Alabama, Georgia

[RE2Boys]

I actually RE'd in Huntsville, AL in 2000. Only moved away due to elderly parent situation in 2004. Spent over 20 years in Huntsville. whatever preconceptions that you may have about Alabama don't really apply to Huntsville. During the 1960's a lot of engineers moved to Huntsville to work with the Space Program. Very cosmopolitan area with good cultural events for a city of about 180K population.

Only real drawback is that from about mid-June to Labor Day, it is just plain HOT. But far enough from the coast (300 miles) that the humidity is not quite as bad. I'd rather spend a summer in Huntsville than in Washington DC.

Pretty mild winters, it snows about every third year. Very long springs and falls. Sold my 8 year old custom built 2700 sq ft home last year for $200K, to give you an idea of the house pricing.

RE2Boys

[Renderdog]

I grew up in California and have lived in Alabama and Tennessee for 25 years; here are what I see as the pros and cons...

Pros:

Low home prices
Low income and property taxes
Plants thrive, very green except Winter
Fewer people, less traffic
People generally more friendly

Cons:

High humidity
Intolerance and ignorance more common
Litter on the side of the road
Mosquitos and ticks
Low doctor/patient ratio
Sky not as blue, especially in Summer - haze
Long drive to the beach or mountains

I've made good friends here and will probably stay once retired. You could visit some B&B's at different times of the year to get a feel for the area. I try to schedule vacations out west in August.

IMO, the climate in Tennessee is better than Alabama, and the terrain more interesting. Northern Tennessee has a good balance of Winter/Summer weather and the education level is generally higher than Alabama's.

Mark

[military spouse]

You might take at look at Dothan, AL. The cost-of-living is quite low and being within 30 miles of a military base, there is an Asian population. It is a nice, clean city of approximately 80,000 that actually serves a much-larger Tri-state area (GA, AL, FL). Panama City and Destin, FL are about 1 hour away. Taxes are very low. In fact, I believe the property taxes are the lowest in the nation. They don't tax defined-benefit pensions either. Robert Trent Jones golf trail is a great place to buy a house!

[unclemick]

Dothan, AL - don't know anything about it - but at least one set of retired military - Colorado Arapahoe's - buddy of mine from the old plant - his parents retired there - like it - and he was 'considering' - if he got tired of New Orleans.

[jimhcom]

Whats it like around Birmingham?

[Dawg54]

Originally Posted by jimhcom

Whats it like around Birmingham?

I live about 2 hours from B'ham and visited my brother there a lot over the years. It's a growing city and my sis-in-law loves it. It's not for me as I want a small to mid size town for retirement. I like being where I am as I can easily drive to the larger city if I want to do something there.

[modhatter]

how humid are the summers in the northern end that you recommended.

[kayelem]

Jim:
I don't live there but have traveled to Birmingham often for work. I was amazed when I first started going there how lovely it is (rolling hills, lots of trees, lovely homes). Growing up a PA Yankess I had some misconceptions about Alabama. I told my husband that we should move there...I'd definitly consider it.

[RE2Boys]

"how humid are the summers in the northern end that you recommended."


Huntsville is not bad, anything from
Birmingham south picks up a lot of humidity from the gulf. I once had a job that took me into DC and I'd much rather spend the summer in Huntsville AL than DC.

RE2Boys