Need help with a few questions on Tennessee (Memphis, Knoxville: vehicle registration, low crime)

[oldpops]

I hear that everything is great in Crossville except the summers can get very hot. I guess being at the base of the Cumberland plateau can add to the heat in the summers. Are there any areas near-by Crossville that perhaps are higher in elevation that would help cool the summer days. Right now I am being tested for MS and one of my symptoms is that I am super sensitive to heat. I live in an area of southern California right now with very hot summers and it is one of the reasons we need to move.

Until then i spend most of the summers where we are, staying inside the house with the AC on. The electricity bill is astronomical in the summers because of that and I can't go outside for most of the day from last part of May to the beginning of October. I can deal with it and I thank God to be alive but it kills me to see my wife limit her activities because of me. I tell her to go out and do things but we've stuck to each other side for over 33 years and she said she said she's sticking by my side.

We've even considered finding the right place, even if it is just a piece of land, and having a prefab or modular /manufactured home dropped on to it. Being a city slicker all my life, I will need some information and advice on digging wells, septic tanks, weatherizing pipes, etc, although if there are still some places where the city water/sewer, electric and possibly gas goes to the property line, that would be great. however, low crime, close enough decent medical care (especially in an emergency), and as cool as we can get for summer temps are what we are looking for. ** Incidentally, we live in southern California now and drive 45 minutes each way to work so close by is a relative term.

So I welcome any advice on where to look and again thanks to all of you all for your help!

[jguillot]

I've been in the Cookeville-Monterey-Crossville area only about 16 months, but I hear Crossville is growing, but not near as rapidly as Cookeville. The City of Cookeville has a larger hospital than in Crossville, Cookeville Regional Medical Center. I've heard good things about this hospital from all except one person who recently had a bad experience after being sent home form their emergency room. The hospital in Crossville is Cumberland Medical Center.

If you need to be in a location where jobs for your kids are available, you would probably have to be fairly near a small city such as Cookeville or Crossville. Another consideration is whether a small city will have opportunities in the field of work your kinds are interested in. You might have to be closer to Nashville, Knoxville, or Chattanoga for your kids to find the kind of work they are interested in doing.

If you want to be within a few minutes of a hospital, I would not recommend the Monterey area, where I live. I am about 10 minutes from the main highway (Highway 70 N), so it would take me 30 minutes to get to a hospital. However, the elevation where I live is around 2000 feet, so summer temperatures and humidity are not quite as bad at this elevation. Even so, humidity can still be a problem for some people. The humidity last summer was unpleasant. If that could be a problem for you, an even higher elevation might be better for you, possibly a little further east in the more mountainous areas.

Here is what I suggest. Go to googlemaps and find places on the map that might be close enough to hospitals, doctors, shopping, jobs, yet still a little higher in elevation. Then go to city-data.com and research that place. The link below will take you to the right page at city-data.com. They provide a lot of information, including elevation, nearest hospitals, statistics regarding home sales, crime rate, annual weather, and much more. You can also do on-line searches for information about different places you want to learn about. Once you've found places that might meet your needs, I suggest you take a trip to Tennessee to visit those places. When you visit, talk to local residents, visit stores, restaurants, hospitals, and do a lot of driving in the area. That is what we did and it helped us to find a place we liked. You might also consider visiting at different times of the year, so you can see what the weather is like at different times.

I've found that most people in Tennessee are very friendly. Some will go out of their way to help you. We've made more friends here than we ever had in California. I enjoy the slower paced life here.

I hope this helps. Good luck in your search.

https://www.city-data.com/city/Tennessee.html

[tnff]

How old are the kids that need jobs and what career are they in? Reason I ask is they will move on their own so dont tie your decision on a short term need for them. Besides Cookeville, take a look at southern middle Tennessee. Humidity is a bit high but meets the rest of your criteria. $200k will get a good 3br home and an acre with city services.

[JRR]

Originally Posted by oldpops

Thanks again for the info. I was looking at the reviews for the 'Cookeville Regional Medical Center' and they weren't that good. Have you had to go there recently, and if so: how was the care? Are there other hospitals nearby?

My wife had the misfortune to fall ill over the holidays and ran the gamut at Cookeville Regional Medical Center. From home via ambulance to the ER, then to ICU for several days and finally a regular room for several days. We could not be happier with the care that she received at every step of the way.

[Mister 7]

Check out Knoxville if you want a "city". Anything else in East TN is small-time by comparison.

Cookeville isn't East TN but is nice (I have family there, my sister went to school there) but it's comprises of basically a stretch of 4 exits off the interstate. Your buck will go farther here for real estate.

Crossville is pretty, as others have said, but it's even smaller. Not a whole lot going on there, which could be a plus for you. Real estate will be cheaper.

Knoxville is a decent size city that has all the shopping you could ask for, all the specialist doctors, good to great hospitals (UT is Level 1 Trauma), and easy access to the mountains. $250k will still get you a perfectly good house, though not as nice as in the smaller cities. You don't have to "leave" Knoxville for anything, like you would in those smaller cities. Check out Maryville or Oak Ridge which are close to Knoxville, but RE will be cheaper.

Good luck!

[danielj72]

People often say East Tennessee is cooler, less humid etc. This is ONLY true if you are at a higher elevation. The areas in the mountains or on the plateau are a bit cooler and less humid but if you choose to live in the valley there is no coolers temps and no decrease in humidity. Knoxville and Chattanooga are squarely in the valley and are really no cooler than the rest of the state.

The Tri Cities area likely has the least amount of heat and humidity of any area of the state (other than federal land up in the mountains) one thing to remember is that if you find a high elevation place with cooler summers then be prepared for the fact that those places get more winter than everyone else too.

[JOinGA]

Originally Posted by oldpops

Another question: What about fences? I see a lot of homes with big back yards or lots of property, but most do not have any fencing? Some have little 3 or 4 foot fences. We have dogs that are nice and friendly, but they would take off if we didn't have a fence. And they could easily jump any fence under 6 feet. What is the general rule on fences in Tennessee?

I have a fenced yard. I am in a subdivision and my fence must conform to the style allowed by my HOA. Do not buy into a neighborhood with an HOA if you do not want to follow their rules. If you are not in an HOA, then check with the local government for restrictions.

[beachdiver]

OP, we moved to a small town south of Johnson City Tn from Orange County Calif in 2006. It's a beautiful area, but if you have kids that will need jobs I'd second the Cookeville/Crossville area. We moved to Crossville, then later over to Fairfield Glade and loved the area. It's up on the Plateau, about 2000 ft elevation. So that means it's a bit cooler there than Cookeville. The humidity isn't bad (not as bad as central Indiana where we grew up!). Crossville is a nice small town but Cookeville has more restaurant/shopping opportunities, the hospital is excellent. (DH had a quadruple bypass & later a pacemaker implanted there. Tennessee Heart is a great cardiology group!)

When we moved to TN, we noticed that groceries were a bit more expensive than in CA but that was offset by other savings: taxes, insurance, housing, etc. As for shopping- you can drive 1 hour east to Knoxville every now & then or there's always the internet. Tennessee is pretty much a live & let live kind of place. You will find large, nice homes next door to a trailer with an old car parked in the yard. Outside of Fairfield Glade there were almost no HOAs. You will have an adjustment period, but once you get acclimated you might love it! We did & the only reason we moved was to be closer to our kids in our old age.

[betnkev]

Hello We too are considering moving to eastern TN, especially the Sevierville area. we too are conservative Christians and wanting to get away from the very liberal state of IL. I say "lets go NOW", but DH wants to wait until I get ss. We will have his pension, and both ss and a good amount to put down on a home. We clean homes full time now in IL. and would look into cleaning a couple of cabins in the Smokies. Seems doable, We have had a realtor look at our house and am confident it will sell quickly, (in the near future at least). We look on Zillow quit often at homes near Sevierville and it seems no problem that we will find something when the time comes. We vacation in the Smokies at least once a yr. usually. Sometimes twice, in the spring and the fall. We'll be there this October and will get more info on cabin cleaning from the folks we rent the cabin from. Not too concerned for finding work, as we will only want part time anyhow. My concern is in how to find a house being long distance. Do people have a realtor looking and even do a walk through and live video, like skype? anyhow, we would love to hear from the locals about Sevierville, Pigion Forge and Gatlinburg.

[Serious Conversation]

Originally Posted by betnkev

Hello We too are considering moving to eastern TN, especially the Sevierville area. we too are conservative Christians and wanting to get away from the very liberal state of IL. I say "lets go NOW", but DH wants to wait until I get ss. We will have his pension, and both ss and a good amount to put down on a home. We clean homes full time now in IL. and would look into cleaning a couple of cabins in the Smokies. Seems doable, We have had a realtor look at our house and am confident it will sell quickly, (in the near future at least). We look on Zillow quit often at homes near Sevierville and it seems no problem that we will find something when the time comes. We vacation in the Smokies at least once a yr. usually. Sometimes twice, in the spring and the fall. We'll be there this October and will get more info on cabin cleaning from the folks we rent the cabin from. Not too concerned for finding work, as we will only want part time anyhow. My concern is in how to find a house being long distance. Do people have a realtor looking and even do a walk through and live video, like skype? anyhow, we would love to hear from the locals about Sevierville, Pigion Forge and Gatlinburg.

Keep in mind that the whole Sevierville area is a swarm of traffic in the peak tourist season, as well as Christmas to a degree. I think it would get very old doing daily business in that mess.

If you were spending a lot of money in the tourist areas, they might accommodate it. Many realtors have great Facebook pages with attractive property pictures and video walkthroughs.