What's a smart way to decide where to relocate?

Question

We've outgrown our house in Houston suburbia and can't decide whether to stay in the same area or explore new frontiers. I'm a graphic designer and my husband is a construction project manager. We have 3 kids ages 8, 3, & 10 months. I would love somewhere with lots of action, mild climate, and every amenity. I am really inclined to go somewhere new but don't want to go in blind and wind up hating it. What is a good strategy here? (aside from paying thousands to visit every city on my wish list) Thanks :)

Answer 1

When I wanted to move from Phoenix, I read the "Places Rated Almanac", since I'd lived in the Midwest and knew I didn't want to go back to the cold, but knew I didn't like extreme heat either! It really helped me narrow down the areas of the country where I wanted to live. I chose NC and have lived here over 20 years! Here's a link to see a review of the book:
http://www.amazon.com/Places-Rated-Almanac-Special-Millennium/dp/0028634470

Good luck!

Answer 2

This is from my experience for your kids. Looking at their ages you two are still pretty young, so wherever you go doesn't have to be the last place you settle down. My parents moved my siblings and me at the ages 4 months to 8 years from The Netherlands to California for the same reasons you want to relocate. 10 years later we moved back to The Netherlands at the ages 8 to 18 (one sister was born in the US).

The effect that had on us is still, now 25 years later, something we discuss frequently. It has had it's good and bad sides. Of course the move to the US wasn't as dramatic because we were around the ages your kids are and at that age it is easy to adapt. We loved the climate and spent every chance we could at the beach. When we moved back it was more difficult. My sister who was 16 and popular at school suddenly talked different and looked different than the other girls. But none of us regret it because we have learned a lot from meeting new people and different cultures. I think even relocating within the US can have the same effect.

So my advice would be to keep that in mind when you make your decision. I've lived in several places around the world since then, and I found that life is pretty much what you make it wherever you go. In our family we always say every new place you go seems to have one thing in common, and that is that you are always there. Don't base your decision on "the action" as you call it because unless you're the type that takes your kids on field trips every weekend in Houston, chances are you won't do that anywhere else. Try to picture how everyday life would be in the places you have your heart set on. Would your husband rather be working on a skyscraper while you're in an office downtown or would you both be happier in a small town where life might be slower but your both home on time for dinner?

In my opinion your biggest responsibility is with your kids and where you think they would be happiest and grow up to be successful adults. Try asking their opinion, you might be surprised at their answers!

Answer 3

Each person is different and you will have do a lot of the research for what you want. Mild climates.. would that be like Georgia, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Florida? Or would you be talking about the Virgin Islands.. I loved it there. I would say you need to ask for Vacation and State information on each place you are thinking about moving too. Then start checking out the areas in those states that interest you. Write to the Chamber of Commerce for each of those areas and get information on each town or city.
I wish you the best of luck.

Answer 4

Doing a lot of on line research is a good thing. You can go to different sites like MSN and do a city comparison by filling in some questions. Since you know what you want you should look for areas or cities that offer those things and then narrow them down and after you have done that, then plan a visit.

Answer 5

Hey Kirs10,

Take vacations in different locations. Stay somewhere, investigate the things you like to do where you go. OR, come to Myrtle Beach. We have a tourist industry and desirable beaches. You have to bring your own work with you because jobs are limited. There is plenty of construction work here, but land a job first. The climate is not FLORIDA HOT, but we rarely ever get snow. The internet offers a wide variety of web sites to look at to understand Myrtle Beach somewhat. There are campgrounds on the BEACH, better reserve now. Hotels, 40 contiguous miles of BEACH. The Grand Strand runs 60 miles from North Carolina boarder down south to Pauli's Island. Stores, parks, Nascar, Nascar kids park (adult size go-carts too), Broadway at the Beach, Barefoot Landing, over 100 18 hole golf courses, and over 50 mineature Golf courses. Homes are not as expensive as elsewhere, but are not cheap. Property Taxes are hmmm, less than elsewhere by 2 to 4 times. The City plans events all year long. The SHAG festival, CANAM, Harley Bike Week, Forgien Bike Week, Sun-n-Fun festival, there is always something going on.

Me, I spend my time in the waves fishing, and boogie boarding. There are inland winding slow moving black water rivers, with lots of fish and ducks.

Here is just a sample of sites, there are too many.

Answer 6

We did this last year. What we did was buy three or four poster boards and put them up somewhere. On the poster boards we printed out photos of different cities.... the beauty that it offers. Then we looked online... starting at Yahoo and in the search bar typing in "most livable city" lists. We checked Forbes magazine and Money magazine for the "Best Cities to Live in America" We went online and found chat rooms or even Yahoo Answers and asked people about the particular city we were interested in and asked them if they enjoyed living there. We made two final visits to our two favorites and then made a decison on it. Our children...well I mean child (our 11 year old) sense the other one was only 3 helped make the decision and was part of the research help. It was great and worked out great for us. I know you said you want to live in a mild climate so I will not send you our final pick of Madison, WI from Tampa, FL. Tampa was too much of a party place... great to visit and sit on the beach but not the best place to raise kids. I used to live in Houston when I was younger (from ages 7 to 16) and it has definetly changed since then.... I am now 34. I am sad how it has changed. My sister still lives there but is planning to move. There are a lot of great cities out there. I will help you find more info if you have any questions please feel free to ask me and I will send you some great places to research. I am also a recruiter... specialize in Medical.... but I can send you all to some great recruiters who can definetly help in finding new opportunities. Recruiters are free to you and help you get more money and possible sign on bonuses (for high demand fields).

Anyways, I say go for it. It was a great choice for us


Also, don't worry about whether a city or state has higher taxes or a state Tax... it all works itself out. I have found that states with a state tax or a higher state tax seem to have a lower property tax or sales tax... it all works itself out. We moved from Florida with high insurance (6500 a year!!! and property tax of 5500 a year!!) and live in a state with a state tax but a lower property and sales tax. However, it does also come with some of the best schools we have ever seen.

Good Luck!

Answer 7

Do lots of research first. Look for cities that are consistently rated in the Top Ten - Austin, TX and Boise, ID are usually there. I've lived in both places and loved them more than anything.

Once you've narrowed it down, start asking around for contacts in those cities. E-mail those people and find out the best and worst parts of the city.

When you've narrowed it down to 2 or 3 cities, take a short trip to each one. Go durnig the off season, wait for cheap plane tickets and look for hotel deals. There's no reason it should cost much.

I've learned a good way to get a feel for a new city is by shopping. How do the people treat you? (Because that's how they've been treated by their customers!) Walk down a busy street and see if people say hi, shove past you, etc.

No matter how a place looks geographically, it's the people who make or break it.

Answer 8

Lot of good advice here. In case no one mentioned it, it's always good to visit the Magen's Law website for the area you are interested in. It will let you see where the sex offenders are for any neighborhood anywhere. I seen this website on TV and keep a reference to it in case I need to move. Being you have small children, you may find this site helpful and a great way to protect your children. The link below is for California. To try a different state, just do a search on Yahoo with keywords Megan's law and state name and that state will come up. Good luck on your search!

Answer 9

I did the same thing a year and a half ago. I decided to move to Raleigh, NC. The weather is mild, it's a large enough city that there's lots to do, but there are still places to live that have a small town feel to them. It's very laid back there & there are lots of job opportunities there. You should definitely consider!

Answer 10

I can't help you much since I am having this similar problem. I think you have gotten some pretty good advice here. Make a list of possible places you are willing to go, get all the info you can on them and then look for a job in that area before you move.

:)