Best place to live

[JohnnyBoy]

My wife and I are looking to move out of Iowa and closer to a large body of water. Any suggestions on where to consider moving to?

Not quite ready for retirement, so will probably need to move someplace where we can find some work and not squander all that we have invested thus far. (I'm a computer geek, she works in banking/insurance)

I want to get away from these god-forsaken winters, but the wife likes the seasons, so I'm hoping to find a happy medium.

We want to find a place where we can easily take of for weekend or extended cruises and build our sailing experience... When we retire (early) we want to cruise full-time.

Anybody living in the best place in the world and want a new neighbor?

[PBzeer]

You might want to consider the Clear Lake/Galveston Bay area, as that puts you in the Houston metro area which would make working easier. Also prices relating to boats are cheaper here than Florida/East Coast. Another area you might consider is along the Tennessee River system with 5 major lakes, plus Barkley Lake on the Cumberland River, running from the Ohio River to Knoxville, TN. This would be a more "seasonal" area.

[sailingdog]

I'd recommend the Carolinas or the Chesapeake Bay instead... Houston does not have anything close to resembling four seasons... Charleston, SC or the Tidewater region of Virginia are pretty good choices. I wouldn't go as far south as Savannah, GA, as the insurance for a boat gets really expensive and safe storage starts to get really hard to find.

Clear Lake and the Galveston/Houston area can be nice... but definitely not four seasons... Oregon would probably be a pretty good choice too. You'd get four seasons, and if you're along the coast, relatively mild winters. Far less expensive than either Washington or California. Somewhere east of Astoria, OR, would be about a 40-60 minute drive to Portland.

[BADG]

Charlotte, you'll both find work and real estate prices are still reasonable.

[chris9matt0]

Newport, RI. Still gets cold during the winter, but really nice throughout the rest of the year. Try near Providence to make housing cheaper.

[Saasaan]

wow by far San Diego, best city in the world hands down !

[allrightlefty]

That Oregon suggestion has merit,although it has one very nasty bar to cross,the Columbia river bar has the reputation of being the worst in the world.However living close to Portland and mooring your boat somewhere near Olympia Wa. might be a good situation

[pigslo]

Houston actually has all four seasons. Autumn is at 3:00 on October 27th.
pigslo

[sailingdog]

San Diego is beautiful, but the prices are a bit high, especially for real estate, and they definitely don't have four seasons.

I would have suggested Charlotte, but not so near any big water IIRC...

[bestfriend]

Don't come here(SF), waaaaaayyyyyy to expensive! If I could move, I would go to the East Coast, Carolinas.