Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
RULE #1. Never move someplace sight unseen. You would not believe the number of places we rejected after a visit or two. It would be better to wait till after you retire to do your research than to break RULE #1.
If weather makes a difference in your relocation move, visit that state in the worst month.
We wanted to move south to escape the snow and cold so visited the south in August.
Yes, it was hot.
But it was more bearable than winters up north.
We moved south in 2012 and never regretted it.
Got kind of a funny story on this. When we first got serious about moving to Tennessee, I decided to have us come up for a week in the summer so we could experience what the heat and humidity was like. Scheduled us for the last week in July as I figured that would fill the bill.
Got in on a Sunday afternoon and it was hot and muggy. Line of thunderstorms came through that evening and for the rest of the entire week it was chamber of commerce weather. Warm but not hot days and not humid at all. Everyone we talked to remarked about how unusual the weather was for that time of year.
I visited in what I thought was the worst time, the middle of July. Thank heavens I did it then as I think if I had waited until September (which is when I ended up moving here) the heat was tough for me. I may have rethought my plans.
As it turned out, while I was here, it was hot at times, but not too bad. The best part was being able to breathe freely. It felt wonderful coming from Minnesota where my allergies were awful.
The one thing I do have to say, I am not certain coming in the worst months is the best advice. The reason I say that is because I had been wondering how the summer would be & it's been fine. Moving here in September I had, as planned, quite a while before the real heat came. I realized that the good months compensated for the few of the, what was considered, bad ones.
For some areas I could see it. For example, visiting Minnesota in the coldest, snowiest time of year. (February comes to mind) & after researching the weather, if I hadn't been born & raised there, it certainly isn't a place I would move to. Actually, any state which has months of cold & snow.
The same with Florida. I'd gone on a week's long tour with a friend in the middle of a Minnesota winter. It was way to the top of my list until my last two summers in Minnesota. There were so many muggy days when we normally had over a week tops, that I knew I couldn't take months of humidity.
Tennessee was at the top of the list, but after 'talking' with other cd folks, I figured my allergies would be just as bad as they were in Minnesota.
Maine was up there for quite a while but, again, I didn't want snow & ice.
By visiting Arizona when I did, it hit so many of my wants/needs that I chose to move here. Would I have if I'd come in September? I just don't know. I do know I would have missed out on a great opportunity if I hadn't moved here.
I've been wanting us to move away from Silicon Valley ever since I first got here, in 2000. DW is born-and-raised here, so all her Family is here; it's much more difficult for her to think about leaving them and move out of state.
But, we'll have to do something once she gets fully-retired; we're in a downward-spiraling neighborhood of mostly rental homes, and the prospects aren't all that great for the future, here (older neighborhood, house, plumbing, electric, etc.).
I've been actively researching out-of-state locations for over a year, but don't seem to be able to find a suitable (for us) location that makes us both happy, or even complacent. I've spent hours & hours online, looking at photos of different areas, reading what locals have blogged about them; even sent-off for their Chambers-of-Commerce catalogs, to get an idea about what the area holds.
We've traveled-around a small bit, to mostly in-state (CA) locations. And, most of the places we've been to have something really nice about them, but discussions about relocating always come back to "it's still in California", and I lose interest in it, big time.
We've (or should I say "I've") been looking at places like Minden-Gardnerville-Carson-City (NV), Kingman or Prescott (AZ), Albuquerque or Las Cruces (NM), and anywhere in Texas. Thus far, I get no agreement from DW on any of these, but that's because it's not (yet) a priority for her.
Hopefully (fingers-crossed!), once she gets fully-retired, we'll be able to take more time to research and visit some of the places I'm interested in, since we've already pretty-much hit all the ones she's interested in.
THANK YOU to all y'all who contribute to these threads; I read the "Retirement" forum every day with interest ... I'm rarely disappointed with topics-of-discussion on here.
I kind of empathize with your DW. My sisters kids moved from Los Altos where they grew up - for college and life that happened soon after. They have since tried to find ways to afford to come back - one has - the other wants to desperately.
What about moving further out? In better neighborhoods like down towards Gilroy or Los Gatos or Monterey County - driveable to the valley?
One of the things we have noticed where we are looking for homes and/or property...... homes are built WITHOUT AC and with heating systems that are more appropriate for a vacation cabin than a home. LIterally a floor to ceiling electric heater in one house we saw.
It's one reason we want to build. A ceiling fan is not going to cut it when it's 90 degrees in the canyon. Ocean breezes won't get that far.
And it does get damn cold when the fog comes in ...... I want central heating.
I kind of empathize with your DW. My sisters kids moved from Los Altos where they grew up - for college and life that happened soon after. They have since tried to find ways to afford to come back - one has - the other wants to desperately.
What about moving further out? In better neighborhoods like down towards Gilroy or Los Gatos or Monterey County - driveable to the valley?
... Thanks for replying, mlb ... To answer your question, yes, we looked there, and are also looking up around Sacramento & the foothills East of there. It’s just that, for me, the value we’d receive for what we have to pay is lower in California than in other places. And, we’re having to be very “conscious” of that, because of what will be our even-more-limited income, once she retires.
And, that doesn’t include the emotional factor of not being within 15-minutes of most Family members, either.
It’s a real dilemma for me; if we lean one way, one of us isn’t going to be satisfied; if we lean the other way, the other person won’t be happy, either.
We’ll try to work it out once she gets fully-retired, though. Some days it’s tough, but I can wait ...
Remember, "you dont own stuff, stuff owns YOU". You have to protect it from thieves and damage, rust, maintain it vs wear, replace it when it breaks too badly. etc, It does not and cannot care a whit about you. So it behooves you to keep stuff to a minimum, eh? Having lots of stuff keeps you from trying out new things and places. There's a MASSIVE cost for having stuff, far beyond its initial price
... Thanks for replying, mlb ... To answer your question, yes, we looked there, and are also looking up around Sacramento & the foothills East of there. It’s just that, for me, the value we’d receive for what we have to pay is lower in California than in other places. And, we’re having to be very “conscious” of that, because of what will be our even-more-limited income, once she retires.
And, that doesn’t include the emotional factor of not being within 15-minutes of most Family members, either.
It’s a real dilemma for me; if we lean one way, one of us isn’t going to be satisfied; if we lean the other way, the other person won’t be happy, either.
We’ll try to work it out once she gets fully-retired, though. Some days it’s tough, but I can wait ...
I can appreciate your dilemma - BTDT.
Good luck to you.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
