't cost a small fortune to live there AND we would prefer to be in a warmer climate.
Obviously it is not easy to find towns just like South Beach, but does anyone have any suggestions of other cities that have similar qualities?
Only one person, who suggested Red Bank, NJ responded. No one else has any other cities to suggest?
Well, one problem is that cities in the South and West in this countries tend to not be very walkable with a large amount of concentrated amenities like you want. South Beach is a bit of an anomaly. While older smaller towns in the Southeast often have a small people-friendly downtown, when you get to the larger cities, things tend to be pretty sprawly and generic minus maybe one or two neighborhoods in the city (i.e. South Beach and Coconut Grove in a largely sprawly Miami), and the larger cities are generally where it seems from your interests would be where you'd want to be. Walkability is generally found more in older higher-density cities and old streetcar suburbs in the urban Northeast and Midwest, whereas much of the urban South and West was developed after the automobile revolution and geared as such. There are some exceptions and there's a general slow push in this country to have more livable and pedestrian-friendly downtowns and neighborhoods, but quite a few places have proven really resistant to the idea. With all that said, some places to consider:
Greenville, South Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Wilmington, North Carolina - I only drove through here once a long time ago and was only half paying attention so I may be wrong about it, but it seemed nice to me at the time
Savannah, Georgia
Charleston, South Carolina
St. Augustine, Florida
Galveston, Texas
All of these areas are considered relatively expensive to the area they're in, but I don't believe any are near the cost of living in New Jersey.
Where do you think most people from Red Bank usually commute to for work and how far would that commute be?
Many people commute to Manhattan. Red Bank has its own train station.
Also, many people have the opportunity to work in Red Bank itself.
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Do the Ohio / Florida dance
Only one suggestion here?
