Suggestions on Where to Live

[Corporate ORphan]

DH and I have been trying to figure out where to "retire to" since I retired 10 years ago. We have lived in Missouri all our lives. I thought I would ask here to see if anyone had any suggestions we hadn't thought of. Our priorities are the following:

- Clean air and water (we'd also like to avoid fireplace/fire pit smoke).
- Nice scenery.
- Good internet access.
- Livable weather for at least 3 seasons.
- Under $1 million for a well built home with at least a little bit of land so that our neighbors are not 8 feet from our house.
- Community where there isn't traffic congestion, aggressive drivers and inconsiderate jerks. Seem to be more of these every day.
- Not a necessarily a retirement community but not one where it is oriented towards children.
- Not overrun by extremists of any type.

We have been around the country quite a bit and have never really found anything. We are currently thinking about maybe doing a short term rental in Michigan near Traverse City but we are not sure we can "handle" all that snow.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[imoldernu]

Thoughts only:
How far from kids, friends and family?
To live in new home forever?
Been to an active retirement community?
Current age
City, country or in between?
Social lives or more quiet?
Culture, restaurants, theater, travel etc?
1M in Mo. isn't the same as 1M in Ca. A lot of house here.
Healthcare availability?
Snow birding?

When we retired, we did several long trips to different states and kinds of communities. Spent almost a year looking. Tn., Ga, NH, Me., Tx, Fl., and a few more in between. Found places to our liking everywhere, but fell in love with our Fl, Over 55 community and spent 24 yrs snowbirding Il. to Fl. As we slowed down, bought in our current CCRC in Il. and will be here until....

For us, it was the people around us, lakes for boating, and social groups.

Important part in deciding was "no rush". We could have been happy anywhere, but have no regrets, and no what if's.

Best wishes for a happily ever after!

 

[MRG]

Where are you in MO? What on your list don't you have there?

We spent 38 years around the KC area. There's options I would have considered but we really wanted to be in the mountains.

 

[aja8888]

There are lots of similar places in MO as we have lived there a couple of times and have family west of St.Louis. I spent several years in small communities around KCMO also and they were pretty nice. I really like the Joplin area personally.

Not sure what you mean by "Not overrun by extremists of any type."

 

[eroscott]

DH and I have been trying to figure out where to "retire to" since I retired 10 years ago. We have lived in Missouri all our lives. I thought I would ask here to see if anyone had any suggestions we hadn't thought of. Our priorities are the following:

- Clean air and water (we'd also like to avoid fireplace/fire pit smoke).
- Nice scenery.
- Good internet access.
- Livable weather for at least 3 seasons.
- Under $1 million for a well built home with at least a little bit of land so that our neighbors are not 8 feet from our house.
- Community where there isn't traffic congestion, aggressive drivers and inconsiderate jerks. Seem to be more of these every day.
- Not a necessarily a retirement community but not one where it is oriented towards children.
- Not overrun by extremists of any type.

We have been around the country quite a bit and have never really found anything. We are currently thinking about maybe doing a short term rental in Michigan near Traverse City but we are not sure we can "handle" all that snow.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Hobbies and activities you like to do?
Nice scenery could be a diff as ocean or mountains so that is unclear.
$1 million gives you a lot of options and gated developments

 

[harllee]

It would be along way from your current home but we live in the middle of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, a university town) and really like it. Good weather for most of the year, I never small any fireplace smoke, it is a beautiful college town with many trees and lovely buildings, 3 hours from the coast and 3 hours from gorgeous mountains. We have good Spectrum internet and Google fiber is suppose to be coming. For $1,000,000 you could get a very nice house and acreage right outside of town. There is some traffic at 5 pm and on college game days but it is not bad. There is a free bus system and most people use the bus system or walk. Many people retire here because of all the activities and the excellent medical facilities. North Carolina has moved to there right of the political spectrum in the last 10 years but it appears to be swing back toward the middle now. We have an excellent Governor, Roy Cooper.

I suggest you come give us a visit. The month of April would be perfect for a visit here, all the trees and azaleas in bloom. Let me know when you are coming an I will give you a tour.

 

[Bamaman]

You're the first person from MO that I've heard talking about MI for a move. The weather's just awful that far north. The upper peninsula is great in Summer, but there are 3 other seasons.

What about outside of Springfield, MO? Or, one of the fine cities just over the MO/AR state line? The lakes down there are absolutely top notch.

Other great places are where I'm at this weekend--the North Georgia Mountains up on the NC border. The mountains here are often overlooking beautiful lakes, and the region is knocked out.

East Tennessee between Gatlinburg and Johnson City has especially nice communities, and it's a green and lush place. It's a very livable region with no state income taxes and reasonable property taxes.

 

[Ronstar]

DH and I have been trying to figure out where to "retire to" since I retired 10 years ago. We have lived in Missouri all our lives. I thought I would ask here to see if anyone had any suggestions we hadn't thought of. Our priorities are the following:

- Clean air and water (we'd also like to avoid fireplace/fire pit smoke).
- Nice scenery.
- Good internet access.
- Livable weather for at least 3 seasons.
- Under $1 million for a well built home with at least a little bit of land so that our neighbors are not 8 feet from our house.
- Community where there isn't traffic congestion, aggressive drivers and inconsiderate jerks. Seem to be more of these every day.
- Not a necessarily a retirement community but not one where it is oriented towards children.
- Not overrun by extremists of any type.

We have been around the country quite a bit and have never really found anything. We are currently thinking about maybe doing a short term rental in Michigan near Traverse City but we are not sure we can "handle" all that snow.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

My criteria are about the same. Sedona, Arizona may be a good fit. It does get a little touristy that increases traffic congestion, but not too bad.

 

[Gumby]

My immediate family all live in Missouri. I left over 41 years ago and have found my own paradise in coastal Connecticut.

 

[RAE]

Traverse City does get quite a bit of snow, much of it "lake effect" snow off of Lake Michigan, when the wind blows from the NW. But if you don't mind the longer winters, there are plenty of other places in Michigan or Wisconsin that would meet most of your criteria, with less snow than Traverse City. And a million bucks would get you a beautiful, large home on quite a few acres. For that money, you could even get a nice lakefront home with at least a few acres. We've discussed this topic many times before on the forum, and my feeling is that there is no "perfect" place to live. You might find a place with a fabulous house and acreage, and other attributes that you like, but the year-round climate may not be to your liking. We live in Michigan, and we love it here for about 8 months of the year. But the winters are too long for us, so we snowbird to the Gulf Coast for part of the winter. I could never live that far South year-round, though, as the summer heat would kill me. So, you need to figure out a location or strategy that works for you, considering everything of importance to you.

 

[Callitaday2022]

Prescott AZ, Monument CO, Black Forest CO. I would not say extremist, but areas around Colorado Springs are much more conservative and lots of active and retired military. Further north towards Castle Rock and Denver get much more expensive . We would like to live in Boulder area but not willing to take poverty vow. We may end up Loveland or Longmont areas to get closer to parents as they age.

 

[eroscott]

It would be along way from your current home but we live in the middle of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, a university town) and really like it. Good weather for most of the year, I never small any fireplace smoke, it is a beautiful college town with many trees and lovely buildings, 3 hours from the coast and 3 hours from gorgeous mountains. We have good Spectrum internet and Google fiber is suppose to be coming. For $1,000,000 you could get a very nice house and acreage right outside of town. There is some traffic at 5 pm and on college game days but it is not bad. There is a free bus system and most people use the bus system or walk. Many people retire here because of all the activities and the excellent medical facilities. North Carolina has moved to there right of the political spectrum in the last 10 years but it appears to be swing back toward the middle now. We have an excellent Governor, Roy Cooper.

I suggest you come give us a visit. The month of April would be perfect for a visit here, all the trees and azaleas in bloom. Let me know when you are coming an I will give you a tour.

Thanks for sharing that. I was wondering about their hobbies and activities because you have to stay active.

My wife and I were just talking about Moorseville, NC and High Point, NC earlier today as potential retirement places. (Pickleball, 'Mountains', hiking, etc have some interest to me)

 

[davebarnes]

The home of Mr Money Mustache

 

[candrew]

My criteria are about the same. Sedona, Arizona may be a good fit. It does get a little touristy that increases traffic congestion, but not too bad.

Have you visited Sedona recently? "Not too bad" in regards to traffic congestion there might be a bit of an understatement. Sedona has become overdeveloped and traffic through town now resembles a parking lot. DW & I [-]drove[/-] crawled through there about two months ago. Sadly, what was once a place of awe-inspiring beauty has become a tourist trap consisting of over priced stores and eateries. Considering the price of real estate in Sedona, one could do much better in locales like Prescott, Rimrock, Camp Verde and Cottonwood without the headaches of regular traffic jams.

 

[Ronstar]

Have you visited Sedona recently? "Not too bad" in regards to traffic congestion there might be a bit of an understatement. Sedona has become overdeveloped and traffic through town now resembles a parking lot. DW & I [-]drove[/-] crawled through there about two months ago. Sadly, what was once a place of awe-inspiring beauty has become a tourist trap consisting of over priced stores and eateries. Considering the price of real estate in Sedona, one could do much better in locales like Prescott, Rimrock, Camp Verde and Cottonwood without the headaches of regular traffic jams.

When I say traffic is "not to bad", I'm comparing to Phoenix area traffic. Or Chicago area.

I go to Sedona 3 or 4 times a year, May 2018 being the most recent. Congestion can be bad downtown, but I find west Sedona and the Oak Creek area to have lesser congestion. And for one that lives there, you can go out and about when there is less traffic. And retirees (at least for me) don't fret over traffic as much as working people or tourists trying to see it all in a short time period.

I like Prescott, Rimrock, Camp Verde, and Cottonwood that you mentioned, but these towns do not have the scenery of Sedona.

 

[COcheesehead]

This is a good site to use for your search.

City-Data.com - Stats about all US cities - real estate, relocation info, crime, house prices, cost of living, races, home value estimator, recent sales, income, photos, schools, maps, weather, neighborhoods, and more

 

[COcheesehead]

When I say traffic is "not to bad", I'm comparing to Phoenix area traffic. Or Chicago area.

I go to Sedona 3 or 4 times a year, May 2018 being the most recent. Congestion can be bad downtown, but I find west Sedona and the Oak Creek area to have lesser congestion. And for one that lives there, you can go out and about when there is less traffic. And retirees (at least for me) don't fret over traffic as much as working people or tourists trying to see it all in a short time period.

I like Prescott, Rimrock, Camp Verde, and Cottonwood that you mentioned, but these towns do not have the scenery of Sedona.

If you like the desert scenery of AZ, but want access to a bigger airport, hospitals, LCOL, 4 seasons and a cool wine region, check out.
https://youtu.be/cs5FHADGrFY

 

[Ronstar]

If you like the desert scenery of AZ, but want access to a bigger airport, hospitals, LCOL, 4 seasons and a cool wine region, check out.
https://youtu.be/cs5FHADGrFY

Grand Junction would be a great retirement spot IMO. Lots of outdoor activities. Thanks for posting.

 

[Murf2]

If you like the desert scenery of AZ, but want access to a bigger airport, hospitals, LCOL, 4 seasons and a cool wine region, check out.
https://youtu.be/cs5FHADGrFY

BL tells me they have something of a “Meth problem “ there. Maybe he just doesn’t want me to move out there. [emoji15]It is pretty nice & not as expensive as some other areas in CO.

 

[MRG]

BL tells me they have something of a “Meth problem “ there. Maybe he just doesn’t want me to move out there. [emoji15]It is pretty nice & not as expensive as some other areas in CO.

Well anyone who lives somewhere and doesn't think there's a meth problem is likely living along a big river in Egypt.

 

[gerntz]

Thanks for sharing that. I was wondering about their hobbies and activities because you have to stay active.

My wife and I were just talking about Moorseville, NC and High Point, NC earlier today as potential retirement places. (Pickleball, 'Mountains', hiking, etc have some interest to me)

As long as you're in NC, might try Asheville.

 

[COcheesehead]

BL tells me they have something of a “Meth problem “ there. Maybe he just doesn’t want me to move out there. [emoji15]It is pretty nice & not as expensive as some other areas in CO.

Meth is US problem. Its everywhere.