<p>So true re healthcare. We have friends who have moved to lovely, scenic, isolated areas in the woods and near the beach. Not for me. </p>
<p>Roshke, you hold the fort there. ;)</p>
<p>parent2noles–you can have our house all winter if you like! As soon as the last kid leaves in 3 1/2 years.</p>
<p>Our house is fortunately on the small side–seemed tight when all 4 kids were at home, but not too big now for the 3 of us. The advantage of having sleeping quarters in the basement–I can ignore that space if I don’t need it. And when the kids come home, it’s great to have!</p>
<p>To me, moving is so much work, I don’t intend to leave until they move me to a home or out in a box! And though city living would be fun, our particular downtown area needs work. No grocery store, for example. They keep trying to lure people downtown but it’s sadly lacking in amenities. And our particular suburb is pleasant and walkable to stores, library, pool, coffeebucks, etc. </p>
<p>I would suggest: make sure your kids are ok with their childhood home not being there anymore.</p>
<p>Roshke–are we in the same swing state? :D</p>
<p>(lol) Well, as long as you take ours from July to September. Don’t forget to mow the yard every 4 days and disconnect the computer during thunderstorms. </p>
<p>We have hurricane windows and a generator now, so you won’t have to board up.</p>
<p>I live in a small town masquerading as a big city: Pittsburgh. </p>
<p>So much to do within a two mile radius: shopping, universities, museums and at least four major hospitals. </p>
<p>We have raised our kids here in a diverse racial and economic climate. I think it has helped them to grow up with an appreciation for other cultures and viewpoints.</p>
<p>Now about these winters…</p>
<p>m&sdad–what does “at least four major hospitals” have to do with “so much to do here”? 
Unless you are a hypochondriac? Or the active type who gets injured biking, skating, & skiing!</p>
<p>To be fair, our suburb is extremely diverse in every way. It’s not the stereotyped suburb. The only thing is, no one walks anywhere unless they are jogging. Movement occurs on hiking trails and in the gym. I remember when my son was four or five, he saw someone from our car and said, “What’s wrong with that man? He’s walking.” </p>
<p>Re leaving my kids’ childhood home, wow, that is something I know a lot about. My mother did it after I went off to college. I was devastated. But when kids are older at some point it must be different!</p>
<p>As I get older, I would like to continue to visit but not live in the city. I am definately in the minority here. The more gray hairs I get, the more I like quiet settings with views. Woods and moutains for hiking. Recrational opportunites (tennis/golf) and spas so I can my creaky joints can get relieved with massages. All a drive from a good sized city in case we want more.
I live in a bustling suburb right now - very covenient but NOT quiet. We’re looking at vacation homes - now that we’re empty nesters, we can actually get away vs. shuttling around for sports events on weekends. Of course, we’ll have to rent it out for a good part of the time in order to afford it. Any one have experience in this area?</p>
<p>I have a friend who moved from Fairfield County back to NYC after her kids left the nest. She’d lived there as a single woman and young married so she knew the city very well as a resident. She walks everywhere, takes classes at the Met, etc. She is divorced and finds it hard to meet eligible bachelors but that’s a different story altogether. She’s so glad that she left the 'burbs.</p>
<p>toneranger: We briefly co-owned a ski chalet (well, that sounds fancy - it wasn’t). At the time I didn’t like owning a second home. We felt like we couldn’t go anywhere else! Also, I hated the extra maintenance and the extra bills.</p>
<p>That said, I wouldn’t rule out a little camp in the Adirondacks if I won the lottery. ;)</p>
<p>katliamom and aparent, Thanks! Fortunately, I love the area and can’t see going anywhere anytime soon. We are close to a major city, but not too close, and even can do day trips to NYC. Plenty of room for kids, friends and family when they come visit, and a nice yard for the doggie. There’s even a master bedroom on the first floor so it’s possible I’ll be here a longggg time (although the neighborhood is mostly made up of people our age, there are a few houses where the original owners are still here and they are well into their 80s)! </p>
<p>Mommusic, Nope, it’s the one due east of yours. ;)</p>
<p>We’ve thought of downsizing a bit once our kids are out, but there’s always that issue of when they come BACK…and with their own families. I remember when I was a 20-something and my friend’s parents sold their place in Mass. and bought a condo in Vero. She said that holidays were not so great because she and her sibs had nowhere to sleep! She said she almost felt unwelcomed in that way.</p>
<p>A note from the fault line Berkeley IS rather like Cambridge except for the earthquakes (and the lack of snow). On the one hand, the prediction is that the East Bay has a 30% chance of a major earthquake in the next 30 years (and large portions of it are on or very close to a fault line). On the other hand, they’ve been saying that every year since I moved to the Bay Area over 30 years ago. Also, Berkeley has much more than its share of Democrats, which plays havoc with diversity, as well as with the city government.</p>
<p>We are occasionally thinking of moving back to one city or another, but not yet seriously. DW and I are both city-raised and so at some point in the future we will look at it more seriously (or so we say). But that might (or might not) depend on where our S winds up once he graduates.</p>
<p>The condo in the city is for the parents. The cabin in the mountains is big enough for the kidlets and spouselets and grandkidlets.</p>
<p>Wouldn’t it be fun to be able to sell your house and then spend a couple of years wandering around Europe? That’s what we want to do. Then come back and buy something.</p>
<p>There is a problem though of no “homestead.” Where would you hold birthdays and holiday dinners?</p>
<p>And Dig, that’s the set up my parents have - and we LOVE it. The lake house is where we all gather.</p>
<p>“But that might (or might not) depend on where our S winds up once he graduates.” Yes, same here. Our kids seem eager to be in our metro area. For now, though, we are in limbo. What with launching careers, going to grad school, etc., it could easily be 6-8 years before they settle in one place. And who knows where future job or spouse or cost-of-living/quality of life considerations could bring them.</p>
<p>I do like Dig’s idea of the condo with the weekend place. Trouble is, where we live, condos are actually more expensive than houses.</p>
<p>Actually, we are in the midst. This year we are empty nesters. Put our house and 5 acres in the country up on the market late last spring thinking it wouldn’t sell for a year or so (bad housing market). Low and behold it sold and we had to be out at the end of August with no place to go. We’re now in a teeny tiny 2 bedroom apartment with our big dog and two cats (and now our DD who is home from college) while building our dream smaller house in the city. Can’t wait to finally only have to drive 20 minutes to work!</p>