I currently live in California, but it’s literally impossible to afford to buy a house.
Where are some good places to move to? I was thinking about Washington State, but I’m not sure I could handle the snow.
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Tennessee still has some affordable housing in rural areas. Very little snow as well.
Are you prepared for no-flouride water, septic tanks, an awful education system, a sub-tropical climate that seems to get less “sub” every year, more types of pollen than you’ve ever dreamed of, more guns than people, and rampant meth/opioid abuse?
Or consider Rural PA, all the same problems, but with the climate of early 2000s Tennessee!
Don’t forget the discrimination and frequent unreported assaults on queer folks and people of color!
Tennessee: The volunteer (to give up any reasonable expectation at a decent quality of life) state!
I’ve lived in Washington State (western) for 4 years total and have seen exactly 10 days of snow the entire time I’ve been here. Houses are still 3-400k. I want to move either closer to SeaTac or down to Vancouver because I bought a house in an area with a lot of flags on trucks if you catch my drift. We have more cloudy days than anything. We get lots of rain but it’s mostly just clouds and drizzles.
That’s my ideal weather. But, yeah, I need to be near a metro area to be happy
I’d personally recommend Vancouver then. Lived there in an apartment for a year and it was a nice mix of urban, suburban and rural. Basically drive 15 minutes in any direction and you’re in a new biome. Personally looking to move back there once I get a new job and sell the house.
I’ve just assumed I’d be priced out of, well anything, there. But I’ve certainly considered it. Haven’t been there in quite a long time though. I should visit there again
I would recommend somewhere in Europe. You will have paid vacation and heathcare insurance and (almost) free school and … :)
One citizenship please!
I’ve looked into relocating there, but citizenship seems difficult?
I also think I read somewhere that there are stricter labor laws so I wouldn’t be able to freelance as heavily (~30 hours a week) alongside having full-time employment?
The Working Time Directive means you can’t work more than 48 hours per week and it also prevents employers from making you work more than 48 hours per week (there are some exceptions eg workers on ships and trainee doctors) but in most EU countries you can opt out of it.
You don’t have to get citizenship.
WE AREN’T INVITED
It’s so frustrating hearing Europeans tell Americans to move there. As if we could just up and run and get visas and jobs. Trust me, if it were easy, I would have done it. I’ve moved across the pale blue dot multiple times and never found an avenue into the EU.
Do you have any idea how difficult immigration is? Maybe you’ve been listening to the Islamaphobes too much… another great reason not to move to Europe btw, what if you’re the wrong color… they have a very different brand of bigotry out there
It depends on the person, but some countries like Austria have points-based systems that will work for some people. It’s how I’m getting a visa currently and I just needed a job offer.
Or you can go hard-mode and take the Svalbard route!
Raleigh/Durham in NC. it’s a little bubble of progressive in a red state. Houses aren’t crazy yet. Lots of tech work. No snow.
Been in this area for almost 35 years. Had to move further south (Johnston Co… like 30 min from downtown Raleigh) to find a house we could afford. Lived in Cary in a townhouse that more than doubled in rent in 10 years.
Can confirm there are quite a few IT jobs. Been in IT since mid 90s.
All in all would recommend this area.
Same as Austin, but housing is not really affordable right now, unless you’re willing to live out in the burbs.
How is the tech pay there? Right now my jobs average between $120k to $200k base.
That range seems correct.
This!
So many comments suggesting American cities… I would rather suggest humbling yourself to the point where you can beg for EU citizenship. There’s no point in the US anymore.
Do you know how hard it is to actually get citizenship outside of usa? If you don’t work in a field that a country wants the website essentially says lol no (Ireland/Canada). They’d also quarantine the shit out of pets and traumatizing fluffy isn’t really top of the list.
I got German citizenship. Took starting over and doing a degree in the country for it to be possible. I also brought fluffy and we did a rabies antibody test and some other things so they didn’t need quarantine.
Edit: This is why I said you need to humble yourself. Maybe that was a poor choice of wording, but the US is a sinking ship and I’d sell all my belongings again if things start looking that dire here too.
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Yes, sadly you seem right.
“No snow” and “Affordable housing” are going to be a tricky combo.
Eastern Washington gets lots of snow and is basically Idaho, but houses are around 3-400k. Western Washington doesnt tend to get much snow, but it does happen, and housing is averaging around 600k for a 2bd/2ba even out in more suburban areas, so not exactly affordable. Big cities think more like 750-850k.
Im also assuming you’re looking for West coast vibes given the Cali to Washington idea. New Mexico/Arizona/Nevada might match what youre looking for.
Where I live it’s lot of snow and also unaffordable housing.
Are you working remotely or would you depend on the local economy for a job?
Because the big catch is, the places you can afford have no work.
Or even with remote work, you need broadband access, so no DSL, no Hughesnet.
This is why I moved to rural Oregon, paid mid-5 figures for a one-off trenched fiber line, and still came out on top.
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Ideally remotely
In that case, look for small-ish towns with decent internet, that’s really all you need.
A friend of mine just moved to California. San Diego. Couldn’t afford a house so he bought a boat and he now lives on the boat. He said the boat is much better than any house. It’s much larger than any house he could maybe afford there and if he doesn’t like San Diego, he could just float away to somewhere else.
Dock slip fees gonna get ya
Just anchor off shore and row in like a pirate. Good exercise too.
This honestly sounds really appealing
How does electricity and sewage work for this? Does their slip have hookups?
Western Washington doesn’t get a lot of snow unless you’re in the mountains.
Snow? Realllllyyyy depends on where in the state
Western Washington gets almost none, and you’ve got the whole I5 corridor to move to. Vancouver is the biggest city with the most affordable housing ratio. Not that it’s an oddly deep red district which is counter intuitive considering its size and proximity to Portland.
Bellingham up near the border is next in line, but it’s smaller and further from city activities.
Tacoma and Olympia are both cities that Seattleites are starting to move to despite the commute due to more affordable housing.
Then there’s Everett, the home of Boeing and about 25 miles north of Seattle. Cheaper than Seattle and has reasonable access to Seattle or to head north to the border. Still expect to pay 600k plus for a house though.
Lastly there’s everything between. It’s all small towns, rural areas, trees, and hills. The spot about smack dab between Tacoma and Portland gets more snow than most of the west side of the state, so maybe not for you. But the rest is good. And these places will all be cheap as hell to buy in. You just won’t have city amenities.
City Nerd has a few great videos on affordable places to live that have urban amenities, for example: https://youtu.be/1qzePci2N6E?si=dWq43GmzH5ObF1q8
Consider SW Michigan. 2h drive/train to Chicago, proximity to large bodies of water for summer enjoyment, and if you live in a reasonably-sized town they’re probably good at clearing roads when it snows.
Besides, our winters get milder each year. There’s a couple of big snow/ice events, but the trick is to not be on the road while the heavy stuff is coming down. Wait a few hours for it to ease up and for the snow plows to do their thing.
Shhhhhhh.
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What’s your issue with snow?
I’ve never lived in it, so I wouldn’t want to be a menace on the icy roads
I have lived in a snow area for decades after moving from California.
Nobody knows how to drive in the snow here. They forget every year, so you will fit right in. Get a car with AWD, leave room to stop, accelerate slowly, no throttle when sliding to regain traction(don’t put your foot to the floor), and keep your tires where others have driven. Snow tires are amazing, but not necessary and are a hassle. Keep a small snow shovel in the trunk and non-folding traction mats if you can. You should also keep a charged jumper pack in your car because the cold don’t give a shit about you needing to start your car.
Can’t be any worse than most of the people who have lived in it their whole lives.
Seriously, I’d take someone new to driving in snowy/icy conditions over someone who has a bunch of misplaced confidence in their driving skills because they’ve “been driving in worse than this for decades!” in a heartbeat.
The newbie is much more likely to actually adapt to the conditions and drive more cautiously.
Don’t worry, loads of people that live in a snowy climate also are a menace on the road.
You’ll get used to them. Just remember to check if your tire profile is deep enough (4 mm), and slow down before curves + start accelerating halfway through them. And obviously keep more distance than usual.
Oh and always carry chains. Putting them on the tires isn’t too hard, but try it once before (when your hands aren’t cold and you aren’t stressed). Most of the time you won’t need them but when you do need them you really do.
not an issue if you live in a city centre where you won’t need to drive, or on the outskirts of somewhere that has good public transit. hard to say what your requirements are though; if you’re planning to have to commute or otherwise.
Icy roads are generally ok if you have a front or 4 wheel drive and you know they’re icy so are on high alert and ready to deal with other motorists doing reckless shit which is 99% of the issues you’ll face (like driving their rear wheel drive car round a corner up a hill, then spinning out as they accelerated too hard and ending up sliding back down the road towards you, which happened to me but as I was driving reasonably I just pulled over to the side)
What you’ve gotta watch out for is wet leaves though… Sounds innocent enough but in the wrong conditions they’re as slippy as if not more than ice and because usually they’re fine your brain just dismisses them until the day you slide/spin on them
Just live where other people don’t want to live. Living in desirable places drives the prices up.
