Places to move.. ?

cardine said:
I've never lived there so I don't know for sure, but I don't think San Francisco would fit within a $200k budget.
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Yeah, not so much. I lived there and really had to scrimp to make it on 70k as a single 23 y/o woman; I was still sleeping on an air mattress in my 1850 and 2150/mo apartments while liberally crashing my aunt and uncle's place for meals between paychecks. Don't get me wrong- it is beautiful, and certainly if you are in the internet industry in any way shape or form... it's a hard place to beat.

But there is a reason the city, per capita, has the fewest children/ families of any major metropolitan area in the country.
San Francisco: A Childless Future? : NPR

The Rent is Too Damn High!

papajohn56 said:
Charleston, SC, specifically Mount Pleasant. Your budget is good (it's a 'wealthier' area but still really affordable), some of the best schools in the state (Wando HS is a USNews silver medal school), it's on the coast, sunny and warm most of the year, and taxes are much MUCH lower than Florida in every way.
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Couldn't agree more with PapaJohn. I had a lot of classmates (The Citadel) who came from Massachusetts, Maryland, and Georgia and ended up staying in Charleston. The cost of living is comparatively low, there are lots of good schools, great restaurants, very little crime (consider my perspective is shaped by living in Philly, but still), ample culture- amazing views.

If you can get over heat and humidity it's probably the best of all possible worlds.
 


phillian said:
Yeah, not so much. I lived there and really had to scrimp to make it on 70k as a single 23 y/o woman; I was still sleeping on an air mattress in my 1850 and 2150/mo apartments
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Wow. Was there a reason you decided to drop so much cash on your apt? What is the point of spending so much money on rent when you make 70k??? If you had spent $1k - 1.2k/month you still could have afforded to live in a decently nice neighborhood and had money left over to actually spend enjoying your life instead of imprisoning yourself in a lavish apartment because you didnt have the money to go out and explore/enjoy where you lived.
 
If you have a family: Wellington, Florida.

Best family town I've ever been in... amazing schools, polo clubs, neighborhoods with runways in the backyard, EXTREMELY safe.

It's just west of West Palm Beach (18-20 minutes west of the Atlantic), about an 1.2 hours north by northwest of Miami.

wellington%20aerial.jpg


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Typical home style

From overhead, lots of waterways
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Wellington, Florida - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wellington, Florida (FL 33414) profile: population, maps, real estate, averages, homes, statistics, relocation, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, moving, houses, sex offenders, news, sex offenders

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=welli...code_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CCkQ8gEwAA

Also look at Royal Palm Beach & Loxahatchee.

Tampa SUCKS, the locals call themselves Tampons... Think about that.

Miami sucks if you have a family, trust me... If I had a family Wellington is where I'd live.

As for price? There are MANY, MANY homes that went for 280-340K in 2002-2005 that are now in foreclosure, preforeclosures, REO.
 
papajohn56 said:
Charleston, SC, specifically Mount Pleasant. Your budget is good (it's a 'wealthier' area but still really affordable), some of the best schools in the state (Wando HS is a USNews silver medal school), it's on the coast, sunny and warm most of the year, and taxes are much MUCH lower than Florida in every way.
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+1 on charleston.. Im actually moving there in december.. great weather, beaches, plenty to do, and real estate is affordable. Personally I like JI/Folly area but Mt.P is probably a better area for a family.
 
bigb3433 said:
+1 on charleston.. Im actually moving there in december.. great weather, beaches, plenty to do, and real estate is affordable. Personally I like JI/Folly area but Mt.P is probably a better area for a family.
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JI/Folly are nice, so is West Ashley. One of my favorite beaches in SC is about 45mins south, Edisto Beach.
 
bigb3433 said:
+1 on charleston.. Im actually moving there in december.. great weather, beaches, plenty to do, and real estate is affordable. Personally I like JI/Folly area but Mt.P is probably a better area for a family.
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Folly Beach is amazing. If I was single and had my choice- it's definitely where I'd live near Charleston.

aswinglater said:
Wow. Was there a reason you decided to drop so much cash on your apt? What is the point of spending so much money on rent when you make 70k??? If you had spent $1k - 1.2k/month you still could have afforded to live in a decently nice neighborhood and had money left over to actually spend enjoying your life instead of imprisoning yourself in a lavish apartment because you didnt have the money to go out and explore/enjoy where you lived.
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When I was there, just post the bubble, rents were sky high. 2150 was a 1 bedroom loft in SoMa. That was too expensive, so I moved into the 1850- a 2 bedroom in North Beach which I had hoped to be able to split with a roommate. A single or studio was minimum 1100-1200 anyway. My brother split a house with 5 other irresponsible people way out in Outer Richmond and was still on the hook for $750/mo not including utilities.

Bottom line, if you are making bank, don't live in San Fran. And even if you are making bank you can save a lot of money by living outside the city.
 
I've lived in Charleston, SC and currently live in Clearwater, FL (minutes from Tampa). Both are great areas, but I love the "feel" down here. Very laid back at most places.
 
phillian said:
When I was there, just post the bubble, rents were sky high. 2150 was a 1 bedroom loft in SoMa. That was too expensive, so I moved into the 1850- a 2 bedroom in North Beach which I had hoped to be able to split with a roommate. A single or studio was minimum 1100-1200 anyway. My brother split a house with 5 other irresponsible people way out in Outer Richmond and was still on the hook for $750/mo not including utilities.

Bottom line, if you are making bank, don't live in San Fran. And even if you are making bank you can save a lot of money by living outside the city.
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Phillian is right. rent is pretty expensive and just getting higher. we have a loft that is enar the embarcadero and people pay ridiculous rent.

we lived in san francisco but just moved...weather was too chilly and schools sucked. we are now across the golden gate bridge in marin where it is warmer/sunnier and schools wayyyy better....but marin is not cheap. medium home price is around $700k...

there may be some places a bit further north. With the foreclosure mess you can find properties that were $400-500k in the $200-300k range. good deals abound.
 
Moxie said:
state income tax?
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We have a state income tax, but the net amount in taxes you pay (or as a % of income) is much lower in SC. I've lived in FL and SC.


NightG said:
I've lived in Charleston, SC and currently live in Clearwater, FL (minutes from Tampa). Both are great areas, but I love the "feel" down here. Very laid back at most places.
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I get more that feeling from Charleston, but I'm originally from Chicago.
 
Moxie said:
state income tax?
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Florida has no state income tax, property taxes depend on the county (Miami's are high for example), and sales tax is at 6%. That taxes are high in Florida argument is ludicrous.

The only thing high in Florida is that it's ungodly hot in the summer.
 
Soupyone said:
Florida has no state income tax, property taxes depend on the county (Miami's are high for example), and sales tax is at 6%. That taxes are high in Florida argument is ludicrous.

The only thing high in Florida is that it's ungodly hot in the summer.
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Property taxes in Florida in most areas blow ass. It's certainly better than Cali or up North, but like I said, net tax burden is lower in SC.
 
I visited a friend down in in south carolina, right outside of charleston on some island, I forget the name though. It was really nice down there and from what I can tell the price of living wasn't too high. I would pick that over most other places in the country, but I still like living in NJ where it has four seasons a year. The same weather all year must suck, it's too boring and never changes.


Edit: just found out where it was. Isle of Palms.
 
roclafamilia said:
I visited a friend down in in south carolina, right outside of charleston on some island, I forget the name though. It was really nice down there and from what I can tell the price of living wasn't too high. I would pick that over most other places in the country, but I still like living in NJ where it has four seasons a year. The same weather all year must suck, it's too boring and never changes.


Edit: just found out where it was. Isle of Palms.
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It's not the same year round here, we do get seasons, it just stays warmer longer.
 
papajohn56 said:
It's not the same year round here, we do get seasons, it just stays warmer longer.
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Yeah but winter is cut extremely short and summer is longer...where as here summer, fall, winter and spring are all about three months each...I like being able to play hockey on the frozen lake and then take the boat out in the bay or ocean to swim and wakeboard or fish, then in the spring and fall do a lot of outdoor activities where it's not too hot or too cold. It makes you have do to do thing when it's available, and not when you'd like...which is nice because if you can do it whenever you want then you just put it off and never do it...that's why i'm on the boat about 80 days a year. all in about a three month period too.
 
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