hello everyone!!!

[william273]

hi,

wow this is the place i've been looking for but didn't expect to find it at the early retirement forums. then again it makes sense.

i've read alot of posts and replies and have to tell ya i'm thinking the same way just haven't run across anyone to talk with til i found the forums here.

i'm 56 and it's time to start thinking about retirement. i've rented all my life and it seems like i will need to make a decision as to keep renting or buy. i live in south carolina but am looking into relocating to a large city as i love big city life. i am still working as a truck driver and would like to retire at 62 if possible but will go til 65 if i have to.

i was considering buenos aires as i thought it might be cheaper than the USA and from what i've learned so far it is. i've checked out some condos and small apartments that are selling at around $50,000 to $60,000. the problems start coming in when i looked into other things involved with moving to another country. it became so confusing and complex i just got so bogged down and threw up my arms thinking this is impossible. as much as i think i'd love living in BA i just don't have it in me to learn everything that needs to be learned in order do make a move like that.

so i've decided on maybe chicago or atlanta. i've found small condos in both cities for about the same prices and might fly out to see some when i get off for the 4th of july.

i really prefer chicago but it is much different than atlanta. atlanta is closer and would be an easier move so i'm in the process of just looking into both cities, feeling things out and trying to make connections and see what happens or where it leads me.

i lived in atlanta for 5 years back in the late 80s and it has changed alot since then. been to chicago 3 times and never wanted to leave but never lived there. i know atlanta pretty well but not chicago.

sorry for rambling on like this but it's where i'm at right now and this is the only place i've run across where i've found others that seem to be in a similar situation or have already been there done that.

anyway i want to say this is a great forum here with alot of good topics and discussions. i'm learning alot.

william

 

[DangerMouse]

William, I would think that a move overseas would be quite daunting if you have never been there before.

Good luck with whatever you decide. It is probably worth a visit to each of the locations you have listed as possibilities to see if they are what you imagined them to be. I don't really know either of the cities you mention so I can't offer any words of wisdom.

 

[william273]

it's quite daunting just thinking about it and all that's involved...much more than i realised so buenos aires is pretty much out. i'd surely go for a visit or two before i did anything.

i'm just putting out some feelers to see what others are doing and what's going on as far as relocating to another city or country. it's quite an experience, lol.

william

 

[crazy connie]

Welcome aboard William! This is a pretty good place to hang out on the WEB. You will get lots of good info by reading and if you have a question just ask! What part of SC are you in? I have some personal intrests in Greenville and know how pretty the area can be.

 

[freebird5825]

Welcome
Hmmmm...the Windy City or Atlanta ?
I just got done surviving another NY winter. No brainer for me to make that choice.
Are you a native southerner or a transplant? If native, I would suggest a visit to Chicago in the cold weather. NOT!

 

[william273]

hi connie and thanks. i'm in charleston and i like greenville also. been there a few times. different than charleston with all the hills.

 

[william273]

hi freebird,
i've heard that more than once, lol. i'm sure it's true and a good idea to check it out during the winter. my brother flew to cleveland a few years ago in the winter and he said his nose almost fell off when he walked out of the plane. ouch!

william

 

[Ronstar]

hi freebird,
i've heard that more than once, lol. i'm sure it's true and a good idea to check it out during the winter. my brother flew to cleveland a few years ago in the winter and he said his nose almost fell off when he walked out of the plane. ouch!

william

Like Cleveland, your nose will fall off in the winter, but in Chicago it will be blown away in a 50 mph windstorm

 

[william273]

LOL.

 

[F4mandolin]

Just depends on what you are after. I have lived in the UK 12 years (2 different times, I am there now), Germany 10 years and Okinawa 5 years. Okinawa has great weather most of the year.....I wouldn't want to live there. I LIKE a little winter.....good weather all the time is boring to me. I prefer to live in a place where "your nose drops off with cold"....keeps the softies away. The middle of the east coast I always thought would be nice....short winters, but still a winter. I will be retiring to the Spokane area in 2 years (at 54) and the winter will be a little longer than I would prefer....but I like the area. I would retire here in N Yorkshire (especially since I am married to a local lady), but it is cheaper to live back in Spokane. If I were to retired here I would have to work another 3+ years on top of that to think about retiring.....although if I had the money I think I would just stay here.....crap weather, but it is my kind of place. We are in the process of getting my wife a permanant VISA to live in the US.....absolutely the dumbest procedure I have ever seen....and I work for the Govt. AAAARRRGG....don't get me going on that topic.....easier, faster and cheaper (A LOT) just to take my wife to the US and apply from there.

 

[Dawg52]

hi connie and thanks. i'm in charleston and i like greenville also. been there a few times. different than charleston with all the hills.

Welcome! Greenville would be more my style. I have no desire to retire to huge cites like Chicago or Atlanta. But good luck with your planning.

 

[Maurice]

Welcome william -

I lived in Chicago for 5 years and had a great time. It is a great city, you have all the big city benefits but the people don't have that hard edge on them that you see in some other cities. It has a bit of midwestern charm and casualness to it.

Having said that, the weather is nothing short of cruel. Oppressively hot summers and horribly cold winters with 15 minutes of spring and fall between them. Ok, its a bit of an exaggeration but you should give the climate a lot of thought before you pull the trigger.

 

[ratface]

Welcome William. If you need any insight to particular areas of Chicago drop me a line as I have lived here all my adult life. I would be interested to know where in Chicago you found a condo for 50-60K. There are parking spaces in Chicago that go for that price.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Welcome, William!

I have lived in or around Chicago more than half my life including now and I would like to trade places with you--I'll take Charleston and rest of SC and you can enjoy Chicago winters (you will find Chicago summers fine as they can be just as hot and humid as anything you find in SC). Be sure to stock up on hats, gloves, mittens, scarves, long underwear, snow shovels, boots, and cash for the heating bills, things you may not need so much or for so long as in the south. And Chicago offers a 10% sales tax plus income tax plus high property taxes (I don't know how Atlanta stacks up) so it would be great if you come on up and help us out that way too (Of course there are lots of great things about Chicago but the winters would be a dealbreaker for a retiree imho.)

On the other hand the politics may be more entertaining in Chicago, so you will save money on your entertainment budget

 

[william273]

hi F4 mandolin,
i think it rains alot in spokane...like most of the year or something like that, alot anyway. i like 4 seasons also but ya don't get that here in charleston. it's like summer all year round. and boring? let me tell you how boring the weather gets here. nothing changes here and that goes for the weather too. every day it's the same thing hot and sunny. here's how they forcast it...monday...plenty of sunshine. tuesday...bountiful sunshine. wednesday...sunny . thursday...abundant sunshine. friday plentiful sunshine. when they call for rain we get...plenty of sunshine. 50% chance of rain means...abundant sunshine. the only time we get rain is when a hurricane blows through and then we hardly get those. we have no weather here at all. it's like this all year round. i've developed a bad attitude about the lack of any weather here. i could go on but you'd just get bored. for me spokane would be a nice change.

 

[william273]

hi bestwife,
ok you're on! come to south carolina and travel back in time to the good old plantation days and the good ol' boy plantation politics. i'll trade the politics here for what you have up there anyday.

nothing works here and there's nothing that can be done about it. what's worse is no one seems to care so everyone just goes along with it all. you know...don't rock the boat. well i rock the boat and i'll turn the boat over. it's really time for me to leave.

i don't know...you might like it here as alot of people do. i'm really not the one to ask. all i know is chicago would probably be a breath of fresh air to me.

 

[william273]

hi ratface,

wow, i've found a ton in those price ranges. yea, some are fixer ups but some looked like they're ready to move into. there's one on 5335 N. California for $50,000 that looked good to me. i've talked with some realtors there and some inspectors and with the market as it is today some can be found in those price ranges but you might have to look and weed them out.

thanks for the offer, i may shoot you an email.

william

 

[william273]

maurice,

i'll have to pay attention to the winters a bit more like you said. i'll keep that in mind.

thanks.

 

[william273]

LOL, thanks dawg54.

 

[hankster]

hi F4 mandolin,
i think it rains alot in spokane...like most of the year or something like that, alot anyway. i like 4 seasons also but ya don't get that here in charleston. it's like summer all year round. and boring? let me tell you how boring the weather gets here. nothing changes here and that goes for the weather too. every day it's the same thing hot and sunny. here's how they forcast it...monday...plenty of sunshine. tuesday...bountiful sunshine. wednesday...sunny . thursday...abundant sunshine. friday plentiful sunshine. when they call for rain we get...plenty of sunshine. 50% chance of rain means...abundant sunshine. the only time we get rain is when a hurricane blows through and then we hardly get those. we have no weather here at all. it's like this all year round. i've developed a bad attitude about the lack of any weather here. i could go on but you'd just get bored. for me spokane would be a nice change.

Welcome William! Spokane is actually on the "dry side" of Washington State and gets just a fraction of the rainfall of west side locations like Seattle. Much of eastern Washington is desert-like.

 

[william273]

ok thanks for the heads up. i didn't know there was a dry side, i thought it was pretty much all the same up in that area. i stand corrected.

 

[SarahW]

Hello William and welcome! Hmmm, which city to choose. I suppose I'd have to go with Atlanta as I absolutely love the city. You realize that once retired, you could live a few months in each and "test drive" them. Don't buy anything yet...keep renting till you're sure. Good luck!

 

[enfp]

Welcome,

I'm from charleston and live in atlanta now. we're planning on getting out of atlanta when the housing market picks up. Now would be the time to buy if you can. We want to be someplace small after 20 years in Hotlanta. I would not live in Chicago because of the cold, but you would have to assess your ability to handle it. My DH who is from Michigan says he will never do cold, wet and shoveling snow again in his life.

You may remember the atlanta area from your time here, but if you have any questions let me know. I'll try to help. Good luck with your decision. We still don't know where to go ourselves.

 

[william273]

hi sarah,

good idea and thanks.

 

[william273]

hi enfp,

atlanta has changed alot since i lived there in the late 80s. i call it little chicago now. i am taking the winter into consideration much more now that alot of people have mentioned it.