Hi everyone,

I need to move away from Seattle due to debt from cancer treatment. I need a place that is affordable, not too high of unemployment rate, safe (especially in terms of violent crime), not freezing cold for a third of each year, not really hot and muggy much of the year, not desert, fair amount of sunny days, and fairly liberal. I also am really phobic of snakes so not a place with tons of snakes.

I have used Sperling's a lot for research but would love suggestions for places.

I am currently looking at the Milford and Loveland areas in Cincinnati OH, Lawrence KS, Bloomington IL, Bloomington IN, Lexington KY, and Corvallis OR. Obviously, not all of these fit at all well with my hoped for criteria.

So --- suggestions (with why and pros and cons if possible)?

Thanks so much.

I live in Seattle, with family down in Corvallis... I like that town a lot. It just has a really good 'vibe'. Great community spirit, pretty nature-wise, etc.

Not to mention it would be an easier move logistically then some of the other places you mention.

Funny thing, it's my sister/hubby in Corvallis and they used to live in Lexington, Kentucky and like that fine too.

Lawrence and surroundings are a great place to set up a life. Check out this:
www.larryville.com

The place for you in Oregon is The Rogue Valley. Much Sunnier and warmer + bigger mountains and a good support system via Asante and Providence +
Ashland Community Hospital and SOU.

Thanks for both of your thoughts!

Unfortunately most of the places in the Rogue Valley are very expensive for housing (Medford, Ashland) and the unemployment is through the roof. Corvallis is borderline because it has the bad unemployment like the rest of the PNW and not a lot o sunny days but I have heard it is a nice college town. It isn’t that affordable though. Better than Seattle or the Rogue Valley but more than most of the other places on my list.

I'm a big fan of the Atlanta area. Assuming Delta doesn't go under (and the recent GM closures notwithstanding), the economy there is good. Winters are mild. The city itself is very liberal while outlying areas tend to be conservative. Summers are hot and muggy but nothing like Florida where I live. The mountains are nearby so it's easy to escape to cooler weather. (I have a vacation home an hour north of the city, and I'd recommend that area too but it is definitely NOT liberal.)

Cincinnati was where the city fathers wanted to close down the Maplethorpe exhibit, and the winters are cold of course. I spent a summer in Bloomington. It's okay, but not a place I'd care to live. Indiana didn't grab me in general.

And what I meant to include is that I believe Atlanta is on the verge of a real estate boom like the one Florida just experienced. Buy property now and, just maybe, make a ton of money!

I started college in Altanta (Emory) many many many moons ago. I liked the area a lot but I know from friends it has changed a lot. Crime is through the roof and real estate is not cheap at all unless you go way far out. It is too bad because it was a wonderful city.

Wouldn't all those mid-west ideas you mention have long and cold winters?

How about someplace like maybe North Carolina or one of the other middle states along the east coast?

Have you visited Corvallis? Or can you? It's only ~5 hours from Seattle. It would be the easiest of those on your list for you to see in person.

Or have you considered somewhere "east of the mountains" in either Washington or Oregon. A bit more conservative but has the weather and prices you seek.

The coldest place on the list I have gets 19 inches of snow a year. I'm talking more about not wanting places that get 60 inches or more. Really cold like Chicago or Madison Wisconsin or upstate New York or Ann Arbor. If it wasn’t for the weather Madison or upstate New York would be strong possibilities.

I went to go check out Raleigh-Durham a few years ago for another reason and was surprised that I wasn’t that impressed.

I'm loving all the input though!

I've never lived there but my sister moved from CA to Dallas and loves it. There are lots of safe neighborhoods, housing is relatively cheap and the climate is fairly moderate (except hot, dry summers). She says the people are very friendly and being such a metropolitan area there is a lot to do.

What size town/area are you looking at? 25,000>100,000? College Town? Amenities?

Population isn't an issue. If I find a big city that works I would live in a smaller neighborhood/town near it (like Milford or Loveland outside of Cincinnati for example). With a small place I would live closer to downtown probably. A good college or two is always nice but also not a make or break. I like some areas (either surrounding neighborhoods/towns in a big city or the downtown of a small area) with charming neat little shops and restaurants. I grew up out on Long Island in Southampton and love the small little downtown with nice stores where people walk around. I want to feel pretty safe if possible. I'd love to live somewhere without a lot of clear cut, house upon house developments. Also not a lot of ugly row after row strip malls. The hard part of course is finding a place that is affordable and doesn’t’ have a sky high unemployment rate. If I were rich there are parts of coastal California I would consider but overall I usually like more lush green and flowers and trees and plants. The PNW is nice but it would be nice to have more sunshine.

Have you considered the areas in the NW that are more affordble than Seattle and get much more sunshine? Sequim, Port Townsend, the San Juan Islands? Once you get past commuting distance from Seattle, the cost of things changes considerably. Crime is not an issue in any of these places. And it would be a whole lot less stressful for you to make a shorter move, still within reach of your friends here.

I have considered those places in WA State. The issue is employment. I am moving to use the equity in my house to pay ff the debt from the cancer so I need to move to a place where my odds for getting an okay job are good. Otherwise - San Juan island here I'd come Though in reality, the San Juans are NOT an inexpensive real estate market.

You may want to check out Louisville, Ky. Cheaper than the afore-mentioned Lexington or Cincy 'burbs. W/better weather as well.

With everything you're looking for...you described Austin to a T!

North Carolina is a great place...good weather, close to the beach and mountains, great medical care, lots of sunny days, safe, etc.

I have only seen snakes in the zoo.

I live in the triangle area (raleigh, durham, chapel hill). There is plenty to do.

I'm curious about Austin. I have always heard that it's a beautiful place, with lots to do. But what about the weather? I was under the impression that it was hot and muggy for much of the year.