Questions About Knoxville (Chattanooga, Cleveland, Maryville: sales, real estate, 2015)

[theurbanfiles]

I have thought about this area a lot as a potential relocation destination, if I would be able to do it, as it seems like it would be a good compromise for my wife and I (not overly hot or cold. In fact, when I looked at a Washington Post chart on warm weather or cool weather days, it said that typically the high temperature in Knoxville falls between the range of 45* and 85* an astounding 334 days per year. Now, that strikes me as high, when considering that the average high in two months is greater than that. Still though, it seems pretty great! Right now, we are living in Florida, and as summer is starting to rear it's head, I am starting to think about it all the more. I just had a few questions:

1. Does the weather feel significantly more comfortable during the summer than that of FL? At least it appears shorter. And how far would one have to go towards the mountains to notice a measurable temperature drop? Is there anywhere like that which would be within a commuting distance?

2. Cost of Living: What exactly is it that I am missing? I see that the median cost in Knox County is $144K, and from looking around, it appears that a nice (if somewhat small) place can be found in safe suburbs with good schools around there from about $160K? That is pretty incredible, for being in what appears to be a very nice city with perhaps the most topographically and ecologically dynamic place in the Eastern US around an hour or less away.

3. City Life: Of course, you can't rely on just going to the mountains every weekend, even that would probably get old, but, having paid a visit to the city last year and doing some research, I came away thoroughly impressed. I am a HUGE sports fan, so obviously having UT sports for most of the year would be pretty nice, but it also looks like there's minor league baseball and hockey. Market Square downtown looked to be a fun and vibrant place to be, even when we stopped in for lunch on a weekday when classes weren't in session (summer). Are some of the other attractions pretty nice as well? I like history and museums, and while I'm guessing that the offerings for that might not be quite as much as my hometown (Cleveland), it looks like they could certainly be in the same tier or perhaps even exceed some of the larger Florida cities. Plus, considering the nature around town, that sort of balances it out pretty darn well, as long as everything else is decent.

4. Jobs: My wife and I are (sort of) both in the education field. I say that because we are both certified to teach, however, she is pursuing K-12 education, while I am working towards my doctorate in higher education. What I would most like to do is find a university job, perhaps at UT or Pellissippi State Community College. I actually did find one down in FL at FAU as an Academic Advisor for Students with Exceptionalities (since my undergrad was ESE), but did not take it because my wife had the opportunity to teach art at her current school, and I wanted to allow her to pursue that, which likely means I will be working K-12 next year also. So, I was curious on how competitive the process is for student affairs jobs at UT, but also for K-12 jobs in the area, and any positives or negatives specifically relating to either one that could aid my search. Is UT or KPS a good place to work?

5. Lastly, just anything else I could know in advance about the area, or things that could help increase my/our likelihood of securing employment there. We have talked about it, and if we were to make the move it would probably be after either next or the following year. I also tend to think I'd enjoy the slower pace of things and community feel there, if that is more of a thing. Are there any major negatives I should know about the area before making an eventual decision about it?

In conclusion, if we could both work on teacher salaries even long term (I don't know whether that would be 35K a year) or what, pay down on a cheap house and be frugal (just do things like hike and such), I feel like with Knoxville's cost of living and everything, that could set us up for a very high quality and enjoyable life, and perhaps even one where career progression and wise investing (WE ARE EXTREMELY FRUGAL) could allow us to retire by 50 if so desired (24 now).

[linnemj]

1. You can compare monthly temps in the Knoxville area versus your current location as well as any location in FL by doing a online search. It does get warm and humid here in the summer but if you work around the hottest time of the day with outdoor activities, it is fine. Altitude will provide cooler temps but there are limited places to live that I am aware of.

2. Cost of living is very good. Both real estate prices and property taxes are low compared to most other parts of the country. Sales taxes are charged on groceries and everything else.

3. We have only lived near Maryville for a year but we find there is a lot to do. You are correct that UT provides educational, sports, and entertainment opportunities. If you like to hike, kayak, walk, camp, ride motorcycles or bikes, you will be happy.

4. I have no knowledge of educational job opportunities since we are retired.

5. The only drawbacks to the area could be higher cost and limited air transportation.

Good luck with your decision!

[theurbanfiles]

Thanks! In terms of monthly temps, it actually looks quite closer during the summer than I would've thought. However, while Tampa has 6 months where it is 85 or warmer, Knoxville only has 3 (on avg.). Surprised at how humid it appears to be in Knoxville during the summer, markedly higher there it appears than ATL. However, another thing worth noting is that it is 8 degrees cooler at night on avg. in Knoxville, which I would assume makes an impact. As another poster messaged me, it can vary sharply, however, just for reference, Tampa last year had 159 days where the temperature exceeded 90 degrees, not even accounting for humidity. I'm not sure whether or not that is a record, but I do know that it trumps Knoxville's record of 70 days by about a 3 month margin.

As far as everything else, that alone makes it worth it.

[TeamWalsh317]

Cavsfan looks like your wanting cooler weather. My family is moving to Knoxville next month looking for warmer weather. We got 3" of snow just a few weeks ago here in Northern NH.

[theurbanfiles]

Yeah that's accurate. Well good thing is based on what I can see Knoxville looks like a good happy medium.

[theurbanfiles]

Just another stat I researched that sort of puts out there how blessed Nashville peeps are when it comes to weather. Keep in mind, this is from the 2015 annum.

Days with high temperature either too cold (below 50) or too warm (above 85) in Knoxville:
121

Days with high temperature of 83 or higher (with humidity, accounting a couple degrees) in Tampa: 260

[theurbanfiles]

Originally Posted by cavsfan137

Just another stat I researched that sort of puts out there how blessed Nashville peeps are when it comes to weather. Keep in mind, this is from the 2015 annum.

Days with high temperature either too cold (below 50) or too warm (above 85) in Knoxville:
121

Days with high temperature of 83 or higher (with humidity, accounting a couple degrees) in Tampa: 260

Sorry, meant Knoxville (embarrassing)

[DubbleT]

Don't you just hate finding your mistakes after it's too late to edit, lol. I think we all knew what you meant though.
I don't know if you have looked into dew points yet but they are usually a better indicator of comfort than looking at humidity percentages.
I used weather history on wunderground when I researched my move and found it very helpful. Looking at last August it looks like Tampa's dew points ran in the mid to high seventies, compared to Knoxville's which mostly stayed in the sixties. That's a pretty fair difference as far as comfort level goes.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by DubbleT

Don't you just hate finding your mistakes after it's too late to edit, lol. I think we all knew what you meant though.
I don't know if you have looked into dew points yet but they are usually a better indicator of comfort than looking at humidity percentages.
I used weather history on wunderground when I researched my move and found it very helpful. Looking at last August it looks like Tampa's dew points ran in the mid to high seventies, compared to Knoxville's which mostly stayed in the sixties. That's a pretty fair difference as far as comfort level goes.

This, this, this!

People don't understand this, usually, but it really explains comfort levels. You can have Chattanooga and Tampa having the same temp and humidity levels, yet Tamps feels so much hotter.

I discovered this when I lived in Fort Myers/Naples, Florida and was visiting Chattanooga/Knoxville to see where I wanted to live. I've been in Knoxville for over 10 years now. There is a big difference between Central/South Florida and Chattanooga/Knoxville and it is much more than length of time that it is hot.

[theurbanfiles]

Well it all sounds pretty great then!! It's just a matter of getting employed there then! Thanks for your help, and I will certainly work towards hopefully contacting someone in the area and especially determining matching positions in about a year.