So the work I do is 100% remote now. I moved to Southern California because of an industry that has in part moved to remote work. My only requirements are a temperate climate, nature access and hopefully a blue-ish state. Is there a place out there that makes sense financially? I’m hoping to buy a house less then 500k. I don’t need access to large cities as I honestly don’t do anything. The only requirement I can think of is access to solid internet as I stream full screen video for what I do.
I’m currently looking at Michigan and Virginia as options.
Depending how adventurous you feel MX is an awesome place.
Ashland, OR.
Anywhere in New England is great, but I’m also biased.
Also except New Hampshire, but I’m also biased being from Massachusetts.
Plus you’re so close to Quebec and Toronto which are super fun to visit. Western MA has a ton of nature trails in the summer and skiing trails in the winter. Plus Massachusetts history is great!
New England tends to be a bit cold no? Seems like 6-8 months will be on the very cold side
It depends on what your version of cold is haha. I love it but it tends to start to get colder toward the end of october and then get warmer around the middle or end of march; anywhere between 30ish to 50ish (as a high) though of course with climate change (sigh) it’s pretty much all over the place!
I don’t mind cold but I have to keep my wife in mind. Grew up in NJ and run hot. I miss snow but I only got to experience the good parts of it in NJ. Moved out of NJ at 14 so it was all snowmen and snow days
It’s pretty hit or miss with snow these days; when we do get it, there can be pretty significant amounts (especially in western and central mass) but I think this past winter we only had like 1 or 2 significant storms compared to when I was growing up. But yeah if she doesn’t like cold too much it might be difficult
Luckily with climate change, it’ll be perfect eventually right? Silver lining and all
I’m laughing but I’m also crying inside!
It’s a sad thing that’s guiding my house / coffin purchase
West Virginia. No I’m not kidding.
They will pay you $12,000 to move there. Housing costs are absurdly low. Morgantown is a thriving university town close to Pittsburgh. And the eastern panhandle has a lot of access to VA & MD.
Move there and vote please.
I’m seriously considering this, thanks. If you had to say, what are the downsides of West VA?
If you’re trying to find work if the remote gig fails, good friggin luck
Yeah, this is definitely a thought, but in all honestly, it’s either remote work or one end of a shotgun for me
Poor infrastructure, schools, and amenities.
Go on….
West Virginians.
Are they still giving out free mountain bikes to new residents?
Country Roads, take me home…
Sounds like a deal!
I just fell in love with West Virginia a few weeks back. So beautiful and while not a blue state, exactly, the people there were so welcoming and kind.
“Bluish state” or “makes sense financially”… pick one because AFAIK they seem to be mutually exclusive. If you find somewhere like this with good broadband, please let me know so we can be neighbors!
Wichita, KS is a wonderful town with its own kind of chill vibe, and cost of living is low. But Kansas is definitely not a blue-ish state, despite its current Democratic governor.
Still, I love it here. But if I could pick up the city and move it over to Colorado or something, I would.
@ImADifferentBird I was going to say somewhere in Western Kansas would be good as Wichita is Koch-sucking territory, but OP said they’re an introvert so they may be able to put up with the bullshit. Out on this side of the state it’s mostly senile old people with backwards-ass views and the occasional extremist douche that the rest of the community laughs at the second they open their mouths.
Maybe it’s just the crowd I hang out with in Wichita, but it feels like it’s become that way as well. Younger generations here are much more liberal than old people. Koch is one of the largest employers in town still, but I feel like their influence on our politics is waning.
Luckily even though I lean blue, I am an introvert to a fault and as long as I have enough buffer and seclusion, I honestly don’t care. No children so I don’t have that worry.
Virginia still has cheap areas and is a blue state thanks to the DC area and Hampton Roads, but the cheap areas suck and don’t necessarily have broadband access or mobile coverage.
Are you a blue voter or do you just like blue areas?
https://www.kiplinger.com/real-estate/places-to-live/601488/25-cheapest-us-cities-to-live-in
Michigan isn’t a friendly place for taxes on middle-class families. Things have changed with the influx of people from neighboring blue states. For example, my hometown of Grand Rapids, which once had an average midwestern cost of living, is now no longer affordable:
- So-called affordable housing in Westside is around $2000/mo
- Rooms start around $800/mo, which is more than my mortgage payment an hour south in Kalamazoo
- Houses under $500,000 are plentiful, but you’ll be a belligerent in a bidding war to get one. Furthermore, you won’t be getting a palace at that price.
Also, if you are looking for somewhere temperate, you’ll only have that here May through August.
Are you a blue voter or do you just like blue areas?
People live longer in blue areas. In America, the difference could be as many as 10 years.
Virginia still has cheap areas and is a blue state thanks to the DC area and Hampton Roads, but the cheap areas suck and don’t necessarily have broadband access or mobile coverage.
Virginia is roughly purple. The General Assembly is hung (one house majority Republican, the other majority Democratic), and the governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general are all Republican.
The DC area is ridiculously expensive ($1 million or $2500/month is quite possible). I can’t speak to Hampton Roads.
The city of Richmond, most of Henrico County (not Varina), Charles City County, and part of Chesterfield County are blue. Charles City County is cheap but good luck getting a phone signal with certain carriers or getting internet access. Glen Allen, Short Pump, and the West End (all Henrico County) are all pretty expensive as well but less so than DC.
I honestly don’t care red vs blue but my wife would take a bit of convincing to move to a red state. We live in the outskirts of LA county and have never taken advantage of that so I feel like we’re wasting money and roasting, especially considering we’re now 100% remote
Seriously consider Scranton, PA. I live here and most houses go for well under your budget. You get all the seasons, are surrounded by state forest, and multi gigabit internet is available (thru Comcast unfortunately but other ISP’s are moving in soon). Also it’s in a county that remained blue during PA’s 2016 turn to red.
I know this was a joke but it is actually interesting…supposedly Scranton was the first city in the US (or maybe PA) with electric street lights.
Would you say there’s any downsides to PA? Scranton seems like it may fall on the colder side yearly but not too bad
The Scranton Strangler qualifies as a downside…
I mean yes…but Scranton has made one of those safest cities in the US lists…I think like top 100
PA can be fairly cold expect snow and ice every year. It does snow in Virginia as well but I can tell you it’s on average atleast 10 degrees warmer in VA vs PA year round. (Lived in both areas). Virginia is wetter (and far more humid than CA) and has more hills since Appalachia cuts right through a lot of the western part of the state. If you don’t like the outdoors I’d suggest eastern Virginia. If you like the outdoors western Virginia is great for outdoor activity (hit or miss on things like high speed internet, research any specific towns your interested in out there.) One thing I will say is that Virginia is NOT blue. But then Scranton is probably considered the beginnings of Pennsyltucky too.
Thanks!
Scranton is a dot of blue surrounded by red…but overall the area is fairly moderate with a few crazies.
A little while ago, I read an argument that Traverse City, MI will be the next Portland. I think that’s right. There’s a lot of outdooring within a day drive, and it’s pretty affordable.
Your main downsides are summer wildfire smoke will presumably be a regular thing going forward, and winters are cold with lots of snow thanks to lake effect. Michigan politics are interesting, and Traverse City is in a historically red part of the state - but I think that’s changing.
500k will definitely get you a good house unless you want something extremely new or right downtown. That particular listing is also one block away from one of my favorite breweries of all time.
Ironically my wife mentioned Traverse. We’re thinking of a lake house situation and I like the Michigan weather with climate change in mind. Thanks!
If you go with this option and haven’t lived in a cold climate before, do your research! A lot of the lake towns up there clear out during the winter because it can be pretty rough. That also means a fair amount of property maintenance every Spring (weather damage etc). If you’re new there will be a bit of a learning curve (taking in docks, potentially a septic tank, etc). I would seriously consider visiting in the winter before you commit, and also looking up when spring typically kicks in (they have long winters).
It is gorgeous and would be a lovely environment to sit on your computer.
I would not say the area feels blue even though parts are— you’ll see more trump signs than in socal (still for some reason), and fishing, beer, and hunting are quite common hobbies which makes it feel a bit like living in a southern state imo. (I’ve lived in the east, west, Midwest, and south—can’t speak to southwest or northwest). I actually think I’d choose Minneapolis suburbs if I was in your boat and didn’t mind winter.
Why Minneapolis? The house upkeep is a great tip, wasn’t thinking about that. We don’t need much, maybe 1500-2000 sq ft 3 bedrooms. I’ve always liked the idea of living on a lake. I’ve been in NJ, FL and Southern CA, so hoping for something different for the last stretch of life
Are you older? My parents moved near Traverse City to retire, since my family has done summer vacations up there for 70+ years. The year-round population in Leelanau and Grand Traverse counties now skews heavily older due to all the retirees, and also due to gentrification pricing a lot of families out.
This has mixed effects on health care in particular. On one side, a higher proportion of medical professionals work every day with the specific problems of an older population, and there are lots of relevant specialists. On the other side, availability of primary care can be difficult.
fwiw you should probably add walkability and public transport to that list, it’s one of the most significant improvements you can make to your general physical and mental health, as well as saving a disgusting amount of money on not needing a car to buy groceries.
For fully remote anywhere in the midwest is good as long as you don’t need the big city nightlife. You can buy a starter house in the rich parts of KC for 500k, or a nice house in the middle-class areas.
Illinois is a great option. Can easily find a house for less than 500k in most of the state. The state has really rebounded since Pritzker became governor.
Having lived in both rural and metro IL and MO, I’d choose MO any day. Even with all it’s problems, it’s not as bad as IL.
Definitely don’t need access to anything much. Very much an introvert who avoids people
KC isn’t really blue-ish state wise. Missouri is full on MAGA and Kansas has a dem governor but is full on MAGA otherwise. And Kansas will have a republican governor in 2027 when governor Kelly’s term is up.
KC is an excellent city! It’s cheap with fiber nearly everywhere, great food, friendly people, and the best BBQ.
There’s also a ton of outdoors stuff from hiking, kayaking, hunting, fishing. It’s not hard to find a house on a chunk of land and still be 10min away from everything.
Denver is a super nice city and, while it’s NOT cheap, there are cheaper areas near by. Closer to the mountains it’s all gentrified, but out on the plains, especially north east and south east of the city you can still find pretty affordable areas.
Nothing to add, but this is a wildly distopian thread.
It’s the world we live in sadly
Yeah imagine reading this post like 30 years ago
Western MD, upstate NY, somewhere in Illinois that’s not Chicago, western Oregon that’s not Portland…just off the top of my head. Those are all decent places in terms of long-term climate change issues, as well. Basically, pick a blue state, go to a red rural part. Blue state laws, red state prices. I’d be careful long-term considering Michigan and Virginia safely blue, as well.
Thanks!
When you’re looking at Virginia keep in mind that Northern Virginia is what makes Virginia blue. Most of Virginia is purple or red especially the farther you get from DC.
Richmond, Hampton Roads, and Charlottesville contribute as well, but basically if it’s not a city or the suburbs of one, it’s red as a sunburn.
