Places to live - input please?

[xFenrir]

I have to admit, Maryland is not THAT bad. I live smack-dab in the middle of D.C., Baltimore and Annapolis, and there's always something neat going on. (Getting people to actually GO to the neat things is the hard part... I've got a bunch of lazy friends.)

But if I had to choose a place to live, Atlanta GA would be my answer. I visited there for 2 weeks and just fell in love with the place. There's just something about the Southern East Coast that calls to me. Maybe because I'm from North Carolina originally? I think it has to do with the fact that I DESPISE winter. If the temperature never dropped below 60 that would be a dream come true.

[Nathair]

I wish I could live in Texas again. I've been to the San Antonio area a lot and it just seems like there's always something to do. Whether you like the city or country its pretty awesome. I like the terrain to, it's this neat mix of hilly, rocky, desert and woodland. I'm not a big fan of Virginia. It's pretty boring here to me. I live in the Tidewater area on the coast. So no country, and heavily polluted water. I will say some pros of the place though are a rich history, a lot of mom and pop pet stores with no shortage of captive bred snakes and last but not least, going down to the river to catch some blue crab for dinner.

[Capray]

Move to the Bay Area if you like the urban hipster scene. And oceanic views 24/7!

[gopherhockey03]

I vote for you to live in Minnesota! Even though it was 0 degrees with -15 windchill today along with the foot of snow we got it's not that bad haha But putting up with harsh winters makes up for it with the best Summers ever!!! Ever heard of the saying "Minnesota Nice"? Well it rings true here everyone is always willing to help out you would be welcomed with open arms!

[C&H Exotic Morphs]

Another vote for AZ.
We live about 30-40 minutes South of Phoenix and love it. We don't have to deal with the craziness of the big city unless we want to. Mountains and snow are about 2 hrs away. Vegas is 5-6 hrs away. The CA beaches are 5-6 hrs away. No natural disasters.
The only somewhat negative is the extreme heat 115+ in the summers and yes for the most part it is dry, but July and August can get rather humid with Monsoon season.
It is fairly herp friendly, except venomous and crocodilians. You can possess native non-protected venomous with a hunting license.
And now we have 3 shows a year(2 in Phoenix and 1 in Tucson). Plus the Super Shows in LA and San Diego are close enough to drive to.

[LotusCorvus]

I've lived in Illinois my whole life. It's got a lot of pros and cons. Weather isn't too bad, although it's really variable (especially if you're near chicago/lake michigan). Price of living depends on where you are. It's pretty absurd around the city, but even two hours out and it's a lot more reasonable. Much further than that and you hit a lot of farm towns/boonies, which is pretty nice. I've always lived in the northern end near the IL/WI border, so as far as I know everything south of Wheaton (where there's a really great animal expo twice a month) is corn fields and cow pastures ;P One of the definite pros is that we have a bunch of reptile shows, a lot of breeders, and multiple herp groups in the area, so it's really easy to make friends and find quality animals.

[sorraia]

Thanks again!

Now after reading replies, I have another question...

When you say "good" or "absurd" in reference to housing prices, what exactly does that mean?

Here cost of living is ridiculously high. My husband and I practically STOLE our house, 3 bed/2bath on 0.62 acre for $115K. I found a listing in Tennessee for a similar house on 5 acres for the SAME price. Here, that property would have easily been $500K or more. Rent for an apartment here depends on what city and bedrooms, but averages around $800 for a studio or 1 bedroom. Rent on a whole house is going to be $1500+ depending on city and size of house. These aren't even L.A. prices either! I know other areas are lot less than that though.

[Capray]

Another vote for AZ.
We live about 30-40 minutes South of Phoenix and love it. We don't have to deal with the craziness of the big city unless we want to. Mountains and snow are about 2 hrs away. Vegas is 5-6 hrs away. The CA beaches are 5-6 hrs away. No natural disasters.
The only somewhat negative is the extreme heat 115+ in the summers and yes for the most part it is dry, but July and August can get rather humid with Monsoon season.
It is fairly herp friendly, except venomous and crocodilians. You can possess native non-protected venomous with a hunting license.
And now we have 3 shows a year(2 in Phoenix and 1 in Tucson). Plus the Super Shows in LA and San Diego are close enough to drive to.

Pheonix is soooo spread-out. And bland-ish...lol. But there's some hip little campus town that's fun to go to. I'm obviously not a big fan of the desert, disregard my negativity.

[MootWorm]

Thanks again!

Now after reading replies, I have another question...

When you say "good" or "absurd" in reference to housing prices, what exactly does that mean?

Here cost of living is ridiculously high. My husband and I practically STOLE our house, 3 bed/2bath on 0.62 acre for $115K. I found a listing in Tennessee for a similar house on 5 acres for the SAME price. Here, that property would have easily been $500K or more. Rent for an apartment here depends on what city and bedrooms, but averages around $800 for a studio or 1 bedroom. Rent on a whole house is going to be $1500+ depending on city and size of house. These aren't even L.A. prices either! I know other areas are lot less than that though.

Honestly it all depends on what you're looking for, how much work you're willing to put in, and what your expectations are. You can find some great deals in just about any area if you do your homework and don't hesitate if you find something you KNOW I worth it. This summer my mom found an absolutely GORGEOUS foreclosure 3,000 sq ft, 4 bed/4 bath with a wooded lot on a golf course near the IL/IN border, we walked away paying 150k. Granted,we spent the entire summer ripping down water damaged drywall in the basement, the furnace was dead, and we had to drag moldy, flea ridden carpeting out of the house in 105+ heat with no A/C, but she now has a beautiful property that is now valued around 500kand can easily be sold for more than that once the market turns around.

[SylverTears]

Tori are you Minnesota too!!

Nope, I'm an eigth generation Vermonter