Our eyes are drifting towards the east coast, particularly Vermont; their quality of life seems ideal, and the politics have a certain common sense to them which I adore (they outlawed billboards! They used to be red until the 60s, when a senator (governor?) flipped them off the premise that liberalism would do more to ensure Republican values at the time). My only fear there is the lack of diversity; it seems friendlier than OR/WA, but I'd feel weird being in the less than 3% POC population. Not that Portland is a hotbed of diversity; the ego and self-sabotage of politics here actually make me feel downright erased as a "passing" mixed-race individual (i often feel pressure to "prove" my blackness, and people often flat-out scoff at my identity due to my not fitting into a preconceived image), and I'd even argue there's very little diversity within the homogeneity (I remember being surprised at the "variety" of white people when visiting my sister in Chicago!).
If you don't want to be in one of the major cities Burlington, Montpelier, White River Junction and a couple of other smaller towns that lean expensive (Stowe, Waterbury, Shelburne, Middlebury, a couple of other ski towns in southern VT) it's relatively cheap. If you're coming from Portland, then yeah it's pretty cheap. It's too expensive for us so we're moving out. However, we wanted to buy in the Burlington metro because there's lots to do. Anywhere else, you can make your own community, but just remember that it's
very rural and we didn't want that isolation for the price. But plenty of folks love it. I might in like 30 years but not now.
politics have a certain common sense to them
Yeah, I agree. We famously have a Republican governor who continues to get reelected because he's very common sense and anti-Trump. He's like a 90s Republican more than the modern day. Socially liberal, fiscally moderate tbh.
I was down in CT looking at houses this weekend and I saw more Trumpers than I do in VT. I'm in a very, very, very liberal part of the state, and you'll get more in rural locations but it does seem like there are less insane crazy people in giant trucks flying trump flags or Vanifestos. Less insane yard signs that say "Let's Go Brandon" or whatever. People just seem more chill overall.
My only fear there is the lack of diversity; it seems friendlier than OR/WA, but I'd feel weird being in the less than 3% POC population
This is true. If you're near a larger city, you'll see some more diverse folks but more rural, you might be one of the few in your town. I can't really comment as a white person but I had a few POC coworkers who seem to not have issues. It'll really vary depending on if you run into crazies.
I don't think it's too friendly. Again, it kind of varies, but I had a small group or sort of friends that I sometimes hung out with who were kind of cold and distant. It's a New England thing really, sometimes we just come off as cold when it's not the intention. But I barely have any outside work friends since I've moved here almost 7 years ago. I see my friends from CT more than I do anyone here. I'm older and not in school or anything but it was harder to make friends for me. If you have kids in school or are generally more outgoing and seek out support groups or social clubs then you might fare better. I really didn't try to make friends so I'm okay with how it happened.
Yeah, I occasionally will “window shop” for homes and Vermont/Maine have both been areas that have appealed to be from quality of life standpoint but it does seem that the few small cities in those states have seen a decent spike in home prices post pandemic so while it’s for sure cheaper than out here it’s not as much as I would hope fore especially considering The brutal winters we’d have to contend with. Recently I have been intrigued by Syracuse, NY. It’s a rust belt city that has seen better days but it seems like they have lots of old homes at very affordable prices available and since it’s a college town you would have more art and culture than in a lot of similar areas. Beyond that, areas surrounding Lake Michigan in both Michigan and Wisconsin seem affordable if a bit remote. I also am a fan of Duluth MN, it’s cold but the summers on Lake Superior would be amazing.
But if you are looking at Vermont and want a first hand account on life there, you should reach out to
@wokeupnew he is just getting to move away from Vermont back to his home state but would likely be able to provide valuable insight.
Ha! my new job is actually located in Syracuse (I work remote) and I've talked with my new coworkers about buying a home and all of them already own homes. They're mostly younger than me too, so it's super affordable to own a home in your mid-late 20s. It's a surprisingly decent sized city with a big metro area. Near the Finger Lakes, Adirondacks, a short drive into Buffalo for bigger things if you need to. It's got a few good colleges around there too to keep the culture consistent too. Not a bad option IMO.
