Time to Peace Out (Relocate Overseas)?

[Sbbruin 21,855]

12 hours ago, staboner said:

Roatan is easily one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever been to. Was there with Ivan in 2005. lol. 

Must be a fuckton more expensive now then back then. Would live there in a heartbeat if not for the obvious drug cartels, gangs and shit. I did some of Honduras and man its rough. The capital is rough AF, and San Pedro Sula is really rough. Spent the night in Tela and was one of the craziest places I have been to. Met some dudes from Manugua who refused to get off the bus in Tegucigalpa lol. 

Anyway, I am sure its better now than it was 15 years ago 

 

Roatan and mainland Honduras are two different worlds.  There is a little crime on Roatan, but not much.  We stayed at Pristine Bay, though, which is its own enclave with total security.

[ztejas 43,452]

2 hours ago, troph said:

Bodrum Turkey seems badass. I was only there for a day but it’s got a nice vibe and is a similar climate to here.

I mean in an alternate universe Turkey would be very cool. I just think with what is going on there right now you'd have to be certifiably insane to move there for any extended period of time. If they even let you.

[XYZ 2,154]

What’s wrong with Swiss people?

[Neonmoon 38,129]

3 minutes ago, XYZ said:

What’s wrong with Swiss people?

They have a few holes in their story 

[troph 24,806]

I mean in an alternate universe Turkey would be very cool. I just think with what is going on there right now you'd have to be certifiably insane to move there for any extended period of time. If they even let you.

Of course.

[troph 24,806]

Roatan and mainland Honduras are two different worlds.  There is a little crime on Roatan, but not much.  We stayed at Pristine Bay, though, which is its own enclave with total security.

I know an American that lived there and was a scuba instructor for about 3 years. She wants to go back.

[Schulz2.0 28,954]

16 hours ago, Ghost of LL said:

So we are currently looking at Turkey or Ireland. I like Turkey, but Ireland would be a lot easier.

Turkey is nice. I visited Marmaris on aport visit in the Navy. There's no way I'd currently live there with the path Erdogan is pushing the country down.

[Rip76 4,928]

New Zealand?

https://abc13.com/6362502/?ex_cid=TA_KTRK_FB&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

1 minute ago, Rip76 said:

New Zealand?

https://abc13.com/6362502/?ex_cid=TA_KTRK_FB&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

And or Australia....  Both would be great to experience for 3 months.  That would be my suggestion. Stable countries with lot to see.

[mdmost 43,002]

[Jkwellborn 6,702]

Isn’t Australia still on lockdown too?

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

1 hour ago, BurntEyes said:

Both of those seem like terrible options to me, not because I don't want to visit and haven't, yet. Rather, aside from the pretzel hoarding ghost rats he's trying to escape, GoLL is going to have to work from home. It would fucking kill me to be in Australia or New Zealand and be relegated to a single location. Sure, you could have weekend get aways or what have you but it would be constantly on my mind while sitting at a desk: "Oh I really, really want to see xxxx in Australia/New Zealand, but that's too far for a day drive.".

I guess I don't have the same response to Europe as largely, I've been there done that,(Not that I wouldn't mind going back to a lot of places, I'd really like to eventually) and based on historical posting, it seems, so has GoLL. So in essence, the "I really want to see xxxxx" is much less of a factor. But shit, I don't want to speak for him.

If I'm gonna bug out, I'm going somewhere where I will work, but probably from a lap top I can carry with me. I'm going to expose my kids to as much of that place as possible. So traveling about isn't a big issue if we have a base of operations.  

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

1 minute ago, BurntEyes said:

Australia is a lot bigger than I think you realize.

Oh yeah, it's big, but you have 3 months, and everything you wanna see is pretty much on the perimeter. 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

3 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

Very much so. They just saw a recent swell of cases.

Well that's just swell....

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

Just now, BurntEyes said:

Again, he has to work. 

And I disagree on your perimeter comment personally, but would modify to:

"Everything most people want to see in on the perimeter".

Most everything ...  Definitely some interior aboriginal stuff, a day or so in the outback. He has to work, but his family doesn't. He can work from a hotel room.  They can see the sites.  He can join in I typically work/design when I travel.

[Wulaw Horn 19,070]

Just now, Onboard 2.0 said:

Most everything ...  Definitely some interior aboriginal stuff, a day or so in the outback. He has to work, but his family doesn't. He can work from a hotel room.  They can see the sites.  He can join in I typically work/design when I travel.

The favorite thing I did in Australia was the sounds of silence dinner/astronomy lecture in Ayers Rock/Uhluru. It was amazing. 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

10 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

Well God damn man, I'm not saying YOU shouldn't go nor GoLL. Calm the fuck down and pack the family already, I'm not gonna stop you.

Don't I look calm ?

[Bill Lumbergh 7,171]

Good post. I was actually coming to the board to see if there was a topic like this active at this point in 2020.

The wife and I have been having a range of conversations on relocation, ranging from moving locally to an area with more land to moving out of state to moving internationally.

What's hard is figuring out how much of this is the covid stir crazies vs covid highlighting things that are very real in our current setup that we'd really like to change. I suspect the truth is somewhere between those two.

Right now we're most strongly considering relocating to a change of scenery in the US, with Colorado and North Carolina leading the pack, or starting to plan for an international relocation with Spain and Ireland at the top of our list.

I work remotely for a company in NY, and the only real requirements there are that I work roughly ET hours and visit ~1x/month (in non covid times). The company also has an office in London, but even with that there's no reason for me to be in any of the international locations on a work visa, so figuring out visas would be a challenge.

The other consideration is that our oldest kid will start kindergarten in 2021, and we'd like to make any change well before that and be set up wherever we're going to be so we avoid throwing too much change at him at once.

For now, we're heading out this week to explore Colorado for a month. Partially to see how much we really like it there r extended periods of time, and partially to get the kids out of this summer heat and let them get in nature after being mostly cooped up for the last 3-4 months.

Would love to chat with anyone who has lived in CO, NC, or particularly has moved abroad with young kids. We're pretty level headed, not overly spontaneous people, so it's currently low probability we pull the trigger on the more extreme options, but they are all definitely intriguing so we're going to at least run down what information we can and decide if we want to get serious about them or not.

[Wulaw Horn 19,070]

9 minutes ago, Bill Lumbergh said:

Good post. I was actually coming to the board to see if there was a topic like this active at this point in 2020.

The wife and I have been having a range of conversations on relocation, ranging from moving locally to an area with more land to moving out of state to moving internationally.

What's hard is figuring out how much of this is the covid stir crazies vs covid highlighting things that are very real in our current setup that we'd really like to change. I suspect the truth is somewhere between those two.

Right now we're most strongly considering relocating to a change of scenery in the US, with Colorado and North Carolina leading the pack, or starting to plan for an international relocation with Spain and Ireland at the top of our list.

I work remotely for a company in NY, and the only real requirements there are that I work roughly ET hours and visit ~1x/month (in non covid times). The company also has an office in London, but even with that there's no reason for me to be in any of the international locations on a work visa, so figuring out visas would be a challenge.

The other consideration is that our oldest kid will start kindergarten in 2021, and we'd like to make any change well before that and be set up wherever we're going to be so we avoid throwing too much change at him at once.

For now, we're heading out this week to explore Colorado for a month. Partially to see how much we really like it there r extended periods of time, and partially to get the kids out of this summer heat and let them get in nature after being mostly cooped up for the last 3-4 months.

Would love to chat with anyone who has lived in CO, NC, or particularly has moved abroad with young kids. We're pretty level headed, not overly spontaneous people, so it's currently low probability we pull the trigger on the more extreme options, but they are all definitely intriguing so we're going to at least run down what information we can and decide if we want to get serious about them or not.

Add to the list- Shenendoah valley in Virginia. Of everywhere I’ve been so far on my trip across America that was by far my favorite.  I haven’t been to NC yet on this trip and as an adult, but that’s the only other place, other than Shenendoah valley- that I’d be fired up to move to. 
 

[Player 4,575]

Ghost, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?

[Bill Lumbergh 7,171]

You're going to have to clarify where/what you are looking at in those states because while they are small compared to Texas there is a big variety of different environments.

In Colorado we're primarily looking at the broader Denver/Boulder area. In NC we've considered both Raleigh and Charlotte areas, probably more around Davidson vs Charlotte proper.

The criteria list is fairly broad. We're not trying to solve for one big issue, just looking for a change of scenery, both literally and culturally, from where we're currently at. We're both from Texas and while it's a fine place to live and raise kids, we'd like to expose them to some of the rest of the country, and possibly world, and there's really nothing stopping us from doing that right now.

Probably the considerations highest on our list:

- West coast is out. We've lived there before, so it's not a new experience (as much, anyway), and it gets me farther in terms of distance and time zones from work. I know, international does, too, but I see more benefit there so I'd sacrifice those downsides.

- We'd like more outdoors activities, and better year round climate in which to do them. We've realized with covid how much these months suck if you can't go to indoor activities or have kids in the water nonstop. The hikes and rides we've been on, even in the evenings, have been short lived thanks to the heat. We loved doing outdoor stuff in Seattle and would like the kids to grow up with more of that, sans the rain. Close to mountains and or water are pluses here.

- Good community to raise a family. Our plan all along has been public school, and we'd like to keep that if we can. We're in the Dallas burbs now with great schools, but have realized in our search how hit and miss that is across the country. It's not a must, but we were both raised in public and if we can get good public schools we'll do that. Crime is also a big consideration here, which has made a lot of the Denver area a challenge (had no idea violent crime was on the high side there). Obviously open spaces, kids activities, etc are all pluses here.

- More moderate political/social climate. We're in the Dallas burbs now, but spent a number of years in Austin and Seattle. We're pretty moderate overall and might change votes election to election based on candidates. Dallas burbs are far to the right of us, Seattle was far to the left. If we can find somewhere closer to us, that would be a plus, although not a make or break. This also is related to the Dallas Joneses mentality that really bugs us. We almost didn't move back to this area from Seattle bc of how pervasive that lifestyle is here, and now are thinking seriously about raising our kids in it. Many families we know here fully adopt the spend to the last penny (and then some) to show that you can (or realistically can't) mentality, and for whatever reason it's a much more intense thing in this area vs anywhere else we've lived.

- Close enough to jobs, airport. My wife stays home currently but will go back to work when our youngest starts school. That may be remote work, but moving relatively close to a city/jobs will just expand her options. I have to fly enough that I don't want to be more than ~45 mins from an airport.

- Not too cold and not cold too much of the year. We both grew up in TX and aren't cut out for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, etc winter climates. We love a lot about those places, but we'd never make it through more than a winter or two.

Ok, I think those are the top of the list. The places on our list now (in the US) are the places we've found that match most closely. Appreciate the Shenandoah recommendation, adding it to check out. Would welcome any others we should consider.

[XYZ 2,154]

Denver is an ugly midwestern city. And it’s got crime issues. Don’t ask me how I know. If you’re gonna live in Colorado, live in the mountains.

[Bill Lumbergh 7,171]

Denver is an ugly midwestern city. And it’s got crime issues. Don’t ask me how I know. If you’re gonna live in Colorado, live in the mountains.

I don't think we'd do Denver proper for the reasons you mention. We like a lot of the surrounding areas, particularly closer to the mountains.

[Telegraph_it 3,357]

I am a surprised Belarus has not been mentioned. 

[Wulaw Horn 19,070]

1 hour ago, Bill Lumbergh said:

 

 

In Colorado we're primarily looking at the broader Denver/Boulder area. In NC we've considered both Raleigh and Charlotte areas, probably more around Davidson vs Charlotte proper.

The criteria list is fairly broad. We're not trying to solve for one big issue, just looking for a change of scenery, both literally and culturally, from where we're currently at. We're both from Texas and while it's a fine place to live and raise kids, we'd like to expose them to some of the rest of the country, and possibly world, and there's really nothing stopping us from doing that right now.

Probably the considerations highest on our list:

 

 

  Hide contents

- West coast is out. We've lived there before, so it's not a new experience (as much, anyway), and it gets me farther in terms of distance and time zones from work. I know, international does, too, but I see more benefit there so I'd sacrifice those downsides.

- We'd like more outdoors activities, and better year round climate in which to do them. We've realized with covid how much these months suck if you can't go to indoor activities or have kids in the water nonstop. The hikes and rides we've been on, even in the evenings, have been short lived thanks to the heat. We loved doing outdoor stuff in Seattle and would like the kids to grow up with more of that, sans the rain. Close to mountains and or water are pluses here.

- Good community to raise a family. Our plan all along has been public school, and we'd like to keep that if we can. We're in the Dallas burbs now with great schools, but have realized in our search how hit and miss that is across the country. It's not a must, but we were both raised in public and if we can get good public schools we'll do that. Crime is also a big consideration here, which has made a lot of the Denver area a challenge (had no idea violent crime was on the high side there). Obviously open spaces, kids activities, etc are all pluses here.

- More moderate political/social climate. We're in the Dallas burbs now, but spent a number of years in Austin and Seattle. We're pretty moderate overall and might change votes election to election based on candidates. Dallas burbs are far to the right of us, Seattle was far to the left. If we can find somewhere closer to us, that would be a plus, although not a make or break. This also is related to the Dallas Joneses mentality that really bugs us. We almost didn't move back to this area from Seattle bc of how pervasive that lifestyle is here, and now are thinking seriously about raising our kids in it. Many families we know here fully adopt the spend to the last penny (and then some) to show that you can (or realistically can't) mentality, and for whatever reason it's a much more intense thing in this area vs anywhere else we've lived.

- Close enough to jobs, airport. My wife stays home currently but will go back to work when our youngest starts school. That may be remote work, but moving relatively close to a city/jobs will just expand her options. I have to fly enough that I don't want to be more than ~45 mins from an airport.

- Not too cold and not cold too much of the year. We both grew up in TX and aren't cut out for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, etc winter climates. We love a lot about those places, but we'd never make it through more than a winter or two.
 

Ok, I think those are the top of the list. The places on our list now (in the US) are the places we've found that match most closely. Appreciate the Shenandoah recommendation, adding it to check out. Would welcome any others we should consider.

 

So- that’s about 1:45 or 2:00 hours from DC. That might be a deal breaker for you. It’s also pretty rural so probably more conservative, in a blue state (but not really nutty I don’t think) 

probably too rural to knock down a really high paying job if it’s not remote so that might be a problem for your wife. If the outdoors is more important than the access then maybe ok?  
Your list (absent the pushback against Dallas social climbing BC I’m from houston and we are too melting pot/new money to be pretentious) looks almost entirely like mine. 
I think I narrowed it down to Shenandoah valley, North Carolina near Asheville and Tennessee in the Smokey mountains. I don’t fly for work though, so 1:30 or 2:00 to the airport isn’t a deal breaker for me- but no way I want to get more than a 2 hour drive away from major city. I think Charlotte or Nashville would qualify as “major city” but I’d prefer something with all 3 sports leagues. That’s sort of my qualifier for what city qualifies as truly “major league” an Charlotte and Nashville both fail that test, but 2 might be enough. 

[52-80 19,159]

40 minutes ago, Telegraph_it said:

I am a surprised Belarus has not been mentioned. 

Belarus is so 2009.  It's all about Kaliningrad Oblast these days

[bolverk 29,682]

1 hour ago, Bill Lumbergh said:

 

 

In Colorado we're primarily looking at the broader Denver/Boulder area. In NC we've considered both Raleigh and Charlotte areas, probably more around Davidson vs Charlotte proper.

The criteria list is fairly broad. We're not trying to solve for one big issue, just looking for a change of scenery, both literally and culturally, from where we're currently at. We're both from Texas and while it's a fine place to live and raise kids, we'd like to expose them to some of the rest of the country, and possibly world, and there's really nothing stopping us from doing that right now.

Probably the considerations highest on our list:

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

- West coast is out. We've lived there before, so it's not a new experience (as much, anyway), and it gets me farther in terms of distance and time zones from work. I know, international does, too, but I see more benefit there so I'd sacrifice those downsides.

- We'd like more outdoors activities, and better year round climate in which to do them. We've realized with covid how much these months suck if you can't go to indoor activities or have kids in the water nonstop. The hikes and rides we've been on, even in the evenings, have been short lived thanks to the heat. We loved doing outdoor stuff in Seattle and would like the kids to grow up with more of that, sans the rain. Close to mountains and or water are pluses here.

- Good community to raise a family. Our plan all along has been public school, and we'd like to keep that if we can. We're in the Dallas burbs now with great schools, but have realized in our search how hit and miss that is across the country. It's not a must, but we were both raised in public and if we can get good public schools we'll do that. Crime is also a big consideration here, which has made a lot of the Denver area a challenge (had no idea violent crime was on the high side there). Obviously open spaces, kids activities, etc are all pluses here.

- More moderate political/social climate. We're in the Dallas burbs now, but spent a number of years in Austin and Seattle. We're pretty moderate overall and might change votes election to election based on candidates. Dallas burbs are far to the right of us, Seattle was far to the left. If we can find somewhere closer to us, that would be a plus, although not a make or break. This also is related to the Dallas Joneses mentality that really bugs us. We almost didn't move back to this area from Seattle bc of how pervasive that lifestyle is here, and now are thinking seriously about raising our kids in it. Many families we know here fully adopt the spend to the last penny (and then some) to show that you can (or realistically can't) mentality, and for whatever reason it's a much more intense thing in this area vs anywhere else we've lived.

- Close enough to jobs, airport. My wife stays home currently but will go back to work when our youngest starts school. That may be remote work, but moving relatively close to a city/jobs will just expand her options. I have to fly enough that I don't want to be more than ~45 mins from an airport.

- Not too cold and not cold too much of the year. We both grew up in TX and aren't cut out for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, etc winter climates. We love a lot about those places, but we'd never make it through more than a winter or two.
 

Ok, I think those are the top of the list. The places on our list now (in the US) are the places we've found that match most closely. Appreciate the Shenandoah recommendation, adding it to check out. Would welcome any others we should consider.

 

If Shenandoah doesn't work for you, you might consider some of the more far-flung exurbs of northern Virginia/western Maryland that are close to the Appalachian foothills. I've never lived there but have been told that part of the country with roughly four equal seasons. Buddy of mine was from Culpeper, VA, and he loved it.

[CooterBrown 18,013]

Right now we're most strongly considering relocating to a change of scenery in the US, with Colorado and North Carolina leading the pack.

Doing the math, I could sell my central Austin house and buy a much larger, nicer home in Fort Collins and my payment + property taxes wouldn’t be much different than just my current property tax bill in Austin. It’s tempting if my employer eventually decides to let us work remote going forward after the pandemic.

[Wulaw Horn 19,070]

16 minutes ago, bolverk said:

If Shenandoah doesn't work for you, you might consider some of the more far-flung exurbs of northern Virginia/western Maryland that are close to the Appalachian foothills. I've never lived there but have been told that part of the country with roughly four equal seasons. Buddy of mine was from Culpeper, VA, and he loved it.

Yep. Same concept. Closer to city for access, less outdoor beauty and outdoor adventures, but still plenty of both. 

[gmr548 16,580]

I don't think we'd do Denver proper for the reasons you mention. We like a lot of the surrounding areas, particularly closer to the mountains.

So ugly Midwestern suburbs, then?

[NeverMarryAStripper 21,907]

3 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Oh yeah, it's big, but you have 3 months, and everything you wanna see is pretty much on the perimeter. 

Uluru says Hi

 

[Incredulity 11,674]

16 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

 

Doing the math, I could sell my central Austin house and buy a much larger, nicer home in Fort Collins and my payment + property taxes wouldn’t be much different than just my current property tax bill in Austin. It’s tempting if my employer eventually decides to let us work remote going forward after the pandemic.

 

You need to include state income tax in this calculation.

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

4 minutes ago, NeverMarryAStripper said:

Uluru says Hi

 

Yeah should have said MOST everything. I want to see the outback, Ayers Rock, aboriginal archeological sites, but the majority is on the perimeter isn't it ?

[Bill Lumbergh 7,171]

So ugly Midwestern suburbs, then?

Eh, to each his own.

Denver is a good enough city when it comes to activities, pro sports, etc for me if we have the itch to go into the city for a weekend. I don't want to live there, but it checks the box on jobs, airport, enough culture.

Those small towns just heading into the mountains are anything but ugly IMO, but we highly value the scenery and outdoor activities close by.

[MagicSoccerSpray 1,732]

7 hours ago, BurntEyes said:

Most folks aren't aware that Milano was the head of the "Italian Empire" prior to Rome but that discussion would derail this thread.

 

Are you sure? Milano had the imperial residence for about 116 years after the empire was split in two and before it was moved to Ravenna, but that was after the capitol had been in Rome and before the fall of the western Roman empire. Before it was captured by Rome, it was a Celtic city.

[staboner 4,972]

8 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Roatan and mainland Honduras are two different worlds.  There is a little crime on Roatan, but not much.  We stayed at Pristine Bay, though, which is its own enclave with total security.

for sure. but roatan is still propped up by the government and (or at least was) regulated for tourism - i.e. limited cars, highrises, etc. but my point was how long that can/will last is my point. buying a property there is risky IMO. assuming we are talking about buying something. the situation in central america is just awful and seems to be always getting worse the last decade or so. very sad. i love it down there but man its just crazy what the crime and murder rate is in some of these places. 

also, some guy tried to mug me with a machete in roatan. i purposely had a few bucks on me that i gave him. nothing tense at all. there is some crime there no doubt. guy was looking for drunk british chicks to mug in the middle of the night in the jungle.

[staboner 4,972]

5 hours ago, Jkwellborn said:

Isn’t Australia still on lockdown too?

melbourne is. and it sucks. rest of the country seems ok but i am sure other cities will get their second wave soon enough

[Chewbacca 7,780]

Denver is an ugly midwestern city. And it’s got crime issues. Don’t ask me how I know. If you’re gonna live in Colorado, live in the mountains.

Maybe Denver proper. The burbs are quite safe. I've lived in Denver my whole life except for the 5 years i melted in San Antonio for college.

Not everyone can handle living in the mountains full time. Snow is great, but are you ready to deal with snow from November to May? Hope you like winter sports. And internet can be an issue in the mountains, depending on where you are.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

Good post. I was actually coming to the board to see if there was a topic like this active at this point in 2020.

The wife and I have been having a range of conversations on relocation, ranging from moving locally to an area with more land to moving out of state to moving internationally.

What's hard is figuring out how much of this is the covid stir crazies vs covid highlighting things that are very real in our current setup that we'd really like to change. I suspect the truth is somewhere between those two.

Right now we're most strongly considering relocating to a change of scenery in the US, with Colorado and North Carolina leading the pack, or starting to plan for an international relocation with Spain and Ireland at the top of our list.

I work remotely for a company in NY, and the only real requirements there are that I work roughly ET hours and visit ~1x/month (in non covid times). The company also has an office in London, but even with that there's no reason for me to be in any of the international locations on a work visa, so figuring out visas would be a challenge.

The other consideration is that our oldest kid will start kindergarten in 2021, and we'd like to make any change well before that and be set up wherever we're going to be so we avoid throwing too much change at him at once.

For now, we're heading out this week to explore Colorado for a month. Partially to see how much we really like it there r extended periods of time, and partially to get the kids out of this summer heat and let them get in nature after being mostly cooped up for the last 3-4 months.

Would love to chat with anyone who has lived in CO, NC, or particularly has moved abroad with young kids. We're pretty level headed, not overly spontaneous people, so it's currently low probability we pull the trigger on the more extreme options, but they are all definitely intriguing so we're going to at least run down what information we can and decide if we want to get serious about them or not.

I have lived in Denver my whole life and have a house near Winter Park. What questions you have?

[Chewbacca 7,780]

I spent time "living" in Gunisson CO, have a friend that lives/d in Vail, and live close to NC and go there for work.
You're going to have to clarify where/what you are looking at in those states because while they are small compared to Texas there is a big variety of different environments. Charlotte is not like Asheville or Wilmington, Gunisson is not like Vail or Denver at all. Were I looking purely for increased property value and an Austinish vibe, Asheville, NC would be my pick, for me, Gunnison area has more appeal due to activities I like. (Fishing, skiing, rafting, Kayaking, off roading, etc) but Gunny has a property crime issue and Vail is expensive as FUCK.

And Vail just sucks, too.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

In Colorado we're primarily looking at the broader Denver/Boulder area. In NC we've considered both Raleigh and Charlotte areas, probably more around Davidson vs Charlotte proper.

The criteria list is fairly broad. We're not trying to solve for one big issue, just looking for a change of scenery, both literally and culturally, from where we're currently at. We're both from Texas and while it's a fine place to live and raise kids, we'd like to expose them to some of the rest of the country, and possibly world, and there's really nothing stopping us from doing that right now.

Probably the considerations highest on our list:

- West coast is out. We've lived there before, so it's not a new experience (as much, anyway), and it gets me farther in terms of distance and time zones from work. I know, international does, too, but I see more benefit there so I'd sacrifice those downsides.

- We'd like more outdoors activities, and better year round climate in which to do them. We've realized with covid how much these months suck if you can't go to indoor activities or have kids in the water nonstop. The hikes and rides we've been on, even in the evenings, have been short lived thanks to the heat. We loved doing outdoor stuff in Seattle and would like the kids to grow up with more of that, sans the rain. Close to mountains and or water are pluses here.

- Good community to raise a family. Our plan all along has been public school, and we'd like to keep that if we can. We're in the Dallas burbs now with great schools, but have realized in our search how hit and miss that is across the country. It's not a must, but we were both raised in public and if we can get good public schools we'll do that. Crime is also a big consideration here, which has made a lot of the Denver area a challenge (had no idea violent crime was on the high side there). Obviously open spaces, kids activities, etc are all pluses here.

- More moderate political/social climate. We're in the Dallas burbs now, but spent a number of years in Austin and Seattle. We're pretty moderate overall and might change votes election to election based on candidates. Dallas burbs are far to the right of us, Seattle was far to the left. If we can find somewhere closer to us, that would be a plus, although not a make or break. This also is related to the Dallas Joneses mentality that really bugs us. We almost didn't move back to this area from Seattle bc of how pervasive that lifestyle is here, and now are thinking seriously about raising our kids in it. Many families we know here fully adopt the spend to the last penny (and then some) to show that you can (or realistically can't) mentality, and for whatever reason it's a much more intense thing in this area vs anywhere else we've lived.

- Close enough to jobs, airport. My wife stays home currently but will go back to work when our youngest starts school. That may be remote work, but moving relatively close to a city/jobs will just expand her options. I have to fly enough that I don't want to be more than ~45 mins from an airport.

- Not too cold and not cold too much of the year. We both grew up in TX and aren't cut out for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, etc winter climates. We love a lot about those places, but we'd never make it through more than a winter or two.

Ok, I think those are the top of the list. The places on our list now (in the US) are the places we've found that match most closely. Appreciate the Shenandoah recommendation, adding it to check out. Would welcome any others we should consider.

Boulder is beautiful but horrifically expensive and the people who live there have been smelling their own farts too long. Longmont and Louisville are very nice and still in Boulder County, but friendlier than Boulder proper, IMO. Still going to be expensive. Count on at least 800k for something nice. Will cost much more the closer to Boulder you get.

I'm on the south side of Denver and really like it. Good schools, houses are more affordable than Boulder. Most of the good restaurants are closer to downtown, though.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

So ugly Midwestern suburbs, then?

I don't know if any Midwestern suburbs that are 2 hours from world class skiing. Maybe i haven't looked close enough.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

You need to include state income tax in this calculation.

Yep. 4.63% on your taxable income.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

It didn't, 30 years ago. But yeah.

We aren't living in 30 years ago, are we?

[Bozo_Casanova 26,468]

I need to read through this thread, but I’ve been thinking about decamping to my cousin’s country house in the Loire Valley and ...  we can’t, because an American passport won’t get us there. Too much winning, apparently.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, staboner said:

guy was looking for drunk british chicks to mug in the middle of the night in the jungle.

aren't we all?

[Bill Lumbergh 7,171]

You mentioned Seattle being to left for you. I'll submit that Boulder very like will be too. It's extremely left.

That, and housing cost, are why Boulder proper is off the list. Reading about culture felt a lot like Seattle, and looking at real estate reminded me of looking in Austin these days.

[Telegraph_it 3,357]

3 hours ago, 52-80 said:

Belarus is so 2009.  It's all about Kaliningrad Oblast these days

Ya. 
 

[Jkwellborn 6,702]

melbourne is. and it sucks. rest of the country seems ok but i am sure other cities will get their second wave soon enough

You seen all the shit that can kill you over there though? Fuck that.

[Telegraph_it 3,357]

46 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

It's Da comrade! Ya is some shit a Nazi would say you fucking moron.

But I pos repped your dumbass anyway.

Haha. I was going for this. Blame google.