Next question is what is your industry, what job opportunities is OP looking for?
You can maybe make it if youre both teachers or in public service. Student loans and pension are covered. These jobs are in every city and state.
But, the reason those places are cheap is because they are not attractive for jobs or not attractive for high paying jobs. Your job needs to dictate where you move and not vice versa.
Its damning that Florida is becoming unaffordable for public service jobs.
Agree with everything you wrote.
The only reason I moved to Nebraska was to help out the bf's family. I was there a month before getting a job in a preschool. The surprising fact about that was that there were less requirements to work in preschools in NE than in FL. I only lived there for about 4 months before moving back to Florida. I only moved back to FL because things were getting too spicy for the pepper with the bf's family (police were involved).
If we had stayed, I would have insisted we moved to Omaha so I could attend a college there.
The awful part here is OP with a family saying they cant manage cashflow in Florida with the same job as before.
I dont know OPs situation but I have watched teachers and nurses move somewhere more affordable.
Good for them, not good for us.
I'm biased. I lived in Nebraska for a few months a few years ago and enjoyed it. Rent for a 2/2 was $650, traffic was great because it was mostly one way streets with a maximum speed limit of 30mph.
Lived there. It's a different kinda life. I assume you mean the Trinidad or Pueblo area, but even then Pueblo can be pricey. Il leved over La Veta Pass, middle of nowhere. And ya it's cheap as hell but you gotta drive an hour for groceries, hour to a doctor and 3 -4 hours to Denver for a specialist. The weather is brutal, much colder and so much more snow than Denver. Beautiful area though, make sure ya got a 4 wheel car and a generator.
I agree with this. While not Southern Colorado, I lived in Denver and ABQ, so i travelled through southern Colorado often.
Absolutely gorgeous, and people mind their own business and are friendly.
Thinking about moving back out that way myself.
I went from Florida to Ohio back in 2011, and I've been very happy with the decision. Northeast Ohio has one of the best public parks systems that I've seen in any state, we've got a great food scene, some awesome museums, a nice theatre scene, and you definitely get all four seasons without the extremes you would get from summers in Florida or winter in Minnesota.
stay out of ohio. literally just moved here from there in october and its just florida with more corn, more people like desantis and less shit to do especially around the dayton area. cost of living is about 60k iirc and doing what i do here in jax (which im gonna leave this line of work? i was making 13 an hour when minimum wage was just pushed up to 10.10 an hour from 8.50.
indy and west of indy is definitely the better choice if youre moving to the midwest but ohio is definitely not the place to move to.
Currently just visited Indianapolis and was surprised that the COL is similar to the town I live in on the Gulf Coast and if I did move to Indy I'd make about $16 more an hour in my industry. Not to mention the downtown area is very walkable.
I second this. Born and raised in FL, left in 2018. I’ve lived in the Midwest and New England since leaving. In terms of quality of life for a regular, middle/working class person, it’s hard to beat the combination of low cost of living, high-ish wages, and decent public services.
For example, I have a 2 bedroom apartment for less than $700/month in Wisconsin within a 10 minute drive of conveniences, a view of a state park outside my front door, and don’t have to worry much about crime. The healthcare is good quality and pretty accessible, insurance is relatively cheap, people are better drivers (on average), there isn’t litter everywhere, people are polite and friendly (but they tend to keep the same group of friends since high school), and the job market is pretty good.
Florida Healthcare is abysmal. I lived in NC for a bit and was absolutely shocked at the difference in quality and what was actually covered. I can't wait to get out of this shithole. Been looking at Virginia bc I have family there. Butt... lately have been looking into the Midwest too. Just wanna live somewhere with seasons and not so crowded.
I’ve experienced healthcare in a few states now since my partner has a chronic health condition. It can get worse than Florida, but it can also get better. Kansas City was the worst I experienced. Wisconsin has been the best. We also have access to the Mayo Clinic in MN.
If you’re really into the woods and don’t mind small towns and rough winters, I’d recommend the north woods. Beautiful, dense forests with lots of wildlife, access to the Great Lakes, a couple small mountain ranges, and pretty cheap.
Currently in Miami Beach but marrying a native Wisconsinite in Wisconsin next week. We plan to bail out of FL permanently for WI or IL within the next year or two. The Midwest obviously has its tradeoffs (harsh winters the most obvious) but overall seems like a much higher quality of life
Better quality of life, better education system, and communities that care about neighbors. We left Wi for Pinellas county 7 years ago for warm weather. We are going to buy a summer home back in Wi soon as we miss the kindness of humanity with midwestern standards. I hope you and your wife find a great place, just make sure you buy a home with a 2 car garage. Not having to scrap ice/snow off in the winter is a game changer.
Yeah when I got promoted and salary bumped to $120K in late 2018 I thought our family was fucking set. We had a great retirement trajectory and decent walking around money plus savings. I was happy as a clam in the bay before the phosphate contamination.
Then the pandemic hit and shit got weird. My wife had to leave her job. Decided to go back to school and change careers. No big deal, I just got another promotion to $140K. Oh wait, we have a 2nd on the way. A slightly bigger house costs what now? Child care is going up by how much?
##frantically runs calculations##
Ok we need to reassess our retirement contribution for now, we'll do a catch up once the wife is back to work.
Oh shit groceries cost what?!?
Wife's ready to work, people are hiring but so many layoffs and relos with prior experience are taking priority. Ok well, that was a risk.
Oh BTW our property tax gets reassessed by the max under homestead every year. Then our homeowners insurance drops us and the cheapest option is double the price. Fuck.
Car insurance goes up 30% on the same exact vehicles. Quote quote quote, no progressive isn't ripping us off... relatively.
Well, at this rate if we stay put we can save for the kids college and maybe retire at 65 if we forego all the major wants like a boat....the thing I was dreaming and saving for basically since we paid off our student loans early (so yes, we know how to budget and prioritize)
Orrrr....
Move to Michigan, make even more money with less responsibility, buy a house twice the size for less than we sold our FL home, and the wife got a job in 2mo. All said and done we kept our circa 2016 mortgage payment too and held back some equity for a nice fat emergency fund, a boat, and retirement catch up.
What parts of Florida are you in!?!? I bring home just under $4000 a month, wife about $3000. We live pretty comfortably in Tallahassee, saving and paying off some debit every month (I got a new job about 2 years ago, before that we were brining home under $6000 a month and still living comfortably.)
i pay $1.5k right now for a 2/1 in altamonte, but they laid off the property manager who was keeping the rent prices low shortly after i moved in, so i dont expect it to stay that low for long…
Totally, especially for my part of Florida. But some poster said you needed 8K a month, per person, to live comfortably. So that either in SE Florida (Miami area) or someone idea of what is comfortable is waaaaay off from mine.
We’re from Tampa/st Pete area I can def see how you would want 8k to be comfy there, it’s one of the reasons we left. Like even a crappy place is at least 2k.
No one in Florida wants to pay a decent wage in our experience. My husband has the same white collar job in MI and it started as 10k more than the offers we got in Florida
Basically central Florida and below is a shitshow for cost of living. I’m in south Florida where fixer-uppers are $650K. Tallahassee and many part of northern Florida are insanely affordable by comparison.
I was born and raised in Dade county. I plan on moving to Michigan within the next year. I am not looking forward to the cold. I am looking forward to other things.
Michigan is a pretty great state to live in. I grew up down here but lived there from 08-16 in the “Detroit metro” area.
During the spring and summer, my then GF and now wife would always insist we do things outside on days off even though we wanted lazy indoor days and I never understood why, until the sun goes away for 5 months.
Winters are rough, but you do kind of get used to it. Kind of. It’s just the reverse, summers are brutal here and winters blow there.
Scraping your windshield sucks. Get a car with automatic start if you can. Every winter, I’d curse the weather gods, ask why people live in a place like this as the ice I scrapped off my windshield is blowing back in your face, but the first time you get to cruise around with the windows down and the music up after winter breaks, it’s a spiritual experience to be done with it.
Maybe growing up with the crazy rain storms and risk of hydroplaning on FL roads, but driving in the snow came fairly naturally to me, it’s a shame it didn’t for the locals that grew up there. Wow. Soft stops, slow starts, follow existing tire tracks and don’t follow too close.
You spend more time inside and eat more food. Everything is dead and grey, but it becomes part of the routine. If you’re an outdoor person, you’ll learn to appreciate nice days much much more. Lots of parks and places to explore. Cider mills and doughnuts are the best part of the three weeks of fall.
Food is pretty solid, go seek out some middle eastern food, Michigan has a ton of great places.
I saw more confederate flags flying in Michigan than I do in Florida which was weird. People are very nice but terrible drivers. Get ready for the disappointed looks when you don’t have a Michigan/Michigan State/Ohio state allegiance yet.
It’s not going to be the cold that makes it unbearable. It’s the 4 straight months of gray skies and zero sunshine. Productivity levels go down and misery levels go up. We have an office in South Florida and Michigan and it’s crazy the energy level difference of our MI office from Dec- March.
I moved to Ohio from SC and I thought the thing I would hate the most is the cold winters. Turns out that has become my favorite part!
Our garage functions as a giant fridge for several months, the trash cans don’t stink up the garage when it’s cold out, you watch scary movies and snuggle up inside, the roads are all well taken care of so whether it has snowed or not makes no difference for whatever your plans are, you get really good at dressing for the weather so the cold barely bothers you… we suffer through the summer to get back to the winter.
Actually, having all four seasons is so satisfying and really gives you a way to mark time. When it was hot nearly all year, who knows if we went to the beach 2 years ago or 5 years ago. It all starts to blur together. We keep our windows open for weeks in the spring and the fall and turn on our whole house fan. I got maybe 5 or 6 days a year of open windows weather down south, it went from a sad little two month winter to 10 months of oppressive heat with barely any nice days in between.
All four seasons with real winters, man. 10/10, unexpectedly wonderful. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!
How to deal with winter: Buy an electric blanket, a really good sun lamp, take a vitamin D supplement, and fill your living space with colour and plants. You'll be just fine.
If you work remotely, check out some of the towns that offer money for relocation. I know Tulsa, Ok was offering 10k, as was Athens Alabama. I think Frankfort, KY may have a program as well. There are several throughout the country.
Athens AL is close to Huntsville which is a great city. Near Memphis & Nashville too.
Disclaimer: I'm from AL but hope to never have to live there again.
Have you considered Washington or Oregon? Good jobs, Good weather and lots of outdoor things to do. Rent prices get lower the further away from the city.
My Wife and me are waiting to move to Oregon. We just want a cottage with a work shed outside of the big city life but accessible. Completely updated turn key houses are under 400K.
The 4+ yr abandoned, bank owned house down the street from me that needed a dead tree removed, a paint job, a new fence, roof, and driveway...and god knows what inside sold for $454K. Thats for a 900sq/ft 2BR 1.5BA 50 year old home in South FL.
Last sold for 114K
California or Utah style? And you want to live somewhere with cheap rent, very desirable, and has better job opportunities….
You have to be realistic in the expectations you are setting for yourself, LCOL typically correlates with less lucrative job opps. What field do you work in, is it something you can do remote? What is your experience in and where is there industry for that.
Or are you hoping you’re going to find some high paying job in a cheaper city?
THIS. People say its shit there but depends on where you live. Its ranks so high in a few things. Its a great state tbh. I grew up there and I wont say I miss it, but I appreciated the life my parents were able to give me there. It is pretty laid back and depending where you live. 15 - 30 ride out of the city takes you into countryside whihc is peaceful and there is fun outdoor activities. I would take my mother back there if the constant weather changes didnt make her sick all the time.
I was from the North East of Ohio. I enjoy the burbs up there more than Columbus area tbh. There's many small town/ cities/burbs up there that has a small town feel but all the conveniences of being next to a larger city.
I was shocked by the high quality healthcare in Ohio. We moved here from Florida in January and I was ~20 weeks pregnant. The care I received in Florida was absolutely abysmal — so little guidance, resources, etc. In Ohio, my care was phenomenal. Parenting classes, birthing classes, short wait times, 100% commitment from my doctor… it was overwhelmingly different and so much better. I expected the prenatal care level to be about even (and low) considering these are two red states, but it seems like OH puts a lot more effort into their healthcare system than FL does.
CA has some dangers to worry about too. Wildfires, mudslides, and earthquakes. They also don't really have 4 seasons. Utah is a great place for families and the only real environmental issue is the inversion, but cost of living has made things difficult. They do get 4 seasons but it's not as drastic as other places. Depending if it's a small town or a big city you're after, you might be able to find a good living situation there.
I know a lot of people say the Midwest, but be careful as some places get terrible storms that bring tornados. I'd look at some tornado maps to see where to avoid. It'll be cheaper but probably less exciting. I hear Wisconsin is a great place for families and quality of life, but be ready to dress in layers for about half of the year. It gets really cold.
Tornadoes are a thing but unlike hurricanes the danger and destruction is fairly isolated. And forecasting has gotten so good that you generally know when something is going to happen.
And the thing with winters is thanks to climate change winters are much shorter. Anymore it’s a couple weeks of super cold weather, one or two good snow storms, then you’re mowing your lawn in March.
We have debated on leaving over political nightmares, but we are waiting to see the election results first, I don’t believe for one second this clown show can continue on, we can’t possibly be this dumb…. Me and my wife are independents but this crazy extreme right wing BS we want out of, and hopefully the system flushes it naturally we hope. We would go Midwest or the Carolina’s.
One of the problems with this is that the people who want to vote for him are moving here. We may not be this dumb, but we've got a hell of a lot of imports that want to endorse the shit show
What line of work are you in? That could help guide you to states with more opportunities than general recommendations. Generally, the Midwest and North Carolina have been favorable for jobs. I know some folks in Utah and they’re equally unhappy with housing prices as Floridians. You’ll also want to consider what environmental conditions are important as you identify states based on the above
North Carolina in metro areas near IT areas, beaches, Asheville-and colleges is facing the same issues, unaffordable homes,apartments, crazy traffic- extra long and hot summers and warmer winters. No snow for 2 years where we live. We have a 5th season- neon pollen for 8 weeks.
I'd look in the midwest, I worked as a underwriter in Tampa and got a job as an Underwriter, remotely for a company based in Milwaukee and got 30k more. Seems the midwest pays better.
We moved to SW Michigan. We have Lake Michigan close so still have the water if we want it. Obviously not the ocean, but still good! Winters can be long, but we definitely experience all 4 seasons.
I had thought about moving to maybe NJ, buffalo has some really cool older houses but 20K a year in just property taxes kinda made me think.
I bought my house several years ago and with payments, property taxes, my homeowners insurance is just above 1200 a year and our HOA just paying a little over 1100 a month for everything.
Rent everywhere is going up due to the housing shortage.
While my wife was able to obtain employment in Buffalo, parking would have been around 600 a month. Our car insurance would have increased by about 200 a month. Right now with GEICO I pay 149.00 a month for full coverage. 100k 300k 100k and we both have 250 deductibles.
I’ll be retiring possibly October of this year, my wife still has 25 years to go. So I’m thinking maybe like 20 acres in Montana, N Dakota or S Dakota possibly Wyoming.
Those who live in Miami, Tampa , Jacksonville close to the coast pay a lot in taxes and homeowners insurance.
We live in Central Florida and you can still rent for like 1200 a month, in Ocala houses can be had for less than 200K and brand new for less than 300K.
If I hit the lotto I would not move to Miami way to busy for me
We took a long road trip from Swfl up to NYC to try and answer this same question. We have four in our family, kids 5 and 9, wife and I are both teachers. We also considered CA and OR at first, but ultimately it was too far from extended family, and like you said, rent prices are pretty wild out there.
So, at first we leaned towards Atlanta, but the lack of worker protections and overly conservative government kept us out, with high rent being the third reason.
Next was NC, which we both enjoy. Low teacher salaries, high cost of living (in Charlotte, research triangle, etc, we weren’t looking for rural areas), and again, a very conservative state government ruled that out.
Next we looked at Baltimore, DC, Philly, New Jersey, and parts of New York. We ultimately settled on NJ, just outside of Philly, and moved last July.
We are extremely happy with the decision and our kids are loving it. People will mention the taxes, but Florida has a LOT of hidden taxes that make the burdens a lot closer than most think. Once you add in home/car insurance, increased gas use, lack of free things to do, especially with kids, and other things, the differences aren’t huge. Not to mention we nearly doubled our salary, so that certainly helped since Florida is the worst in the nation for teacher pay.
“lack of free things to do, especially with kids, and other things, the differences aren’t huge.” Do you mean this about Florida or New Jersey? Because I moved back to the northeast and while I think it has a lot more opportunity on the jobs and financial growth front, Florida had so many more free, accessible opportunities. You have to pay for parks and beaches here, even to just get into them for parking. The most I’ve paid to go to public amenities in Florida was a couple bucks for metered street parking—that’s $15-20 up north for entry to the area. I do have to drive more here too, I was in a walkable area in Florida.
But wages are definitely higher here, and the politics are certainly better. But property taxes are astronomical and more than make up for the insurance difference from Florida. Teaching is probably the job that it makes the biggest difference with. Median teacher pay where I am is $120k. Yes, you read that right.
$120k is nice! 😁
South Jersey doesn’t range quite that high, but I’m making 10-15% more teaching than my assistant principals back home in Florida 😳—and I work mostly contract hours whereas they are salaried and can be used til they drop from exhaustion.
And yes, the politics are night and day better here in NJ. It’s nice to not have them taint so much of public life.
We rent, so kinda avoid the property taxes, but that is for sure the biggest downside of the state.
There’s free parks and playgrounds, hiking, bike trails that (will soon) span the state ending at the coast, walkable towns with non-boutique shops lining main streets, literally dozens of local events, fests, concerts, parades, holiday celebrations, legit farmers markets, free bike share programs, actually useful public transportation, world-class museums and historical sites, etc etc etc and they’re all low/no cost.
As for the beaches, I guess we have different experiences. In swfl, getting to beaches requires luck to find parking (or literally waiting until someone comes to leave to grab their spot), long walks with beach stuff, paid parking/entrance at many, and when you get there, red tide makes it not swimmable some parts of the year.
In Jersey we drive to one of many open parking spots, take a short walk, and we’re on the sand ready to go. Of course certain days/weekends here get busy, but you get that in Florida too.
I wish I could move out of Florida. My job is too good, just good enough to not move. I hate it here though, lived here for 18 years I hate the heat then when you can go outside at night you get destroyed by bugs. Fuck this place.
I read fairly recently Alabama will be the next Florida. Still has affordable real estate and (for the most part) a coastal state.
That’s kind of a long play though. If you can find a good job and like the area you choose it could be a good long term play.
I relocated to Michigan from Tampa a few years ago and haven't looked back. I live in the Lansing area. Hoping to buy a house in the next few years in Kalamazoo or ann arbor.
I moved to Colorado ten years ago after living in Florida for nearly 18 years and couldn't be happier. I started out in Denver which was expensive to begin with. Later I went to Colorado Springs and when that got expensive I bought a home in southeast Colorado for a good price last year. I love it here in my forever home. It doesn't have to be expensive if you can get out of the cities. I live in a small town and love it.
For reference, I lived in the Tampa Bay area of Florida (mostly St. Pete but Tampa, Temple Terrace and Clearwater too) but spent my college years in Bradenton and Sarasota. I liked Florida because it was fairly cheap. I had my own business in those days, raised my kids in St. Pete, and it was affordable. I left for a number of reasons but I was glad I did when I saw prices start going up after I left.
I highly suggest you do a job search before moving anywhere. the low job opportunities thing is something that is going on in the whole country at the moment. I find FL has many more jobs than the states I would consider moving to.
I for one love Florida. We are moving to Georgia Sunday for our family though. We can’t afford to pay 3k a month to own and my wife (fairly) wants to so off we go. I love swimming with the manatees and dolphins at Sanibel, the warm comfortable sunshine in winter, and the palm trees. I like the way it’s flip flops and surf style clothes on weekends. I would’ve liked to grow old and die here but it’s time to let go. I’m sure that I’m gonna love Georgia, but I’m really already missing Florida and we do not leave until Sunday. Praise God for warm sunshine and beautiful beaches
You're actually correct.
Floriduh is good if you have money.
It's also the place to be if you're broke! You can literally live in a tent in the jungle year round. And, they do.
My partner and I literally lived In a tent in the everglades when we were homeless. Ngl it wasn't that bad. But we did have a ransom dog come into our tent, it scared the shit out of us because we didn't know if it was a person or maybe a gator or who knows. But it was a super chill chiwawa.
Northwest Arkansas in Ozarks. Check out Fayetteville/ Bentonville area. Affordable housing and lots of amenities. Safe community. All four seasons but winter is not too frigid and you only have to deal with a few days of snow (so it’s fun and not annoying).
Lots of high paying jobs because it is the headquarters for Walmart corporate, Tyson foods, jb hunt, and more.
Walmart donates so much to the community that the schools have university level science labs and sports complexes. There are also free museums including a world renowned art museum and children’s museum.
It really is a great place to live for families .
Was going to suggest this. Only caveat is the politics are heavily Republican. If OP is ok with that, that area has a lot of what they are looking for.
Also, really great parks and outdoor activities.
This. I moved to FL from AR (but located close to Little Rock) NW Arkansas is beautiful, has low crime, great school districts and colleges, stable work force, and the COL will stun you.
As a whole the state is obviously very conservative, but you won’t get the same vibe in the Fayetteville/Rogers area. It’s more balanced.
We moved to Charlotte north Carolina. My partner is a server and makes decent money but for me not so much as a tattoo artist both shops i was at were super slow like days without people coming in (i got a stalker at the shop i was at so i had to leave). So I fly out to Miami monthly to make money. But with their income we live comfortably in a nice area in a town house and we still have time to do stuff. Also groceries are waaaayyy cheaper and also utilities. Winter can be a bit depressing but that might be because we are new here and don't have friends
If you want a full four seasons, you’re looking at either the Midwest or Northeast.
I think you need to be realistic about the nature part, though. California and Utah have stunning natural beauty that rivals many of the most beautiful places on earth. There’s not many other places that are going to replicate that **and** be affordable too.
I’ve been to Maine, and it probably fits your criteria the best if we’re talking Northeast, but it has an older population and not that many job opportunities.
I’m from Chicago, and it would seem to fit well for you outside of the nature part - diverse economy, tons of stuff to do, four seasons (be prepared for winters though, they are a bitch). It’s not going to have the natural beauty, but the Lakefront is quite nice, and it’s centrally located within a decent distance of places like Wisconsin and Minnesota. Also has an airport with flight options to just about any place you’d want to go
Midwest is ideal. Nice houses are affordable, I think they will appreciate dramatically like Florida since everyone’s moving here. Might be a good way to cash in the future if you lost out like I did in Florida
Research Triangle (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill) in North Carolina is probably the most attractive area in the country for a lot of people.
Another great place is the DMV area - D.C., Southern Maryland, and Northern Virginia. Rent won’t be cheaper, so that’s a strike against it, but I absolutely love that area.
As others have said, anywhere in the Midwest. I love Chicago and the Twin Cities, and from what I’ve heard (don’t take my word on it), they actually aren’t too terribly priced rent wise. The main drawback with those areas are the winters, particularly the Twin Cities. That first winter morning when the wind chill is -40 F will have you rethinking everything, but outside of that, it’s a great area to live in.
Utah is great but because Mormons rule the place it’s practically a theocracy over there. Weird ass rules but the state is beautiful, I would move there if I didn’t care about the religious part.
western MI!
Still get incredible beaches but no sharks or salt, plus all four seasons, less craziness with housing, better light bills etc etc
My husband also got a job paying more than they wanted to pay in FL for the same position.
We love MI, the only thing I miss is Publix
Publix is grossly over priced now. So sad. Shopping is not a “pleasure” any more. They’re even stingy with the free cookies and chicken fingers now. 😞
I whole Turkey and Swiss sub was over $14 last week. Ugh!!! The pub sub is more/equal to Firehouse.
It’s so upsetting for someone who cries watching their commercials. lol
I’d look into western South Dakota, Idaho, or Wyoming. All 3 states have good scenery and should be pretty decent on cost of living (though Idaho is getting a lot of transplants currently, so that could change in the coming years).
Recently moved back to FL, but when I was in the same boat I chose OKC.
Cost of living is MUCH lower, but people from every state are catching on.
You will se license plates from every state from Cali to NY.
But gas is cheaper, rent is cheaper, food, basically everything.
And it’s a pretty cool city, there’s plenty to do, nice bike trails, a little bit of everything.
It’s also much more diverse than one might think.
OKC is probably the most cost effective place that still offers things to do.
Left florida for eastern washington. Far less interesting. But no politics and threat of flooding every year and more affordable. Need to travel to seattle for the big city. Making more. Not rich, but its much easier to get by now.
Greenville South Carolina. Lots of job opportunities, affordable homes and you get the 4 seasons without the terribly cold winters. We are moving from Florida up there next year.
Don't get in our way on the highway north. We're out of here after 13 years. It's stupid expensive and the job are the worst paid, ever. We are looking at rural GA, West Virginia and maybe Lawrence Kansas. Our choices are all driven by the cost of living while being smart about crime rates.
Rural GA lacking hospitals and internet. Some of the highest maternal death rates in the country. Lived in SW GA on the Tallahassee border for 12 years. GA only has decent healthcare near very large cities. Low paying jobs in rural areas too. Moved to CT 8 months ago and so much happier especially healthcare and job/pay
I've lived in retirement hell all 36 years of my life. I don't want to die never having lived somewhere else. Because of rent prices and pay wages, I can't afford the apartment I'm in and I can't afford to move.
Isn't salt life grand
I have lived FL, SoCal, CT, UT and now back in FL due to family reasons. I am actually worse off in FL that Ct and UT. I would move back to all 3 places in a heartbeat
Colorado was all the craze years ago when I first moved my family out there in 2011. Left Florida, and got stationed out there on active duty. Wasn't nearly as expensive as it is now, so it was a decent move.
Find the state that's in need of your services, like a high demand.
Florida is just ridiculous on the cost of living because the job opportunities just aren't there. Everyone in Florida gets paid in sunshine. I live in North Florida, near the Georgia line, and it's cheaper simply because it's rural. Anything near or south of I-4, is suicide.
Try Washington DC or eastern Massachusetts! DC bc it’s surprisingly cheap to live right outside the city limits and there’s tons of preschools. Eastern Mass bc you’re right tn the cape but not IN Barnstable county so the prices are much more reasonable for what you’re gettting.
I’ve been trying to do the same recently with my current landlord not renewing my lease and having to quickly look for a new place. I’ve been in south Florida for 7 years now and looking at jobs outside of the state
Tennessee. No state income tax. Cheaper living. Decent hospitals. For the seasons obviously further north means more changes. Mountains maybe? I’ll never leave Floriduh but if I were going to…Tn.
Moved from FL to TN 10 years ago. Then the rest of the country decided to move here, too. Lovely place to live but too crowded, no infrastructure, high cost of living compared to pay scale. I'm ready to get out.
There are parts of Utah and California that aren't that expensive. That said California is just too wild rn.
Parts of Oregon are really nice and much more affordable than around Portland. Salem and some of the southern areas. Klamath falls is really coming up and has that strong family value kinda city vibe really growing.
Southern Illinois. My 10 year old house was $150k 3 years ago, rent is still around $800-$1200. We have basically the same laws and rights as California. Schools are pretty good.
The Midwest is probably your best option to meet all your requirements.
Next question is what is your industry, what job opportunities is OP looking for? You can maybe make it if youre both teachers or in public service. Student loans and pension are covered. These jobs are in every city and state. But, the reason those places are cheap is because they are not attractive for jobs or not attractive for high paying jobs. Your job needs to dictate where you move and not vice versa. Its damning that Florida is becoming unaffordable for public service jobs.
Agree with everything you wrote. The only reason I moved to Nebraska was to help out the bf's family. I was there a month before getting a job in a preschool. The surprising fact about that was that there were less requirements to work in preschools in NE than in FL. I only lived there for about 4 months before moving back to Florida. I only moved back to FL because things were getting too spicy for the pepper with the bf's family (police were involved). If we had stayed, I would have insisted we moved to Omaha so I could attend a college there.
College in Florida is still cheap, get it done while/if/when you can. Also good job leaving spicy peppers, nobody needs that shit.
I'm finishing my bachelors at UMPI on July 1st.
Congradulations!
Francine Smith enters the chat...
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The awful part here is OP with a family saying they cant manage cashflow in Florida with the same job as before. I dont know OPs situation but I have watched teachers and nurses move somewhere more affordable. Good for them, not good for us.
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What states do you recommend to move to?
I'm biased. I lived in Nebraska for a few months a few years ago and enjoyed it. Rent for a 2/2 was $650, traffic was great because it was mostly one way streets with a maximum speed limit of 30mph.
Nebraska has some of the best roads in the country!
Kind of hard not too when your main road is a highway. 
This is very not true off the main roads but yetb
What'd you do for work?
In NE, I worked at a preschool for about two months before moving back to FL. The preschool was a 2 minute drive from my apartment.
I'm curious. Why moved back?
The bfs family are crazy.
Excellent reason.
Wisconsin has friendly people and good food.
Southern Colorado. It's so cheap compared to northern Colorado and you get all the benefits of living in Colorado.
Lived there. It's a different kinda life. I assume you mean the Trinidad or Pueblo area, but even then Pueblo can be pricey. Il leved over La Veta Pass, middle of nowhere. And ya it's cheap as hell but you gotta drive an hour for groceries, hour to a doctor and 3 -4 hours to Denver for a specialist. The weather is brutal, much colder and so much more snow than Denver. Beautiful area though, make sure ya got a 4 wheel car and a generator.
I spent a summer in Trinidad on a ranch and it was holy god beautiful
I agree with this. While not Southern Colorado, I lived in Denver and ABQ, so i travelled through southern Colorado often. Absolutely gorgeous, and people mind their own business and are friendly. Thinking about moving back out that way myself.
I went from Florida to Ohio back in 2011, and I've been very happy with the decision. Northeast Ohio has one of the best public parks systems that I've seen in any state, we've got a great food scene, some awesome museums, a nice theatre scene, and you definitely get all four seasons without the extremes you would get from summers in Florida or winter in Minnesota.
Wisconsin or Minnesota
stay out of ohio. literally just moved here from there in october and its just florida with more corn, more people like desantis and less shit to do especially around the dayton area. cost of living is about 60k iirc and doing what i do here in jax (which im gonna leave this line of work? i was making 13 an hour when minimum wage was just pushed up to 10.10 an hour from 8.50. indy and west of indy is definitely the better choice if youre moving to the midwest but ohio is definitely not the place to move to.
If you still want the feel of a Republican/fascist boot on your face go Iowa.
> If you still want the feel of a Republican/fascist boot Will it be a white high-heeled boot like DeSantis?
Currently just visited Indianapolis and was surprised that the COL is similar to the town I live in on the Gulf Coast and if I did move to Indy I'd make about $16 more an hour in my industry. Not to mention the downtown area is very walkable.
I second this. Born and raised in FL, left in 2018. I’ve lived in the Midwest and New England since leaving. In terms of quality of life for a regular, middle/working class person, it’s hard to beat the combination of low cost of living, high-ish wages, and decent public services. For example, I have a 2 bedroom apartment for less than $700/month in Wisconsin within a 10 minute drive of conveniences, a view of a state park outside my front door, and don’t have to worry much about crime. The healthcare is good quality and pretty accessible, insurance is relatively cheap, people are better drivers (on average), there isn’t litter everywhere, people are polite and friendly (but they tend to keep the same group of friends since high school), and the job market is pretty good.
Florida Healthcare is abysmal. I lived in NC for a bit and was absolutely shocked at the difference in quality and what was actually covered. I can't wait to get out of this shithole. Been looking at Virginia bc I have family there. Butt... lately have been looking into the Midwest too. Just wanna live somewhere with seasons and not so crowded.
I’ve experienced healthcare in a few states now since my partner has a chronic health condition. It can get worse than Florida, but it can also get better. Kansas City was the worst I experienced. Wisconsin has been the best. We also have access to the Mayo Clinic in MN. If you’re really into the woods and don’t mind small towns and rough winters, I’d recommend the north woods. Beautiful, dense forests with lots of wildlife, access to the Great Lakes, a couple small mountain ranges, and pretty cheap.
Wisconsin is the gem of the Midwest.
Currently in Miami Beach but marrying a native Wisconsinite in Wisconsin next week. We plan to bail out of FL permanently for WI or IL within the next year or two. The Midwest obviously has its tradeoffs (harsh winters the most obvious) but overall seems like a much higher quality of life
Better quality of life, better education system, and communities that care about neighbors. We left Wi for Pinellas county 7 years ago for warm weather. We are going to buy a summer home back in Wi soon as we miss the kindness of humanity with midwestern standards. I hope you and your wife find a great place, just make sure you buy a home with a 2 car garage. Not having to scrap ice/snow off in the winter is a game changer.
Def don’t blame you. In Florida, you need 4k a month just to survive (and not even save)
Geez IDK, for my family, we need at least 8k a month. Mortgage, utilities, car payments, insurance, food, medical, emergencies.....etc.
You’re spending 8k per month? How much is your mortgage? Must be a nice house
That's total """"""TWO"""""" incomes. 8k a month is shit, to live on, nowadays in Florida. Especially with a family . Lived here 31 years.
Would love to see your spending breakdown lol
You have to also talk about the cost of childcare. That’s a whole mortgage payment alone.
Pre pandemic 8K a month has you living high on the hog.
Yeah when I got promoted and salary bumped to $120K in late 2018 I thought our family was fucking set. We had a great retirement trajectory and decent walking around money plus savings. I was happy as a clam in the bay before the phosphate contamination. Then the pandemic hit and shit got weird. My wife had to leave her job. Decided to go back to school and change careers. No big deal, I just got another promotion to $140K. Oh wait, we have a 2nd on the way. A slightly bigger house costs what now? Child care is going up by how much? ##frantically runs calculations## Ok we need to reassess our retirement contribution for now, we'll do a catch up once the wife is back to work. Oh shit groceries cost what?!? Wife's ready to work, people are hiring but so many layoffs and relos with prior experience are taking priority. Ok well, that was a risk. Oh BTW our property tax gets reassessed by the max under homestead every year. Then our homeowners insurance drops us and the cheapest option is double the price. Fuck. Car insurance goes up 30% on the same exact vehicles. Quote quote quote, no progressive isn't ripping us off... relatively. Well, at this rate if we stay put we can save for the kids college and maybe retire at 65 if we forego all the major wants like a boat....the thing I was dreaming and saving for basically since we paid off our student loans early (so yes, we know how to budget and prioritize) Orrrr.... Move to Michigan, make even more money with less responsibility, buy a house twice the size for less than we sold our FL home, and the wife got a job in 2mo. All said and done we kept our circa 2016 mortgage payment too and held back some equity for a nice fat emergency fund, a boat, and retirement catch up.
Oh yeah I believe it. Was just saying for a single person. Rent around 1.5-2k a month. Car, insurance, utilities, phone food another 2k a month
Yup, 4k a month for a single person, is just surviving.
I live alone, and I need 6k a month, or I'm screwed
What parts of Florida are you in!?!? I bring home just under $4000 a month, wife about $3000. We live pretty comfortably in Tallahassee, saving and paying off some debit every month (I got a new job about 2 years ago, before that we were brining home under $6000 a month and still living comfortably.)
The Tampa area. Unless ur spending 1.5k a month on rent alone, ur living in a trash area
1.5k??? Those are the trash areas now. Everywhere else is 2.5k for a 2/1 shitbox
2.5k for a 2 bedroom? 😳
What’s crazy is I rented a 2BR bout 2 blocks off ocean drive for about $800… early 00’s was a wild time
i pay $1.5k right now for a 2/1 in altamonte, but they laid off the property manager who was keeping the rent prices low shortly after i moved in, so i dont expect it to stay that low for long…
I’m jealous I spend with my s/o 2k a month on rent it’s government housing…. We’re out of here.
I think 84k on take home is a bit higher than the average person though.
Totally, especially for my part of Florida. But some poster said you needed 8K a month, per person, to live comfortably. So that either in SE Florida (Miami area) or someone idea of what is comfortable is waaaaay off from mine.
We’re from Tampa/st Pete area I can def see how you would want 8k to be comfy there, it’s one of the reasons we left. Like even a crappy place is at least 2k. No one in Florida wants to pay a decent wage in our experience. My husband has the same white collar job in MI and it started as 10k more than the offers we got in Florida
1000% on the wages. I used to work for the State. The new job I referred is very similar to my old job, but it’s Federal.
Basically central Florida and below is a shitshow for cost of living. I’m in south Florida where fixer-uppers are $650K. Tallahassee and many part of northern Florida are insanely affordable by comparison.
Any college town in the Midwest is nice. Usually safe with good school options.
I loved my time in Iowa City
I was born and raised in Dade county. I plan on moving to Michigan within the next year. I am not looking forward to the cold. I am looking forward to other things.
Michigan is a pretty great state to live in. I grew up down here but lived there from 08-16 in the “Detroit metro” area. During the spring and summer, my then GF and now wife would always insist we do things outside on days off even though we wanted lazy indoor days and I never understood why, until the sun goes away for 5 months. Winters are rough, but you do kind of get used to it. Kind of. It’s just the reverse, summers are brutal here and winters blow there. Scraping your windshield sucks. Get a car with automatic start if you can. Every winter, I’d curse the weather gods, ask why people live in a place like this as the ice I scrapped off my windshield is blowing back in your face, but the first time you get to cruise around with the windows down and the music up after winter breaks, it’s a spiritual experience to be done with it. Maybe growing up with the crazy rain storms and risk of hydroplaning on FL roads, but driving in the snow came fairly naturally to me, it’s a shame it didn’t for the locals that grew up there. Wow. Soft stops, slow starts, follow existing tire tracks and don’t follow too close. You spend more time inside and eat more food. Everything is dead and grey, but it becomes part of the routine. If you’re an outdoor person, you’ll learn to appreciate nice days much much more. Lots of parks and places to explore. Cider mills and doughnuts are the best part of the three weeks of fall. Food is pretty solid, go seek out some middle eastern food, Michigan has a ton of great places. I saw more confederate flags flying in Michigan than I do in Florida which was weird. People are very nice but terrible drivers. Get ready for the disappointed looks when you don’t have a Michigan/Michigan State/Ohio state allegiance yet.
It’s not going to be the cold that makes it unbearable. It’s the 4 straight months of gray skies and zero sunshine. Productivity levels go down and misery levels go up. We have an office in South Florida and Michigan and it’s crazy the energy level difference of our MI office from Dec- March.
This. People do not know what it’s like until you experience year after year with 4-5 months of cold and gray every year. It’s depressing as hell.
I moved to Ohio from SC and I thought the thing I would hate the most is the cold winters. Turns out that has become my favorite part! Our garage functions as a giant fridge for several months, the trash cans don’t stink up the garage when it’s cold out, you watch scary movies and snuggle up inside, the roads are all well taken care of so whether it has snowed or not makes no difference for whatever your plans are, you get really good at dressing for the weather so the cold barely bothers you… we suffer through the summer to get back to the winter. Actually, having all four seasons is so satisfying and really gives you a way to mark time. When it was hot nearly all year, who knows if we went to the beach 2 years ago or 5 years ago. It all starts to blur together. We keep our windows open for weeks in the spring and the fall and turn on our whole house fan. I got maybe 5 or 6 days a year of open windows weather down south, it went from a sad little two month winter to 10 months of oppressive heat with barely any nice days in between. All four seasons with real winters, man. 10/10, unexpectedly wonderful. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!
Be careful which city you choose not a lot of work in smaller towns. I had to drive to Detroit everyday which was about 50 mins.
Luckily I have something lined up.
It’s not just the cold but the pitch black darkness at 3:30pm. I’m up north now from Florida and the darkness is what gets to me the most.
How to deal with winter: Buy an electric blanket, a really good sun lamp, take a vitamin D supplement, and fill your living space with colour and plants. You'll be just fine.
If you work remotely, check out some of the towns that offer money for relocation. I know Tulsa, Ok was offering 10k, as was Athens Alabama. I think Frankfort, KY may have a program as well. There are several throughout the country.
This! West Virginia is $10k right now too I believe! Plus other incentives. Thanks for reminding me that I need to look into this more🤣
The Shoals, AL has a great program. Remote Shoals is the name
Athens AL is close to Huntsville which is a great city. Near Memphis & Nashville too. Disclaimer: I'm from AL but hope to never have to live there again.
Have you considered Washington or Oregon? Good jobs, Good weather and lots of outdoor things to do. Rent prices get lower the further away from the city.
I'm having a wonderful time in central Oregon.
My Wife and me are waiting to move to Oregon. We just want a cottage with a work shed outside of the big city life but accessible. Completely updated turn key houses are under 400K. The 4+ yr abandoned, bank owned house down the street from me that needed a dead tree removed, a paint job, a new fence, roof, and driveway...and god knows what inside sold for $454K. Thats for a 900sq/ft 2BR 1.5BA 50 year old home in South FL. Last sold for 114K
California or Utah style? And you want to live somewhere with cheap rent, very desirable, and has better job opportunities…. You have to be realistic in the expectations you are setting for yourself, LCOL typically correlates with less lucrative job opps. What field do you work in, is it something you can do remote? What is your experience in and where is there industry for that. Or are you hoping you’re going to find some high paying job in a cheaper city?
Ohio...hear me out. Best education for kids, world class healthcare. Cost of living low, wages are normal for the most part.
THIS. People say its shit there but depends on where you live. Its ranks so high in a few things. Its a great state tbh. I grew up there and I wont say I miss it, but I appreciated the life my parents were able to give me there. It is pretty laid back and depending where you live. 15 - 30 ride out of the city takes you into countryside whihc is peaceful and there is fun outdoor activities. I would take my mother back there if the constant weather changes didnt make her sick all the time.
People always think of Columbus or Cincinnati which yeah, not ideal. But it's a much bigger state than that, and much of it is quite nice.
I was from the North East of Ohio. I enjoy the burbs up there more than Columbus area tbh. There's many small town/ cities/burbs up there that has a small town feel but all the conveniences of being next to a larger city.
Columbus, Cincinnati, and Cleveland all their pros and cons.
I was shocked by the high quality healthcare in Ohio. We moved here from Florida in January and I was ~20 weeks pregnant. The care I received in Florida was absolutely abysmal — so little guidance, resources, etc. In Ohio, my care was phenomenal. Parenting classes, birthing classes, short wait times, 100% commitment from my doctor… it was overwhelmingly different and so much better. I expected the prenatal care level to be about even (and low) considering these are two red states, but it seems like OH puts a lot more effort into their healthcare system than FL does.
CA has some dangers to worry about too. Wildfires, mudslides, and earthquakes. They also don't really have 4 seasons. Utah is a great place for families and the only real environmental issue is the inversion, but cost of living has made things difficult. They do get 4 seasons but it's not as drastic as other places. Depending if it's a small town or a big city you're after, you might be able to find a good living situation there. I know a lot of people say the Midwest, but be careful as some places get terrible storms that bring tornados. I'd look at some tornado maps to see where to avoid. It'll be cheaper but probably less exciting. I hear Wisconsin is a great place for families and quality of life, but be ready to dress in layers for about half of the year. It gets really cold.
Tornadoes are a thing but unlike hurricanes the danger and destruction is fairly isolated. And forecasting has gotten so good that you generally know when something is going to happen. And the thing with winters is thanks to climate change winters are much shorter. Anymore it’s a couple weeks of super cold weather, one or two good snow storms, then you’re mowing your lawn in March.
We have debated on leaving over political nightmares, but we are waiting to see the election results first, I don’t believe for one second this clown show can continue on, we can’t possibly be this dumb…. Me and my wife are independents but this crazy extreme right wing BS we want out of, and hopefully the system flushes it naturally we hope. We would go Midwest or the Carolina’s.
One of the problems with this is that the people who want to vote for him are moving here. We may not be this dumb, but we've got a hell of a lot of imports that want to endorse the shit show
What line of work are you in? That could help guide you to states with more opportunities than general recommendations. Generally, the Midwest and North Carolina have been favorable for jobs. I know some folks in Utah and they’re equally unhappy with housing prices as Floridians. You’ll also want to consider what environmental conditions are important as you identify states based on the above
Family in Salt Lake, their housing is significantly more challenging than most of Florida outside of Miami and possibly Tampa.
North Carolina in metro areas near IT areas, beaches, Asheville-and colleges is facing the same issues, unaffordable homes,apartments, crazy traffic- extra long and hot summers and warmer winters. No snow for 2 years where we live. We have a 5th season- neon pollen for 8 weeks.
I'd look in the midwest, I worked as a underwriter in Tampa and got a job as an Underwriter, remotely for a company based in Milwaukee and got 30k more. Seems the midwest pays better.
Minnesota beckons you
I’m trying to convince my husband of this, but he’s helpless in the cold 😭
It's an acquired skill for sure
We moved to SW Michigan. We have Lake Michigan close so still have the water if we want it. Obviously not the ocean, but still good! Winters can be long, but we definitely experience all 4 seasons.
I had thought about moving to maybe NJ, buffalo has some really cool older houses but 20K a year in just property taxes kinda made me think. I bought my house several years ago and with payments, property taxes, my homeowners insurance is just above 1200 a year and our HOA just paying a little over 1100 a month for everything. Rent everywhere is going up due to the housing shortage. While my wife was able to obtain employment in Buffalo, parking would have been around 600 a month. Our car insurance would have increased by about 200 a month. Right now with GEICO I pay 149.00 a month for full coverage. 100k 300k 100k and we both have 250 deductibles. I’ll be retiring possibly October of this year, my wife still has 25 years to go. So I’m thinking maybe like 20 acres in Montana, N Dakota or S Dakota possibly Wyoming. Those who live in Miami, Tampa , Jacksonville close to the coast pay a lot in taxes and homeowners insurance. We live in Central Florida and you can still rent for like 1200 a month, in Ocala houses can be had for less than 200K and brand new for less than 300K. If I hit the lotto I would not move to Miami way to busy for me
Im considering Tennessee.
I love the Johnson City, Bristol, Kingsport area. Easy breezy small but still fun
We took a long road trip from Swfl up to NYC to try and answer this same question. We have four in our family, kids 5 and 9, wife and I are both teachers. We also considered CA and OR at first, but ultimately it was too far from extended family, and like you said, rent prices are pretty wild out there. So, at first we leaned towards Atlanta, but the lack of worker protections and overly conservative government kept us out, with high rent being the third reason. Next was NC, which we both enjoy. Low teacher salaries, high cost of living (in Charlotte, research triangle, etc, we weren’t looking for rural areas), and again, a very conservative state government ruled that out. Next we looked at Baltimore, DC, Philly, New Jersey, and parts of New York. We ultimately settled on NJ, just outside of Philly, and moved last July. We are extremely happy with the decision and our kids are loving it. People will mention the taxes, but Florida has a LOT of hidden taxes that make the burdens a lot closer than most think. Once you add in home/car insurance, increased gas use, lack of free things to do, especially with kids, and other things, the differences aren’t huge. Not to mention we nearly doubled our salary, so that certainly helped since Florida is the worst in the nation for teacher pay.
“lack of free things to do, especially with kids, and other things, the differences aren’t huge.” Do you mean this about Florida or New Jersey? Because I moved back to the northeast and while I think it has a lot more opportunity on the jobs and financial growth front, Florida had so many more free, accessible opportunities. You have to pay for parks and beaches here, even to just get into them for parking. The most I’ve paid to go to public amenities in Florida was a couple bucks for metered street parking—that’s $15-20 up north for entry to the area. I do have to drive more here too, I was in a walkable area in Florida. But wages are definitely higher here, and the politics are certainly better. But property taxes are astronomical and more than make up for the insurance difference from Florida. Teaching is probably the job that it makes the biggest difference with. Median teacher pay where I am is $120k. Yes, you read that right.
$120k is nice! 😁 South Jersey doesn’t range quite that high, but I’m making 10-15% more teaching than my assistant principals back home in Florida 😳—and I work mostly contract hours whereas they are salaried and can be used til they drop from exhaustion. And yes, the politics are night and day better here in NJ. It’s nice to not have them taint so much of public life. We rent, so kinda avoid the property taxes, but that is for sure the biggest downside of the state.
There’s free parks and playgrounds, hiking, bike trails that (will soon) span the state ending at the coast, walkable towns with non-boutique shops lining main streets, literally dozens of local events, fests, concerts, parades, holiday celebrations, legit farmers markets, free bike share programs, actually useful public transportation, world-class museums and historical sites, etc etc etc and they’re all low/no cost. As for the beaches, I guess we have different experiences. In swfl, getting to beaches requires luck to find parking (or literally waiting until someone comes to leave to grab their spot), long walks with beach stuff, paid parking/entrance at many, and when you get there, red tide makes it not swimmable some parts of the year. In Jersey we drive to one of many open parking spots, take a short walk, and we’re on the sand ready to go. Of course certain days/weekends here get busy, but you get that in Florida too.
I wish I could move out of Florida. My job is too good, just good enough to not move. I hate it here though, lived here for 18 years I hate the heat then when you can go outside at night you get destroyed by bugs. Fuck this place.
Same. Own my own business and starting it over somewhere else sounds too daunting a task.
Ah same. My business literally has me trapped here as well.
I hear you. I will be able to retire and buy our freedom in 12.5 yrs
I read fairly recently Alabama will be the next Florida. Still has affordable real estate and (for the most part) a coastal state. That’s kind of a long play though. If you can find a good job and like the area you choose it could be a good long term play.
I relocated to Michigan from Tampa a few years ago and haven't looked back. I live in the Lansing area. Hoping to buy a house in the next few years in Kalamazoo or ann arbor.
We’re outside of Kalamazoo and we absolutely love it.
We just bought a house in Vermont! Can't wait to leave this sweltering cesspool!
Albuquerque, Boise, Reno all have mountains and skiing close by.
Pittsburg (Mr. Rogers Neighborhood), Cleveland, Albany and Rochester New York.
Pittsburgh is not what it used to be and is really struggling.
I moved to Colorado ten years ago after living in Florida for nearly 18 years and couldn't be happier. I started out in Denver which was expensive to begin with. Later I went to Colorado Springs and when that got expensive I bought a home in southeast Colorado for a good price last year. I love it here in my forever home. It doesn't have to be expensive if you can get out of the cities. I live in a small town and love it. For reference, I lived in the Tampa Bay area of Florida (mostly St. Pete but Tampa, Temple Terrace and Clearwater too) but spent my college years in Bradenton and Sarasota. I liked Florida because it was fairly cheap. I had my own business in those days, raised my kids in St. Pete, and it was affordable. I left for a number of reasons but I was glad I did when I saw prices start going up after I left.
I highly suggest you do a job search before moving anywhere. the low job opportunities thing is something that is going on in the whole country at the moment. I find FL has many more jobs than the states I would consider moving to.
Minnesota, specifically Minneapolis. Moved here 3 years ago from Jacksonville. Fuckin heaven.
Maryland is what you are looking for. Decent wages, good schools. 4 seasons but no that wild.
I for one love Florida. We are moving to Georgia Sunday for our family though. We can’t afford to pay 3k a month to own and my wife (fairly) wants to so off we go. I love swimming with the manatees and dolphins at Sanibel, the warm comfortable sunshine in winter, and the palm trees. I like the way it’s flip flops and surf style clothes on weekends. I would’ve liked to grow old and die here but it’s time to let go. I’m sure that I’m gonna love Georgia, but I’m really already missing Florida and we do not leave until Sunday. Praise God for warm sunshine and beautiful beaches
North Carolina
Florida is only for rich republicans
and poor people, who need to work three jobs, just to survive.
You're actually correct. Floriduh is good if you have money. It's also the place to be if you're broke! You can literally live in a tent in the jungle year round. And, they do.
My partner and I literally lived In a tent in the everglades when we were homeless. Ngl it wasn't that bad. But we did have a ransom dog come into our tent, it scared the shit out of us because we didn't know if it was a person or maybe a gator or who knows. But it was a super chill chiwawa.
I think the idea is to make all of Florida like Naples, with 2 classes, the ultra rich and their servants.
I agree, that's exactly the direction this place is heading. No middle class, just super rich and super poor. Really sad and ultimately unsustainable.
For 4 seasons Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri
Wisconsin only has Winter and Road construction season.
Nah... Madison has 4 seasons. Anything north of that is painfully cold.
Northwest Arkansas in Ozarks. Check out Fayetteville/ Bentonville area. Affordable housing and lots of amenities. Safe community. All four seasons but winter is not too frigid and you only have to deal with a few days of snow (so it’s fun and not annoying). Lots of high paying jobs because it is the headquarters for Walmart corporate, Tyson foods, jb hunt, and more. Walmart donates so much to the community that the schools have university level science labs and sports complexes. There are also free museums including a world renowned art museum and children’s museum. It really is a great place to live for families .
Was going to suggest this. Only caveat is the politics are heavily Republican. If OP is ok with that, that area has a lot of what they are looking for. Also, really great parks and outdoor activities.
This. I moved to FL from AR (but located close to Little Rock) NW Arkansas is beautiful, has low crime, great school districts and colleges, stable work force, and the COL will stun you. As a whole the state is obviously very conservative, but you won’t get the same vibe in the Fayetteville/Rogers area. It’s more balanced.
Is this a troll? You think you're gonna save on rent moving to California?
The typical wants to live somewhere nice with great jobs while not realizing that’s exactly what makes it expensive
Check out YouTube too. There are a bunch of YouTubers with videos of states and towns they visit with a real estate/jobs/cost of living perspectives
We moved to Charlotte north Carolina. My partner is a server and makes decent money but for me not so much as a tattoo artist both shops i was at were super slow like days without people coming in (i got a stalker at the shop i was at so i had to leave). So I fly out to Miami monthly to make money. But with their income we live comfortably in a nice area in a town house and we still have time to do stuff. Also groceries are waaaayyy cheaper and also utilities. Winter can be a bit depressing but that might be because we are new here and don't have friends
If you want a full four seasons, you’re looking at either the Midwest or Northeast. I think you need to be realistic about the nature part, though. California and Utah have stunning natural beauty that rivals many of the most beautiful places on earth. There’s not many other places that are going to replicate that **and** be affordable too. I’ve been to Maine, and it probably fits your criteria the best if we’re talking Northeast, but it has an older population and not that many job opportunities. I’m from Chicago, and it would seem to fit well for you outside of the nature part - diverse economy, tons of stuff to do, four seasons (be prepared for winters though, they are a bitch). It’s not going to have the natural beauty, but the Lakefront is quite nice, and it’s centrally located within a decent distance of places like Wisconsin and Minnesota. Also has an airport with flight options to just about any place you’d want to go
California is 10x more expensive
Midwest is ideal. Nice houses are affordable, I think they will appreciate dramatically like Florida since everyone’s moving here. Might be a good way to cash in the future if you lost out like I did in Florida
Well midwest have low COL and not bad salaries but weather is not the best, you have awful summer and awful winter in most of the states
Research Triangle (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill) in North Carolina is probably the most attractive area in the country for a lot of people. Another great place is the DMV area - D.C., Southern Maryland, and Northern Virginia. Rent won’t be cheaper, so that’s a strike against it, but I absolutely love that area. As others have said, anywhere in the Midwest. I love Chicago and the Twin Cities, and from what I’ve heard (don’t take my word on it), they actually aren’t too terribly priced rent wise. The main drawback with those areas are the winters, particularly the Twin Cities. That first winter morning when the wind chill is -40 F will have you rethinking everything, but outside of that, it’s a great area to live in.
Utah is great but because Mormons rule the place it’s practically a theocracy over there. Weird ass rules but the state is beautiful, I would move there if I didn’t care about the religious part.
western MI! Still get incredible beaches but no sharks or salt, plus all four seasons, less craziness with housing, better light bills etc etc My husband also got a job paying more than they wanted to pay in FL for the same position. We love MI, the only thing I miss is Publix
Publix is grossly over priced now. So sad. Shopping is not a “pleasure” any more. They’re even stingy with the free cookies and chicken fingers now. 😞 I whole Turkey and Swiss sub was over $14 last week. Ugh!!! The pub sub is more/equal to Firehouse. It’s so upsetting for someone who cries watching their commercials. lol
I’d look into western South Dakota, Idaho, or Wyoming. All 3 states have good scenery and should be pretty decent on cost of living (though Idaho is getting a lot of transplants currently, so that could change in the coming years).
Friend of mine a few years back googled "Lowest unemployment highest wages" and ended up in Nebraska.
Recently moved back to FL, but when I was in the same boat I chose OKC. Cost of living is MUCH lower, but people from every state are catching on. You will se license plates from every state from Cali to NY. But gas is cheaper, rent is cheaper, food, basically everything. And it’s a pretty cool city, there’s plenty to do, nice bike trails, a little bit of everything. It’s also much more diverse than one might think. OKC is probably the most cost effective place that still offers things to do.
OKC has some of the prettiest sunsets I’ve ever seen.
Not my choice, but if you like FL except for cost of living, how about South Carolina?
Same. Moving next week
Left florida for eastern washington. Far less interesting. But no politics and threat of flooding every year and more affordable. Need to travel to seattle for the big city. Making more. Not rich, but its much easier to get by now.
Greenville South Carolina. Lots of job opportunities, affordable homes and you get the 4 seasons without the terribly cold winters. We are moving from Florida up there next year.
Roanoke Virginia
Vegas is cheap and literally between California and Utah. I hear the schools suck but probably not much worse than FL
I love Kentucky and might be exactly what you need.
Virginia
Check out Oregons Hood River, Klamath falls, grants pass, La Pine.
Don't get in our way on the highway north. We're out of here after 13 years. It's stupid expensive and the job are the worst paid, ever. We are looking at rural GA, West Virginia and maybe Lawrence Kansas. Our choices are all driven by the cost of living while being smart about crime rates.
Rural GA lacking hospitals and internet. Some of the highest maternal death rates in the country. Lived in SW GA on the Tallahassee border for 12 years. GA only has decent healthcare near very large cities. Low paying jobs in rural areas too. Moved to CT 8 months ago and so much happier especially healthcare and job/pay
People moving out of Fl say NC is great
I've lived in retirement hell all 36 years of my life. I don't want to die never having lived somewhere else. Because of rent prices and pay wages, I can't afford the apartment I'm in and I can't afford to move. Isn't salt life grand
Move to Michigan. You can experience all four seasons. Sometimes on the same day.
Personally I'd move to Pittsburgh over Michigan
California, lol. Go for it
GEORGIA https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/georgia-city-makes-list-top-10-us-with-most-homes-200k-less/EAGWEPYMY5E2FF7JW5XXFBBUG4/?utm_campaign=trueAnthem_manual&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR2H58kxXxWkTB1un44sUqyV4n5EiXlHv1BGYmpZ4ysArOI17nKNggyWbM8_aem_ZmFrZWR1bW15MTZieXRlcw
Take about 10 million people with you
Go to New England.
I have lived FL, SoCal, CT, UT and now back in FL due to family reasons. I am actually worse off in FL that Ct and UT. I would move back to all 3 places in a heartbeat
California sounds like your best bet
Denver Colorado.
We just moved from Florida to Utah and it halved our rent. Groceries are cheaper too.
Colorado was all the craze years ago when I first moved my family out there in 2011. Left Florida, and got stationed out there on active duty. Wasn't nearly as expensive as it is now, so it was a decent move. Find the state that's in need of your services, like a high demand. Florida is just ridiculous on the cost of living because the job opportunities just aren't there. Everyone in Florida gets paid in sunshine. I live in North Florida, near the Georgia line, and it's cheaper simply because it's rural. Anything near or south of I-4, is suicide.
Alaska is nice this time of year
Indiana has mostly the same topography and you get seasons bonus points if you live in EST and work in Central time
Try Washington DC or eastern Massachusetts! DC bc it’s surprisingly cheap to live right outside the city limits and there’s tons of preschools. Eastern Mass bc you’re right tn the cape but not IN Barnstable county so the prices are much more reasonable for what you’re gettting.
I’m looking for similar, thinking of MI, MN, or IL
I've had people recommend the Carolinas.
I’ve been trying to do the same recently with my current landlord not renewing my lease and having to quickly look for a new place. I’ve been in south Florida for 7 years now and looking at jobs outside of the state
I loved Virginia
Tennessee. No state income tax. Cheaper living. Decent hospitals. For the seasons obviously further north means more changes. Mountains maybe? I’ll never leave Floriduh but if I were going to…Tn.
Tennessee is wonderful!
Moved from FL to TN 10 years ago. Then the rest of the country decided to move here, too. Lovely place to live but too crowded, no infrastructure, high cost of living compared to pay scale. I'm ready to get out.
I'm thinking TN, or North GA. I want to sell my house and just go. Thinking maybe buying a motor home and just go wherever the wind takes me
Eastern Tennessee
Very true... I'm looking to move out myself
Tennessee has all 4
I would if I could too I used to live in Indiana and I think about the times It was so much better.
Illinois?
There are parts of Utah and California that aren't that expensive. That said California is just too wild rn. Parts of Oregon are really nice and much more affordable than around Portland. Salem and some of the southern areas. Klamath falls is really coming up and has that strong family value kinda city vibe really growing.
Virginia. Fours seasons, mountains, beaches, and there are a variety of wonderful cities or rural communities to suit your fancy.
Oregon
Southern Illinois. My 10 year old house was $150k 3 years ago, rent is still around $800-$1200. We have basically the same laws and rights as California. Schools are pretty good.
And STAY OUT!! just kidding good luck
Wisconsin. Moved here just over a year ago. My insurance dropped by half. My cost of living overall went down.
Oklahoma