best cities in the country to live in

I moved to Dallas two years ago for the business opportunities and cheap real estate but can't wait to get out. Only city I would personally live in in TX is Austin and surroundings. We are also exploring our options and are considering Savannah and Charleston.

You can buy serious estates in the big TX cities for pennies on the dollar compared to Miami, Naples, SF, LA, NY, Chicago, etc, etc. I don't know how they even build them that nice at that cost.

 

I considered a move to Miami so rented a place for a few months this time last year, after living there for a few months I decided I would rather visit if I want to, am now looking at the West Palm or Delray beach area.

 

North Orlando (Maitland, Altamonte Springs, Lake Mary, Longwood) is a good place to live.

North Orlando (Maitland, Altamonte Springs, Lake Mary, Longwood) is a good place to live.

Is North Orlando free of traffic congestion?

 

In the past 3 winters in FL (both east and west coast) - any trip we made passing through Orlando we encountered heavy traffic congestion. It didn't matter what day of the week, or time of day (we always tried to avoid going through at morning or evening rush hour on weekdays). Traffic would halt on the major highways and we had road closures and detours due to accidents on perfectly dry, sunny days.

 

My impression of that area (from limited experience) is that it's a congestion nightmare due to heavy tourism coupled with inadequate infrastructure. There was also a lot of highway construction (I assume to accommodate tourist volume and local growth).

 

We now go out of our way to avoid it if possible.

I have lived in Los Angeles, Boulder, Denver, Portland, Las Vegas.

 

I love Boulder and Denver still. But they are/seem very small after some time. the PNW was great, I loved it there while I lived there. But once I moved I couldn't do it again. I can't see my self moving from Los Angeles any time in the future. I haven't lived or really traveled East coast much or the south so I can't put any input.

 

Side note, CO Winters are not bad at all. Summers are really hot and beautiful.

Austin.

I think you'll be hard pressed to find somewhere better as far as socially and weather. Maybe it's the part of Cali you live in. I used to complain about Cali A lot. Politically it's horrible, but the weather ,scenery,things to do can't be beat. I really like Scottsdale Az and I hear Austin TX is really nice.

 

 

California is somewhat like NYC in that it has a lot of polarizing aspects to it. It's clearly not for everyone.

 

Cost of living is often too much to overcome for most unless you are native to those areas where it's simply "home". You eliminate cost of living as an issue and it becomes tough to beat these places.

 

Moving a bit south from Sacramento to be firmly in the Bay Area or all the way to SoCal should fix a lot.

 

Places I've lived:

 

Northern VA/Maryland/DC: Being in the mid-Atlantic has its benefits. You get a bit of that Northeast culture without quite the intensity. You can live in DC proper if that's your cup of tea or the VA/MD suburbs. A lot of nature within this area than say New York, nice driving roads and a big car scene (probably the best on the East Coast for sheer variety of older & newer cars). It's pretty cosmopolitan with decent diversity.

 

Downsides is that while it's a cool place to live there's something about the social scene in this area that's not quite right. Think of it as a microcosm of DC politics.

 

Charleston, SC: One of the small town gems of America. If you've never been there or never met anyone who has, it's very easy to overlook. Charleston proper is pretty small, and the greater metro area very manageable as well. For a small town it has an impressive restaurant scene, and being close to the water is always nice. There are three nice beaches in close proximity with their own flavor.

 

It's a laid back town with a lot of outdoor type activities going on, and southern charm. It's always worthy of a look, but recommend visiting first for a few days. Savannah, GA is a very similar type town 2 hours away.

 

 

Places I've considered living:

 

Chicago - A nice cultured Midwest city that I'm told has everything you'd want from the big cities. Major downside is that it's pretty cold, even for a New Yorker. Still yet to visit, so can't say much, but intriguing.

 

Atlanta - This is a city I want to like but have yet to become enamored by it. I've visited a bunch for work related reasons, so can't comment totally but it hasn't grabbed me like other cities.

 

Miami - Great weather half the year, beaches, nightclub scene, eye candy. Seems tailor made for the young and single, and the less you are of that (and into partying a lot), the less appealing it seems.

 

Dallas - Big metro city with Texas flavor.

 

Denver - Very unique American city with a feel of its own.

 

Boston - I'll have to see it more to know, but quaint with an attitude is appealing.

 

Seattle - A nice town. Feels similar to SF but different.

 

Places I've visited and liked:

 

Nashville - Seems like a nice fun livable college town with a nice music scene.

 

Phoenix - Desert version of LA? Sounds good to me.

 

Where are all the votes for Ohio!? Where else can you experience all for seasons in 1 week of February or march!?

Its the perfect place for some people, but I was born and raised in Miami and have left. My parents were born and raised in Miami and have left. Just about everyone I know, young and old, has abandoned ship over the last three years. The city has just turned into too much of a place that is focused on foreign wealth and flaunting money for us to care to be part of any more. Everything that had charm and made it feel like home for us has been bulldozed and turned into a sushi restaurant or 'ultra high-end shopping experience'. Sad to see it happen, but I'm sure the same story is being told in cities all around the country.

 

 

I don't disagree. Where I live though is somewhat isolated from that shit, my neighborhood and neighbors have remained the same for decades. It is what it is, still far better than the rest of Florida imo.

I don't disagree. Where I live though is somewhat isolated from that shit, my neighborhood and neighbors have remained the same for decades. It is what it is, still far better than the rest of Florida imo.

 

No doubt there are still some great pockets in the city. I grew up in the Gables and there are areas along Old Cutler that are absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, the cost of getting your foot in the door in those neighborhoods is ~$3m+ at the moment. The Miami long-timers I know that still love the city spend their weekends out on their boats and away from the madness and I get that. I was just never the one for the water.... or headaches of boat ownership

You can buy serious estates in the big TX cities for pennies on the dollar compared to Miami, Naples, SF, LA, NY, Chicago, etc, etc. I don't know how they even build them that nice at that cost.

 

 

That is only true if you are in BFE. If you want an "estate" in Tx in a desirable location you are still paying upwards of $1000/sqft

I moved to Dallas two years ago for the business opportunities and cheap real estate but can't wait to get out. Only city I would personally live in in TX is Austin and surroundings. We are also exploring our options and are considering Savannah and Charleston.

 

 

If you are coming from California to Texas I would only reccommend Austin.

Houston and Dallas are good for business and food but there is really not anything to do from an outdoor perspective. Austin is close to the hill country and has lakes (one big one and a smaller one that runs through the city)

 

There is also hills (not mountains) that make the scenery much nicer.

Thanks All! Definitely some other good cities to consider. Brian I do agree the weather and the amount of things to do in close proximity make CA amazing. However I am just sick of everything else that the state has to offer. I had also considered Austin (kind CA like when it comes to culture but with better biz laws). As of now I think the primary place we are looking at picking almost 80% is Winter Park FL (north Orlandoish) Love the old money feel of it, the homes, the eateries, close to airport, downtown, and close enough to get down to miami for a weekend, close to sarasota for a quite getaway. The traffic isn't too bad, and hopefully will get better once they finish the highway improvement. I still have Nashville on the radar just cause I love the rolling hills and more of the change in season compared to Florida, however will be getting a place in europe if I ever way to get a drastic change in weather I can always fly there. I appreciate all the recommendations. Some of them were definitely on my radar. Still doing my research and as mentioned will probably take me till spring of 2018 to sell everything out here in Suckramento.

 

Just come back to Orlando and be done with it Seriously though, it depends on so many things and personal preferences. I love this area with young kids and I don't see myself moving anytime soon.

 

North Orlando (Maitland, Altamonte Springs, Lake Mary, Longwood) is a good place to live.

West Orlando

 

Is North Orlando free of traffic congestion?

 

In the past 3 winters in FL (both east and west coast) - any trip we made passing through Orlando we encountered heavy traffic congestion. It didn't matter what day of the week, or time of day (we always tried to avoid going through at morning or evening rush hour on weekdays). Traffic would halt on the major highways and we had road closures and detours due to accidents on perfectly dry, sunny days.

 

My impression of that area (from limited experience) is that it's a congestion nightmare due to heavy tourism coupled with inadequate infrastructure. There was also a lot of highway construction (I assume to accommodate tourist volume and local growth).

 

We now go out of our way to avoid it if possible.

That is one of the reasons I did not want to live in North Orlando but it depends on where you work and your work hours. If you're part of the rush hour crowd, then stay far away from the I4. I live in an area where I hardly ever need to get on the I4 and it's great.

 

Yes, I4 Ultimate is the project to widen the road and I hope it will resolve a lot of the issues with congestion but I have my reservations http://i4ultimate.com/project-info/

Austin is a nice place to visit, but I wouldnt want to live there (to many hippies)... I live in Dallas now, I like it, top media market, business friendly, big arts scene, big sports scene, business friendly, great place to live if you like flipping real estate.... down side, greater dallas is a massive city, the suburbs go on and on, and those that live in the DFW suburbs seem to spend all their time in traffic.

No doubt there are still some great pockets in the city. I grew up in the Gables and there are areas along Old Cutler that are absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, the cost of getting your foot in the door in those neighborhoods is ~$3m+ at the moment. The Miami long-timers I know that still love the city spend their weekends out on their boats and away from the madness and I get that. I was just never the one for the water.... or headaches of boat ownership

 

 

Yes, that's me. I'm the first house south of Fairchild on old cutler. I keep one of my boats at Matheson which is a short walk away, so f-ck the rest of Miami for the most part.

I would say Austin or Nashville.

 

Miami is a hate it or love it city. Fort Lauderdale is a good option, if you want to hang out on the beach but you also have to deal with people who are 30-50 and act like they are in a perpetual fraternity party. All of my single friends live there now.

 

It would be hard for me to move to Borlando. Would never say never because of my line of work, but would need to be an incredible opportunity to move there.

I moved to Dallas two years ago for the business opportunities and cheap real estate but can't wait to get out. Only city I would personally live in in TX is Austin and surroundings. We are also exploring our options and are considering Savannah and Charleston.

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You must not have been to Colleyville/Southlake just outside by DFW. Awesome upscale living.

 

 

I've been there, beautiful but not my type of living. I currently live in uptown Dallas. The thing I dislike most about Dallas is the lack of scenery and things to do outside. No beaches or mountain. You drive 8 hours and you're still in Texas. I moved here from Boston and loved the accessibility but you sure can't beat the opportunities and cost of living here.

You must not have been to Colleyville/Southlake just outside by DFW. Awesome upscale living.

 

 

How is the noise being so close to the airport? I have a friend who lives near the lake in Flower Mound and loves it there. The amount of house you can get there relative to CA prices is mouth watering.

The Army sends me to Fort Worth for work occasionally (most recently just a few weeks ago) and I have a friend that lives right outside there. I was absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the low cost of real-estate, but other than that I feel the same as CallmeJarod. I just couldn't get excited about the endless flat landscape, being so far away from an ocean/coastline, etc.

 

My friend had a brand new 4600 square foot mc-mansion built for the price of an 1800 square foot home here in Jersey, so as I said the cost of living (and awesome gun laws) is very attractive. He reminds me of that every time I complain about NJ, and is quick to point out just how much more "bang for the buck" you can get down there. When it comes down to it though, I just can't bring myself to want to move there.

 

My Wife and I are planning to get out of NJ in the next few years, and are hoping to land somewhere between South Carolina and Florida. I have family and friends all over Florida, have heard great things about Georgia, etc. Not sure where we'll end up but I can say this, any of those choices will be better than NJ!

 

I love Florida and have wanted to live there since I was a little kid. <3 Hopefully soon.

The amount of house you can get there relative to CA prices is mouth watering.

 

^This. 100%.

 

My buddy's 4600 square foot house that I mentioned is all brick, has a 3-car garage, butlers pantry, movie theatre, 5 bedroom, etc. I DROOL just thinking of it in comparison to my tiny little home in north Jersey. And its brand new, built in 2012. (for around $350k IIRC).

 

Crazy.

 

That is another huge factor in me wanting to move. My wife and I are building a house in one of the most sought after areas in sacramento (sounds funny that a neighborhood in sac town can be sought after) It just appraised for over 2.3 million and our building price and land acquisition was only 1.3 mil. So when we leave and sell that house with just the profits alone I could get a mcmansion in some of the cities you guys mentioned and it would be free and clear too. So that and going to a business friendly area would be such a weight off my shoulders. Im gonna check out some of the other cities you guys mentioned. Gonna take this year to travel to a bunch and pick out what will work best. We can't wait!

I think you'll be hard pressed to find somewhere better as far as socially and weather. Maybe it's the part of Cali you live in. I used to complain about Cali A lot. Politically it's horrible, but the weather ,scenery,things to do can't be beat. I really like Scottsdale Az and I hear Austin TX is really nice.

 

We had some friends who were Romanian. They were happiest living in the Valley because of the social aspect.

 

Currently travelling through California. Absolutely love San Diego as a place to live. Weather, people, restaurants, ocean front, different burrows with unique charm, beautiful.

 

LA has it's own charm but it's not for everyone and I don't like the spotlight aspect. Personal choice, but it is undeniably beautiful as well.

 

Haven't made it up to San Fran yet!

Currently travelling through California. Absolutely love San Diego as a place to live. Weather, people, restaurants, ocean front, different burrows with unique charm, beautiful.

 

LA has it's own charm but it's not for everyone and I don't like the spotlight aspect. Personal choice, but it is undeniably beautiful as well.

 

Haven't made it up to San Fran yet!

Try Montecito?