Looking to Move to Virginia (Richmond, Newport News: rentals, movers, low crime)

[Sirley11]

Dear All

I am looking to move to the state of Virginia within about a year with my three year old little girl. I am a single mom and Im looking to start anew. Currently I live in New York but Ive grown tired of living here. I am an assistant manager for a luxury retail brand but trying to get into nursing for RN. Ive heard the state of Virginia is beautiful and has some pretty affordable and safe areas to raise your children/or raise a family. I would like to get an idea of what are the best area(s) for a single mom to raise a child? Also Im debating wether to take my nursing education out there or here. Not sure how the job market is out there with retail and what community colleges offer a good nursing program - that is why I am asking. Could you please be so kind to give me an idea of what areas to look into? Thank You!

[Bigfoot424]

Not knowing your budget it's kind of hard to answer. But Winchester, VA might be a good place to start. The nursing program at Shenandoah University is supposed to be a very good one but this is all word of mouth from friends. Winchester puts you close to NOVA/DC area but is a lower cost of living.

[LynchburgLover]

Winchester is wonderful but Shenandoah is private and not cheap. Lord Fairfax Community College could get you started but then there's no state university to finish.

Pick a smaller city with a lower cost of living and community college program to get you started to save money. Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Farmville, Radford, Newport News all have four year universities to continue. Once you establish residency VA has a great college system. Lynchburg has a community college and Liberty, while private, it's more affordable than Shenandoah.

Best of luck.

[Bigfoot424]

You're right on Shenandoah not being cheap.

[LM117]

Originally Posted by LynchburgLover

Winchester is wonderful but Shenandoah is private and not cheap. Lord Fairfax Community College could get you started but then there's no state university to finish.

Pick a smaller city with a lower cost of living and community college program to get you started to save money. Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Farmville, Radford, Newport News all have four year universities to continue. Once you establish residency VA has a great college system. Lynchburg has a community college and Liberty, while private, it's more affordable than Shenandoah.

Best of luck.

I can vouch for Farmville. It's a nice town with low crime and a good local hospital. I lived there from 2009-2011 before moving to the outskirts of Damnville (for future reference OP, don't ever move to Danville. It blows in just about every category). I don't have much knowledge of Longwood University, though. Farmville's biggest drawback is that it's rather isolated, so if you want better shopping and amenities, you'll have to drive to Lynchburg, which is around 60 miles away, give or take a few, or Richmond, which is about 70-75 miles away. I can't speak for the other cities, since I never lived in them. Lynchburg didn't seem that bad during the few times I've been there.

[cbl1]

I believe JMU - Harrisonburg has a good nursing program. Roanoke has a nursing program and is great for raising kids.


Charlottesville is a little pricier but has a lot of medical revolving around DC.


I live in Richmond area and a lot of medical around - Chesterfield (west side) and western Henrico are excellent areas to raise kids.

[Watchful]

Originally Posted by cbl1

Roanoke has a nursing program and is great for raising kids.

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[LisaJersey]

I heard about Portsmouth LPN Progams (campus-based programs as well as online LPN programs) are medical training programs. LPN programs are typically offered at vocational schools, technical schools, state colleges, nursing universities, online LPN programs, and other higher education institutions. Also if you need to get a moving service , I have known that vamovers.com is cheaper then other companies, but actually need to find out.

[Sirley11]

Dear All;

In response to all the comments I would like to thank everyone for their input. To reiterate Im a single mother with a 3 year old little girl looking to move to the state of Virginia close to the end of the year. Although, I am interested in enrolling in a good nursing program with decent/good community college. Currently I work as a supervisor in high-end retail and would need to continue in that direction until I gain residency. So I would really need find an affordable city or town to move to. One in which is safe to raise kids but also affordable. My current apt here is $1000.00/month. Being I live in the city I commute via NYC Public Transit and not knowing much about VA other than its a good state to live in. I have a feeling I would need to invest into a vehicle which Im willing to do so if need be. Do any of these cities or towns meet this criteria? Thank you all once again.

[gemstone1]

Much of VA is rural, comprised of smaller towns/cities which will have little in the way of high end retail. Public transit in less populated areas will be different than in NYC...finding rentals in the $1K range will be difficult in metro areas that do have public transit and high end retail.

Here is a link to local Public Transportation in Virginia.

Regards
Gemstone1