Best Places to Live...??

gosh there are so many things to consider! but if you are looking for a place to settle down and buy a home and stay for a long while you should look into the states with the best schools. so do you like it hot all year? do you like four seasons? do you want oceans or mountains? shopping and lots of things to do or someplace more simple?

i grew up in Maine and I love it there. don't live there right now because of military but i will definitely move my family there when that is done. there are bigger cities and small cute towns, ocean and mountains! things to do in the summer and winter. schools for the most part of great, housing not too expensive, beautiful landscapes. maine has a little of everything i just love it!

The pacific Northwest is the best! Oregon is great! That's where you should live!

The pacific Northwest is the best! Oregon is great! That's where you should live!

To settle down for sure...
Were not really too picky...med weather is good...Im not a big fan of heat but I can deal with it. My main thing is a good place for my kids to grow up. We had considered MO or MD because thats where my siblings live....but Im not yet convinced on it. This is such a hard decision.....

it is, you should look at schools, the job market, crime rate, weather, things like that

being close to family helps ( free babysitting!) but there are so many things to consider! but it must be cool to be able to go where ever you want and start somewhere new! good luck

Ive done a fair share of researching on crime rates, unemployment rates, schools and lots more. Some websites have lists (like top 100, 25) for best places to live..work..raise family but they are all different. So its very confusing...and it doesnt really help to make a decision....

Thank you for the good luck!

well were do you want to live? do you have any ideas?

i live on the west coast. it is the best!

I have no clue...I kinda want to just pack up and start a new somewhere far from SC...but then again I kinda want to be close to family.

Im not the best at making choices obviously...

I'm biased but I vote California. If you don't want it to get too hot The Bay Area is the place to be since it's near the water and SF's fog burns off towards the inland (if that makes any sense at all). Berkeley is also, in general, very artsy and crafty. There are gallery walks every year that are very fun, and there's a craft fair that comes by twice a year. I don't know how the schools are for kids the same age as yours but I have and am getting quite a good education. I think that's one of the very important variables for you since your kids are just starting schooling. But CA is quite far away.
But here's what I did for my college search, I made a list of all the most important variables to me and then so did my parents. An example of my list (Starting with the most important moving down):
1. Classes- Strong music and arts department
2. Small school
3. Interesting people
4. Near a city, with in the range of a beach
5. Lively social scene
And so on. For your type of list it might look like this:
1. Tightly nit community
2. Outside of the city
3. Easy access to public transportation
Or something of that sort. Have everyone in your house make one, definitely talk to your three year old about what they'd want, so you all can look and see what you have in common and make a new list for the whole family. It helps to get organized and know exactly what your looking for.

Gah this is long! I'm sorry!

Actually making a list of priorities looks the best way to help you start.

I'm not from the US so can't suggest any actual places but prioritising is how I make a lot of decisions.

Good luck!

EDIT: I have just noticed that you posted this thread back in January lol so if you've found somewhere, how'd it go? How did you make your decision? Settling in ok?