Author Topic: Anyone in CT?  (Read 8864 times)

CurranBishop

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Anyone in CT?
« on: April 06, 2017, 03:28:45 PM »
Hi, I'm in the process of moving to the greater New Haven area and am wondering who's around/what's going on in CT? (I saw a thread of discussion from a couple years ago, but wasn't sure who's still active)

CurranBishop

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #1 on: April 06, 2017, 03:30:20 PM »
Oops, sorry for the double post - had an internet glitch and didn't see the reply...

nushagak

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #2 on: April 08, 2017, 06:37:24 AM »
We've moved away, but I suspect there are some other CT-based mustachians still.

justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #3 on: April 10, 2017, 01:11:50 PM »
Here in New Haven.  Living the mustachian life and would love to share knowledge and beers.

lchu

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #4 on: April 15, 2017, 07:03:58 PM »
Also New Haven -- long time lurker on the forums, just getting into posting.

Captain Cactus

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #5 on: December 29, 2017, 10:31:58 PM »
Anybody still in CT?  Feel like I'm on an island.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #6 on: January 14, 2018, 09:04:14 AM »
Think twice about moving to CT. Very expensive state to live in and Government is out of money: has laid off lots of State workers. State is pretty boring. Lots of fairs all over the place. Free concerts on the greens in certain towns. Farmers markets here and there. Lots of good restaurants scattered in CT. State is pretty boring if you ask me. Guess it depends on what you are into. Weather is ever changing and snow creates challenges in clean up and driving. There has been a mass exodus of people leaving CT and corporations too. Wouldn't recommend coming to CT. I want to move myself but not sure where to go. I hate heat and humidity. Weather patterns seem to be changing all over USA so some warm states are getting snow and ice like never before. Good luck if you move to CT.

Hargrove

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #7 on: January 27, 2018, 04:46:36 PM »
CT is unfortunately set up as a Utopia for an economic model from 1950. There's a very high amount of wealthy commuter/vacationer/retirees. It's dividing between cities (with mill rates 28-76 and ever-shrinking industry) and Ivy-prep towns with at least 3 each of coffee shops, antique dealers, art galleries, jewelers, and bakeries. Lots of areas with only vacation as an attraction have populations aging out.

Major businesses leaving or downsizing (Aetna, GE, Kimberly Clark) aren't even moving to cheaper locales - they're moving to places with better attitudes about job training and growing business locally (NY, MA). Too many towns designed for anonymous, village-sized retirement and vacation that are fiercely NIMBY. Beautiful hiking trails literally everywhere, but housing starting at 250-450k without the jobs to support it.

International tourists come to watch the leaves change. The state has amazing education, in parts. It also has a big finance industry, especially in Greenwich and Darien. New Haven pizza, great local restaurants and craft breweries, local wine trails, fairs basically everywhere. You can get super cheap housing in a few places (like Winsted and Torrington). There's ocean access, lots of waterfalls and parks, many local theaters. There are country clubs and golf courses everywhere, and more scenic routes than you could track down.

There are like... 5 forum posters. :p

Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #8 on: January 28, 2018, 02:54:35 AM »
Educating kids in CT is very expensive. $18,377 per kid per year! The 4th most expensive state to educate children. http://www.governing.com/gov-data/education-data/state-education-spending-per-pupil-data.html

In the town I live in they closed a school due to less enrollment of children in the system. This is a whole school with all the expenses that go along with it. That left us with 5 schools in the system. Would you believe when they did the school budget for the following year, with one less school, our taxes went UP! Not even one year that we could breathe and have some tax relief. They keep finding things to add so the budget never goes down. This year the budget went up again. We get to vote on it soon.

Georgia is a state that offers tax relief on the school budget to Senior Citizens. Georgia is very tax friendly.

Kimberly Clark will be shuttering some of its facilities. The KC in CT is probably one of the most expensive to run. Time will tell if it stays open. They used to have around 1,300 employees and now down to 350!



justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #9 on: January 28, 2018, 12:18:48 PM »
We love Connecticut!  We love it so much that we convinced our families to move here.  The one thing people love to do in CT is complain about the taxes, but what they do not ever mention is all the perks that we get from those taxes.  Our schools are great, libraries are fully stocked, and the universities offer lots of free programs. (All within 2 miles of our affordable home that DW's employer gave us $30,000 to buy)  I think that if you are Mustachian and in Connecticut you have to be crushing it.  We have seen our net worth go up and up here all while seeing our expenses go down and down.  Come to Connecticut! It is the land of plenty, as long as you are disciplined enough to stay away from the excess and consumerism. 

Jim Fiction

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #10 on: February 18, 2018, 02:42:22 PM »
I'm in CT as well, specifically New Haven.

New Haven is a neat little city, though I don't know it as well as I would like since I have only been here three years and I work 45 miles away so I don't spend as much time here as I should. Its a very bikeable city, with a sizeable community of cycling commuters, and the city seems to be committed to continuing to improve on the its bike-ability. I don't bike myself (see aforementioned lengthy commute) but perhaps when the inevitable job change eventually comes that could change. Property taxes are high-ish, which is typical of virtually all of Connecticut, but its not as bad as many of the other cities in the state. There are plenty of things to do both in New Haven and the surrounding suburbs.

ChiefMomOfficer

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #11 on: March 21, 2018, 06:53:36 PM »
Seems like everyone here lives near New Haven! I’m in CT but towards the middle of the state. Love visiting New Haven though.

Sport014

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #12 on: June 17, 2018, 05:25:42 PM »
Lurking CT native here, also in the greater New Haven area, Shelton currently. I'm 34 and with a family of 4. I aspire to live a mustachian lifestyle but am early in my journey. I'd be willing to meet up and share ideas at some point. I could use the inspiration of some other like minded people. :-)

Captain Cactus

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #13 on: September 13, 2018, 08:01:57 AM »
I am married, father of two.  Live in the Colchester area.  I keep a low profile to protect myself from the Normals.  I have been interested in FI for about 3 years now and I have gone through quite a thought journey.  At this point I think the entrepreneur’s path may be my best long term strategy.  Wife doesn’t want to move, kids are in school, etc... don’t see “retirement” as something that would work out well for us until the kids are older.  Been a fascinating journey.

CurranBishop

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #14 on: October 12, 2018, 10:20:34 AM »
So I created this thread and haven't checked it in well over a year! (I must not have set up notifications properly).

Since posting I've moved to CT, living in Milford, CT which seems a pretty entrepreneurial place, lots of festivals, etc. free beach access, great walkable downtown, etc. Yes, the state seems to have the wrong model for its future, and very high real estate, but I love the enthusiasm some of you are offering!

We love Connecticut!  We love it so much that we convinced our families to move here.  ...  lots of free programs. (All within 2 miles of our affordable home that DW's employer gave us $30,000 to buy)  I think that if you are Mustachian and in Connecticut you have to be crushing it.  We have seen our net worth go up and up here all while seeing our expenses go down and down.  Come to Connecticut! It is the land of plenty, as long as you are disciplined enough to stay away from the excess and consumerism. 

justchecking, I'm trying to convince family to move to the area--great job achieving it!

Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #15 on: October 12, 2018, 11:23:37 AM »
CT is still boring but a fairly safe state compared to states getting all the hurricanes, volcano's, forest fires. Crime is low unless you live in Hartford, Bridgeport, New Haven. Transit system where I live is really bad. We have the HART bus which I have never taken and for me to get a ride on it I would have to walk more than a mile on a very dangerous road to a bus stop. The busses stop a million stops so to get to the next town it would probably take several hours. That wouldn't work out too well If I had to work in a town that has a lot of employment that is 22 miles away. We have a train station but no trains come to this town since 1971ish.

Weather has been hellish hot and normally cools down early September, not this year. We have been having jungle weather with heat and humidity day after day.

I have lived here most of my life and have travelled a lot. Even travelling to different destinations, I still don't know where I would move.



Ravenik

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #16 on: October 12, 2018, 02:55:56 PM »
Reporting in from fairfield county.  I don't like it here, but my wife's roots are firmly planted.  We need an Aldis!

Jim Fiction

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #17 on: October 13, 2018, 05:22:07 PM »
So I created this thread and haven't checked it in well over a year! (I must not have set up notifications properly).

Since posting I've moved to CT, living in Milford, CT which seems a pretty entrepreneurial place, lots of festivals, etc. free beach access, great walkable downtown, etc. Yes, the state seems to have the wrong model for its future, and very high real estate, but I love the enthusiasm some of you are offering!

We love Connecticut!  We love it so much that we convinced our families to move here.  ...  lots of free programs. (All within 2 miles of our affordable home that DW's employer gave us $30,000 to buy)  I think that if you are Mustachian and in Connecticut you have to be crushing it.  We have seen our net worth go up and up here all while seeing our expenses go down and down.  Come to Connecticut! It is the land of plenty, as long as you are disciplined enough to stay away from the excess and consumerism. 

justchecking, I'm trying to convince family to move to the area--great job achieving it!

Its a pity that you didn't check back in sooner, as we had a small meetup last month, hosted by justchecking.


Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #18 on: October 14, 2018, 06:01:31 AM »
What counties do some of you live in? I live in Litchfield County.

justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #19 on: October 16, 2018, 08:14:51 AM »
We are in New Haven County. 

Fill out this poll for when our next meet up will be!

https://doodle.com/poll/337z87csnehcg8pg

fpjeepy

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #20 on: January 14, 2019, 08:12:53 PM »
I use to live in southeastern CT. My family and friends still do and I visit often. June-August it's the greatest place in the world if you like to boat, fish, beach, etc. But the rest of the year is rather depressing. Opioid epidemic hits this area hard, as does alcoholism. And I think a lot of it has to do with there being nothing to do. And if there were anything to do the government took all the money you had to do it. My friends that still live there seem to travel or drink their way through the off-season. Taxes are very high. Cops are everywhere and justify their existence by issuing tickets for anything and everything they can. People aren't really nice people... Don't take my word for it New Haven and Hartford are ranked in the top 5 least friendly cities in America. Gas is expensive. Real estate is expensive. Fishing license... expensive. The cost to do business expensive.

They do have great schools in some areas, but I'd rather live somewhere with a cheaper education and supplement it with my own $$$ than have to live in CT. The leaves are beautiful when they change colors, but deciduous trees after they lose their leaves are very boring looking. I much prefer to look at evergreens during the winter. Add that to it being very dark and cold all winter, but somehow raining more than it snows.

All in all, I'm not really upset with my choice to leave, but I can't speak for the rest of the state, only the southeastern shoreline. Props to those of you sticking it out through the tough months.

jacksonvasey

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #21 on: April 30, 2019, 09:33:33 AM »
I live near the airport, and definitely am torn about the state of the state.  It's pretty expensive, though I do feel like we have very decent public education, and the roads are good enough.  I'd like better pedestrian/cycling infrastructure, but that's not a priority for many people here.

I think we're making it work fairly well, and I don't think we're planning on leaving any time soon. Hartford is possibly at a crossroads, where it may be starting to change the direction it's been heading for a long time.  This is relevant for us as my wife works in Hartford, and I work remotely and end up in Hartford often.

I'd love to meet a few other mustachian types locally, especially to share ways to thrive with CT's challenges.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #22 on: April 30, 2019, 11:03:47 AM »
I use to live in southeastern CT. My family and friends still do and I visit often. June-August it's the greatest place in the world if you like to boat, fish, beach, etc. But the rest of the year is rather depressing. Opioid epidemic hits this area hard, as does alcoholism. And I think a lot of it has to do with there being nothing to do. And if there were anything to do the government took all the money you had to do it. My friends that still live there seem to travel or drink their way through the off-season. Taxes are very high. Cops are everywhere and justify their existence by issuing tickets for anything and everything they can. People aren't really nice people... Don't take my word for it New Haven and Hartford are ranked in the top 5 least friendly cities in America. Gas is expensive. Real estate is expensive. Fishing license... expensive. The cost to do business expensive.

They do have great schools in some areas, but I'd rather live somewhere with a cheaper education and supplement it with my own $$$ than have to live in CT. The leaves are beautiful when they change colors, but deciduous trees after they lose their leaves are very boring looking. I much prefer to look at evergreens during the winter. Add that to it being very dark and cold all winter, but somehow raining more than it snows.

Where did you move and how do you like it? We are on the fence about moving. Everything you said is true. I live in Litchfield county and it is boring. We never had kids so the school system isn't a concern for us but school taxes are too high and no breaks for Seniors. Winter is too cold and too long and back breaking as you age. Summers here are getting hotter than hell. We had some summer days here that were hotter than Florida.

All in all, I'm not really upset with my choice to leave, but I can't speak for the rest of the state, only the southeastern shoreline. Props to those of you sticking it out through the tough months.

justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #23 on: May 06, 2019, 01:08:15 PM »
Let the pooping on CT continue!  (Not really)  We have been here five years and picked CT as our forever home (parents and in laws retired here too.)  I find it shockingly easy to be Mustachian in this state.  Great infrastructure, jobs, and plenty of free things to do (concerts, museums, lectures, festivals, and theater.)  The wife and I have a commute that is under two miles.  Sure we pay taxes, but for the great public schools (oh and BTW if go k-12 to our public schools you get free in-state tuition at any public university...welcome to UCONN kids)  We bought our house for a song and love the change of seasons.  Sure the winter is a little long, but it nowhere near as bad as Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and the like.  We make sure that even if it is cold we still make an effort to be outside and enjoy our state parks (parking is now free at all state parks!).

Two sides to every coin.

Hargrove

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #24 on: May 07, 2019, 05:15:44 AM »
Scratching my head on those. The job and housing markets in CT are objectively worse than any national average. I haven't even heard of free tuition at community colleges being passed, never mind at UConn. Can you link those? Google declined my request for help.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #25 on: May 07, 2019, 06:39:44 AM »
justchecking, what part of CT do you live in? I live in Litchfield county and it is pretty boring here. There are only so many festivals, concerts on the green and museums you can go to year after year in CT.

Never heard of free in state tuition at any public university in CT. There has been talk about implementing that at community colleges but not sure if anything has moved forward on that.

Hargrove

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #26 on: May 07, 2019, 07:51:05 PM »
With infrastructure like "Free UConn," I'd think CT would be bursting at the seams. With the state of the roads and state pension funds so far, a lot of people got cynical about how much they already paid. There are real benefits, especially in public schools, medicine, snow removal, and so on. That said, they're currently considering starting tolls, 10% hike on excise taxes, dropping property tax on cars but changing homeowner assessment from 70% to 100% (oww) and several other things just to catch up on work left undone.

You can be Mustachian in CT, you'd just have to love it enough for the challenge.

Hartford recently got an accolade for making some solid inroads with the younger crowd, which is what CT really needs right now:
https://www.homes.com/blog/2019/04/best-cities-for-millennials-generation-x-baby-boomers/

justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #27 on: May 07, 2019, 08:23:05 PM »
I think that it is easy to get discouraged and say that we have paid enough or that it is too hard to be Mustachian here and therefore you would just be crushing it if you lived somewhere else, but we don't.  We chose to live here when we had a blank slate of being able to move anywhere in the world.  I would not change a thing after being here 5 years.  All of these costs are foreseeable and therefore we can budget for them.  When we do get hit with new taxes it doesn't hurt that much because we already have a great savings rate.  We make more money here then we would in other places and so it is a trade off. 

Here are some helpful links:

http://newhavenpromise.org/scholarship/colleges-and-universities/
Just to repeat k-12 in the public schools=free state school tuition. (Not included here is the free pre-k 3 and 4 that we get)

https://your.yale.edu/work-yale/benefits/yale-signature-benefits/homebuyer-program
I didn't even mention the extra 30,000 for buying a house that we got.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-25/where-u-s-millennials-are-moving-to-most-demographic-trends
Our primary house is only appreciating in value and with around 80% of the population renting their housing it makes our rentals have very limited vacancy.

In reply to the other issues.

Don't drive on the highway.
Don't buy stuff.


Hargrove

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #28 on: May 07, 2019, 10:16:09 PM »
Yale job perks are good, but that may not be surprizing or helpful to most people moving to CT. Again, nobody is saying "no one could possibly."

You're not accurately representing the tuition assistance. The k-12 school perk applies to children who went to New Haven schools all 13 years. As long as it lasts, it covers up to 10k/yr. Which is great. But it is not "free tuition at UConn," nor is it generally free tuition for CT residents. This is a very specific perk for New Haven locals, or for newcomers who can reasonably expect to start and finish a family in New Haven (provided the program lasts that long), which explicitly will not cover any other college expenses (including university fees, room & board, meals, books, etc).

Don't drive on the highway...?

Yes, the costs are forseeable. Like a $5 latte, you can budget for them. Like a $5 latte, it's not an optimal decision. And sure, I would recommend anyone with a 30k sign-on bonus and a job offer at Yale go ahead and consider that.

justchecking

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #29 on: May 08, 2019, 11:27:27 AM »
I am not trying to go tit for tat about what I outlined...but here goes.

It is free tuition at any state school including UConn.  There is no yearly cap on it.  I have only said that it is tuition not room or board.  I did say "at our schools"  in the first post and "k-12 in the public schools"  in the second.  It is going to last and is endowed by the city and Yale.   

Yeah don't drive on the highway.  I drive on it like once a month.  I chose to live where I live and part of that is not having to drive on the highway.  You have made a choice and if that includes highway driving and having to pay for that luxury then you should not complain about it.  I don't complain about not being able to own several acres of land because I live where I live. 

Instead of the tit for tat I think that the real question here is the position of strength that MMM talks about a lot.  I know it is a fault of mine to find it hard to hear criticisms of CT because I like it so much and because I have been very intentional about exactly where I live.  I do think that choosing from a position of strength and then being content with you decision can play a large factor in getting through boredom or long winter months. 

I know there are problems with the state and I work hard and vote to change some of those problems.  I hope that it does get better and I hope that we can all love the Nutmeg state a little more.

Hargrove

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #30 on: May 09, 2019, 06:03:52 PM »
I really view this as an effort to clarify rather than a "tit for tat." Someone considering "moving to CT" should probably not expect UConn to be free. You can love living here without it being the most frugal-friendly place to live.

If you meet these requirements, you qualify for a Promise scholarship! We don’t cover the cost of books, fees, or housing while you’re at school, but we will cover whatever tuition expense remains after your federal and state government grants, if any. At up to $10,000 a year over four years — that’s $40,000!

http://newhavenpromise.org/about/

Maybe they didn't update the website, but it looks an awful lot like it covers about 70% of UConn tuition if you meet the requirements (if you start today and already lived there 13 years and did the community service and so on). That's a lot of money! So is the difference between 70% and 100%. To start from a position of strength, I would need to be able to figure out what that position is.

It's possible to be Mustachian in CT.
CT has many fans.
If moving specifically to New Haven makes sense for you for a very long time, you can pull some serious levers to sweeten that deal.
I still wouldn't vote CT in the top half of "most Mustachian states."

24andfrugal

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Re: Anyone in CT?
« Reply #31 on: June 18, 2019, 08:43:28 AM »
Just moved back to CT about a month and a half ago! Anyone down to plan another meetup?

@Captain Cactus I'm in the Colchester area as well, a little ways off Hwy 2. We're neighbors!

@CurranBishop I'm jealous! Milford is one of my favorite places; I visit Silver Sands a couple times a week. Couldn't make it work with a job north of Hartford, but I'd have loved to live there.


 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!