We am hoping our countryside "family" can help us with a decesion of moving in the next year. Presently we live in upstate, cental Pa. A beautiful part of the state. But the short summers and the wet springs are beginning to really bother us. We can handle the very cold winters and all the wood cutting involved but our decesion has been made. We are willing to leave our little homestead that we have been on for the past 20 years. This is where hopefully you all can give some help. We would like to settle between West Va and South Carolina. Not knowing very much about the areas how do you find out about land, homes, jobs etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

-- Helena , (windyacs/@ptdprolog.net), June 13, 2000

Answers

Response to Advice on relocating

Dear Helena, We relocated our farm three years ago. It wasn't the spring that we disliked, it was the long winters of New Hampshire. We got crazy one winter morning and got out the U.S. atlas. My husband held the map I closed my eyes and pointed. My finger landed in Kentucky and we moved here. First we took a "road trip" down here to see if we liked it here. We talked with a lot of people and drove around for 3 days. I had already spoken with a realtor to get some idea about prices of property. I just stopped into a BIG real estate company, happened to be Coldwell Bankers, and they put it on their computer and a wonderful man from Kentucky called us. We also kept in mind the job issue. You can't pay taxes without money, the area here had plenty of industry to get a job. I love it here and the kids have a great school system, they would prefer to stay in school all year long they like it so much. I guess you have to sit down and figure out the issues that are important to you and your family, then investigate it. The library should have some information on those areas you are looking at. If you have any specific questions don't hesitate to e-mail me directly. Take Care.

-- Emily (bellyacresfarm@kyk.net), June 13, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

I live in Stafford, Virginia which is 40 miles south of Washington, DC. I would advise that you not bother to look anywhere within a sixty mile radius of Washington because it will be too expensive. The people that work for the Federal Government, I am one, usually have both husband and wife working for the Government and have very good incomes, hubby doesn't work for the Government, and therefore prices are outrageous particularly if you want some land.

We moved here from New Hampshire and did so because of my job but I find the summers are very, very hot and humid. I have to limit my outdoor activities to before 10 am and after 6 pm because of it. I do like the springs and falls though because they are mild, tee shirt weather from March on through some of December, with occassional exceptions so it gives us a long growing season. Hubby, being Italian and having an olive complexion has no problem working outside most of the day but the pollen does affect his breathing. If you have allergies, this area seems to aggravate them.

If I had it to do over again and didn't need to commute to DC, I would go more towards the mountains so the elevation would make the summers cooler. Anything west of the Blue Ridge mountains tends to be less expensive, particularly West Virginia but I don't know how the employment is.

Hope this helps. And good luck.

-- Colleen (pyramidgreatdanes@erols.com), June 13, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

You really need to come to Florida. Change your last name to Rogriquez, Munoz or Garcia and come on down. The state will put you up in a $91,000 3 bedroom, 2 bath condo in a gated community, finance $30,000 for a vehicle, provide free health care, make sure your kids have "ethnic" food at school and prosecute anyone who complains about your treatment. You may think I'm joking. I wish I were. I pay for it all. Come on down. Everything is free.

-- John and Pat James (jjames@n-jcenter.com), June 13, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

Consider WV. It is cheap and lots of choices re: land. You may have to look for open land or settle for land with a hillside. In the North Central region we are within 2 hours of the state capital, 1 1/2 hours of Pittsburgh, PA, and 3 hours of DC. Oh, and 5 hours from Cleveland, three and 1/2 hours from Columbus, OH, and within easy driving of several colleges and universities.

If you are truly interested in WV, let us know here at the Countryside forum and I will post some sites. Try calling 1-800-CALL- WVA for tourist info.

There's still humidity and heat, and the trend is that heat will be here for years. Fruit and nut trees grow great here, and people are friendly, and open to new ideas!

Let us know what you decide.

-- Anne (Ht @HM.com), June 13, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

When we were thinking about relocating, we spent many cozy evenings leafing through an atlas until we decided on three possible states and the areas we would be interested in learning about.

We then subscribed to the Sunday papers from these areas. Using the papers, we could learn about jobs, real estate, politics, crime and all the local issues. This was a BIG help in choosing which state and region we wanted to live in.

Our next step was the camping trip to our chosen area. Putting in applications with temp agencies, where you can get immediate work and applications for your long-term employment goals. Then searching for an affordable rental. Then go home, have a yard sale and start packing.

I would not recommend buying real estate in an area until you 've lived there for a little while. It gives you more time to look for the perfect place and to tweak your plans for work and community needs.

Anyway, it worked for us. We did a lot of plan tweaking and now have the dream job, the perfect property and the nicest community anyone could hope for.

I wish you good fortune on your coming adventure. Laura

-- Laura (gsend@hotmail.com), June 15, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

I recommend a strong job market being a prime consideration in relocating. Unfortunately, rural areas, which are the best places to live, usually have the fewest good paying job. It's a trade off. I strong agree about renting in an area before buying. Gives you time to confirm your decision. I love where I am at in West Central Tenn., but I couldn't live here if I didn't have an income and health benefits from taking early retirement.

-- Ken Scharabok (scharabo@aol.com), June 16, 2000.

Response to Advice on relocating

Helena, When I get the wandering blues, usually pick a general location,pick a town that is centrally located and get a newspaper subsciption for a month or two. This will give you an idea of jobs, cost of living and prices of property. It has helped me decide where to go or where not to go. I like Tennessee quite a bit although the price of land has gone up a lot. karen

-- Karen Mauk (dairygoatmama@hotmail.com), June 17, 2000.