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We are coming back to the US, which will happen in 2011. We are not looking to settle down right away, since we are taking our 4x4 expedition truck with us and want to travel the USA first. Once we have finshed our traveling we want to find the perfect spot for us.
First of a little about us, we are a Familie with 2 kids (3.5 & 0.5 years old at the time) and our Dog. We are not new to the US, have already lived in Las Vegas, Florida and I was born & raised some in NJ. Though the last couple years we lived in Europe, pretty much 50/50 between Germnay and Sweden. Just this ain’t our cup of Tea here, wrong country )
We don’t want to move every couple years (like we have in the past), so we are doing lots of online research and once on the road we’ll be inspecting our future location very carefully, before we lock in. Then this shall be it, where our Kids grow up and where we call it HOME.
We have a longer List of expectation to our future home and do believe WV could be it. Here our list:
- 3/4 bedroom home, 4th would be used as office
- large lot min 5 acres, better 10+
- secluded location
- within 40-50min to a larger town/city
- a small town nearby (5-10 miles) for school and the basic needs
- All in a price range up to 150K, lower is always nice
Well the perfect place is pretty easy to find, but the suroundings have to fit also. We are not into hunting, but have so many other things we like to do. Like Boating (river/lake nearby ~ 60mins) , biking, hiking, sking and so much more. Weather is important also, after having a very cold Winter here (minus 13 to 22 degrees and a seen record of minus 33) that was a little much. After checking out most towns in WV it seems to be around 15-20 degress in the winter as a average. Which is great, lots of snow but not freezing cold.
The summers seem to be about 80+ degrees in the July/August, with some humidty. My wife loves it warm, sick and tired of the rainy / cold summers from here. With those Temps. I do believe it is safe to say, swimming is possible in lakes around the area.
I have read tons of Post here in the Forum, which some people seem to get a little lonely with the small town living. We won’t have that problem, since we are living in a really small town at the time (Total Pop. Of 18, yeah that is with us 4 ), so more Cows and Elks then People
Our nearest Pizza Place (can’t really call it that, European don’t know how to make a real Pizza) is about 80 miles away, which also gives the distance for reasonable shopping, drugstore or anything else.
Now we have not said WV is it yet, but for sure it is moving up the list. For some reason the area around Huntington is standing out of the crowd.
Now we do have some questions you Guys and Gals hope you could help us with.
1. Any rural School districts that stand out of the crowd ? Bad or Good
2. Are our Temperture expectation realistic ?
3. Any restrictions on the lakes for kind/speed/size of Boat?
4. Are their Yard sales, Flea markets, Action Houses in the area (we like to find things)
5. Can someone recommend a Real Estate Website which lets people search the MLS (realtor.com does not work with our IP)
6. How high are property Taxes in the area. Can't seem to find any information on that
For now that shall be enough. If anyone has questions or needs help, just ask.
Have to get the kids into bed now.
always nice to here that we are on the right track.
thanks for opening our eyes on the River, kind of missed it. was always looking for Lakes. but having both is a good thing. We love to camp or boat. In europe boating is to expensive, so all we had was camping
Quote:
Marshall allows for the education level in the county to rise
It seems that i have been to long out of the country, could you please explain the quote. The marshall thing is coming up blank in my head.
He's referring to Marshall University, located in Huntington. Marshall provides a lot of educational opportunities not only for those looking for degrees, but also for the local schools as they travel to Marshall for various educational opportunities. Marshall is just one of the many great aspects of the Huntington area. There's a lot to do in the area (as you'll know if you've looked through other posts) but there are also many areas outside of Huntington that will let you find the type of land and home that you are looking for. Areas like Martha, Lavalette, Route 10 and Route 2 all have the type of housing that you are looking for. Cabell County schools are generally good schools and Huntington was recently named as the best place in WV to raise your children. With regards to the water, the only restrictions that I know of are just around the docks, you can't make a wake until you get beyond the buoys that are set up. You'll have the Ohio River, Beech Fork lake, Grayson Lake, Yatesville lake and several others to choose from.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District - Lakes and Reservoirs (http://www.lrh.usace.army.mil/_kd/go.cfm?destination=Page&Pge_ID=1031 - broken link)
Your weather expectations are entirely realistic. The weather in Huntington is about the most mild in the state. It doesn't get as cold here as it does in the mountains and we normally only get 1-2 snows of 6-8 inches or so. For example, last year, when other areas of the state had almost 2 feet of snow, we had about 6 inches.
With regards to shopping, you'll have the largest mall in the state here along with other smaller shopping areas and a lifestyle center called Pullman Square. There are also lots of yard sales in the area and just across the border in Kentucky, they have a yearly yard sale that stretches over 100 miles down Route 23. Then as ChrisCross said, the Milton Flea Market is also here as well as several auction houses.
Hopefully the links above have some info that you may find useful. Here are some other community links that may give some extra info as well. Let me know if you need anything else.
There is also a lake near Huntington, but I can't think of the name
Beachfork Lake!!!! Love it!!!! there is also a pool and recreation area near it. Jake and I and some friends usually head further out into the middle of no where though when we go swimming, we try to get over to Grayson Lake in Kentucky when we can. Its about an hour away or so, but it's usually pretty secluded.
Beware of WV. It's a state that a great many people are born to - and never leave. Those who move here from away tend to fall under the same spell and stay put, as well.
Beware of WV. It's a state that a great many people are born to - and never leave. Those who move here from away tend to fall under the same spell and stay put, as well.
What's wrong with that? If people like it ...so what? But those people who are afraid to go anywhere beyond the WV border are limited in their worldy experiences, and there are a lot of folks like that in WV. Probably more so by far than any other state.
Although for the mikenikki who have lived where they've lived, the old WW I song comes to mind ..."How you Gonna Keep 'em Down on The Farm, After They've Seen Paree?"
I know they now live in a small town in Yerp, but with their experiences in life, I'm sorry, but they just won't have anyone to relate to in WV, with the (only slightly) possible exception of Morgantown or the eastern panhandle.
I love West Virginians, but lets face it; when we mountaineers first go out into the world we're a bunch of hicks. "Joe got new tars for his pickup," is a more likely conversation to be heard than, "How was your ski trip in the Alps?"
I know they now live in a small town in Yerp, but with their experiences in life, I'm sorry, but they just won't have anyone to relate to in WV, with the (only slightly) possible exception of Morgantown or the eastern panhandle.
I completely disagree. I think they would fit in just fine in Huntington, or even Charleston for that matter, seeing as how those are the only 2 cities in the state with 50,000 people. Then, Huntington has the added benefit of Marshall and the type of people that educational institutions typically bring. Plus, it doesn't quite sound like they are looking for the "Aspen" type. I think the OP will be just fine in WV.
Beware of WV. It's a state that a great many people are born to - and never leave. Those who move here from away tend to fall under the same spell and stay put, as well.
This is my plan...im burning these Georgia bridges behind me very soon.
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