Fifty Plus (50+) - Where to move to?

Since my home town is practically unlivable now due to a population that instantly increased by 40% post hurricane Katrina, my wife is on me to move out of state. Being self-employed with clients nationwide, this is an available option.

Since I'm a "home boy" and haven't traveled much, I'm not familiar with too many other places.

Features we seek in a new home location include:

Year-round bicycling weather (taking into account the new, warmer winters)
Good medical quality and availability
Functioning public transportation system
Away from tornado-alley
Away from earthquake-prone areas
Away from hurricane-prone coasts

Any suggestions?

Thanks! :)

I'll suggest Austin, TX.

Bike friendly (even before Lance moved here). Reasonable housing costs, and Austin is large enough to have good services available.

I moved here last December, after living here for a couple of years in the mid-80s. It's a lot larger than it was then, but the essential character is the same.

+1 to Austin, and a plug for San Diego, even though we hardly need more residents. It's got everything you described above, Bicycling magazine appropriately named us the best city in the country for cycling, but there are two drawbacks: the price of housing is in the stratosphere (although there are outlying communities a bit more affordable) and yes, the possibilty of an earthquake exists, although I rarely think about it.

...yes, the possibilty of an earthquake exists, although I rarely think about it.

Since I'm a safety engineer whose specialty is disaster prevention, "rarely thinking about it" isn't a good enough option. :p I've friends in CA who are after us to move there, but I doubt that it'll happen. Natural disasters are possible anywhere, but good site selection can minimize the probabilities.

Risk consists of two components - severity & likelihood. The flood of New Orleans (or a bad earthquake in California) represents one end of the spectrum: high severity + low likelihood. I'd much rather have the other end of the spectrum with a mild freeze but every winter (low severity + high likelihood).

I'll check out Austin. Thanks for the suggestion!

Since I'm a safety engineer whose specialty is disaster prevention, "rarely thinking about it" isn't a good enough option. :p I've friends in CA who are after us to move there, but I doubt that it'll happen. Natural disasters are possible anywhere, but good site selection can minimize the probabilities.

Risk consists of two components - severity & likelihood. The flood of New Orleans (or a bad earthquake in California) represents one end of the spectrum: high severity + low likelihood. I'd much rather have the other end of the spectrum with a mild freeze but every winter (low severity + high likelihood).

I'll check out Austin. Thanks for the suggestion!

Find your area geographically and then look for a house halfway up a big hill- then you can start or end your rides with the hill in the right direction.
Have to admit that Natural disasters are not the norm over here- but they still arrive- If its not the Hurricane- that is not going to come- of 87- Its the floods or even this week with the blocked roads due to Trees coming down with the weight of snow that fell overnight. Then we have the Drought or the embankments collapsing due to being washed away(Depends where you live) or some other disaster that is man made.

We may not have the volatile climate that you have in the US. but even we have our problems

You might consider the somewhere near my area, Charlottesville, VA. Some surveys say it's the best place in the country to live. http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2004-03-29-best-cities-main_x.htm


The nearby Shenandoah valley is great cycling country and not as expensive.

FH
I'm from Houston, lived for a long time in Seattle, now a long time in Oregon, I have family all over the west (Tx, Az, Ca, Or, Wa,) I'd cast my vote for 3 places: Portland, OR if you need a big city. Voted best bicycling city in America (http://tinyurl.com/em7ct) sorry, Gary. :p Mild weather year-round, little damp in the winter, tho--unlike Seattle where it's just wet. Good public transportation and very bike friendly.

Next choice is Eugene, OR. Smaller than Portland (about 150,000 including the surrounding area), very bike friendly. College town, hippiedom still lives, but very modern--arts, entertainment, sports. I live an hour south of Eugene and absolutely love it (we actually have better weather than Eugene).

Third choice is Chico, CA. College town, very bike friendly. Weather runs from hotter'n heck in summer like BR, but hotter. Winters are very mild, although this year the rain has swollen rivers to dangerous levels--Gov Terminator has recently declared an emergency in the area. Not a big city by any means but a couple of hours will put you in one (Sacramento, Bay Area).

All of these can be expensive places to live although compared to San Diego, they're pretty reasonable. If you don't have to live directly in the cities, a thirty minute drive can save a ton of money. My home in Portland would go for $300K, ($600k in SandyEggo), $250K in Eugene--Chico is really pricey. I'm putting mine on the market for $190k this summer. New homes are more, there's a lot of selection in the 100K-200K range, fixers cheaper. Too, there are a number of cities between these (I-5 corridor) that may appeal to you as well.

I tend to favor Oregon, no sales tax, reasonable income tax, reasonable car registrations --like $50 for 2 years regardless of age or newness--and we can't even pump our own gas. The total population for the entire state is only about 3 million and most live on the I-5 corridor. Eastern Oregon can be beautiful Bend, Hood River, The Dalles, OR; might be worth looking at. No major earthquakes in years although we do have a volcano or two.

I did the search for the best place to move about 15 years ago (just too much mold in Seattle for my oldest kid)--then traveled to visit the places we had picked; and really had a blast doing it. Have fun!

John in Oregon

+1 to Austin, and a plug for San Diego, even though we hardly need more residents.

That's a real interesting comment. I've two friends who have just moved to the Gulf Coast area. They reason there are fewer people there now and the conditions are ripe to have a real impact on things as the area rebuilds. I wonder what the population density will be like and how that will impact on the riding conditions?

I vote for southwest Texas, I will be there when I talk my wife into it (fat chance).

Fort Collins Colorado, or Parker where I live.

Great trails, I rode every week this winter, very outdoors oriented. No major earthquake faults, winters are getting milder every year, lovely mountains nearby, etc. Our only natural disasters are hail storms, which though damaging, never kill anyone, and an occasional very small tornado. We had one in our neighborhood - blew down one fence, took off one roof.

Year-round sunshine.

Housing prices are stable and actually decreasing right now.

...Portland, OR ...Eugene, OR...Chico, CA...

Thanks, John - I'm speaking at a conference in Seattle this summer, so while I'm in the NW area of the country, I'll look these over.

Fort Collins Colorado, or Parker...

Thanks for the suggestions, Dnvr. I've been to Denver, CO for a conference before and done some work for clients in the Durango area. I also stayed in the 4-corners area of New Mexico - Farmington, to be exact, and liked the area just fine. Fort Collins/Parker, I'm not familiar with, but will check out.

Follow your friends and neighbors to Arkansas.

We are still part time residents of the San Diego area. Love it's climate. I could not stand the deep south. I despise hot temperatures. I certainly would not bike there about two months of the year. Almost prefer the frigid temperatures of the north. I get pretty miserable to live with when it gets over like 87 and humid. Ask my wife. Coastal California is my choice.
But about earthquakes. Is it chamber of commerce hype. I guess it is. San Diego reports said San Diego is far enough away from the big fault lines, the shaking would be minimized in San Diego county? Is it true. Talked to scientists in our old town. They said they moved there because it's bedrock is granite?
The faults off of coastal San Diego were reported to create faults no greater than like 4-5 range. Anyone know for sure. I wanted to believe it.

+1 to Austin, and a plug for San Diego, even though we hardly need more residents. It's got everything you described above, Bicycling magazine appropriately named us the best city in the country for cycling, but there are two drawbacks: the price of housing is in the stratosphere (although there are outlying communities a bit more affordable) and yes, the possibilty of an earthquake exists, although I rarely think about it.

San Diego is the least likely city in California to be hurt by an earthquake. The San Andreas goes along near the San Diego/Imperial County line on the Imperial side.

San Diego is great if you are a millionaire (or more)!

One of the things that seems to be happening is significant climate changes.

This year on the Eastern Plains of Colorado we have had tremendous winds - much more than in the past. I have no clue whether or not this will continue, but as in New Orleans and other places, past climate may not be too good at predicting the future. Or, it may all just be an anomaly!

A better question would be, “What two cities in each state are the most attractive as a future destinations”? The reason for two cities in each state is to allow for two major degrees of freedom. For example, a coastal state should have one seaboard city and one inland city. Landlocked states often have some other type of geographic diversity (i.e. mountain/plain, river/non-river, or even upstate/downstate as is the case with New York and Maine). To make it even more interesting, you should only nominate cities in states you do not live in. This prevents people from always saying their home city is the best in breed and minimizes the natural bias towards large cities because most people already live there.

Two I like (in states I do not live in) are Mars Hill, NC and Madison, GA. One thing I like about Mars Hill is that, not only is it a neat city, it is within 300 miles of many places I really like to go.

Denis K

In New Hampshire there is no State Income Tax nor a Sales Tax. You can pick your own tax amount based on the value of the house and the town you chose to live in. Maine, on the other hand, has the highest taxation rate in the country. NH Traffic is generally very "bike friendly." BUT--- regularing riding outside between late November and the end of March cannot be counted upon (but I am considering studded bike tires next winter).

BUT--- regularing riding outside between late November and the end of March cannot be counted upon (but I am considering studded bike tires next winter).

I lived in NH for a few years--near Peterborough. Beautiful country, but as I recall, there were two seasons: Winter and July. (Only kidding, sort of).

Tucson, AZ 360+, days of sunshine, very little rain (average 11" annually), warmer winters (had a touch of snow 3 times in 28 years), very warm summers with extremely low humidity; 400+ miles of bike lanes; great cycling clubs; varied terrain from 2200 to 9,000+ ft. with the nation's most southern snowskiing only 30 miles away (all uphill). Home prices in the 200K+ to multi million $$.
Eugene, OR is great, but quite a bit of rain.

Yet another option might be to keep a "summer home" in a northern state (Michigan on Lake Erie?) and a "winter home" in a southern state (Texas?). Moving between them would provide variety and year-round temperate climate. If I got a duplex in both locations, I could have the unused property supervised in my absence. Renting half of each duplex would defray costs and assist with taxes...

I lived in NH for a few years--near Peterborough. Beautiful country, but as I recall, there were two seasons: Winter and July. (Only kidding, sort of).
No, there's 4 seasons:

Almost Winter
Winter
Still Winter
Black Fly

That's why I moved down to Austin :D

.
Eugene, OR is great, but quite a bit of rain.


Well, compared to Tucson. It's only 36 inches, about the same as Houston, Austin, Seattle, Baton Rouge. ;)

John in Oregon

Many places will do, look at total cost of living as well as weather. Here's a thumbnail of some areas I am familar with:

WA, Puget sound-- cold, overcast, few sunny days, lots of moisture. No natural disasters.
WA, eastern-- cold winters, warm warm summers, dry, distances from family is potential issue. No natural disasters.
CA, bay area-- overpriced property, heavy pollution, heavy congestion, poor education system, impatient drivers, high earthquake risk
CA, sacramento to modesto--high property, good biking interest, moderate congestion [it's spotty],
temps get in 100's in summer. Moderate flood risk, just avoid the flood plains.
CA, N. Valley, chico to Redding-- Chico is college town. Redding is somewhat of a retirement town. As the rest of the valley, temps will be in 100's in summer. Winters are mild. Palm trees grow well in Redding. Once every 20 years, there may be a inch of two of snow for a day, but usually it's just rain in the winter. No natural disasters in area.
Iowa-- can drop to -20 in winter. snows tend to stick around year round. Limited room for bikes and quite hilly.
Illinois-- some chicago burbs are nice. It'll be cold in winter. Slight risk of tornados.
Indiana-- fort wayne is a nice sleeper town. very reasonable. Open roadways, good stoplight system. Naturally cold in winter, very slight risk of tornados.
Colorado-- eastern, dry, windy in winter. busy farmers. not ideal for biking.
Colorado-- Springs to Denver to Ft Collins, great weather, few non biking days, over 300+ days of sunshine a day. High risk of lightning in the rainy season, but it doesn't last long. Lots of bikers, althought many are pseudo road racers. Stay away from boulder as property is overpriced and congestion is high in spots. Oh, also increase risk of skin cancer because of combo of high sun days and high altitude.

Guess that's all I can help with. Have fun.

Very nice year 'round riding in Gainesville, FL, and hurricanes hardly ever happen around here. Of course being from LSU territory you might not like living in Gator central.

I concur with most of the suggestions tendered in this thread. If you do not want to move too far, Austin TX does sound like a good option for you. My cousin, an avid bicyclist and elementary school science teacher, has lived in Corvallis OR for many years and loves it there.

Venice, Italy - It's like being on another planet. There are no cars. You'll need a lot of Euros though.

Actually, within the States, I heartily agree with all the posts. I would also add Santa Fe, NM and Taos, NM, especially if you like art.

Fort Collins Colorado, or Parker where I live.

Great trails, I rode every week this winter, very outdoors oriented. No major earthquake faults, winters are getting milder every year, lovely mountains nearby, etc. Our only natural disasters are hail storms, which though damaging, never kill anyone, and an occasional very small tornado. We had one in our neighborhood - blew down one fence, took off one roof.

Year-round sunshine.

Housing prices are stable and actually decreasing right now.

Since I live in Fort Collins, I'll agree with that choice. The area has definitely grown in the 12 years I've been here, but it's still pretty nice. You can be up in Rocky Mt. Nat'l Park in a little over an hour if you drive, somewhat longer if you bike :) You can bike out to farm and ranch land in minutes, and be 20 miles from anywhere when the goathead thorns attack. (Don't know how that got in there, must be DnvrFox's influence.)

Nick

CA, bay area-- overpriced property, heavy pollution, heavy congestion, poor education system, impatient drivers, high earthquake risk
CA, sacramento to modesto--high property, good biking interest, moderate congestion [it's spotty],
temps get in 100's in summer. Moderate flood risk, just avoid the flood plains.

Mostly right - the Bay Area is not polluted at all compared to most large metropolitan areas of the country - air quality is mostly good year round due to prevailing winds off the ocean, some smog in the east and south bay in the summertime but that's about it. Certainly nothing like the LA basin or Sacramento in the summer. Which also needs clarification - for the same reason the Bay Area is not too bad (prevailing winds), the Central Valley, especially Sacramento, is pretty bad in summer. I had to leave Sacramento due to air quality and chronic asthma problems that are virtually gone now.

I will agree with you about the other stated characteristics, though...

No, there's 4 seasons:

Almost Winter
Winter
Still Winter
Black Fly

That's why I moved down to Austin :D

Does your church need a pastor? :D

Does your church need a pastor? :D

I knew I'd found the right church when I mentioned that I was a cyclist, and the response was "Oh, you should join the church bike club, they ride every Tuesday; just talk to Tom (the pastor)". :)

Far Horizon,

I would suggest north or central Florida. Central Florida has nearly year round cycling. It does not have good public transit. It is not really cheap but I bet there are areas that are fine in the country. It does have hurricanes but I weathered four 2 years ago and they were merely an inconvenience.

For your purposes North Florida is probably better. You might have a few days cold enough in the winter to keep you off the bike but not many. I think it is less hurricane prone than central Florida (as long as you are not in the pan handle). Housing would be inexpensive. Georgia would be similar.

Now Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio have great cycling. But they do have winters.

Good luck in your search.

Pat

Mostly right - the Bay Area is not polluted at all compared to most large metropolitan areas of the country - air quality is mostly good year round due to prevailing winds off the ocean, some smog in the east and south bay in the summertime but that's about it. Certainly nothing like the LA basin or Sacramento in the summer. Which also needs clarification - for the same reason the Bay Area is not too bad (prevailing winds), the Central Valley, especially Sacramento, is pretty bad in summer. I had to leave Sacramento due to air quality and chronic asthma problems that are virtually gone now.

I will agree with you about the other stated characteristics, though...

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I was thinking of population, traffice, and heavy metal pollution in the bay and the land. Smog is not that bad. The problem with Sacramento is much of it is near farmland and if you have an allergy to any of the crops, with wind you will have a problem.

In terms of OP criteria, I don't know how you can have both reasonable land costs and an expensive public trans system like BART. Even St Louis, which has mild weather sans snow and only an occasional tornado warning, doesn't have a great public trans system.

The way I heard it:


cold
really cold
really, really cold
road construction


I live about 100 yards from NH...



No, there's 4 seasons:

Almost Winter
Winter
Still Winter
Black Fly

That's why I moved down to Austin :D

I think one condition you are forgetting is wind. Where I live the wind blows almost
everyday, if I waited for the wind to die down I would never ride.
I spend a couple months a year in Austin Tx. and really enjoy the lack of wind on
most days. However the humidity takes some getting used to.

Don't overlook the desert southwest, particularly smaller towns within reasonable driving distance of Tucson.

All this talk about Austin is making me hungry. Kruetz BBQ in Lockhart (oldest bbq joint in Texas--you want beans and potato salad? don't go to Kruetz! real cowboys just eat meat), Pancho's Mexican Buffet (laugh if you want but the Austin location is better than many Mex food places in the Northwest), Sonic Drive-Ins, Tamale House #6 up on Airport Way--best breakfast burritos in the world; German food in New Braunfels, kolaches everywhere. Oh, and the bbq cookoff at the rodeo in March (it is March isn't it?) where you pay for your food by donation--or at least used to. I don't really miss Austin but I miss the food.

Someone made the comment about living in a farming community and alergies--this is a real issue. Some of the alergies do come from food, but a lot of the problems come from pesticides. My wife is from Yuma, Az.--lots of lettuce and produce, and fruit come from there. All this stuff is sprayed with fertilizers and pesticides, and much of it is done by aircraft. This stays airborne and drifts all over town. In some places the fields are next to subdivisions and the houses themselves get sprayed. It's hot in the day (dang--it's hot at nights too) so after the sun sets if you want to go outside you do it in the evening and of course they spray in the evening after the wind dies down. So you get chased back in. My wife has had health issues for years and we think that much of it comes from exposure to chemicals. Friends just outside Yuma have had pets born deformed, and a close friend has cancer that has been linked to the sprays. Just a fact of life for some--but I certainly would look at this before consciously choosing to live in an agricultural area.

John in Oregon

I used to visit Yuma on business. I couldn't get used to the four-digit summer temperatures.:D

You might consider the somewhere near my area, Charlottesville, VA. Some surveys say it's the best place in the country to live. http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2004-03-29-best-cities-main_x.htm


The nearby Shenandoah valley is great cycling country and not as expensive.
Yes, I would agree that the central VA, or NC areas are very attractive especially meeting your weather requirements, FarHorizon. As a former consultant, one thing I always consider is an airport. I would recommend the Raleigh NC area, especially because of the great cycling weather. The airport here (RDU) is a small international airport, but it's not Atlanta Hartsfield. Blackberry is correct about the weather overall. Yes, hurricanes and tornados can occur in this general area, but they are rarely the highly destructive type. Also consider that Research Triangle Park is right next to Raleigh, with several universities. As for Medical Care, let's see, Duke Medical Center, Wake Med, UNC Medical Center......

Yes, I would agree that the central VA, or NC areas are very attractive...

Thanks, Roccobike - I'll be in that area of the country this Fall & will check it out.

Since I'm a "home boy" and haven't traveled much, I'm not familiar with too many other places.
Any suggestions?

Thanks! :)

St. Michael Azores.

Lived in San Diego 34 years, I would possibly suggest it although as mentioned cost is a huge factor and I feel it has become actually too big now--too much traffic, development, etc. It was awesome in the 70's. BTW Earthquakes CAN happen there, unlikely but we had one hit around 1977 that damaged our house and broke a window or two.

I would second taking a strong look at Tucson, the area is really starting to come into its own. My Mom lived there 12 years and I have been many times. Nice riding with rolling hills, flats, or real mountains if you feel so inclined. Cost is reasonable. Only issue is the furance-like summer but the dryness helps keep it reasonable. Just pack the sunscreen and lots of it! Other times of the year have excellent riding weather so that compensates.

I used to visit Yuma on business. I couldn't get used to the four-digit summer temperatures.:D

I used to live in Palm Springs a bit north of Yuma. There were only two seasons.

"The Season" and Hotter than Hell. We noticed that the Canadians and the Canadian Geese migrated south and north at exactly the same time of year.

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with Springfield, Missouri? I've had a couple of people suggest that it's an ideal place to retire, but it's been a while since I've had those conversations, and they had nothing to do with cycling. Be interested in any input on that location.

I knew I'd found the right church when I mentioned that I was a cyclist, and the response was "Oh, you should join the church bike club, they ride every Tuesday; just talk to Tom (the pastor)". :)

A few years ago, right after Father Tom Guido at our parish bought a mountain bike, a group of us had Palm Sunday Mass at a stop on a mountain bike ride. Father Tom packed his Mass kit on the rack on his bike and we used native palmettos. We got some stange looks from other trail users.

...Springfield, Missouri?...

New Madrid fault.

New Madrid fault.

Yeah, but it's the home of Bass Pro Shops.

Yet another option might be to keep a "summer home" in a northern state (Michigan on Lake Erie?) and a "winter home" in a southern state (Texas?).
Michigan on Lake Erie? Michigan does touch Lake Erie, between Detroit and Toledo, but it is hardly the best part of Michigan. Perhaps you meant Lake Huron or Lake Michigan.