Where do you live and what do you like about it?
 

I'm so ready to give up living in CA, I have been really tempted lately to just up and move to somewhere else. My husband was laid off last week right before Christmas, the front end of our car got screwed up in a freeway incident and the rental we had was broken into yesterday morning and all the person stole was my husbands military paperwork....(I know this doesn't sound like much reason to leave an entire state, but this is just a few thins that happened in the past couple weeks) We just had one hell of a crappy year here and with the budget problem and everything I'm just so sick of it all!!
So where do some of you live and what are some good/bad things about it?

Lots of people are moving from CA to TX right now, since the climate is so similar but cost of living is much less. I live in Austin, and I love it because there are so many opportunities here. The economy isn't suffering too hard yet, plus the city logo is Keep Austin Weird, which references independent business owners. There isn't a Wal-Mart within the city limits because of regulations of large corporations and small businesses. It is a WONDERFUL city and is within a few hours of most major TX cities. Plus it is listed as one of the greenest cities in the US right now. There is a great public transit system, and they are building a monorail system as well. Not even to mention all of the great food and live music...

There are lots of great sites online that compare cost of living in different cities, and wikipedia has great information on lots of cities.

Just look up Austin on wikipedia. You will want to move here tomorrow.

Great thread!

I live in Philadelphia, PA. I like the convenience of being able to walk everywhere- to restaurants, shopping (love being able to walk to Macy's :p), parks, etc. I like being so close to places like art museums, the zoo, and other major attractions that take place in the city. I like that I don't need a car and can utilize public transportation or walk.

I miss having a yard of my own! I miss having outdoor animals- like chickens. :) As much as I like Philadelphia, I look forward to moving when I am done with school! I like experiencing different places and new things.

Yeah, I am looking forward to hearing what others have to say about thier home cities!

I live in Austin too, so I am echoing Lauren's sentiments. One of the things we love about Austin is that everyone is so accepting. You can go to a restaurant and someone will be wearing a suit and tie, and next to them will be kids in shorts and flip flops, and neither is out of place. We love the laid back nature of Austin. Even if I didn't live here, it would be one of my favorite places!!!

Oh, and the violent crime rate is very low here.

Yep, I also like the fact that everyone is pretty accepting here. I always felt out of place in KS.

PLUS, it is the state capitol. I like being near a hub of democracy. We hosted one of the Clinton/Obama debates.

I am from Tennessee and I love it!!! The people here are very friendly & it is a very laid back atmosphere. I am from a smaller town, but I really enjoy it. The mountains are beautiful & you get a taste of both sides of the weather (hot in the summer & somewhat cold in the winter). You should check it out here! I wouldn't want to live anywhere else! :)

South carolina, and would never want to leave the area, I love the mountains, lakes, trees and nice people. If we get snow, it's usually maybe one time and of course, everything is closed down then, and property taxes on our house(just had it appraised at $160000) and the taxes are around $400 a year(and yes, I mean 400 not 4000

I live in Phoenix and I LOVE not having winter. You can be outside pretty much year-round, although the summers are incredibly hot during the day.

I grew up in the midwest - and despise those winters...ugh. I also lived in Colorado for 7 years and LOVED LOVED LOVED it - it is mind boggling beautiful and there is so much to do, all year round. And, the winters are actually gorgeous - super sunny and pretty. The mountain towns are amazing -- and you can explore them to no end. I just cannot say enough about Colo. and I miss it a lot.

I also lived in Minneapolis, MN - which is where I met my hubby. Mpls is an amazing city and very beautiful - it's sometimes called the San Fran of the midwest. Gorgeous, old buildings - lots of history; little pockets of different neighborhoods, a very vibrant and cultural downtown. But the winters can SUCK IT. Sorry, but they can :p. I miss a lot about Mpls, but not those winters.

If we had our choice, hubby and me would probably live in either Colorado or San Francisco. Phoenix is nice and we love the weather, but we don't find it charming or historical in the ways we find other cities. Phoenix often feels like one big bedroom community, it's just different.

I live in Atlantic Beach, Florida, near the Mayport Navy Base. The weather here is great, because the summers are hot, but not too hot. Winters do get cold, which is usually for about a month. I use to live near Orlando, Fl and it does get hotter there. I live about a mile from the beach, and the schools are great. All the stores are close by, and the mall is a short drive away(15minutes) I love it here, and yet wish I lived in the country on 5 acres. I am sure If I was in the country, I would wish I was back here near the beach. Right now, jobs are hard to find(except on the base) and gas prices are pretty low. $1.59 a gallon and lower at Walmart, and BJ's($1.49) So I guess I will stay here near the beach for now, there are nice dog parks close by.

Great thread! I live in SW Idaho, on the outskirts of Boise, which is the capitol city. I absolutely love it here... we have a large enough city to do stuff in, but are only an hour away from the mountains and desert, whichever way you decided to drive. We do tons of outdoor stuff- the horse thing, hiking and camping in the spring, summer and fall, and we snowmobile all winter. Everyone is really friendly here, it has the feeling of a small town but is growing with ammenities. We don't have a Nordstroms or Saks but I mostly order everything on-line, or shop when we go out of town so it works out great!

I would move almost anywhere out west. Hubby is from North Carolina- need I say he moved across the country for a reason :p We have talked about moving to Flagstaff or Prescott, but that would be a few years down the line. This will be fun hearing about everyone's city!

I went on a vacation to SoCal last year (that's weirddd to say haha. This past September) and I loved it. But I could never live there - too expensive!

I live in Spotswood, New Jersey. I have days where I hate NJ and days where I love it. I hate New Jersey because there are a lot of inconsiderate people on the roadways. Drivers are ridiculous and the laws for driving are a bit out there as well sometimes.

On that note, I also love New Jersey. I love that basically every street is tree-lined and that there is a lot of forest land. I LOVE having seasons. I love that there are at least 3 malls within 20 minutes of basically everywhere. NJ is great because there are really small towns and there are big cities. It's also fantastic, because it's close to New York City, but at the end of a day in the city, you can come home to your quiet NJ house and relax! It's a very convenient location. It's pretty insane, because there is a little bit of everything in New Jersey. There are beautiful beaches, small mountains, cities, etc. And I swear when you go down to South Jersey it's like you're in a whooole nother state! There are rodeos and farmland and it's beautiful.

Like I said before, we've got beautiful beaches. When people say that they've never seen the ocean before, it just shocks me - I forget how lucky we are. I love nothing more than walking on the beach when dusk comes and the sand starts to cool and all you see are a couple scattered fishermen. I've been going to the beach ('down the shore' :p) since I was a little baby. I've always loved it.

And in addition to all of that...the history. I am an American history buff, and knowing that so much of the history of our country took place right where I live...that's amazing to think about. George Washington and his troops slept in my town - and that kind of thing just amazes me.

As much as I say I hate NJ...it'll always be what I consider home (no matter where I'm living *cough*NYC*cough*) and I love it!

I live in NYC and the thing i love about it is that there is ALWAYS something to do, there are always ppl in the street, it literally never sleeps and the transportation, you don't need a car BUT i als hate the fact that it can be so noise when you're trying to sleep, depending on what part you live in. I've been here forever tho and would like to experience something else and just see how it is

I was actually in Texas for 4 months last year! We were in San Antonio and we actually thought about moving to Texas, but the humidity was a killer. For me just about anything is humid compared to Northern CA. But we actually drove to Austin because it was the closest city we could find that had a Jamba Juice! It was really pretty there for what I got to see of it, it was a short trip for us that night, but it definitely made me want to see what else was in that area.

I've been wanting to go to NYC so bad, oooh all the shopping :D! My husband has been there, but I never have. But I'm not sure I could handle living there because it's more expensive.

It's expensive, you're right but you live in Cali and ive heard cali is expensive too, tho ive never been there so idk, but i figure it's similar price wise. But yes theres a lot of shopping if you have patience also for crowds, etc lol

CA is definitely expensive, that's one of the things I am trying to get away from, at least here, because I think it's too expensive for what it is compared to some of the other states I have been to.

I've lived in the same town in the south east of England all my life...it's very central to everything really which I like. We're surrounded by lovely countryside, about 20mins drive to the coast and about an hour's drive from London. But as with most of England the weather's pretty crap! :rolleyes:xxx xxx

I live in Miami and I absolutely love the city, it is somewhat of a different world from the rest of the United States, basically 90% of the population is Hispanic and there is pretty much always something to do. We have nice weather year round (the lowest it will go is 60) and we can pretty much go to the beach or swimming whenever we want. The food is awesome with high diversity of Latin American food everywhere, but there also plenty of other ethnic places around. I am such a Sushi lover and there are so many great sushi places around. I love living in Miami because it had such a different feel from the rest of the states, if you like clubbing you will find some of the best clubs around here. Also, house prices are relatively low right now, so it is definitely a time to buy around here. If you are looking to live with people that are completely different Miami is definitely the place...If you like shopping there are over 10 huge shopping malls within a 15 mile radius, two of them being within half a mile apart. Miami is also very casual most people just hang around all year in shorts tank tops and flip flops and its pretty much acceptable everywhere. There are a lot of bargain shops if you know where to look. Also Miami is relatively safe, it is a big city and crimes do occur but most of the time if you mind to yourself no one will really mess with you.

Cons... it is a big city lifestyle so most of the time you have no clue who your neighbors are, people can be rude, when you go to most places you will probably encounter people that don't speak English, and you definitely need a car, there is always the possibility of a hurricane, but our last major storm was Andrew in 1992, humidity can get high in the summer, and it is a very fast paced lifestyle.

I love Miami, I have traveled and would like to travel more but I really know in my heart that I will always come back to Miami. I just can't imagine myself living anywhere in the world...

This is an interesting article. #7 is Round Rock, a suburb of Austin. And #9 is Overland Park, where my brother and his family lives. OP is an AMAZING city for raising a family and living the "American Dream".

Best Places to Live 2008 - from Money Magazine

Good thread. I see someone is really pushing for Austin;) I've heard its a really awesome place. My sister lived in seattle and loved it there. You have the mountains and its a friendly city. not too cold, not a lot of snow. She can't wait to move back. I grew up in NY. Not the city (i've actually never been there.) It is amazing beautiful open fields, hills, trees. You get all four seasons. But its getting more and more expensive and they've recently added taxes on non diet soda. I wish you luck in your searches though. :)

For those of you that live in those year round warm climates...I am very jealous!! I was born here in Canada to American parents and I lived in Florida and New Mexico when I was younger. Now I live on the Canadian / USA border (across from Detroit, Michigan)..and I will alway long for year round warmth!!

I was born and raised in New York State, and moved to Florida when I was 23
Had both of my kids in Florida. I think the winters in New York are just beautiful, but just had to be where the weather is warm, and no snow to shovel. :thumbup:

I lived in Fort Hood, TX (Killeen) for 4 years when I was a teenager. I lived with my mom who was in the army. The rest of my life before and after, I lived in Illinois. I miss Texas so much. And Austin really was one of my favorite towns to visit since there was so much to do.

Eventually, I would like to move back in that area.

I live in Florida. It took me 11 years to get use to the heat. It's so sad here. There are no jobs, and houses are being forclosed on all the time.

I love where I live!!
 

I live in Naples, Florida. We moved here 4 1/2 years ago from southern Maine. Before that we lived in Massachusetts about 30 miles north of Boston.
There was one winter in Maine that for two weeks my husband and I were waking up to 6 inches of snow. Every freaking morning he was out there with the snowblower. So we just decided, screw it. We couldn't take it anymore. I don't miss the snow or cold at all! Christmas I am sitting out on my lanai enjoying a glass of wine, and my little furbaby just loves laying on the lounge chair in the sun.

By the way, my baby, Bella, has her own website, (thanks to my husband, the person who didn't want a dog). It's <title>Bella Life - Home

You can sign her guest book and view her gallery

Beautiful North Carolina where I'm only 4 hours from both the coast and the Smokey mountains. Besides the mild winters I think I'm most appreciative of the cost of living here. Even though wages are lower than a lot of our states it all balances out in the long run. After all, the more you make, the more it takes.

MN
 

We are from a suburb of The Twin Cities in Minnesota. It is nice to be so close to a major city but still be able to enjoy everyday life at a slower pace. We have a lot of "arts" in the area and there is always something to do. We also have had a lot of political interest in the past which is fun.

Most people think the snow/cold is a reason to never live in MN. However, we just like people to think that! :p Our summers are amazing and spring and fall are pretty nice too.

Raindrop and I signed Bella's guestbook! :D