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Uber liberal and don't want heat. Seattle and San Francisco are calling your name! (Hope you have a lot of money to throw around, though.)
Portland would be a great choice as well......or anywhere around those cities. I'd imagine that if you went 30 miles outside Portland or Seattle, the COL would come way down. But then you also get into the more conservative neighborhoods....
OP needs to make more $$ to support their desired lifestyle, hard to have your cake and eat it too without money....
Weather and family were the two main factors for me.
I moved to Florida 45 years ago because I was going to cough myself to death if I spent one more bronchitis-plagued winter in Michigan. My decision was further cemented by the fact that most of my family either already lived here or were planning to move here soon.
OP---If you come up with a place that sounds good to you, arrange to visit it for a few days, at least. While you are there, engage the locals in conversation. Tell them you are thinking of moving there and ask if they like it. That's what we did when we were seriously considering moving to another state. We had a city picked out as a possibility. When we mentioned the name of the city, people we knew started freaking out and said the whole place was crime infested.
When we got there for a visit, we learned where the areas with the most crime were and avoided them. Keep in mind that every city has their crappy areas. So, whenever we came across residents who were willing to talk to us, we told them that we were thinking of relocating there. Much to our surprise, all that we talked to, encouraged us to move there. Some wanted to stress that the crime wasn't as bad as the media made it out to be. We were told that most people there were good law-abiding folks. Some of them urged us to explore the place a little more and visit some of the attractions
Well...after two visits and some research, we were poised to move. The one thing vexing us was trying to figure just what the best health care option was. Our research didn't give us many answers. Still...we identified a condo building that we would like to move to and even got the name of a good local realtor.
Okay...but a funny thing happened on the way...We sold our house and rented an apartment 2 towns away, all the while thinking that we would go to the chosen city and start looking to buy. What we didn't count on was falling in love with the apartment complex. There were other retirees living there who noticed that we were new to the building and introduced themselves. The place had activities and events for the residents. Much to my surprise, I found myself saying to my husband "I'll be sad when we have to move out of here." He surprised me by saying to me "So will I." So...here we are with no plans to move at this point. We also appreciated the fact that we were very close to our health plan's medical center as well as very close to the local hospital. (These things start really mattering as you age.) Also, the area was very walkable.
So...do take the time to narrow it down to where you might like to move. Then visit before going. Talk to the locals. See how the place feels to you. Some places give off a better vibe than others.
1) Change. Lived in Texas my whole life, never felt like I belonged here. Just need something new.
2) Politics. I'm very liberal.
3) Traffic. I hate it.
4) Weather. Too hot here.
5) COL-but everywhere is expensive so...
I think Hartford or New Haven, Connecticut would fit you well. It’s a moderately liberal state. For big cities New Haven and Hartford don’t have bad traffic but also offer mass transit options (rail, bus rapid transit, buses) for commuting. We have four seasons and none are too extreme. For the northeast, New Haven and Hartford are surprisingly affordable. Jay
Whats the best determining factor in choosing a new place to move?
Location.
Location is priceless. That will decide whether your favorite spots are a 3-minute commute or a 30-minute commute. I need a place that is within 15 minutes of where I work and play, nothing longer.
As a 65 y-o retiree, my priorities were a little different. I lived 37 years in a small Midwest town and wanted out. I moved to New Mexico and never looked back. New Mexico is not for everybody, which is a good thing in my estimation.
Climate and weather - 4 seasons
Looking for something close to a Goldilocks 4-season climate. No extremes, No weather or natural hazards. (found it)
Space -- breathing room
No Apartment or Senior housing - A SFH on a large lot with views outside of residential or commercial/industrial development. (found it)
Size -- urban/rural
Prefer being outside of a large city but not in a remote tiny town. Want to be within an hour of a city with an airport/Amtrak. (found it)
Diversity & Culture
Not white monoculture and ample diversity of people and culture. (found it)
Economy & COL
Affordable -- Wanted a thriving community/city with an average cost of living (found it)
Traffic
Wanted a reasonable amount of traffic with easy access to shopping, medical, entertainment. Able to cross town easily. Some public transportation. (found it)
Outdoor recreation access
Hiking, fishing, scenic, etc. Not crowded or overrun. Roaming opportunities and public access. (found it)
Healthcare
Hospitals and medical services available locally (found it)
Politics
Preferred liberal and progressive community but not on the bleeding edge of new and untried initiatives. Socially moderate. No extremes. Civic awareness and support for schools and libraries, etc. (found it)
Did not consider proximity to friends or family, crime rate, pro sports teams, religion/churches, schools, etc My choice was to move west, Texas, Florida, California, other coastal areas were off the table.
You're going to school online right now. What degree and career are you pursuing? Where are those future jobs located?
If it's middle school vs. preschool teaching, then most anywhere will have jobs. Nursing will be the same... jobs most anywhere. If you are pursuing a degree with limited job prospects, except in a few particular cities, then you have your list of cities you can move to.
Are you looking at a city of a particular size, or are smaller cities good too, say less than 100K vs. bigger than 100K? The smaller cities will most often have less traffic issues that you are trying to get away from, and lower cost of living, but of course limit many career options based on the degree you are pursuing.
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