Doh!.. sorry,
Posted on 02/22/2007 10:59:33 AM PST by Maneesh
After 16 years in Massachusetts I have finally had it. I have gone from having a love affair with the state to feeling completely out of place in this socialist, over-regulated, over taxed, cold and ridiculously expensive state. I used to think that the state would turn around but now I have accepted that it is a lost cause. I am a staunch conservative and am totally ashamed of all the elected officials in this state so politics is a big reason why I will leave.
Here are the factors which will influence the decision of where I will move to and I welcome feedback from my fellow freepers whose opinion I value for the most part. These factors are NOT in order of priority.
Small Government
Low State Taxes
Low Sales Taxes
Low property taxes
Decent school system with choices for private schools
Low Crime Rate
Moderate Climate
Low to Moderate Housing Costs
Close to a major airport
Cosmopolitan area
Diversified economy
Not too many ivy league schools in the area
Nice and friendly people
The 2 areas I am considering right now are Houston, TX and Raleigh-Durham, NC. I am open to considering other areas. The north-east, the upper mid-west and the west coast are not in the running.
I know there are other New England Freepers that are in the same situation. 1 of 3 Mass residents are looking to escape.
Greenville-Spartanburg, SC.
Try New Hampshire
Alabama. :) You have mountains and beaches. Low property taxes. 2 Senators to be proud of and 5 Congressmen to be proud of. Best bet is to live in the suburbs near the city areas.(Higher republican populations there.) Good luck!
Good School Systems, Godd Industrial Base
Dallas Cowboys?
"You really ought to give Iowa a try. "
"Try New Hampshire"
I have considered that but NH is fast becoming a suburb of Boston and is truning purple to blue. That and the weather is even colder. Still NH is the best area in the North East.
Nashville, TN. It has all the economic advantages, it's growing, and it's also a cultural center, especially with respect to music. Film is also growing there. Also, TN doesn't have an income tax.
Happiness is not a destination.
Come on down to the Lake of the Ozarks or SW Missouri lakes region. You may have to relearn the language but you would be welcome here...
St. Louis County and St. Charles County, Missouri are nice and meet your criteria.
New Hampshire.
"Plano/Reichardson Texas"
The Dallas area is on my list of places. Would you pick Dallas over Houston or Austin. I love Texas.
Take off the 'moderate' climate and check out the mountain states: Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Idaho, Colorado.
The whole DFW area is worth checking out.
The only bad thing about Nashville is that it can get hotter than hell in June, July, and August, and it's a humid kind of heat.
Well, I guess that rules out my beloved home-state of West Virginia, Wild and Wonderful.
Ditto those areas of Missouri!
Doh!.. sorry,
;-)
Stay - Stand -Fight... Your forefathers did.
I was doing a little research and looking at the Branson area for retirement, what do you think?
Kennesaw, GA, where, by law, you must own at least one firearm.
Coeurdalane Idaho
I must second this recommendation. It just seems since I moved here 4yrs ago, everything has just fell into place. Great restaurants, great people, and very conservative. Looking forward to raising my family here.
Fresno California is a great place to live. The population is growing and it is a fairly conservative county.
The only downside to Fresno is the extremely hot summers and foggy winters.
Homes are affordable and some of the scools are good.
Just my 2 cents.
IIRC, the Raleigh-Durham area is a leftist fantasyland. I adore NC, but when hubby retires, we will be moving to coastal NC. My kids will be pretty much done with school by then, so that won't be a worry.
I would have said check out Florida. It meets many of your criterion. Public schools are bad though.
The only problem with Florida is that therea are too many people from Massachussets and NY.
I guess the Fort Worth Zoo is better!
yes, I'm in Nashville, and it seems to fit your requirements.
Cosmopolitan, but not TOO cosmopolitan! Housing not exactly cheap, but cheaper than MA at least.
"Stay - Stand -Fight... Your forefathers did"
I have to admier your sentiments and do want to fight to contribute to saving the nation. Would people leaving MA in droves, there will be less of it to save anyways ! The one bright spot in the story is that MA will lose congressional seats very soon.
None of the suggestions so far have met that criteria in my book.
But then again 'Cosmopolitan areas' are nice places to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.
If a city has both great Thai food and great BBQ that's 'Cosmopolitan' enough for me. Could care less if the area has an Opera, Symphony and Ballet.
"Stay - Stand -Fight... Your forefathers did."
It's tough if you have kids and they have to grow up in that kind of environment, though.
and yes, the summers are hot here. We go to Amherst, Mass and Martha's Vineyard in the summer!!
Don't come to Wyoming.
We already have enough "escapees" who actually want what they have at "home", but want someone else to pay for it.
Awesome beautiful town and area, but a little left leaning and getting really expensive (well in comparison to other areas of Idaho).
I'd personally vote for Idaho myself (I'm biased of course) but would go further south, but not too far south or you end up in high desert which just isn't all that great if you like you know...trees
Home schooling is relatively easy in NC. My oldest two got into NC State with no trouble at all, and thrived there. (Greg graduated, Dori married Greg's classmate!) Many excellent churches, including mine, King's Park International Churc (www.kpic.org)
No state sales tax and no state income tax (only state in the continental US that can claim that)
Second lowest state and local tax burden in the US (after Alaska)
NH is usually ranked the Most Livable State in the US
New Hampshire is the 4th Safest State
Its the #1 ranked state for Well-Being of Children
And NH has some of the best gun laws in the nation...you can carry openly without a permit
By all means do NOT come to suburban Kansas City. Even though we meet all your criteria we want to keep it to ourselves.
Boy can I relate. I could have written your post about Washington state. Regardless, do NOT move to Washington unless you plan to live east of the mountains, and job bases there are sketchy outside of Spokane. Forget the western side of the state. The rat population outnumbers the rest of the state and makes (or steals) all voting decisions for all. Spineless Republican leadership and overrun with socialist-leftists ideologues complete the picture.
You never heard of Duke? UNC Chapel Hill is almost as bad.
If you like C & W music, its heaven. Note Lake of the Ozarks is north of Branson/Springfield.
I hear you. You are Atlas Shrugging - and that's ok too.
You need months of rehab, political re-education; practical lessons in staying warm and dry without the direct intervention of a Kennedy, a Kerry, a Whitey Bulger, you'll need to re-learn English, (even to speak to others from New England), and perhaps even a new wardrobe.
I know this sounds a bit cruel (even for Maine) but we cannot allow the many septic mental contagions that inflict even the best of the Commonwealth's present citizens, into other states. It could mean chaos.
If you're determined to leave Kerry-Kennedy-Bulger Land, you might want to start with short day-trips to, O say, Providence, Hartford, or Manchester. See if you can handle the shock of displacement.. See if natives of other regions can handle you.
Trust me, we know a lot about the problem here in Maine, for we have been bearing the brunt of this exodus for years, and it ain't pretty.
"Please define 'Cosmopolitan area' for us.
None of the suggestions so far have met that criteria in my book.
But then again 'Cosmopolitan areas' are nice places to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.
If a city has both great Thai food and great BBQ that's 'Cosmopolitan' enough for me. Could care less if the area has an Opera, Symphony and Ballet."
I agree with your definition of cosmopolitan. Houston, TX is my ideal cosmopolitan city, access to everything without liberals taking over the place. I could do without the opera and ballet, good restaurants are a must though.
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