Where we currently live is not a good fit for us. We're in a rural, small-town, ultra-conservative (80% voted Republican) area of NC. There's not much to do around here - very few parks, not much culture or entertainment unless we drive to the big city an hour away, etc. There is very little emphasis on education. My husband is a pastor and there are VERY few churches in this area that reflect our (more-progressive) theology.... his current job requires us to keep our opinions on MANY issues under wraps, and when he leaves this job, we'll basically have to move if we want to find a church (either as leaders or members) where we can be ourselves and really feel that we're living into God's will for us. (You know, helping 'the least of these' and all of that other stuff that fundamentalist churches tend to find so controversial.)
Also, I get awful seasonal affective disorder every winter.... the happy light doesn't seem to help very much, Vitamin D doesn't help very much, and I don't really want to go on meds if I can avoid it. So I'd love to live somewhere a bit further south, with fewer cloudy days. (I transferred "home" to a Florida college after 1.5 years at a Maryland college because the dreary, cloudy winter was too depressing... not sure why I ever thought NC would be any better/different!!)
We're considering a move in the next couple of years, with our multiple pets and our elementary-school daughter. (We would be about 50% of the way to FIRE by that point, so we'll still need jobs but should have some flexibility.) Whether it actually happens or not, daydreaming keeps me sane... so I'm trying to get ideas of places that I should add to my radar.
My hometown is Sarasota, FL. There are many, many things that appeal to me about that area - beaches, biking opportunities, parks, family/friends in the area, excellent schools, pretty moderate politically (slight right lean, but not as homogenous as where we currently are), etc. My husband is pretty strongly opposed to Sarasota, though, because he views it as a bunch of snooty, rich old folks. I guess that's not an entirely inaccurate stereotype, but seems like a bit of an exaggeration to me. Still hoping that I can someday convince him to give it a chance, but I'm starting to realize it may never happen.
My husband loves Hilton Head, SC. I love it for visits and sometimes daydream about moving there, but it doesn't seem like a very practical option - not many jobs, not very progressive, etc. And it seems kind of ironic, given the fact that Sarasota is vetoed on the basis of snooty rich old folks, that he loves it so much! I do love all of the trees, the nature, the endless bike paths, etc. I just worry that we wouldn't find many people like us, which is one of our big problems in our current location.
My husband has said (when he's not campaigning for Hilton Head) that would prefer a big city. I'm a little ambivalent on that and would maybe prefer a smaller/mid-sized city, but we'll see. Where we live now only has a population of 10,000, so even a smaller city would give us far more variety/opportunity/diversity than what we're accustomed to.
I really want somewhere with biking opportunities.... even if the area isn't bike-friendly enough to shed a car (though that would obviously be my preference), I'd at least like to have greenways, trails, or other options for recreational biking. (I used to bike all of the time in Florida. Where we currently live, that isn't an option unless I drive over an hour to the nearest greenway. All of the roads are two lane roads with no shoulder and 45-65 mph speed limits, and the culture here is that the only good cyclist is a dead cyclist.)
Ideally, the location would be south of North Carolina (for my SAD), not somewhere ultra-conservative, and on the coast (or at least within an hour or two of it). Our budget for a home would be up to ~$375k (preferably more in the $250k range), so super-duper HCOL areas are out.
Tampa/St Pete is one option that we've added to our short list - I lived there for about a year after college and there were a lot of things that I really liked about the area, even though Tampa itself is a bit farther from the beach than I'd prefer. Husband likes the fact that it's a bigger city and younger than Sarasota.
Jacksonville, FL could be an option, but I've spent some time there and for some reason (that I can't quite put my finger on) never really loved it. But maybe I need to spend more time there or explore different areas of the city?
Gainesville could be an option, but my husband is kind of skeptical for some reasons that are kind of silly but do make sense to me (related to friends of ours that live in the area and a complicated relationship with them). It's also a bit far from the beach, though still definitely close enough for daytrips which would be adequate for me. I haven't spent much time in Tallahassee, but maybe that's worth looking into?
We love Charleston for vacations, but it doesn't seem like the options there (at least in our budget) would really meet what we're looking for? Interested to hear from anyone who lives in that area.
So, wise mustachians, tell me about places you love to live (or would love to live) that are 1) south of NC, 2) near beaches, 3) not-ultra-conservative, 4) outdoorsy & bike-friendly. I need more cities to research for daydream fuel to help me get through this winter!!