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.
Upstate New York or maybe Michigan. Just not Buffalo. That is some snow hell at times. As for driving in snow in general? It really isn’t that bad and I moved up here from the South. Just buy good quality tires, or if you are really paranoid, snow tires. I have always regretted my life decisions when I got shitty whatever the crooked mechanics had on sale tires. I have never needed chains in the areas I live in. You cannot be any worse than every other idiot in snow. Promise. You will be fine.
I hear Arkansas is great
It’s objectively one of the worst states to live in
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
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.
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.
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.
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.
Get a car with AWD
Be prepared to pay 4x as much when you need a replacement tire (you have to replace all 4)
Depends on how much wear is on the existing set, 5/32nds difference is where you need to do all four to avoid damaging something.
I’ve never heard of replacing 1 tire. it’s usually in pairs. never been told to replace all 4 with my awd either.
Guess Les Schwab ripped me off then
Don’t worry, loads of people that live in a snowy climate also are a menace on the road.
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.
City Nerd has a few great videos on affordable places to live that have urban amenities, for example: https://youtu.be/1qzePci2N6E?si=dWq43GmzH5ObF1q8
I know this will be unpopular, but if you’re ok with heat and traveling out of state if you need an abortion, Texas may be an option. Yes, our governor is terrible, but day to day life is not the horror that you see on tv. Our big cities are blue and populationwise we’re not as red as you think (52-46% in 2020). Snow and ice are pretty minimal. The topography varies tremendously across the state - mountains, desert, coastal, etc. - and each big city has it’s own vibe, so there are lots of opportunities for weekend getaways. We have great food, good airports, and colleges and universities of every size and focus. Housing prices have increased since COVID but are still much lower that the east or west Coast. I’m in Dallas and i like it here. San Antonio is a very fun city and a little cheaper.
Nah, Texas is way worse than you say.
Just having a baby is dangerous. Pregnancy complications can quickly lead to a death of both. Doctors are leaving the state. A miscarriage could be prosecuted as murder.
Abbott is really pushing the school vouchers because private schools can set “standards” so specific as to keep certain people out of getting an education.
If you ever need unemployment, Medicaid, or social security, Texas does everything possible to refuse money from the federal government to fund these programs.
Non-cis people are losing rights. The DPS for driver licenses is a mess because not having a driver license makes people think they can’t vote
Voter rolls have been purged.
Many places receiving state money have closed their diversity programs. Abbott doesn’t understand that wheelchair ramps and wide doors are “inclusion.”
And if you think DE&I isn’t important, imagine trying to wash your hands at an automatic sink, only to find out the faucet sensor was only trained on a different skin color so it doesn’t see you.
What city are you in? Do you actually see those issues in your day to day life? I’m not discounting how terrible Abbott is at all! And yes, he’s definitely trying to make things worse, but we have plenty of people (44% in 2022) who disagree with him. I live in Dallas and work in public education with people from a wide variety of backgrounds. My husband works in Ft. Worth, where it’s considerably more conservative, and his company is very invested in DEI. Yes, there are difficult places and situations, but it’s really not the shitshow you see on tv. Gerrymandering has given us a government that’s not representative of our population. Extremes make the news.
I’m in Austin. Mexican. Family has been US citizens for 5 generations and live all across the state.
Most of my family is women. Many of my family are teachers.
My family has run into all these issues, except the faucet not recognizing their skin.
But we have been pulled over for driving through very white neighborhoods on either business or to see friends.
We have lighter skin, so rarely the target of hate from strangers. But we have been out with darker friends who do get the hate while standing next to us.
Sharing too much, but miscarriages have happened decades ago. On top of the unearned shame the mother feels, even back then there was worry about law enforcement questioning them.
Decades of being good citizens, serving the military, serving the community. And we are now wondering if we need to move to a new state.
How’s that power grid looking?
Freedum and no federal regulations flow through these wires!
Sometimes we also have electrons in the wires.
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!
Is the East Coast out of the question?
You want less snow than Seattle??
Nowhere can you buy an affordable house, unless you move out to middle of nowhere. I’ve heard they’re still affordable in Appalachia
I live in appalachia, come on in! Cheap real estate and beautiful scenery. Seen houses in my small town for 40,000$. Jobs that pay well can be hard to find, but if you don’t mind traveling, or can work from home I’d recommend it.
Fuck off! We don’t want more people here! And the affordable houses have been abandoned for a decade and are just foundations without any copper wiring or pipes.
“here” as if I didn’t name a third of the nation with “Appalachia”
People in Washington strongly dislike Californians
We actually bitch about everyone, just not to their face.
I’ve seen bumper stickers that literally say California go home when I visit Port Angeles
I don’t know, Seattle and Tacoma will openly bitch about each other to their faces.
Haha, oh well. I’m staying anyway, to admire your beautiful scenery, pay people properly for good work and to enjoy a good coffee occasionally.
A lot of people are staying anyway hence the housing market lol
Yeah it’s kinda bad. I’m saving up for a year or two to add to the down payment, the mortgage rates kinda suck.
Regarding that last sentence, teenage me would just gawk at the rEsPoNsIbLe adult I’ve become 😂
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Auchtermuchty is quite nice still
“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.
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?
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
Split the difference. Go somewhere in northern CA or southern OR (Portland is pricy too).
