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Looking for suggestions for a SAFE small town in an area with warm weather year-round - the ideal place wouldn't usually have winter temps below 40-45 degrees. I want to be able to get a decent, clean 1-bedroom apartment for under $450 a month. I'm also open to renting a nice room from a person or family. I'm not partial to a region, other than for the weather preferences I have.
I'm doing this to get my finances in order and save up to buy a certified used car for cash. I'm looking to live in the area for 12-24 months, depending on how long it takes for me to reach the goals I've set for myself.
Work is not an issue as I'm a disabled veteran and receive a decent disability income. Schools are not an issue, because I don't have any children. I also don't have any pets. A local community college would be nice, but not a must-have. Amtrak or Greyhound/Trailways has to stop in the town.
I don't have a car, so the town has to be small enough for me to walk or ride a moped to the grocery store, pharmacy, doctor, and post office. I would need the area to have high-speed Internet access. Access to basic cable would be nice, but not a necessity if the local channels will come in clearly.
I'm 40 years old and single (divorced) female, but I'm a homebody. My idea of big fun is my photography hobby, watching my favorite TV shows (love sci-fi) and making full use of Netflix, LOL. I do attend church and like to be involved in lay ministries. I'm a non-pentecostal "Mainline Protestant". I'm okay with Baptist, Methodist, Churches of Christ/Disciples of Christ, United Church of Christ, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, etc. I'm fine with "charismatic" churches that DON'T practice speaking in tongues or teach prosperity gospel.
If it matters, I'm a black American. I have a diverse social background, and am used to being the only black/minority, or one of a few. I didn't have "hard knock life" in the ghetto, and I don't embody those stereotypes. I really only included this last part because it might matter to the people in the towns that somebody on here might recommend, so I thought it would be a good idea to state that up front.
Thanks in advance.
Southern Pines, NC- Hamlet, NC- Columbia, SC-Denmark, SC all are small Southern towns located at stops right on the Amtrak line.The nighttime temps. might dip below 40-50 but the day time temps avg around 40-50 in the Winter.
It's the South blacks live in every town and there is a church on every corner.
Where are you hoping to move to after the 12 - 24 month time period? It would be nice if you could find a place as close as possible so you won't have a such a long trip later on. As others have said, south Texas might suit you, though hot as hell in the summer, usually the winters are mild. Try looking in New Braunfels/San Marcos or surrounding areas. Because of the problems near the border, I wouldn't consider the very deep south. I don't know much about the other areas mentioned, though I have read crime is still often a problem in smaller communities, so check that out well before taking any steps. You can listen to many police departments calls on radioreference.com that may give you some idea of the crime in a location you are considering. I agree with you about Louisiana, just to much crime.
You might phone the disabled associations in the area you decide on and ask for advice on low cost safe housing. Be sure and do your homework before you sign anything. Also check the state sexual predator websites so you know before hand if there are perverts living nearby. Look at the local papers in the area, as they give a feel of the community and also there maybe places for rent listed there.
i don't know of any small rural areas where you will find warm weather, a train/bus, moped rental, and nearby shopping. If you own a moped I can get close, but no warm weather.
I was going to buy a used moped to get around if the town wasn't small enough to walk to things. A 3-wheel bicycle (http://www.tricyclesdetails.info/images/schwinn-meridian-tricycle.jpg - broken link) with a basket on the back would work too, if I didn't have to deal with any hills. But those are only doable if the weather is pretty warm, even in winter.
For colder places, a county-run para-transit service, so I can get to the grocery store and doctor, would be okay. I don't mind calling 24 hours in advance to schedule a pickup. The only local shopping I absolutely need is a grocery store. I can get everything else by ordering online. A train stop in town isn't a necessity, but a Greyhound/Trailways stop is even if there's no local station. Greyhound tickets can be bought online and printed out now, so a station isn't really a necessity.
Thanks!
Last edited by ArtsyDiva; 02-25-2011 at 11:46 PM..
Thanks for the suggestions. I know about the SC towns, because SC is my home state; I just hadn't considered moving back unless it was to my hometown in the Upstate. The Pee Dee and Lowcountry regions are warmer in the winter, and yes there are black folks and churches galore, LOL.
Unfortunately, Columbia isn't cheap enough, and anywhere I would find an apartment for under $450 I'd probably be afraid to live there. There are some bad neighborhoods. I hadn't considered Denmark, but I'll look into it. I did consider Sumter, where I attended college, but I've read that crime is a really serious problem there. I'll take another look, because I do still have ties to the community, and I wouldn't be isolated. I have someone there who can tell me where NOT to consider living.
I haven't even considered the small towns in the Lowcountry, but I'll take another look. I'd make quite a few people let out a sigh of relief if I moved back to SC, LOL. They can't help me, but they still worry about me, and I know they'd feel better if I was at least back in the state.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDD
Southern Pines, NC- Hamlet, NC- Columbia, SC-Denmark, SC all are small Southern towns located at stops right on the Amtrak line.The nighttime temps. might dip below 40-50 but the day time temps avg around 40-50 in the Winter.
It's the South blacks live in every town and there is a church on every corner.
Thanks for your suggestions. I didn't know about radioreference.com, so that's really good to know. I do a couple of the things you suggest, like reading the local papers online and looking at crime maps. I also use Google Earth and StreetView on Google Maps to take "tours" of towns and neighborhoods to see how they look on a day-to-day basis, and not just cleaned up for the promo photos on the city website.
I'll consider Texas towns and cities away from the border. I did some reading and shootouts in Mexico are resulting in stray bullets hitting buildings on the US side. That's scary. I'll look into the San Marcos area as you suggested. I have a sibling who lives in San Antonio, so I will give that area a close look as well. I suspect it's too expensive for what I'm looking to do right now, but it could be a contender for when my self-imposed super cheap living plan is over. I know South Texas gets hot, but I used to live in Phoenix, and I don't believe any other livable place in the US gets as hot as that place in the summer. Good Lordy mercy!
I hadn't thought about where I'd move after I had bought a car and saved up some more money. I considered returning to Georgia and living in an exurb of Atlanta since transportation wouldn't dictate where I needed to live. But, other than that, I hadn't thought about it too much. I would probably start planning and researching about 6 months before I was to leave, so I could have everything in place wherever I decided to go.
Quote:
Originally Posted by todd00
Where are you hoping to move to after the 12 - 24 month time period? It would be nice if you could find a place as close as possible so you won't have a such a long trip later on. As others have said, south Texas might suit you, though hot as hell in the summer, usually the winters are mild. Try looking in New Braunfels/San Marcos or surrounding areas. Because of the problems near the border, I wouldn't consider the very deep south. I don't know much about the other areas mentioned, though I have read crime is still often a problem in smaller communities, so check that out well before taking any steps. You can listen to many police departments calls on radioreference.com that may give you some idea of the crime in a location you are considering. I agree with you about Louisiana, just to much crime.
You might phone the disabled associations in the area you decide on and ask for advice on low cost safe housing. Be sure and do your homework before you sign anything. Also check the state sexual predator websites so you know before hand if there are perverts living nearby. Look at the local papers in the area, as they give a feel of the community and also there maybe places for rent listed there.
Maybe SC might work for you, as you have pple in that area. It would be nice if you could find a room mate or someone with a house that is having trouble making payments. Yeah know an Aunt Bea type right out of Mayberry...lol. So that's stretching it a bit but there still are some nice pple out there. I lived in San Antonio, some years ago, I had thought of mentioning that area, but its a large city, and lower rent places usually have crime problems. I mentioned the other places as they are smaller have less crime and maybe more chance of finding a place that would fit your situation. I know more about the small towns in the midwest than the south.
Keep us posted on your search.
I would really like to experience living in Los Angeles. I know I don't have the income for it to become "home", but I'd at least like to experience living there (even if in a roommate situation) for awhile. I've noticed that even most shares require a full month's deposit, and sometimes first/last/deposit, to move in. So, I need to save up some duckets, LOL. Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by DowntownVentura
You have received some good suggestions and I can't top them but I am curious, Artsy, where do you really want to live?
I want to give a big thank you to everyone who gave me suggestions about where I could move to save up some money. I'm happy to announce that if all goes well, I will be moving back to my hometown in SC.
Upon speaking with a cousin tonight, I found out that a formerly troubled apartment complex had been cleaned up. A new company bought it, got rid of the petty drug dealers and bad tenants (it was never a "no go zone", but just not the most desirable place to live if one had options) and started doing complete renovations section by section. The remodeled and updated units look nice and though the rents were raised a little, they're still inexpensive (I saw the new units on CL).
My cousin talked me into moving there to save money and the plus side is that they're under my $450 limit, on a main bus line, and I have relatives with cars who live very close by. There's no app fee, approval takes minutes, and deposits are only $99. The only utility needed is electric, and the complex is providing free wireless Internet.
I'll update this thread next week after I get the ball rolling. I'm probably going to end up hopping a bus (3-4 hours w/ stops) to go do things in person.
That's real great news ArtsyDiva. Good luck with the move.
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Thanks for All the Help!
