SW VA or NE TN? (Roanoke, Blacksburg: calculator, property tax, exemption)

[MyCitySearchName]

Thank you SOOOO much, thats what i needed to hear. I think you guys just clinched the deal for me. I got a great post on the other thread and this one.

So, you don't think the Tri-Cities really compare to VA?

I do have another couple questions though (if you don't mind). As far as commuting to another city for my dental lab, what should I look at? ....Roanoke?, Christiansburg?...Wytheville?.....or Abingdon?

I'm obviously not retiring any time soon (I'm 33), so I need to be able to have a comfortable work commute.

Now that I have a state, I need to narrow my location. I need about 30k people to sustain myself in business. Anywhere from 30k-100k people would be fine, I just want my home to be somewhat rural and out-of-the-way, just outside the suburbs possibly. Is Floyd the best choice, or is there a better pocket somewhere? I heard a lot of good things about Blacksburg, but heard it was a little expensive. Boone's Mill, Damascus, and such have been mentioned but I don't know much about them either.

I just don't want to be near any prisons, coal plants, or traffic. I heard someone mention that they are expanding the highway running through Floyd to 4 lanes and that a gas pipeline was in the works, but the people were fighting it. Any comments?

THANKS AGAIN, sooo much. *hugs everyone*

[theburro]

Abingdon is a great little town but doesn't meet your size requirements. I had some great dental professionals there and I would give you their names but its been 20 years ago; they may not be in practice now. From Christansburg, you could tap the Blacksburg, Radford, and Roanoke markets. That would entail a population of at least 200K.

[MyCitySearchName]

I spoke with a realtor today and pretty much confirmed what I'd been thinking. FLOYD ...

Christiansburg and the surrounding areas will support me I believe and the area is pollution free for the most part. Only problem seems to be the housing cost keeps going up...so I need to move sooner rather than later.

[MyCitySearchName]

Originally Posted by silverwing

Anyone looking at Floyd might want to check the progress of the gas pipeline being built thru there. I can't find much updated material; I know people in the area were fighting it; I assume the project was never halted

http://www.floydart.com/brc/

Also, potential SW Virginia transplants, keep a gimlet eye on US58. It is eventually to be a 4-lane corridor across much of the state (I know it is already from at least Danville to the east coast).
http://www.expresswaysite.com/virginia_58.htm (broken link)

According to the realtor...the pipeline is completed and runs through a non-occupied area of the county...so its pretty much a non-issue.

Thank you for the heads-up though. That could've easily been a problem, I'm just glad it wasn't.

[volster]

OH MY GOD! There is no question my friend, TN is much better. After living in SW VA for 5 years, I am doing my VERY best to get out as the "commonwealth" theory has no comparison to TN. It may be better up north in VA but if you are in question about SW VA and TN, PLEASE save yourself!

[volster]

OK, unless you want to get involved with a high volumes of drugs and meth, then Floyd is not the place for you. Yes, it is beautiful place and land is cheap, just remember that something that looks really good...........AINT

[volster]

Originally Posted by theburro

I lived in Tennessee with their $0 income tax. You get what you pay for in public services.

Most of the rural counties seem to be up-and-down around the .80/$100 RE tax rate; i.e., $800/year on a $100,000 parcel. There's no homestead exemption I know of, not even sure what that means.

The income tax may seem high, but the exemptions are generous and you're not going to pay a straight 5% of income. Oh yeah, don't forget the "car tax," you will pay that on top of everything else. The sales taxes on food and medications is being phased-out. You would need to compare Virginia's to TN, which I imagine is pretty high these days.

Ok, you do not pay ALL THE EXTRA TAXES that you do in VA. That is why poeple in TN have an much higher standard of living. I have lived in TN and VA for several years in each place and what I can definately tell you is that when you cross that state line to TN you emmediately feel a strong presence of growth and capitalism at its best. People THINK for themselves unlike the commonwealth which is a SOCIALIST STATE. Poeple are dieing in VA, nobody is doing anything or growing.. A VERY DEPRESSING STATE.

[volster]

Originally Posted by MyCitySearchName

Thank you for being so in depth, thats the kind of info I was looking for. I had a little trouble following you though, maybe I'm a little dense. Did you prefer TN or VA?

If the income tax is not a straight 5%, how do they figure it? What are some of the exemptions?

Its nice to hear that they are phasing out the food and medication tax. Again, was this TN or VA? I presume you meant VA.

It looks like you said that VA was about $800 a year and TN was $220 a year.
That would be score TN.

I don't particularly care about public services. They can keep their stupid services if it means lowering taxes. I'm a rural person who keeps to myself. The less people find the area appealing for development, the more it will stay rural and peaceful. No blacktop jungles for me thanks.

Is the car tax bad?...I presume this one was VA also, is that right?

Go to TN! If you go to VA, you will die of depression. Tn is growing, schools are much better, jobs are twice as good and land in half the cost as the socialist parties of the commonwealth. SW VA is a has been place that will only bring you down with them unlike TN where the grass is greener, and the sun is much brighter!!

[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by volster

Go to TN! If you go to VA, you will die of depression.

I may be speaking out of hand, but I think that TN would rather not have folks such as yourself championing their virtues. I say this because you are presenting your opinion in a distasteful way with absolutely no objective data to back up your argument.

Tennessee is growing more slowly than the national average. Virginia is growing faster than the national average. Floyd County is growing in population at TWICE the rate for Tennessee. Insofar as I can tell, there is no meth problem in Floyd, anymore than there is in any other region in the South. By contrast, the state of Tennessee now accounts for 75 percent of the meth lab seizures in the entire southeastern United States.

If you're not finding your place in VA, then by all means, keep your options open and start looking elsewhere for opportunity.

Sean

[Upstate Dave]

Virginia? Socialist? ..... ohhhhhkay!.....

Researching for the index of economic freedoms... Virginia was listed as #3 on the last published index. (California & New York were at the bottom of that index). Economic freedoms are generally not associated with socialism.