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I know people sometimes just go ahead and move to a new city without doing any research. Most people can not spend more than a week or so when visiting, along with online research about an area and job searches.
Other than the above, what do you recommend be done when researching a new city to move to.
do you know anyone in the potential destination? Know any friends that have friends who live in the city? You may want to ask around because you never know who knows who where {if that makes sense.}
Go in person, and walk around as much as possible; talk to people in hotels and restaurants; if necessary, take a cab and see as much of the physical city as possible...
Google Earth. people post really every day mundane pictures of the neighborhoods and front yards and such. gives a good visual on the every day of a place.
I know people sometimes just go ahead and move to a new city without doing any research. Most people can not spend more than a week or so when visiting, along with online research about an area and job searches.
Other than the above, what do you recommend be done when researching a new city to move to.
I see you posted "warm weather or bust" on your profile. Be very careful with that particular reason for relocation. It's often a "the grass appears greener on the other side" situation. I grew up in Florida and had spent many years there. The number of people moving to Florida who became disenchanted quickly and moved out actually resulted in a commonly used phrase known as "halfbackers"....referring to those who moved from the Northeast or Midwest and later moved halfway back (the Carolinas or Georgia).
Examine why you want to move, Weather? Fine, but make sure other criteria for happiness exist.
Do you want walkability, decent restaurants, a vibrant downtown, museums/cultural events, a mix of families and single professionals, etc.?
I have an important one in addition to the usual research methods - read the local newspapers from that area to see what's really going on. The good AND the bad.
Get a short-term subscription and have it mailed to you, or read it online if possible. You will learn more about what is REALLY happening in a particular area than any Chamber of Commerce, person posting on this forum, or amount of just blindly "riding around" will ever tell you.
I see you posted "warm weather or bust" on your profile. Be very careful with that particular reason for relocation. It's often a "the grass appears greener on the other side" situation. I grew up in Florida and had spent many years there. The number of people moving to Florida who became disenchanted quickly and moved out actually resulted in a commonly used phrase known as "halfbackers"....referring to those who moved from the Northeast or Midwest and later moved halfway back (the Carolinas or Georgia).
Examine why you want to move, Weather? Fine, but make sure other criteria for happiness exist.
Do you want walkability, decent restaurants, a vibrant downtown, museums/cultural events, a mix of families and single professionals, etc.?
Don't let one factor determine your choice.
Believe me, I hear what you are saying. I have never lived outside of NY before, so I am being very cautios about this process. You are right, weather is why I am moving. I read all the negative posts on here about Florida, and I take the information in. It does cause me to really think about what I am doing. Other than the weather, we are also interested because there is so much to do outside with the warmer weather. I know how hot it gets down there, but for me coming from a city that gets 120 inches of snow per year on average, stuffy humidity and hot temperatures sounds better to me than snow and ice and wearing heavy jackets 6 months a year.
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