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First, I'd like to thank everyone for their thoughtful, considered responses. I appreciate the time and effort. Sorry about the delayed response, but I've spent every night this week researching Tri-Cities and Cookeville areas, as well as general advantages and tax structure of Tennessee. I'll be 59 before long and had planned on retiring when I hit 62. Well, thanks to the jump in housing values in my area and the stock market over the last few years, I'm now planning for next year. Studying some options to keep health insurance costs in check, that's the big concern right now.
Everything I see about Tennessee looks really positive-between you and WV, you're the "Idaho of the East"-but without nearly as long-lasting a winter. I've also been checking temps every day-if I was there I'd be riding several days this week!
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Originally Posted by Ted Bear
Wades into the den .....
Well, housing and builders...are growing like weeds. Mostly "development" housing which in many cases are rentals. There is so much of that going on that some builders have gotten away from doing custom homes. Yes, there are still plenty of them going up, but it is slow going. Labor is tight. Getting materials is also difficult. I don't think prices have skyrocketed yet, but they are still "firm".
Water is readily available, but it is costly compared to many areas of the country. Perk is a local issue, but certainly you would want to know, wouldn't you?
And finally, riding is great. From the Blue Ridge Parkway where bikers come from all over America to ride, to the Southern Dozen, we have some of the greatest riding around. Keep Up. Stay Up. Not so much if you know what that means.
And last but not least, it does snow, but infrequently. Maybe a couple of inches here and there, which usually melts in a day or so except in the most shaded areas. Black ice is nasty on the winding country roads where snow melt freezes overnight, but generally "winter" is a non issue. Spring comes early.
Thanks, sounds like just what I'm looking for. I actually enjoy a one-on-one political discussion with a liberal. When both sides aren't "standing their ground" for their side, I find we have a lot more in common than many would believe.
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Originally Posted by Serious Conversation
See responses above.
Thank you for all of them. I feel good about what I see of the area.
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Originally Posted by VinceTheExplorer
There's plenty of Californians, New Yorkers and other out of state residents moving here in mass so you wouldn't be gaining anything there. Housing demand is up and supply is low, so to generalize it - you will be paying more and waiting longer to build here, or have to be ready to purchase an existing home at the drop of a dime as properties here can last just hours on the market. In other words, it's no different from where you're coming from.
There's been quite a few here on the forum lately talking about moving here and "instilling common sense" and other negative remarks about the people here (like being uneducated and such), which in our eyes is typical of those fleeing other areas they've destroyed and now bringing their bad habits here with them. TBH it's very sad to see.
We've found the opposite as the REAL PEOPLE living here in East Tennessee are warm, accepting and willing to give you the shirt off their back - if they think you've earned it. One poster here said it best with (something like) "You'll fit in good here if you're a good fit" which has been spot on and something we've found to be 100% true. The "loud and in your face" types from other areas stand out here like a bullseye and often get the cold shoulder, and are usually much better off over near Nashville and Chattanooga.
TBH people here do seem to have issues with groups like BLM, Antifa and such - but not because of hatred or racism (there's of course the exception) but more of a "keeping the peace" and "live and let live" mentality. People simply want to be able to live their lives here and not be hassled by groups, government or crappy neighbors, and anything that goes against that is ... well, unwanted.
We've had zero issues with guns ourselves here - concealed or open carry and see it often and without question (we carry ourselves). It's been a way of life here for generations and one that we appreciate, as is religion and church being deeply rooted into the communities here too.
The winters here are short with some snowfall, anywhere from 10 to 20+ inches or so depending on the year. Was 65 degrees out just two days ago and today it's 30 and snowing. The twisting mountain roads, Blue Ridge Parkway and I-26 into North Carolina are a motorcyclists and car lovers dream, especially with the roads here in ETN. Most are wide open, uncrowded (mostly) and beautiful and scenic. We're always amazed at the natural beauty while driving around no matter where we go, and although we don't ride we do have plans for a couple of classic cruisers sometime in the near future so we can enjoy the roads here to their fullest.
Hope that helps. Good luck.
I agree with you about those that move to an area and try to turn it into what they left. If what you left was (politically and economically) so great-why did you leave? We see that here (Idaho) with the Californians coming in. It's a "resort" area, so that alone draws a lot. But I find it's one extreme or the other-a lot of those I call California Refugees-they hate what has become of CA and are determined NOT to do the same to their new home. I am sorta that way-I am a native Idahoian with a birth defect-I was born in Western NY. I didn't correct that defect until I was in my early 30s, and am determined NOT to do wrong by my new home. That's part of the reason for the questions, to make sure I like the culture. I'm a big-time outdoor boy-no interest in the bigger cities. That's actually going to take some getting used to in TN-you have major cities everywhere! Looks like it's hard to get over a couple hours from one.
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Originally Posted by VinceTheExplorer
An example of "You'll fit in good here if you're a good fit" ...
Have a friend we've made through social circles who owns a 55 acre farm in Chuckey, TN, which is a 25 min drive or so from where we're at in Erwin.
His family goes back generations here and they have a new "loud mouth" neighbor from New York who is a real pain in the a** according to him, and they've exchanged words and don't even speak to each other now.
He's getting older and has been considering selling off 20 to 30 acres of the farm "to the right person" but wants to avoid another neighbor like they already have. Said they would love to have us as neighbors (which we've considered) and won't put the property on the market to avoid what they already have. Said that having good neighbors trumps price and the sale of their property any day of the week.
I feel sorry for your neighbor if that's what he had to deal with. I have been very fortunate-always lived in a rural area, and always had great neighbors, even if we don't always see each other often.
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Originally Posted by suzytx
I moved here from Texas, knowing that I was not about to change the culture (actually, some of my ancestors are from this area).
What I can't figure out is why these people who destroyed their original location choose to come here to destroy this location. Are they that ignorant or just running on arrogance?
Agreed!
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Originally Posted by VinceTheExplorer
Not really sure, but we’ve always tried to blend in by being good neighbors and living low key in areas that we could enjoy new experiences at. The “wanting everything you had from where you came from” crowd is very odd to us.
We grew up eating blue crabs from the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. When we want them we simply have them delivered overnight to us here in TN, or plan a trip back and have some while there. No big deal.
For us, one of the joys of living here in TN is seeing it stay the way it’s always been. Never came here wanting to see subdivisions, shopping centers and restaurants being built. There’s enough here to fit our needs and the people here are awesome. Nothing else is needed.
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Originally Posted by VinceTheExplorer
Think actions speak louder than words here as accents are looked past if you’re a generally laid back, good hearted person. We have family that wouldn’t last a week living here (fast talking, high strung types) and some that you would think went back generations here.
My side of the family comes from the area (4-5 hours north in West Virginia) and goes back generations there. Family still owns a 900 acre farm in the mountains near Parkersburg with lots of cousins, aunts and uncles and such in the vicinity still. It’s why we appreciate the way of life here in TN and would hate to see it go away.
If it did, we’d have no issues living in West Virginia either as it’s a beautiful state with tons to do outdoors.
WV is also on my short list-but it looks like winters are considerably longer there than in TN. I'd also consider southern KY (from what little I've seen, it's beautiful too) or Arkansas. We have family in TX and AL-North AR would make sense for proximity to both. But I think I like TN better.
WV is also on my short list-but it looks like winters are considerably longer there than in TN. I'd also consider southern KY (from what little I've seen, it's beautiful too) or Arkansas. We have family in TX and AL-North AR would make sense for proximity to both. But I think I like TN better.
There's quite a few tax/financial/investment reasons in choosing Tennessee. The only negative in moving from Texas was the higher sales tax but, boy, did the property taxes drop like a rock in comparison.
There's quite a few tax/financial/investment reasons in choosing Tennessee. The only negative in moving from Texas was the higher sales tax but, boy, did the property taxes drop like a rock in comparison.
There sure are a lot of advantages, with our biggest being quality of life. Being able to make the decisions we see fit as a family while enjoying the outdoors and everything to do in the region are our biggest benefits.
Living here in ETN means great weather and endless outdoor options. We can drive 7 - 8 hours and be in a variety of places - like the DC area, Outer Banks of NC, Disney in Orlando or in the Memphis / Arkansas area. Planning a trip up to West Virginia here soon to see the old family farm which is only 4 -5 hours away.
We’ve been on the highest peak east of the Mississippi (Mount Mitchell, elev 6,684’) by mid morning then at sea level at Sullivan’s Island near Charleston, South Carolina the same day by mid afternoon / early evening.
Been hiking at nearby Roan Mountain, NC (elev 6,286’) then exploring a cave system near Chattanooga, TN where they host bluegrass music concerts (The Caverns in Pelham, TN) on the same weekend. Just so many options for things to do here, even during a pandemic.
If we want to stay local, within an hours drive there‘s so much to do here that we’ve stopped planning things out and just hit the road and see where it takes us.
It’s an outdoor lovers paradise here, which again is our biggest plus, in addition to the financial benefits like tax advantages, property costs and such.
Last edited by VinceTheExplorer; 01-31-2021 at 09:54 AM..
There sure are a lot of advantages, with our biggest being quality of life. Being able to make the decisions we see fit as a family while enjoying the outdoors and everything to do in the region are our biggest benefits.
Living here in ETN means great weather and endless outdoor options. We can drive 7 - 8 hours and be in a variety of places - like the DC area, Outer Banks of NC, Disney in Orlando or in the Memphis / Arkansas area. Planning a trip up to West Virginia here soon to see the old family farm which is only 4 -5 hours away.
We’ve been on the highest peak east of the Mississippi (Mount Mitchell, elev 6,684’) by mid morning then at sea level at Sullivan’s Island near Charleston, South Carolina the same day by mid afternoon / early evening.
Been hiking at nearby Roan Mountain, NC (elev 6,286’) then exploring a cave system near Chattanooga, TN where they host bluegrass music concerts (The Caverns in Pelham, TN) on the same weekend. Just so many options for things to do here, even during a pandemic.
If we want to stay local, within an hours drive there‘s so much to do here that we’ve stopped planning things out and just hit the road and see where it takes us.
It’s an outdoor lovers paradise here, which again is our biggest plus, in addition to the financial benefits like tax advantages, property costs and such.
To me, that's one of the things that's so appealing about the area. I love the west, but it's almost too spread out. One thing I enjoyed growing up was catching races at the local paved and dirt tracks. We have very little around here, just one little 1/4 mile paved track, that's too tight for much passing. Really looking forward to checking out some of the history, and civil war battlefields. And taking a ride to Bowling Green to check out the Corvette museum-I tried to go there nearly 30 years ago...and hit it the week the were closed for retooling.
One thing about riding in my area-roads are limited. And I mean that literally-there are a whole lot of areas were there are no paved roads. As such, we tend to ride a lot of the same loops (now we have some of the best dirt/backcountry riding in the nation). The number of paved roads means you have LOTS of areas to explore.
So, how does NE Tennessee compare with the rural areas closer to Chattanooga? There seems to be a real shortage of rural property with fairly nice houses in the NE part of the state up for sale (from what I see on Zillow). Looks to be a lot more down in the SE corner. I hesitate to go any further south due to the heat and humidity issues (and I see the elevation is a lot lower, probably a bigger issue than the distance south).
We're toying with a "fixer-upper" when we first move, do some remodeling/updating (we built our current house) and then maybe flipping when we see how our money is holding out in 3-4 years. Gives us a better chance to get to know the area. We're coming out the first 2 weeks of May to explore and meet with a realtor.
Southeast TN tends to have far more heat and humidity, is generally at a lower elevation, and that hot weather lasts longer. The flip side is they get earlier springs and less snow. Still, I think northeast TN has better weather.
I’m not a motorcycle rider, but know many people in that community, and they like this area. It’s pretty hands-off and goes well with a lot of MC ways of life.
The issue with rural properties with nice homes in northeast TN is that the locals largely cannot afford to build the nice homes, and there isn’t enough out of area interest yet to generate the critical mass to get large amounts of “nice.” Personally, I find many of the truly rural communities around here insular, not tolerant of outsiders (even other Southerners), and just not friendly people overall.
If you are looking into something truly rural (well water, satellite internet (at best), no trash collection, etc.), I’d be extremely careful. You could easily get a very nice property on the cheap, but be out in rural drug hell with a lot of townies that don’t want to talk to anyone but other locals.
Southeast TN tends to have far more heat and humidity, is generally at a lower elevation, and that hot weather lasts longer. The flip side is they get earlier springs and less snow. Still, I think northeast TN has better weather.
I’m not a motorcycle rider, but know many people in that community, and they like this area. It’s pretty hands-off and goes well with a lot of MC ways of life.
The issue with rural properties with nice homes in northeast TN is that the locals largely cannot afford to build the nice homes, and there isn’t enough out of area interest yet to generate the critical mass to get large amounts of “nice.” Personally, I find many of the truly rural communities around here insular, not tolerant of outsiders (even other Southerners), and just not friendly people overall.
If you are looking into something truly rural (well water, satellite internet (at best), no trash collection, etc.), I’d be extremely careful. You could easily get a very nice property on the cheap, but be out in rural drug hell with a lot of townies that don’t want to talk to anyone but other locals.
Thanks for the info-that is exactly what I was afraid of. Looks like I'll keep my focus around the Tri-Cities area.
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