Tell us about your state ... The good, the bad, and the crazy.

terri46355 · #21 04/25/06, 08:23 AM

frickinfarm,

Thanks for the insight into Missouri. We're leaving Northwest Indiana for Ozark County, Missouri as soon as we get our property sold. So far, we've met 2 of our neighbors. The couple across the street are right wing conservatives. Her brother, 1/4 mile away, came over and said something about Yankees while drinking coffee with us. He caught himself and admitted he came from Illinois as a child. I took it as he thought of us as one of his kind and not a "d*** yankee".

People ask where we came from because of our accent. We have been told that we're not typical know-it-all transplants and won't have a problem fitting in. Everone we've met has a disdain for people from California.

Please let me know of anything else we can do to become part of the community.

mama2littleman · #22 04/25/06, 11:11 AM

Wow, this is fascinating!

Farmer Willy ... Noneed to tell me about Kentucky, I lived on the Tennessee/Kentucky border for 8 years. In thattime I survuved Ice stors, hail storms, tornadoes, and flash floods. Interesting weather you got there.

Morrison Corner, Vermont sounds heavenly. Unfortunately there aren't a lot of jobs in my field in that state. I've looked.

As for my fellow Texans ... You have a beautiful state, but while you may have no income tax .... Your property taxes are killing me. Mine are almost $7000/year

Missouri sounds scary, weather wise. I'm starting to think that you guys are trying to scare me away.

Wisconsin ... wow, that's a place that has never pinged my radar before. it definately deserves closer inspection. I love German food, but I'm definately going to have to take a closer look at the taxes. Hmm, definately something to think about.

Wow, please keep the information coming. This is great!

Nikki

stanb999 · #23 04/25/06, 11:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrPG

Pennsylvania ....

The Nut House state - referring to the Nuts in the State Capitol building!

While property taxes have almost doubled in the last 5 years for many people, they have spent close to a Billion dollars in renovating the (admittedly very nice) State Capitol building.

While real estate prices go up and up, the largest landowner in the state.... is the state! Some of that land should be sold off to take the pressure off, or to keep down property taxes.

There is taxation at every level you can think of, state income taxes, state sales tax, then local taxes, even an income tax in some cities!

No downard pressure on taxes, since the majority of new PA homeowners come from places even worse, like NJ, so they don't think it is so bad.

As soon as the good wife can be convinced that some other state doesn't harbor the wrong kind of people as she defines it, we are outta here!

This is true about the taxes. But the state has had a net loss in population for YEARS. If you leave the south and head to the northernteer of the state you can do as you like. The closer you get to potter and tioga counties the cheaper land and taxes get. The problem with PA is lack of good jobs.

As for the good about PA. We get all four seasons. We get lots of rain so you can grow most things without irrigation. I've never done more than use the hose for watering and thats very rare. The growing season averages over 120 days. We have a large agri. base that makes food rather cheap if one is willing to go to the farmers markets. We have as stated in the post above vast areas open to public recreation and outdoor sports. You can get to the cities to see the arts and museums in less than a few hours. Heck you can "walk down Broadway" in NYC and be home that night. I think it's pretty good over all. But if you want big acres and no taxes on it this just isn't the state.

Pink_Carnation · #24 04/25/06, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jen H

Western WA.

It always rains here. When it's not raining, it's grey and drippy and moist. Or it's snowing and nobody knows how to drive in the snow. No state income taxes, but the property taxes and sales tax ensure that everyone stays in the poor house.

To recap, it's always raining and cruddy weather with really high taxes. You don't want to live here. Trust me.

There is also heavy zoning regs. In some counties you need a permit to sneeze almost. Where we live pressure septics are the only kind allowed and they must be inspected every year. If the right plants grow in a rut from a logging truck it can be declared a wetland with all the restrictions. Property taxes are around $3000 a year. The schools have a problem in that the new law about the WASL(test) where they must pass to graduate....only 50% pass. We also have one of the highest gas tax amounts in the country. Sales tax is over 9% in some areas.

On the plus side it is very green

Pink

jnap31 · #25 04/25/06, 11:21 AM

If you dont like NAIS I would not even consider wisconsin.

terrythetaod · #26 04/25/06, 11:28 AM

In addition to what "Florida" already mentioned, can we throw in uncontrolled growth due to corrupt politicians?

Plus, an immigrant (illegal or otherwise) population that is not interested in becoming part of the melting pot, but rather transplanting their own culture right here. If I see another low-rider with a PR flag on it, I'm gonna scream! If PR was so great, then why are you here? Don't get me wrong, I am not against "ferners" coming here, but do it legally, and then make some effort to fit in!

#27 04/25/06, 11:41 AM

Anyone from SW Missouri who can comment on that part of the state?? It truly is quite different from my area or that of fricknfarm's..

Cornhusker · #28 04/25/06, 11:46 AM

Nebraska, the good life.
Windswept plains. The Sandhills with a lot more water than a guy would think. Wide open spaces and beautiful valleys, rivers, cricks and springs here and there, other places it's hundreds of feet down to water. I've seen it -30° to 115° and the wind can blow 60 mph or better. It gets so dry the ground cracks and so wet you can't get out of the driveway let alone to town. Some areas have cheap property and taxes, some areas are high, it just depends on how dependant you are on other people, and how many you like to be around.
At least the western part is conservative politically, predomniantly Christian and hard working, hard playing folks.
We live and breathe football, junior high, high school and college.
If you can't convert to a Husker Fan, you may never fit in.
I don't think I'd live anywhere else.

RandB · #29 04/25/06, 12:00 PM

What can I say about New Jersey that hasn't already been said ???

PLUS SIDE
4 seasons, weather not bad most of the time. Summers have hot and humid spells, but winters usually mild, though we do get some snow. In the south where we are, nice flat very fertile land. They still use the state motto "the Garden State" which these days is a joke, but at one time this was a major growing center for many kinds of fruits and vegetables. Tomatoes grow almost like weeds here. In the far southern counties and far northwest counties, it is still rather rural and there are lots of pretty scenic areas. Of course the closer to New York or Philadelphia you get, it becomes the Jersey most people make jokes about.

MINUS SIDE

TAXES TAXES TAXES - They are trying to tax the citizens to death or out of the state. With the highest rates in the country, they are still crying poor and threatening that the state will be bankrupt soon. New governor has come up with a plan now to tax the few remaining things that weren't already taxed, charge new fees for things that used to be free (like state police patrols in rural areas) cut out any tax rebates, cut school funding so the local towns have to increase prop. taxes yet again.
Also outrageously high insurance rates.
I think when DH retires we will seriously have to look at moving out of here, we love our little farm but probably won't be able to afford it anymore.

Daddyof4 · #30 04/25/06, 12:11 PM

Georgia:

Oconee County where I live:

Taxes - 7% sales tax. High property taxes, but a lot of new businesses coming to the county from neighboring Clark County. Walmart, Home Depot, eateries, shopping centers are moving out of Clark and coming here.

Schools - my kids haven't been to public school in over three years (now homeschooled). At the time they were in school, the county was spending nearly $10,000 per year per student. Regionally, Oconee ranks #1 in SAT scores and overall scores on every subject.

Diversity - The surrounding counties have a much higher % of minorities with Oconees having what I would guess is probably 10%. Athens / Clark County next door has almost half minorities as do other surrounding counties. We moved in years and years ago and had nothing to do with races as we aren't concerned with anyone's race. But I do believe a lot of people move from neighboring counties to escape the stereotypes of inner city crime, whether real or imagined.

Home prices - Average $275,000 in Oconee. This county is like a good ole boy retreat for transplant doctors and attorneys and other high salary people from Atlanta. That said, we could never afford that and would never consider paying that much. We bought our house seven years ago and it was nearly $100,000 then and still needs a lot of work.

Rain - Adequate in our area and our well stays full most of the time. Had a drought a few years ago. Well ran low only a couple times one summer.

Politics - Oconee always votes heavily republican (the main reason we like it here). Very conservative Christian county although the Atlanta transplants could take away at least some of the conservative votes.

Atlanta on the other hand has poor schools, high taxes, over-crowed freeways, smog, concrete, less rain due to the "heat dome" effect. According to the local meteorologists, the heat dome effect takes place in the summer when the huge amount of development (concrete / asphalt) in the Atlanta metro area actually causes a dome of heat over the city. You can actually watch thunderstorms come apart on radar as they move into downtown Atlanta from the west. Very odd phenomenon.

Atlanta is as liberal as it gets. They are the whole nine yards of liberalism...the hands out for govt. giveaways, the ridiculous marches for the latest flavor of the week "cause", racial tensions, city government corruption, smarmy college kids cutting you off on the freeways as you catch the glimpse of their "Impeach Bush", "In goddess we trust", "If you can't trust me with a choice, how can you trust me with a child?" and other pointless, poorly reasoned bumper stickers capped off with the single finger salute you get if you dare to honk at them.

Athens, being a college town, is also very left. Like Atlanta light.

hisenthlay · #31 04/25/06, 12:17 PM

I had to throw in my 2 cents for PA. Best state in the nation, IMO. But of course, I'm biased. We have 4 perfect seasons--each one lasts just long enough that you look forward to the next one coming, but you're a little sad to see the last one go. Plenty of time to grow whatever you want. Fall is my favorite season, and it's just as pretty here as it is in New England--I don't know how New England got so famous for it--I've traveled there several times to see "the fall color" during my life, and I always thought, "why did we bother driving all this way?? It looks just like home!" We have mountains and flatlands, lakes and rivers, lots of state land reserved for wildlife and recreation. Two big cities at either end of the state with very different personalities (I've lived in both), and a whole lot of rural area in between. Plenty of medium sized cities scattered throughout, which helps with jobs and such. We also have lots of history here, lots of beautiful old buildings, and lots of tradition. We have lots of agriculture, lots of farmers markets for the stuff you didn't grow yourself, and with all the Amish and Mennonites around, we have some good old-time skills alive in the community.

And as for land prices--I recently saw an 80 acre lot advertised for $275,000 just 20 minutes outside of Pittsburgh, adjoining a golf course, with public utilities, mostly wooded, some hills, untouched. The land was priced for developers because of the location, but that's still really not too bad.... As you get farther away from the city, land prices go waaay down (for example, I know of another place for sale, about an hour from Pittsburgh, with a really cute and tidy old farmhouse, nice outbuildings, and 30 acres for $180k--can you tell I've been watching the real estate listings??

). Not as cheap as some places maybe, but definitely within reason.

I can think of other nice places I'd like to visit, but I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather live--seriously. My fiance and I were talking about where we'd move if we won the lottery and didn't have to work anymore

, and we thought and thought, and tossed out lots of possibilities, but we decided PA really was the best! We'd just move farther out from the city. And by the way--although both of my parents were born and raised in PA, I didn't grow up here--but it's just so wonderful that it's always seemed like home to me.

ETA: Oh yeah--political leanings. As of now, it seems like Pittsburgh and Philly are the two liberal strongholds, and the rest of the state is going red. The way my mom tells it, the rural areas of the state used to be huge union Democrat strongholds. Her dad was a coal miner then a steel mill worker, and her mom worked in a shirt factory, so the labor laws were everything to them. Now the PA working class seems to be split between the labor issues and other ways that the Democratic ideals benefit the non-wealthy, and the Republican agenda on war and morality. My dad grew up in in Pittsburgh, and his family were big Republicans because they had money (doctor's family) and wanted to keep it to themselves. Lots and lots of Catholics in PA, but that doesn't determine their votes--both of my parents' whole families were extremely devout Catholics, and they didn't agree on which party to vote for. So I guess I'd say at this point it's pretty middle of the road, which I think is probably a good thing, for balance (even though I myself am definitely not middle of the road).

Country Doc · #32 04/25/06, 02:27 PM

East Texas-in addition to other Texas comments

Bad
Tornado and severe thunderstorm risk.
laws very favourable to oil and gas industry so it is easy to get a pipeline , well, etc. on or near your land.
illegal alliens stress school and hospital systems
high property tax

good ?
very little interest in environmental laws so have your wood stove, etc.
illegal alliens give relatively cheap labor- for the do it yourself homesteader this is of little value
no income tax

comfortablynumb · #33 04/25/06, 03:16 PM

PA
we have lots of very nice state parks and good fishing, pretty views and relitivly good weather.

we also have high RE prices, draconian building codes, taxes taxes and oh yeah TAXES on taxes.
our road cant seem to ever get "finished".
we are not allowed to tar and feather politicians.
the DEP and the EPA have taken to thier job like a drunk in a brewery.

on the UP side lots of counties in PA are almost frontier towns they are so isolated.
I was camping in one area where the phoe didnt work, NO radio stations... NONE. the CB didnt work, no local TV signals.

it was nice, in a very "oh no I'm all alone out here" kinda way.

be nice to the sherrif in those places, you can scream all ya like aint no one gonna hear ya.

mmmm
its dead bare in winter and a sub tropical jungle in the summer, and grass grows a foot a day.
well seems like it anyhow.

Farmer Willy · #34 04/25/06, 03:38 PM

I live in Harrison Co. right up against Robertson Co. Had a sis in law that lived in Lynch for years, then Pikeville. ex's friend was from Monticello, spent a few weekends there when we went to the lake. Great-great-grand dad was married in Maysville. I tend to like the eastern part of the state best, but then I like the mountains and hills better than flat ground.

LOL....

You should see about getting a job with the Kentucky Department of Tourism

Nope, no free advertising till I get the place consolidated (hence all ya'll keep away from that land next to me). Did I mention skeeters, snakes, and rednecks?

Listen to the folks writing in: Penn, Mo, Wash, all the rest. Much nicer places for a young couple looking for a paradise of their own.

DrippingSprings · #35 04/25/06, 06:24 PM

Alabygodbama!!

WHERE THE MEN ARE MEN AND THE CATTLE ARE NERVOUS!!

Where bible thumpers rule even in courts and you can and many do get sent to jail not for breaking an actual law but because the judge thinks youve broken a moral sense he has. They tend to throw down justice based off personal opinions rather than actual laws in the small towns. Most folks in the rural areas accept this as "just how it is"

Beautiful scenery and overall wonderful folks.

Many counties around mine say things like

"I went over into Winston county and back 100 years in time..." but hell we like it that way so it doesnt offend us.

If someone offered me free land and a home in any other place Id decline. Ive lived in several states and where I am now is where I will die if I have my way.

In most mainly rural counties there is zero land issues like needing permits etc just to fart etc. Its your land do what you want with it.

On 280 grand in property my taxs were a lil over 300 dollars.

Get away from the city and the large lakes and you can still find good fertile land for 1000 an acre or even less. I know where 13 heavily wooded is for less than 8 grand on a paved road with electric city water etc and another 40 for 20 thousand nearby.

Heres a Charlie Daniels song that says it all

Willie Jones
Willie Jones was a man I met when I lived in Baltimore
I was a guard and he was doing time
In the three long years he stayed there I got to know him well
Willie Jones was a friend of mine

He used to say buddy you know where I'm goin' when they let me out of here
Alabama could be heaven if the Lord was there
And he talked about the southland though he'd drifted from its shore
I never seen a man who loved it more

He talked about the whippoorwills in the Alabama night
Honeysuckle vine and sugar cane
Swimming holes and fishing poles and early morning frost
And sleeping under a tin roof when it rained

He talked about a country road and a cabin in the pines
And a girl with wavy long chestnut brown hair
He talked about the beauty of his Blue Ridge Mountain home
And ---- near made me think that I was there

And he'd say buddy you know where I'm goin' when they let me out of here
Alabama could be heaven if the Lord was there
When a man ain't got no freedom the time sure passes slow
Willie Jones had ten long years to go

It's been almost a years now since that hot night in July
Willie hit the guard and jumped the fence
I had my rifle ready but I couldn't let it fly
I shot over his head and we ain't seen him since

Then last week the postman brought a letter to my door
Marked No Return Address and No Reply
It just said nobody north of Birmingham is gonna see this boy again
But if you're ever down our way won't you please drop by

Buddy you know where I'm goin'...

fitwind · #36 04/25/06, 06:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fricknfarm

Missouri, the year starts out with ice falling from the skies to coat everything and make driving a nightmare. May or may not get some snow on top. Next come mud slurry season which is a combo of rain/snow/sleet along with thawing temps, makes driving a nightmare. You'll slide right into mud season when the gravel roads get "slicker than snot" and if you live in the country driving will be hazzardous. The mud and gravel combine to create a surface that feels similar to ice when driving. Next come tornado season which runs concurrently with violent thunderstorm/hail season. Briefly, spring occurs when the skies are blaringly blue, the birds are singing, the wild flowers blooming, it's like Eden! This lasts two weeks and is followed by hotter than hell season, which is followed by let me out of here before I cook season. This is followed by the early Autumn monsoons and another mud season which may be accompanied by tornadoes and violent storms, and certainly hazzardous road conditions, not hail tho. Along about the end of mud season (end of October) comes full Autumn, a GLORIOUS time, beautiful foliage, wonderful slightly brisk mornings mild afternoons. Soaring blue skies with Canada geese honking and tendrils of smoke rising from wood stoves and burning leaf piles. This, like spring, lasts about two weeks UNLESS there is a feak freeze of 5 degrees (seen that) or heavy rains that strip the leaves. Then the monsoons return and mud season again (with it's accompanying vehicular hazards) which slides into colder than a B***H season which turns toward the new year and ice falling from the sky season.
Four wheel drive vehicles are a MUST at least one, if you live in the country out here. This area of the state is rural only. The nearest "big" city is KC 90 miles away. St. Joe is 78miles distant. My uncle's take on MO was, "Only the strong survive there, I saw cows out in the snow covered with ice".
Land is still fairly cheap, altho it is starting to rise in price. Not many small parcels, 40A is considered a very small farm, minimal. Rural communities here (small towns populations less than 5,000 and the county gvts.) have started zoning outlying areas to 5-10A zoning per house. They see what's going on coser to the city and they want to preserve the rural quality of their communities. this has escalated the price of land in those areas. A 5-10A "plot" will cost more than we paid for 40A. buying in MO, look for someplace way out and buy more land, better deal and no Jones' right next door.
People for the most part are okay. Some good ol boy stuff. Some areas worse than others. Daviess County pretty nice, Harrison County ... I wouldn't live there if you paid me and they're right next door. Check out everything where you're thinking of buying. Go to town and spend a few days sitting and talking. If the locals won't engage in conversation, best to find somewhere they will. Lots of places are friendly, that's where to buy. AVOID like the plague anywhere where the residents think you're derranged for wanting to move there. THEY'RE RIGHT, they know what your life will be like, they'll make sure they're right.
Field mice and rattlers are free roaming. Only one snake in my basement but the mice are CONSTANT.
If you like to hunt, fish and work on cars, this state's for you. Wildlife abounds up here, I have a herd of 15-20 deer that bed down every night, wild turkeys, foxes, rabbits and squirrels to numerous to contemplate a number for, pheasant and quail, raccoons and possums. Like to watch wildlife? We have eagles and redtail hawks, barn owls and indigo buntings, lots of barn swallows to catch mosquitoes and even a big blue heron that stops by at my pond every spring to catch bullfrogs.. Plenty of coyotes and some bobcats, badgers and even a rare wolf or two make this area their home. I don't fish but I hear the streams have catfish, lakes have fish too.
All in all a pretty nice place, you just gotta put up with the "seasons".
Property taxes on 40A with a newer house 2,000', three vehicles(older ones) 30goats (property tax on livestock too) a horse 4 sheep, two oubuildings, it all comes to a little less than $1,000. There is a state income tax too.
Conservative government in this area, gun laws very liberal and as you can tell from the seasons, rainfall is pretty plentiful at times.

fricknfarm what county do you live in I also live 90 miles away from K.C. I live in vernon county I think Missouri is the best place to live that I have seen that is still affordable but I think within the next 20yrs you wont be able to touch a piece of property because of people moving into the midwest

#37 04/25/06, 07:19 PM

Alabama, IMHO is one of the only few truly sane states left in the entire country. I sincerely hope and pray that I'm dead and buried before it ever changes.

fordy · #38 04/25/06, 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bostonlesley

Alabama, IMHO is one of the only few truly sane states left in the entire country. I sincerely hope and pray that I'm dead and buried before it ever changes.

.................So what area of Alabama should a "Yankee" from Texas look for land , etc?? fordy...

crystalniche · #39 04/25/06, 07:45 PM

CT is high taxes, lots of service industry jobs but you can't afford to live on your paycheck if you work those jobs, in some areas people aren't friendly at all, land prices are horrid, house prices are worse, everything costs a lot, lots of regulations and rules (gotta get a permit to scrape your house or cut down a tree) very political and not farm friendly unless you are like a petting zoo and even then~~~! Here we have the casinos that brought in the orientals by the busloads from NYC for cheap labor. Never thought where they were going to live. Those poor people ended up living many, many to a house sleeping on towels on the floor in shifts. Neighbors complaining about them walking to work by cutting thru yards and across lawns making paths where they were not wanted. I've seen them walking along the roads and some of the paths they've made are more like dirt roads. Now they are very close to putting in Utopia which is like a Disneyland themed for actors with an acting school, theme parks, water parks and a lot more. Yuck! Rush hour takes on a whole new meaning around the casinos. And some ditzy people leave their kids or pets in their vehicles while they are inside gambling. They've tried to stop that practice but it still goes on. When it first opened we went there out of curiosity and saw in the parking lot many pets sitting in cars as well as some kids too. Glad they took steps to stop that. This state is definitely not a good place if you want privacy or to homestead.

akcowgirl · #40 04/25/06, 08:04 PM

Alaska
What can I say

We have four season
Sept-Nov Cold
Dec-March Colder
April-May MUD
June-Aug Road Construction

in alaska if you are looking for a life partner or just friends the odds are good but the goods are odd

property can be spendy depending on where you want to be.

As much as i complain about the weather and the cold i would never move some where else. i love it here and there are not to many people