Considering a Move to Another State

[MORSNO]

Some of the characteristics on our punch list are:
- Conservative attitudes and government policies, friendly people
- Climate: No scorching hot or humid summers, cold and snowy winters are fine
- Recreation: Outdoor interests, public land access (not leased only), a good gun club nearby
- Density: Towns with 2000 – 20,000 people, no big cities, looking for single family housing with an acre or two of land
- Medical services: Not a huge concern now, with age the needs will be more likely
- Don’t cares: Spectator sports, fancy restaurants, shopping centers

Possible areas are Idaho, Western Montana, Wyoming, Utah. We’re definitely willing to consider other areas that come to our attention.

Any ideas you’re willing to share will be very welcome.

-- Krogen

We were looking for the same things this past year when we decided to retire and move from Alaska. We decided on Mountain Home ID which meets all of your requirements and is still within 40 minutes of Boise for any major medical or services. The housing market exploded here with most houses selling in a day or two, so we had to spend months shopping remotely from Alaska and buying a house while driving down the Alcan highway (they held it for us to see in person the day we arrived in ID). Super nice people here and everything we need for day to day living including a modern hospital.

 

[Golddollar]

It's terrible -- really awful -- to reach the age where you just want to live your life peaceably and instead you have to consider moving.

I was born and raised in Baltimore, spent 30 years in the Baltimore City Fire Department, and have lived in Maryland all my life...and I no longer even recognize this state. Our idiotic gun laws...our sky-high taxes...the far-left agenda of our elected officials...the wild, out-of-control crime in and around the urban areas of the state...it's too much.

I really want to leave, but I'll be 68 next month, and the thought of packing up my home and garage, and starting over, is really depressing. I tell people that I'm only staying here for the crabcakes and Scrapple...

I commuted from Adams Co. PA to Baltimore City and Baltimore County for 10 years before I retired. Downtown Baltimore is an easy commute on the Metro from the end stop at Owings Mills. I packed up my stuff and moved to Maryland while I was still working. I bought a bigger house here for less money than I sold my place in Maryland for. If you get hungry for crabcakes or scrapple the border is only 3 miles from my house. I'd probably go with you. Check out the houses for sale on the rayac.com web site (Realtors Association of York and Adams County) and see what your housing dollar will get you up here.

 

[Doug627]

West Virginia. The people are nice, the land is cheap compared to other places (you can get 100 acres for $100-$150,000). Most land has free gas. Great for hunting and fishing. Plenty of gun clubs. Winters are mild and Summers are okay, too. You get all four seasons and the leaves are spectacular in the Fall. The night sky is full of stars. The air is fresh.

 

[BC38]

West Virginia... Most land has free gas...

Free gas? I'm not following you...

 

[crazyphil]

You mentioned 3 of my favorite states to live in, in your #1 post. I won't
tell which one I left out, or why. Wherever you choose, it might be a good
idea to find a place to rent with an option to buy. In case, after living there
a while, you decide you don't like it.

 

[paplinker]

There are 3 Pennsylvania..... Filthydelphia, The Burgh ..... and the rest of the state which has more in common with Alabama than our "big cities"!!!!

Adams Co. is too close to Filthydelphia for me..................

We'll be moving from our Burb of the Burgh to a lake in the Laurel Highlands of Pa. on the Eastern Continental Divide....... small town/country living, low taxes and low cost of living , 80% of the county voted for Trump, just an hour from major hospitals ( U of Pitt. Med Center/ Allegheny Health Sys.)...... 6 hours from the Outer Banks of NC. 2 hours from Gettysburg...................

4 seasons, Temps from 0- 90 but generally 20-80. We've had 54" of snow this year but only 19" last year. We could use some more sunny days.... but no threat from hurricanes, earthquakes or wildfires and very little flooding.

We have an acre plus lot on a 200 acre man made lake................... and

within 20 miles of us we'll have lots of state parks, 3 ski resorts,State forests and gamelands , long hiking trails + converted rails to trails; one running from Pittsburgh to DC ( 150 miles Great Allegheny Passage) another hiking trail running 70 miles from Ohiopyle to Johnstown;whitewater rafting and trout fishing.

I also live in a burb but don't dis barrage my city neighbors

Grew up in the center of Pa and I gotta say its pretty quiet and where I hope to end up myself to retire.

 

[Ugly Hombre]

"It's terrible -- really awful -- to reach the age where you just want to live your life peaceably and instead you have to consider moving."

+100 the truth for sure.

My advice is if you are going to jump- jump before you retire and get a place set up soon as you can well ahead of time. I'm in the late, great, golden state- you all know the story, I don't want to get put in the cooler again so I will keep my mouth shut about the sit rep- except to relay*..

Old now and stove in so am pretty much resigned to being here for the duration. Well the weather is nice lol.

*"Kung tzu was traveling in the deep mountains the area was infested with man eating tigers. He met a old hermit living in a rude hut high up in the clouds. "Old man what are you doing here? why in hades are you living here someday a Tiger will have you for lunch you better get out!"

"There is no harsh government here the emperor is far away" (The Anylacts)

Wyoming may be the last place to fall.

 

[dsf]

West Virginia. The people are nice, the land is cheap compared to other places (you can get 100 acres for $100-$150,000). Most land has free gas. Great for hunting and fishing. Plenty of gun clubs. Winters are mild and Summers are okay, too. You get all four seasons and the leaves are spectacular in the Fall. The night sky is full of stars. The air is fresh.

West Virginia is a state I'm looking at too. Very good home prices, some land comes with it too. I wonder if proximity to NOVA & MD is a problem though.

States like NV, OR, AZ, NM used to be viable but their proximity to and migration from CA changed things. So in addition to how things already are I think looking down the road a bit, so to speak, is worthwhile too.

Folks moving to and from NB, IO, MO, KY, TN and such probably keeps things as is. So if that big chunk of "fly-over country" has weather that is agreeable and the gun laws are OK they'd seem to be a safe bet.

ID is a mix. Folks from CA are moving there, but so are people like the OP from OR & WA looking for more conservative living.

 

[Johnnu2]

Don't forget the fact that as we get OLD, the proximity to good doctors and even better hospitals might be a consideration. And I don't mean by helicopter or jet.

IMHO,

J.

 

[tominboise]

Idaho is a mess right now with the number of transplants. No offense to any who have moved here or intend to, but the housing prices are through the roof and the infrastructure needs major expenditure to catch up. It's not all bad, of course - there's a reason people are moving here by the truck load.

My two recommendations - Dillon, Montana or Grangeville, Idaho. I will be relocating to one of these two places in the next 10 years.

 

[Doug627]

BC38: West Virginia has a lot of oil and gas wells on properties. Many of these properties receive free natural gas for their homes. Big savings when you have a gas furnace, gas dryer, gas oven, gas water heater and some gas refrigerators. The old Servo refrigerators operated on natural gas.

 

[Ackley1952]

Whatever you do stay away from Arkansas, too many people here already.
And plus we have hot, humid summers, or hot, dry summers. Did I
mention floods? We have those also.

You forgot to mention the tornadoes mixed with an awful lot of freedom !

 

[BC38]

BC38: West Virginia has a lot of oil and gas wells on properties. Many of these properties receive free natural gas for their homes. Big savings when you have a gas furnace, gas dryer, gas oven, gas water heater and some gas refrigerators. The old Servo refrigerators operated on natural gas.

Cool. I never heard about that before. Heck you could run a generator on NG and be completely self sufficient!

 

[Gunhacker]

Idaho is a mess right now with the number of transplants. No offense to any who have moved here or intend to, but the housing prices are through the roof and the infrastructure needs major expenditure to catch up. It's not all bad, of course - there's a reason people are moving here by the truck load.

My two recommendations - Dillon, Montana or Grangeville, Idaho. I will be relocating to one of these two places in the next 10 years.

That's what I was afraid of happening, is it just the Boise area or also other area? We looked at St. George and Twin Falls, and wanted to check out Post Falls too, but could not do that due to my wife's surgeries.

I wouldn't mind being in Post Falls where the Buck Knife factory is.. but the wife would likely take exception to idea of me and my credit card visiting the factory store in a routine basis, and veto moving to that location

 

[zeke]

West Virginia is a state I'm looking at too. Very good home prices, some land comes with it too. I wonder though if proximity to NOVA & MD is a problem though.

States like NV, OR, AZ, NM used to be viable but their proximity to and migration from CA changed things. So in addition to how things already are I think looking down the road a bit, so to speak, is worthwhile too.

Folks moving to and from NB, IO, MO, KY, TN and such probably keeps things as is. So if that big chunk of "fly-over country" has weather that is agreeable and the gun laws are OK they'd seem to be a safe bet.

ID is a mix. Folks from CA are moving there, but so are people like the OP from OR & WA looking for more conservative living.

The eastern panhandle next to Maryland is way beyond my resources. A Little to the west it gets more affordable. Was mainly looking at the small towns east and south of Pittsburgh. Need a decent medical facility within 30 miles, to be aware of crime rates in some areas and good range(s) nearby.

 

[rubiranch]

 

[Bozz10mm]

I always thought that if I ever moved out of Texas,(which I won't), I might like to live in Tennessee or West Virginia.

 

[tripledipper]

People are fleeing the large urban areas for more peaceful rural settings and to other states for economic reasons. The northeast folks go south, so many to Florida that there is a shortage of affordable housing there. For many personal reasons there will continue to be an exodus from urban areas until they look like ghost towns.

 

[6518John]

Whatever you do stay away from Arkansas, too many people here already.
And plus we have hot, humid summers, or hot, dry summers. Did I mention floods? We have those also.

You forgot tornados.

 

[zeke]

Cool. I never heard about that before. Heck you could run a generator on NG and be completely self sufficient!

If memory serves, you do not automatically get the mineral rights when buying land in WV. Would certainly check that out, there can be affects to land of energy extraction.