Considering a return to MD? (Baltimore, California: how much, home, neighborhood)

[bus man]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

Leonardtown.
https://leonardtown.somd.com/
Solomon's.
https://www.baydreaming.com/destinat...land-maryland/
Chesapeake Beach.
https://www.chesapeakebeachmd.gov/about
North Beach.
https://www.northbeachmd.org/welcome-north-beach
Charlotte Hall.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Hall,_Maryland
LaPlata.
https://townoflaplata.org/

Charlotte Hall or Leonardtown could work. I think the OP would find the rest of them to be not as rural as she'd prefer. Of the two, Leonardtown has the cuter downtown, what there is of it. La Plata has a good downtown, but I think it's not rural enough, unless she were to live on the outskirts of town. Chesapeake Beach, North Beach, and Solomons might be too touristy for what she's looking for, but she would know that better than I would.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by DaveinMtAiry

The first place I thought of was Frederick too. It's a lovely town of about 60,000 and right outside of town it's country very quickly. It's also much more accessible to where your family is with better options for a part time job than say West Virginia. There are also very nice towns nearby such as New Market or Mount Airy for that matter, depending on what you are looking for. I'd also agree that it's best that you rent 1st but with 2 dogs that could be an issue.

Originally Posted by Gerania

^^^ And three cats. I think that's going to be the difficult, or impossible, part.

Yeah, with 2 dogs + 3 cats I might have to buy a place right away. Then again, I rented for nearly 30 years with almost as many pets (just minus a dog) in the Bay Area, moving over 20 times in that period; so it's certainly possible. People who give up their pets because they're moving are usually full of crap, and looking for an excuse to dump them.

And not to be morbid, but I probably won't move anywhere until the older dog passes. He's going on 17, so I don't think he'd survive a long-distance move. Also, landlords don't always have to know everything. I had "a cat and a dog" for the purposes of my last few rentals.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by bus man

Charlotte Hall or Leonardtown could work. I think the OP would find the rest of them to be not as rural as she'd prefer. Of the two, Leonardtown has the cuter downtown, what there is of it. La Plata has a good downtown, but I think it's not rural enough, unless she were to live on the outskirts of town. Chesapeake Beach, North Beach, and Solomons might be too touristy for what she's looking for, but she would know that better than I would.

I'm not a huge fan of touristy towns - but it depends on HOW touristy and crowded they get. Because I live in a touristy area now, and it doesn't bother me since it's a quiet one. I also live a few miles north of town, making it easy to avoid people on the busier days/weekends.

I'll plan a trip out there once my sister is settled (probably late summer/early fall), and take a fact-finding tour of these places you all have recommended. Once I see them in person, I should be able to get a feel for what I like or dislike. Thanks everyone!

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by bus man

Charlotte Hall or Leonardtown could work. I think the OP would find the rest of them to be not as rural as she'd prefer. Of the two, Leonardtown has the cuter downtown, what there is of it. La Plata has a good downtown, but I think it's not rural enough, unless she were to live on the outskirts of town. Chesapeake Beach, North Beach, and Solomons might be too touristy for what she's looking for, but she would know that better than I would.

Solomon's is really the only one where the tourists impact the residents much. I live two blocks from the water in North Beach and unless I go down to the beach/boardwalk don't even know people are here, even on the weekends.

The traffic can be a pain occasionally but that's because we never did the smart things when we were redoing the roads but almost always (one exception) the stupidest thing.

The reality is that you can walk or bike pretty much anywhere easily in North Beach (not so in Chesapeake Beach) and don't have to drive for the in-town stuff (Post Office, beer, cigarettes, ice, etc.).

[DaveinMtAiry]

Originally Posted by gizmo980

Yeah, with 2 dogs + 3 cats I might have to buy a place right away. Then again, I rented for nearly 30 years with almost as many pets (just minus a dog) in the Bay Area, moving over 20 times in that period; so it's certainly possible. People who give up their pets because they're moving are usually full of crap, and looking for an excuse to dump them.

And not to be morbid, but I probably won't move anywhere until the older dog passes. He's going on 17, so I don't think he'd survive a long-distance move. Also, landlords don't always have to know everything. I had "a cat and a dog" for the purposes of my last few rentals.

I think it's a good idea to let the old dog live out his life, that is very thoughtful of you.

The suggesting here are good ones but they are very different. Which of course is one of the things I love about Maryland. Frederick, Burketsville etc are on the edge of Appalachia, 100 miles east North Beach etc is obviously by the water and looks like an entirely different part of the country. It all depends on what you are looking for but given the location of your family, which of course is a major reason for the move, i would not consider Southern Maryland. You will find outside of Frederick is very rural with the small towns already mentioned nearby. Over the mountain there is Middletown and Myersville which are much smaller. Brunswick, sorry, is dumpy unless you buy in the new development there.

There really isn't any housing in Burketsville (of The Blaire Witch Project fame) it's a tiny place surrounded by farms. But there is Adamstown and Buckeystown which offers housing but no cool Main Street, I love Main Streets too. I really like Sykesville, it's near us and much preferred to nearby Eldersburg which is a collection of strip malls. But I prefer the Frederick area and that's where we will probably move when we downsize. But do check out New Market and Mt. Airy, sounds like what you are looking for with easy access to Frederick and all that offers.

[skeddy]

York Pa might be worth checking out. Less expensive than metro Balt/DC.

[homeonthelittlemountain]

I’m a little late to the game, but we live just to the west of Frederick in the Braddock Heights/Middletown area. I think this area fits your needs. An hour or so from downtown DC. You could probably find a job in Frederick county or Montgomery county. We are rural-ish. Middletown is a lovely small town. We love it here. We moved 6 years ago from the Bethesda area. Best move we’ve ever made. Friendly neighbors, lots of pets. Check it out.

[Greenvalleyfan]

Originally Posted by skeddy

York Pa might be worth checking out. Less expensive than metro Balt/DC.

Outrageous school taxes.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by Greenvalleyfan

Outrageous school taxes.

I'm not in school and don't have children (likely won't ever, since I'm 45 lol) - so would that affect me? Is it a tax everyone pays? Even if that's the case, I'm happy to pay taxes if they're actually funding schools. Education should be more supported by taxes!

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by homeonthelittlemountain

I’m a little late to the game, but we live just to the west of Frederick in the Braddock Heights/Middletown area. I think this area fits your needs. An hour or so from downtown DC. You could probably find a job in Frederick county or Montgomery county. We are rural-ish. Middletown is a lovely small town. We love it here. We moved 6 years ago from the Bethesda area. Best move we’ve ever made. Friendly neighbors, lots of pets. Check it out.

Not too late, since I won't even be considering the move until next year... I'll add these to my list!