<p>Well… here I am 
Not retired, but not working either.
Guess I should change my username as I am no longer a resident of NJ. I am now a resident of NC. We sold our house in NJ, paid off the mortgage, bought a very nice home in NC with no mortgage and banked a chunk. Property taxes here will be about 18% of my NJ amount. This takes so much pressure off. It is such a relief to not feel like I am facing financial ruin (that was how I felt, not working in NJ) Wife and I are very happy and have been busy painting and shopping for things for our house. We closed June 4 but have not moved in yet. We are on a golf course near Lake Norman in Huntersville.</p>
<p>^Congratulations!</p>
<p>Enjoy your new state! :)</p>
<p>NJres, congratulations on your move to Huntersville. We fell in love with the Lake Norman area when we took our son to visit Davidson last year. We liked it so much, we even met with a realtor while we were there!</p>
<p>We really want to get out of south Florida ASAP because of the high taxes and hurricane insurance costs, not to mention the rudeness and crazy unlicensed/uninsured drivers. I can’t wait…</p>
<p>[A college so there are cultural activities, intelligent people, etc.
Medical facilities that are top notch
A place with four seasons
My children and my (hoped-for) grandchildren
A place that provides work opportunities (either paid or volunteer) for me and DH
A house that is small enough to cost relatively little to run but large enough so the children and grandchildren can visit without too much strain or inconvenience
Other like-minded people (so for me, that precludes Arkansas and Utah – I’ll probably stay in the NorthEast)</p>
<p>I’ve always had a fantasy of NH or VT, but hubby points out that the winters can go on and on and on and on . . . still, I’d like to try it. Something about the “smallness” of it that appeals to me.]</p>
<p>Southern NH is nice for all of the things above but it isn’t a low-cost place to live unless you like small quarters. The main state taxes are property taxes (no general sales or income taxes) so the amount of taxes you pay depends on the value of your home. The other thing is that living in NH generally means that you have to drive to get around (unless you live near the downtown areas). And heating costs are a factor. I think that many will be shocked by their heating bills this winter. And your husband is right, the winters can last forever.</p>
<p>So BCEagle, if you had your choice, would you be living in NH??</p>
<p>NJRes, as a NJ resident I can tell you that I am very jealous! We would love to be able to do what you have done. We are stuck here because of employment. Best of luck in your new home in NC.</p>
<p>“So BCEagle, if you had your choice, would you be living in NH??”</p>
<p>NH works out great in taxes if you have a professional job in NH and a very modest house. That’s our situation right now and has allowed us to save up for college expenses over the years. Access to Boston, the mountains in NH, the beaches in Maine make for a lot of opportunities for recreation. Our home was paid off in the 1990s so we could move if we wanted to. The job situation is decent right now and I could work from home for some opportunities but I’d rather keep things fairly stable through college.</p>
<p>But retirement is another issue. The cold gets harder to deal with age and energy costs for transportation and heating will be a bigger factor in the future. We have an apartment for our son in MA which is big enough for the whole family. It’s nice to be able to walk to services and the costs for utilities are much lower than our home. So I can see the attraction in living in the city. But of course there’s more crime, owning a vehicle carries more headaches and many things are more expensive in the city.</p>
<p>So I don’t really know. I like the Northeast but for us, it may be a matter of deciding over a cityish or suburban lifestyle in this area. Those are my thoughts right now but they may change drastically when the kids are gone.</p>
<p>I think the Souteast is hard to beat overall… Lower home prices, many nice mid-sized cities with colleges and hospitals, low taxes, low cost of everything else. Services and eating out cost about a third less than more urban areas. The idea that your house can finance a chunk of your retirement works if you do what NJ did. Sell that high priced home, buy for cash and pocket a nice endowment for your life.</p>
<p>^^ I agree Barrons. Two family members have gone south, although not yet retired. In both families, the husbands work for companies where transferring could be done. One had his salary increase, and he took his promotion, and the other had his salary remain the same. The latter is now living in a brand new McMansion for less than what he sold his Northeast home for, and that NE home was a modest older home. In both cases the husbands are the “bead winners” so wives did not need to replace jobs outside their homes.</p>
<p>NJRes, congratulations and good luck! I suspect my hubby might be joining you in about 8 years. I’m sure we’ll sell our house around that time as barrons and Northeastmom have suggested, and he could buy something nice down there. I hope your new life brings you all you are hoping for</p>
<p>As the baby boomers - myself included - reach retirement age, I suspect we will see some major shifts in demographics. Most of us will need to move away from the high expense, high tax areas. House prices are likely to fall rapidly in those areas and, of course, increase in the current low cost areas.</p>
<p>NJ Res you might find it amusing that the AC boardwalk was covered in a haze this weekend, which was smoke from eastern NC fires. LOL, guess you moved to the right place. The AC Press had a photo of the haze blanketing the area, due to wind currents.
Lake Norman sounds wonderful- what a great adventure, love hearing about it all.</p>
<p>What a great thread! Husband and I have just started discussing this. We’re leaning toward NC (we’re in CT now). SIL lives in Raleigh and loves it. We’re thinking about Wilmington area, but I’ve read that there’s a high crime rate there. Funny thing: I’m a born and bred NewEnglander whose parents still love the snow. I used to say that I’d never leave New England and would certainly never go south of the Mason-Dixon line. How times change. I don’t care if I ever shovel snow again! Just how long does it take to get used to the hotter climate???</p>
<p>We do want access to a major medical center, a good airport, and culture. We’re spoiled living so close to NYC - we can fly just about anywhere non-stop.</p>
<p>What do you think of Asheville? We’ve been there a few times. Plenty of services and not too far from the mountains (don’t know if they get snow).</p>
<p>BC Eagle: My husband really wants the coast! I’ve heard Asheville is beautiful, though.</p>
<p>NJres–sounds great; some folks I really love have moved down to the NC coast.</p>
<p>H and I have bought a house in a place with low taxes, reasonable house prices, great beaches, rarely much snow, not too far from several major cities, nice people–relaxed life style. We can’t move full time yet but are looking for jobs in the area. the best thing is that it’s within an easy drive of all our friends and family, because it’s a small town in NJ :)–near Cape May, but without its priciness.</p>
<p>Just can’t see going any farther south; I’m a Jersey girl at heart–plus, it’s too hot down in NC! Best wishes on your new life, though.</p>
<p>BCEagle, I had started a thread about Asheville awhile back (“So what do you know about Asheville?”) and would absolutely love to hear your thoughts added to that thread. I’ve never been but keep collecting info on it.</p>
<p>Very sure this site was posted before, but worth repeating again for those new to this thread, and looking for a great college town.
[College</a> Town Life :: The Best of College Towns](<a href=“http://www.collegetownlife.com/]College”>http://www.collegetownlife.com/)</p>
<p>Asheville is beautiful–and yes, they do get snow, but the overall temperature is more moderate than you would think. Asheville is becoming a HUGE retirement/second home destination, so I believe prices are only going up–but still much more reasonable than where you Yankees (I mean that in the nicest possible way!) live.</p>
<p>We have a vacation home in a small mountain town 1 1/2 hours west of Asheville-- lots of waterfalls, great hiking, beautiful mountain views, golf course, mountain crafts nearby–and we look forward to spending a lot more time there now that we are rising empty nesters. The prospect of many long weekends there takes the sting out of D’s impending college departure.</p>
<p>As far as retiring there–I don’t think so , but we could see spending bigger and bigger chunks of time there. The prospect is exciting–because we don’t know what will happen.</p>
<p>We are probably 8 to 10 years away from leaving our main city house–especially since we’re at the tail end of a major renovation/updating! If we were to change our city of primary residence it would only be based on where our kids were living–and presumably how settled they were in their then current locations. It is our kids’ desire to live in the same city as each other, or at least in the same state, so their choice could dictate our choice.</p>
<p>Anyone else thinking along these same lines?</p>
<p>dg5052- agree with you about waiting to see where the college students end up, and enjoy the fantasy until then. Reading these posts is so much fun.</p>
<p>Do other parents face the issue of encouraging their children to return to the geographical area where they presently reside vs letting them feel free to go wherever, the wind blows them? </p>
<p>(Wonder how other families address this issue- my family wanted us to remain close to them, my in laws, wanted us to live close to their retirement home in the West—it has remained quite an issue over these decades)</p>
<p>So, parents, are you nudging your children to live near you wherever you end up, or are you like dg5052 willing to relocate ?</p>