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Please recommend the ideal place to live in the U.S. - Page 5

post #61 of 67
8/13/12 at 7:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by adktitan View Post

visit in summer or winter? HUGE difference...

 

You got that right!  If I lived there, I would only go outside 6 months out of the year - like bears...  tongue.gif

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post #62 of 67
8/13/12 at 11:35pm

Personally I prefer snow to mosquitoes.

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post #63 of 67
8/13/12 at 11:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by J W View Post

Here I thought you were a Scotsman.

Why can't it be both? tongue.gif

Also, I'll add Scotsman to the list of national origins I've gotten over the years (that's partly why I don't list it up - I enjoy letting people's imaginations wander). smily_headphones1.gif
Quote:
It's crazy, but I've noticed a large number of Californians make their way all the way over to Oklahoma!  California also used to be a large importer of Oklahomans (Okies).

I could see that, last time I was in Oklahoma it was a lot less expensive than the left coast, so I could see people moving there. I've noticed a new-ish trend of people in general moving more to the inland south for work and much lower cost of living (if you're ever bored, load up Craigslist or something similar that will show want ads for housing, and look up places like Nashville or Jackson and compare that to LA or Seattle).
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post #64 of 67
8/14/12 at 7:13am

It's another sign of the corporate climate.  When companies need to attract highly-educated professionals, they open research facilities in very desirable places (Torrance, Malibu, San Diego, Northern California, NW Coast, NE Coast, etc).  That's what aerospace & electronics companies did in the late 1960s/early 1970s.  However, when they no longer believe they need to do that, or they no longer have the money to invest in research, they move to the Midwest & the South - or offshore.  Biotech was the same way in the late 1980s and so was the tech bubble in the late 1990s.  Boom or bust.

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post #65 of 67
8/14/12 at 4:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lunatique View Post

My wife and I are currently considering moving back to the States (I grew up in Bay Area, California), and we're considering places outside of the Bay Area, because it's just too expensive. We did a lot of research online, but we'd like some opinions from different folks who have lived in various parts of the U.S. to share their experiences with us. 

 

It's just the two of us--no children, and no pets. What we're looking for in an ideal city are the following:

 

Weather - We're quite spoiled by California weather (never too cold or too hot), so we would like to find somewhere that's as close to the mild California weather as possible. Ideally, no extremes like lots of snow, rain, heat, or any other dramatic climate. 

 

Housing - Of course, cheaper housing is better. We can't afford to buy houses in the Bay Area--just too expensive. Even just renting, the same price we'd pay for a modest apartment in the Bay Area could get us a really nice place elsewhere. 

 

Crime - Definitely no high crime rate cities. I grew up in Foster City, one of the safest cities in all of California, where I can walk around at night during all hours and not feel insecure.

 

Culture - Diversity, tolerance and progressive thinking is better. Definitely don't want any area where there are lots of bigots, racists, intolerant religious zealots, and so on. 

 

Proximity to civilization - As beautiful as countryside can be, the wife and I are mainly city dwellers. Too out there makes us think of slasher horror movies. We'd like to enjoy decent shopping and dining and a bit of culture within acceptable driving distance. But on the other hand, we don't like living in big cities--they feel very impersonal, where everyone is a stranger. We actually like the suburb, even if we are by nature somewhat subversive and rebellious.

 

Employment - We really don't care if there are lots of employment opportunities in the area. I work at home, so it doesn't really matter to me.

 

looks like you are describing the Bay Area, as you probably know...

Are you sure the Bay Area is still too expensive? If you look carefully there are areas which are safe (if a bit boring) and where prices tumbled down real hard (e.g. the El Sobrante hills, Marina Bay in Richmond).  And you are only a couple of miles away from hopping on BART to downtown San Francisco

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post #66 of 67
10/1/12 at 4:57pm
Thread Starter 

We ended up buying a house for $255K in Lincoln, CA. (Photos are here: http://www.ethereality.info/ethereality_website/about_me/wordpress/?p=1780)

 

That same house in the Bay Area would cost at least a million dollars. 

 

Lincoln is a nice city that looks very new, has low crime rate, and close to the more commercially thriving Roseville. It's very quiet and there are barely any people out walking about, and the parking lots are always only about 20% full. We're totally fine with how quiet it is, since we're homebodies anyway, and the wife hates crowds. The only thing that we don't like is how hot it gets in the summer (average about 20 degrees hotter than the Bay Area), but at least it's not humid (in fact, quite dry). In the evenings it cools off substantially though, and we can turn the AC off later at night. 

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post #67 of 67
10/1/12 at 5:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lunatique View Post

We ended up buying a house for $255K in Lincoln, CA. (Photos are here: http://www.ethereality.info/ethereality_website/about_me/wordpress/?p=1780)

 

That same house in the Bay Area would cost at least a million dollars. 

 

Lincoln is a nice city that looks very new, has low crime rate, and close to the more commercially thriving Roseville. It's very quiet and there are barely any people out walking about, and the parking lots are always only about 20% full. We're totally fine with how quiet it is, since we're homebodies anyway, and the wife hates crowds. The only thing that we don't like is how hot it gets in the summer (average about 20 degrees hotter than the Bay Area), but at least it's not humid (in fact, quite dry). In the evenings it cools off substantially though, and we can turn the AC off later at night. 

Looks like a nice place Lunatique, congrats. and you seem to be happy with the new place.

 

And just think, now you can start going to them northern california headphone meets!

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Head-Fi.org › Forums › Misc.-Category Forums › Members' Lounge (General Discussion) › Please recommend the ideal place to live in the U.S.