Wanting to Move to TN, but need some help :) (Knoxville: taxes, to live in)

[LissieAnn]

Originally Posted by LissieAnn

Thanks JMT for the kind words!! I would love to be there now!! I bet you have seen your fair share of cheapskates and that’s unfortunate, (same with CA’s central valley-low cost of living attracts well...) What is terrible though, look at our housing prices. I’m not talking about the statistics on citidata.com, I mean check out our craigslist for homes to rent. Where I am at now, Modesto, Ca and some cities in TN are quite comparable in cost.

I actually was surprised to see how comparable the cost of living is. Going into this search, I thought I was going to be able to rent a 2 bdr home on 1.5+ acres for under $800 a month and I’m finding out that isn’t as plausible as I hoped for.

Well, I know that things are bad across the country, but here in CA I think we top it all. When you live in a city of 200,000+ people and you can’t find any jobs outside of fast-food, that’s pretty bad. Now I know Knoxville is more east, is the weather/culture/economy vastly different than that of say, Nashville?

oh ok, that's how you quote! LOL nice!!

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by LissieAnn

Can you tell me about Knoxville?

Of course! My favorite subject!

We are in a valley, fairly close to The Great Smoky Mountains. Now, you may think that it is humid in Tennessee, no matter what, but the humidity is less here compared to Memphis and Nashville.

As JMT says, we have the lowest unemployment rate of the largest MSAs in the state. It stands at about 8.3. That doesn't mean we are not hurting. We are. Just not as badly, I guess.

Since you are continuing your education you will be thrilled to know that University of Tennessee, Main Campus, is in Knoxville.

We sit on the Tennessee River and our downtown area is quite historic. It is not very large but is quite vibrant.

Every year a section of the town is closed down for the Rossini Festival where we celebrate all things opera although it really is an excuse to eat.

The entire month of April we give homage to the dogwood tree with the Dogwood Arts Festival. Our spring is glorious and almost wherever you turn those trees are in glorious bloom.

Our winter is very mild, although I suppose to someone from California it could be considered cold. To the northerners, such as myself, though, it is downright balmy. We get the occasional dusting of snow, which gets us all excited because we really don't get much of the white stuff.

And as you can imagine, our fall is quite beautiful.

I really enjoy historic towns, too, since that is where I was born and lived for 34 years, so I settled in Fountain City, which is one of the oldest suburbs of Knoxville. Although my home was built in 1955, and my neighborhood looks like it belongs on the set of "Leave it to Beaver," some of the homes in Fountain City are quite old.

The Knoxville Opera

Dogwood Arts Festival

And here's a thread that has some great pictures of Fountain City, taken by our own JMT.

//www.city-data.com/forum/knoxv...tain-city.html

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by LissieAnn

Now I know Knoxville is more east, is the weather/culture/economy vastly different than that of say, Nashville?

The housing is a bit higher with not much difference in pay and there are more transplants.

If you want to rent a 2 bedroom home with 1.5 acres for under $800 a month you may have to go way out in the country for that. Or go further northeast to The Tri-Cities. Less jobs up there, though.

You may find something close to Knoxville for that, but maybe not.

[yellfire]

Hey hiknapster,

I'm still sweating it out down here in SW FL, still looking at TN, CO, NM maybe a couple of other spots... I saw the reference to humidity and since you have firsthand experience, please provide the 411. I mean, no one KNOWS humidity until they have lived in South FL for the summer and I've been here for years...Used to live in NC which I thought was humid (Triad, Triangle and coast) but nothing compared to here. What's your personal take on it? Knoxville/ Nashville are high on my list.

[hiknapster]

You are NOT KIDDING. If you've lived in swFlorida than you truly know what it is like to stand at the gates of hell!

This is my honest opinion. I don't care what the weatherman says. I don't care what the National Weather Service says. I don't care what anyone else says, for that matter.

Knoxville, even on its hottest day, is nothing compared to swFlorida. REALLY. We've been here four years and we have loved every bit of it, including the weather.

Now, the locals will tell you that it is hotter than blazes. Don't believe it. They start crying when it hits 80. The truth is that they have no idea what a piece of heaven that they have here.

Originally Posted by yellfire

Hey hiknapster,

I'm still sweating it out down here in SW FL, still looking at TN, CO, NM maybe a couple of other spots... I saw the reference to humidity and since you have firsthand experience, please provide the 411. I mean, no one KNOWS humidity until they have lived in South FL for the summer and I've been here for years...Used to live in NC which I thought was humid (Triad, Triangle and coast) but nothing compared to here. What's your personal take on it? Knoxville/ Nashville are high on my list.

[yellfire]

Thx hiknapster for the reply. I have Knoxville set as one of my weather presets on my iphone and check it everyday - but humidity is one of those "you just gotta experience it" factors.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by yellfire

Thx hiknapster for the reply. I have Knoxville set as one of my weather presets on my iphone and check it everyday - but humidity is one of those "you just gotta experience it" factors.

When we first visited TN, the weather guy said that the humidity was the same as in swFlorida. When I moved up here the National Weather Service indicated the same thing. I have since learned that it is the DEW POINT that is different.

You'll be able to immediately tell the difference.

Oh, and it is much cooler than NC. We're on the other side of the mountains, away from the ocean.

[Botts]

Hi, LissieAnn!

I grew up in SoCal (just north of L.A.) and have also lived in the Bay Area. By way of several other places in the country, my wife and I have now settled here in the Tennessee Valley. We are empty nesters and have lived here for well over 20 years. We love it! We like the same things you're looking for and those qualities of life are in abundant supply right out our back door!

Tennessee is a great place to live, in whatever part of the state you may choose. There are 3 stars in the Tennessee State Flag and they represent the 3 distinct regions in the state: The western part of the state is wide open country - much like the San Juaquin Valley. The middle part of the state is mountainous - much like the Sierra Nevadas. The southeastern part of the state is a great river valley - different from most of California but with the same general feeling as some of the rural areas along the coastal region of California.

The biggest differences between California and Tennessee? The skies are blue, the grass is green, the rivers run clear, the cows go "Moo", and the people say "Hi".

You mentioned an interest in finding some place within resonable driving distance of major metro areas... I might suggest you consider looking here in the Tennessee Valley. We live halfway between Chattanooga and Knoxville. It's 'country' and the county seat is Athens - with a population of around 18,000. But we're not far in the woods - we have a Wally-World super-store in town! Part of the reason we like it here so much is the fact that we are within a hour's drive of downtown Chattanooga or Knoxville (and that's what I call "country Interstate", not like what you have in California). We are also only about 2 1/2 hours from Atlanta or Nashville - both great places for entertainment and doing things.

Hope this helps! Have a pleasant visit!

[JMT]

Originally Posted by Botts

Hi, LissieAnn!

I grew up in SoCal (just north of L.A.) and have also lived in the Bay Area. By way of several other places in the country, my wife and I have now settled here in the Tennessee Valley. We are empty nesters and have lived here for well over 20 years. We love it! We like the same things you're looking for and those qualities of life are in abundant supply right out our back door!

Tennessee is a great place to live, in whatever part of the state you may choose. There are 3 stars in the Tennessee State Flag and they represent the 3 distinct regions in the state: The western part of the state is wide open country - much like the San Juaquin Valley. The middle part of the state is mountainous - much like the Sierra Nevadas. The southeastern part of the state is a great river valley - different from most of California but with the same general feeling as some of the rural areas along the coastal region of California.

The biggest differences between California and Tennessee? The skies are blue, the grass is green, the rivers run clear, the cows go "Moo", and the people say "Hi".

You mentioned an interest in finding some place within resonable driving distance of major metro areas... I might suggest you consider looking here in the Tennessee Valley. We live halfway between Chattanooga and Knoxville. It's 'country' and the county seat is Athens - with a population of around 18,000. But we're not far in the woods - we have a Wally-World super-store in town! Part of the reason we like it here so much is the fact that we are within a hour's drive of downtown Chattanooga or Knoxville (and that's what I call "country Interstate", not like what you have in California). We are also only about 2 1/2 hours from Atlanta or Nashville - both great places for entertainment and doing things.

Hope this helps! Have a pleasant visit!

Great post!

But one correction. Middle Tennessee is NOT mountainous. Middle Tennessee is very hilly, and there's the Cumberland Plateau which is rugged. But the mountains are in East Tennessee, not Middle Tennessee.

[RS-1080]

Originally Posted by JMT

Great post!

But one correction. Middle Tennessee is NOT mountainous. Middle Tennessee is very hilly, and there's the Cumberland Plateau which is rugged. But the mountains are in East Tennessee, not Middle Tennessee.

Out of all honesty, not even east TN has mountains. Over on the northwest coast, I have a friend that gets a kick outta the so called mountains in east TN. He showed me what real mountains are, and also showed me the small hills they farm over there that we Tennesseeans would call mountains .. at least until seeing the real thing.