Ultimate location?

[Vilgan]

Check out Gig Harbor, WA (and nearby areas) - extremely dog friendly, biking friendly etc but nothing like the $$$ of seattle. Beaches, mountains. The Puget Sound is amazing. Bald Eagles flying overhead, orca, otters, all sorts of "Wow"

I lived in Asheville for many years. In many ways it's a wonderful place to live...but it's extremely touristy and has been increasing each year as it's gotten on all the lists for great destinations. Housing prices have just gone up up up. Not very biking friendly due to narrow roads/mountains. There are bike lanes around the downtown area - but the town is VERY small - you can walk all of downtown easily. Outside of the main downtown area is  spread out along the 2 big highways and is basic suburban sprawl complicated by the surrounding mountains. There are a LOT of retirement communities. The joke was if you lived in several of surrounding suburbs is that traffic was awful ----cuz it goes at 15 mph due to 1. old people driving slow/confused and 2. the ambulances picking people up to take them to the hospital.

Yeah, I've heard really great things about Gig Harbor. One person fell in love with it so much when visiting that when her husband retired she explained that she was moving to Gig Harbor (from CA) and would really love for him to join her but she was going regardless. They both moved and have been extremely happy with the choice ever since.

[soccerluvof4]

I spent a 2 week vacation in Asheville a while back and travel there for work every so often.  I saw people biking downtown and road cycling groups on the Blue Ridge Parkway but outside of that virtually nothing.  I would agree that outside of the core biking would be hard and very abnormal. 

Compared to Boulder, for example, it was not even close.  I vacationed for 3 days in Boulder 2 years ago and rented bikes and spent a day riding around.  That town sets the standard.  From what I could see you could get around Boulder by bike and possibly never have to even get on a road with a car and if you did there would be a shoulder and respect given from the drivers.  So cool, love that place.

Good choice for reasons you mentioned and second on my list!! also like Colorado Springs BUT still gotta go with Asheville! PNW is just to damn expensive if you asked me .

[VAR]

Yeah, I've heard really great things about Gig Harbor. One person fell in love with it so much when visiting that when her husband retired she explained that she was moving to Gig Harbor (from CA) and would really love for him to join her but she was going regardless. They both moved and have been extremely happy with the choice ever since.

Gig harbor is beautiful and most anything you want is right there or a very easy commute to the "big city" and airports. Plus the Amtrak is nearby and there's very cool trips down through OR and CA or up to Canada.
It was a a nice nice place to live. Kind of hated to leave but it was just too far from my family at this time (back to the east coast).

[VAR]

That's great to hear from someone who lived in Asheville! I can only imagine what happens to a place once the word gets out. It might be pretty profitable to move to a place like that...flip a house and move to the next hot spot.

I do not think you would have much luck flipping houses there. The buy cheap houses/play to gentrification thing was a few years ago. At this point you would have to be an expert level flipper and really understand the specialized market they have there.