Would love some insight (Memphis, Knoxville: sales, homes, neighborhoods)

[jayman93]

I would love to get some insight from people who live or have lived in Knoxville. I have a job opportunity in sales engineering (commercial and industrial HVAC) that will allow me to choose where I would like to live. I am 26 years old and my wife and I now live in AZ. The three cities we were looking at were Knoxville, Louisville, and Columbus. Our choices were based upon a couple of things. Affordable homes, safe, do not like extreme weather (lots of snow), green terrain, raising a family, cultural diversity (i am half Mexican), sales opportunity and growth. The problem is I have not been to any of these places. From what research I have done I like what I see. If anyone has been in a combination of these cities or has some feedback on what they like or dislike about each I would appreciate it. Thanks!

[JMT]

Originally Posted by jayman93

I would love to get some insight from people who live or have lived in Knoxville. I have a job opportunity in sales engineering (commercial and industrial HVAC) that will allow me to choose where I would like to live. I am 26 years old and my wife and I now live in AZ. The three cities we were looking at were Knoxville, Louisville, and Columbus. Our choices were based upon a couple of things. Affordable homes, safe, do not like extreme weather (lots of snow), green terrain, raising a family, cultural diversity (i am half Mexican), sales opportunity and growth. The problem is I have not been to any of these places. From what research I have done I like what I see. If anyone has been in a combination of these cities or has some feedback on what they like or dislike about each I would appreciate it. Thanks!

I absolutely love it here in Knoxville. I've lived in a lot of big cities all over the world, and I honestly have to say that this is a good one. Sure, it's got its problems. But even the worst neighborhoods in Knoxville can't even begin to compare with the ghettos of places like Atlanta or Memphis.

From what I've seen, Louisville is an old river town with some cool historic neighborhoods. It's pretty industrial. People I know who've lived there said it was a nice place. Columbus is a much bigger city, but it's flat and cold up there.

Of the three, I believe Columbus is growing the fastest, followed by Knoxville. I don't think Louisville is growing much at all.

The Knoxville area is beautiful. Green, rolling hills, amazing fall colors, mild winters, very reasonable housing. We're only 30 miles from the Great Smoky Mountains. It's definitely a city designed for families. Having a university and the Oak Ridge national labs are definitely a benefit, they bring in highly educated people from all over the world. Your being half-Mexican shouldn't be an issue at all around here.

I live in a fairly diverse neighborhood in the city. My neighbors on both sides are black, across the street is a gay couple, there's a Mexican grocery store on the corner, and I've seen some Oriental-looking kids walk down my street (I have no idea where they came from). In the most recent election the politican signs were pretty evenly divided between the two parties. Everyone seems to get along just fine, we talk to each other, wave at each other, look out for each other. None of my neighbors can recall when anyone around here has ever been burglarized.

I hope you'll seriously consider Knoxville. I think there are others in this forum who would agree that it's worth a look.

Good luck!