searching for thread on moving

[Sparticle]

i'm sure there have been threads on ideas of where to move. I can't think of what to type in because I either get too many hits or none. I need to move w/in an hour to an hour&1/2 of a city so I can work until I get the debt paid off, but need to live in the country so I can keep progressing towards self sufficiency and homesteading. I want to be away from flooding and mosquitos. So, if you know of a thread I've missed, please help.

I'm going to start by looking up elevation maps. Then proximity to the coast (not close), superfund sites, fresh water, median weather, etc... I know the perfect location is a dream, but I can put in all the variables and get as close to perfect for me as I can right?!

[JennDBass]

Honestly... it depends on what you do. Best bet is Alaska in the Alutian islands... Look up Sand Point Alaska. It doesn't snow and it has some AWESOME sunlight. But it doesn't have a big town. But if you have a marketable skill... like if you had medical training, or were a comercial fisherman... that would be great! Otherwise you will pay way too much for your land.

[Terri]

Look at the major roads and interstates. You can go a good distance fairly rapidly that way.

What my DH did was to look at his existing job, and then drive out on a highway until a reasonable commute time was achieved. Then, we looked in that area.

[oz in SC]

Any particular place in the country?

What sort of work?

[Sparticle]

Originally Posted by oz in SC

Any particular place in the country?

What sort of work?

Right now I'm Sr. QA and test health insurance software. But I can do anything computer related or even run a small shop. Scaling down the hours and the stress would be key. I think I would like to target an area near a city and then just find anythign that'll pay the bills. My #1 goal is growing veggies in a greenhouse, solar or wind power and self sufficency. I could tolerate some light snow I think and some cooler temperatures. Just 2 weeks ago I slept 3 nights in a tent on a lawn chair in 32 degree weather. So I'm pretty tough I think. I'd like a fresh water source also. Mountains or hills in the back would be a plus. I'd make a great neighbor and love to help people. I'd like a place for my animals (pigs) and would love to raise a few personal milk goats as well. Meat isn't really a big issue for me as I mostly eat veggies.

So any particular place? - No. What sort of work? - I think I could do pretty much anything in an office. But, if I worked outside in a nursery or did landscaping that would be great too. Like I said, if there's a city, I have marketable skills. I just don't want to be too close to it. I have 3 resumes based on what I'm in the mood for. A "dummied down" one for the easy jobs (when I worked in a health food store), middle of the road one (how I got the testing gig) and then the manager one (which I pray I never use again).

It never dawned on me that Alaska would have places that didn't snow - what a concept.

[oz in SC]

The reason I ask is some people do have areas they do not like....

Look at western NC,it is pretty and has a good sized city(Asheville) and several smaller others.Depending where you lived you could commute to Charlotte which is a big city...

I have a few links to real estate sites and the like if you are interested.

The land we bought has no restrictions re: animals,just a minimum house size and no mobile homes....we decided we could live with that.

Winters are colder than here in coastal SC(obviously...) but nothing like other places...

We are hoping to start the process of building something in the next few months...

[Sparticle]

Originally Posted by oz in SC

The reason I ask is some people do have areas they do not like....

Look at western NC,it is pretty and has a good sized city(Asheville) and several smaller others.Depending where you lived you could commute to Charlotte which is a big city...

I have a few links to real estate sites and the like if you are interested.

The land we bought has no restrictions re: animals,just a minimum house size and no mobile homes....we decided we could live with that.

Winters are colder than here in coastal SC(obviously...) but nothing like other places...

We are hoping to start the process of building something in the next few months...

Thank you so much!! I'm trying to keep my options wide open. I've never lived outside of Texas as an adult. Any decent property in Texas that isn't prone to flooding, has moderate temperatures and is beautiful is VERY expensive.

Yes, I would like any links you could send me. Hurricane Rita has really lit a fire under me. Having to pack everything that's important to you and load up 10 animals in just a few hours beats the heck out of you. I'm tired of being afraid of every rain and wondering if this is the one that's going to get the house. I'm tired of my animals and me being swarmed with mosquitos.

I thought NC has had a few hurricanes in the past few years though?

[oz in SC]

Here is a link to the Homes and Lands magazine from the area:
http://www.homesandland.com/Magazine...cfm?MagId=0773
We used a real estate agent to help us,if you want I can email you his address.

As to hurricanes,coastal NC ALWAYS gets hit....LOL..Whenever a hurricane is forecast to possibly hit here in SC it almost ALWAYS heads up and hits Wrightsville Beach/outer Banks area of NC.

What happens in WNC is rain from the hurricanes...it seems that the system will hit the mountains and go up through the area.

There WAS flooding last year but the areas were along the various rivers/creeks.

Our land was nice and dry thankfully as we had visions of it flooding(it has two little streams and one big creek)

What do you consider expensive?

There is a listing sent to us by the realtor for 20 acres and an old farmhouse,pastures and woods for $179,900...quite close into town as well.