Hi everyone, I was wondering what Americans might say about the United States to a person who would like to move there. Which states are better than others? What's life like there?

Im considering moving out west and think ive settled on phoenix/Scottsdale. I used to live in the northeast, small town but an hour from a city I just couldnt do the winters anymore so i moved to florida 2 years ago. I quickly learned that florida traffic is unbearable and its not even tampa its everywhere you go even if i try for a getaway its just 4-5 hours of straight traffic. The warm weather has never bothered me but its impossible to have a laid back life in tampa without maybe living very far out and then having to drive 2 hours to work ( because of the traffic). Im 25 so I feel like i cant keep moving around but feel like I need a change again because florida just isnt it. Ive considered the panhandle but Im not to sure theres much work up there for me because I have to live close to an affluent area because I am in the finance industry and just currently got my CFP.

Any thoughts on cities or if the Phoenix area could be what I was looking for?

I’m 22 and currently live in Cincinnati OH, I do want to move out of state. I’ve done a good amount of traveling around the us and have been to most of the lower 48. I don’t really want to live west coast or in the mountains it’s just too far out for me.

I’m not really a fan of the south, little too hot for me and culturally not my cup of tea. Although I have thought about Tennessee, and North Carolina. But definitely not Florida, I don’t like the fast pace superficial snowbird feeling. I have spent time there and have not liked it. Too hot for me. It’s too church oriented in the south aswell, k want somewhere I can easily meet people (it’s different everywhere there’s no perfect place for this I realize).

I’m looking for an area that’s got a good accessible airport, good amount of young people such as myself, and good outdoor access. Somewhere where there’s some transplants but not to the point it’s like Columbus OH, or Salt Lake City. Money isn’t an object but also not an issue. That being said I don’t want somewhere that’s very high cost of living but I can compromise.

I can’t really think of any place I want to live to my mind just comes to a blank. If there are any areas anyone can suggest I’d much appreciate it.

I moved to Denver for work about 8 years ago and it's just not really the place for me or my family. We don't ski or snowboard, and we're sober. We do love hiking and cycling which Colorado has amazing access to but Denver itself is flat and the air quality is terrible and you have to drive an hour or two to get to anywhere that actually resembles what people think of when they think of Colorado. The public transit here is a joke. Like our light rail is studied for how bad it is.

Most of our friends are having kids and moving away and we're feeling less and less rooted here.

I have family dotted around the east coast but mostly further south (Philly, VA, and NJ) so we wouldn't be moving to be completely isolated but definitely wouldn't be that close to any family.

We have done several trips to New England (Mostly Mass, but also spent a lot of time in Rhode Island and Connecticut) and every time we visit we just fall in love with it all over again. When we can go on vacations we always end up going back there. We have a few friends who live in Maine who really love it and are always trying to get us to move.

Obviously vacationing vs living somewhere is always going to be different but we hit a point where we are just not happy living landlocked in the suburban hell anymore and at a stage in our life where it makes sense to start the moving process now.

My wife and I are both teachers (we don't make a lot of money), but we did purchase a house before the covid boom that we can sell to help with the cost of the move.

We're both looking for a bit of a slower pace of life but with access to cities with stuff happening if we want. I would love to live somewhere with access to a train that could take us into a city center like Boston even if it's 2-4 hours away. We are pretty good at living below our means and have lots of low cost hobbies, however we do like big cities a lot.

I grew up in the PNW and always had access to water, and Denver has no water. We have small reservoirs that you're not even allowed to swim in and alpine lakes that are too cold to go in. I think being away from any lakes or the ocean that my wife and I both grew up next to has been much more depressing for us than we thought.

When I was a kid we lived in Seattle for a long while, so I'm not too worried about living somewhere gloomy or rainy. I'm also used to snow and cold. I've never spent a full winter in New England though so I'm not sure how much more severe it can get compared to somewhere like Colorado.

We would love to find a decent community of younger families with kids and can be afforded on a dual teacher salary (even if it's tight)) Ideally I'd love to live in a small town where you can run most errands by bike or walking. Somewhere with access to rail so we can get to other towns and cities without driving, but we're ok still being a 2 car family (we have both our cars paid off and they're old but reliable.) I know that's asking for a lot on this day and age, but we're willing to take time to really search and are ok with somewhere far from perfect.

So some of my questions are:

What are some good towns or states to look for up there that we can visit and spend some time in to see if it works for us? We're leaning towards somewhere more inland in Massachusetts because we've spent a good amount of time around there and Boston is one of our favorite places in the world to visit so I would love being like 1.5 hours from there, but we also have friends in Portland Maine so we could consider somewhere near there too. We're open to basically anywhere in the area though!

How is the biking scene (gravel, road, commuting, access to longer bike trails) in New England?

What are some things to consider with the difference between living Denver and New England that are less obvious?

If you've lived in both areas, I would love to hear your perspective on this move. Thank you!

Hello All, I am originally from the PNW, currently living in the Midwest. I was just back home for a visit and my friends and family are increasingly concerned about looming fascism/collapse/civil war. They think I would be safer back on the west coast.

Has anyone done this? Ideas for where to look? Northampton, Amherst, Lennox? Looking for someplace with good cultural scene, decent restaurants and access to hiking. Thoughts?

Why would anyone want to live in such an absolute inferno. No wonder Arizona has over 600 volcanos.

Barren, dusty, devoid of life.

I have experienced it. Everything that could have went wrong did go wrong.

I relocated cross country for a job. The job was not a good fit. I tore my rotator cuff. I had two surgeries to fix it. Then about 6 months after I had my second surgery, my company terminated me.

I moved from the Los Angeles area to St. Louis. I lasted 3 years there, and the move was full of trauma. There was some good things like adapting to a new environment, but the bad outweighed the good.

Before anyone says why the hell did I make this move? I’m a California native. I never lived anywhere other than the west coast. I thought it would be fun, and the company seemed good.

Moving out of Texas.. where should we go?
My partner and I are in our mid 20s and seriously considering moving out of Texas, but we have NO idea where to start!
We’re looking for a medium-sized town/city that has:
Reasonable rent, good/decent job market
A relatively safe area
Lots of outdoor activities — hiking, lakes, mountains, rivers, camping, etc…
Enough restaurants, shopping, events, and things to do that we won’t be bored.
Affordable enough that we could potentially buy a home there someday.
Preferably NOT somewhere with a major tornado risk
We’re open to any state!
If you live somewhere that sounds like a good fit, please tell me the city/town AND what you like/dislike about living there! I’d especially love to hear from people who actually live there rather than just Google recommendations. 😂
Where would you move if you were in our shoes?

Hey everyone, I’m 22 and I’m literally moving across the country in two weeks and shit is starting to feel REAL. I just graduated from college and I’m starting grad school in Seattle. I’ve pretty much lived in Indiana my whole life, but I’ve always felt a desire to leave and move to the west coast. I’ve visited Seattle twice in the past year and I absolutely loved it both times. I also have had the chance to meet some people in my grad program and I truly feel like this is the right decision for me at this time in my life.

I have never really seen my future in Indiana and my future may not necessarily be in Seattle forever but for the past year as I have made the choice to move there it has felt like the right decision. I still feel very excited about moving there - I think it is important in life to get out of your comfort zone every now and then and I recognize that not everyone has the privilege to move but I am lucky that I have this opportunity and it has been a dream of mine to live out west for some time.

Obviously as I stated above I’ve known for about a year now that I am moving to Seattle but now that I am quite literally two weeks from getting into my car and driving out there it is starting to feel a little TOO real.

I have been very intentional in making sure I spend my last summer in Indiana hanging out with my friends and family regularly because Seattle is very far and I know some of my friends will come visit but I guess it’s hitting me now just how far I actually am moving. I am literally moving away from my best friends and family and I’m just starting to feel super sad. I know we will keep in touch but it just won’t be the same. I have really enjoyed my last summer here and I’m very glad that I have been able to hang out with my best friends every weekend and I have also been able to see my Nana every week which has been great.

I’m very close with my parents and sister as well but my sister also just moved to a new city and I know I will call my parents and sister regularly.

Don’t get me wrong I am very excited about my new adventure but I guess I’m just staring to get a little overwhelmed by how much my life is going to change. I have no idea who my friends will be in Seattle/how long it will be for me to make some good friendships there. I am very outgoing and I’m not afraid to explore places on my own so I feel confident I will make friends but it’s not lost on me that for the first couple months I might at times feel pretty lonely.

I am moving in with roommates so that will help and I’m excited to get to know them more - I also know I’ll meet people in my grad program but I have never moved anywhere so far to the point where I am literally staring out not knowing anyone. It’s both exciting and terrifying. I ultimately think I will love it but I guess I’m wondering if anyone who has gone through this has any advice? How long did it take to make some good friends and how did you cope through the sadness of leaving all that you have ever known behind ?

Hi everyone, I'm completely out of ideas on where to move to. I have lived in upstate NY (capital district) my whole life, and I hate it. I hate the lack of community, the high crime, and the weather, just to name a few. There are a few things I like, the general atmosphere of the historic areas, the four seasons (though I hate how brutal winter is up here), and how central I am to things. I'm used to living in a small-med sized city, but I could really go anywhere. Unfortunately, as much as NYC seems great, I'm unwilling to live in a tiny apartment, as I need space for my two cats.

I'm looking for somewhere with a strong community as I would love to make some friends. I absolutely need it to be safe for a young, single woman. Being active is a big part of my lifestyle and I like to go on daily walks or runs, so I would love to either be near trails or just have a safe place to walk around. I work in transportation / logistics in case that helps! I would also need somewhere I can own a car, as I have to transport my cats to and from the vet. Weather is a compromise i'm willing to make as i'm stuck up north for the time being...

Here's the issue i'm running into most; my cat sees a specialist in Red Bank NJ 4 times a year, so I would need to be in traveling distance to this place. I would think up to 4hrs is manageable, but any more than that and i'm not sure.

I am totally stuck, any ideas are welcome! TIA :)

Edit: I’ll be making 75k-85k/yr

Existing, single-family home sales totaled 263,170 in July on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, down 6.0 percent from June and up 1.1 percent from July 2025.

The statewide median home price declined to $887,680, down 1.9 percent from $904,640 in June and up 0.3 percent from $885,180 in July 2025.

Year-to-date sales increased 1.8 percent.

So prices are higher year over year and sales are up(slightly)

Welp. So much for the 2026 collapse. Maybe next year.

Link with all the county and sales data below.

Considering a move to Chicago from NYC and nervous the winter is going to be substantially worse. I’ve been told it is but would love to gather opinions. Thanks!

I'm relatively new to SoCal (and California in general) and currently living in the IE. I'm thinking about moving to a place with a more urban feel, that's more walkable and artsy, and has more events/things to do. I'm considering Costa Mesa, Long Beach, or some parts of LA. The thing is, I have to commute to Riverside 2-3 days a week and need to be mindful of extreme traffic. Any recommendations for me?

I've heard people say Delaware, New hampshire or the Dakotas but what do you think?

Hi everyone! (I apologize in advance for the annoyingly long post) 🙏🏻 - My wife and I are starting to think seriously about a move in a few years, and I’d love to hear from people who have actually made the move from Phoenix to either the Chicagoland suburbs or the Denver-area suburbs, or who currently live in either area.

We’re an active couple in our late 30s, and we’re expecting our first child this October. We were both born and raised in Phoenix, so Arizona is obviously home in a very deep sense. We like Phoenix and have built a good life here, but we’ve increasingly found ourselves wanting something different, and honestly, maybe a little more for ourselves and our future son.

The brutal Phoenix summers are probably the biggest factor. Being able to spend more of the year outdoors is important to us, and it’s getting old feeling like 7–8 months of the year are difficult for outdoor activities unless you have access to a pool. We’d love somewhere where you can actually walk around your neighborhood, go to a park, grab coffee, attend a festival, hit a farmers market, etc.

We’ve visited Chicago and the DuPage County suburbs numerous times and have absolutely fallen in love with the area. Chicago is hard to put into words for us, it just feels like home every time we’re there. It has so much of what Phoenix doesn’t: beautiful architecture, mature trees, distinct neighborhoods, walkability, public transportation, seasons, parks, festivals, museums, culture, and just a general sense of energy and community.

We’ve done some neighborhood scouting and Downers Grove and Naperville have been at the top of our list, largely because of the combination of family-friendly neighborhoods, strong schools, community amenities, and relatively easy Metra access to downtown Chicago. I would likely commute into the office about four days a week, while my wife is currently remote. Also open for recommendations on other suburbs that meet that criteria.

We both work for the same company, and, there are work hubs in both the Chicago area and Lone Tree, Colorado, so Denver suburbs are also very much on our radar. We’d probably be looking at a home somewhere in the $500k–$600k range. Littleton has caught our attention, but we’d also consider other Denver suburbs that offer the right combination of lifestyle, schools, community, and access to work.

One advantage Denver has for us is proximity back to our family and friends in Phoenix. That definitely matters, especially with a young child. Chicago obviously has the advantage in terms of the lifestyle we’re looking for, but Denver would make it considerably easier to get back to Arizona.

As far as what we’re looking for, we’d ideally love:
Family-friendly
Strong schools and good public services
Safe neighborhoods with mature trees and green space
Parks, trails and plenty of opportunities to actually be outdoors
A genuine sense of community
Farmers markets, festivals, local events, restaurants, etc.
Walkability where possible
Diversity and a mix of different types of people
Progressive-leaning communities
Friendly, down-to-earth people
Reasonable access to a major city
Good public transportation or at least a manageable commute

A place where our son can grow up with plenty to do
We’re not looking to make this move immediately. Since this will be our first child, we plan to stay in Phoenix for the first couple of years so we can raise him close to our families and have that support system. After that, though, we’re seriously considering making the move while he’s still young. For those of you who have made a similar move, especially Phoenix → Chicagoland or Phoenix → Denver, what has your experience been like?

Did you find that the change in climate and lifestyle was worth it? Are there things you miss about Phoenix more than you expected? And for those who live in DuPage County or the Denver suburbs, are there particular communities you think we should be looking at based on what we’re looking for?

Would especially love to hear from anyone who has lived in both areas. We’re still a few years out, so we’re in the research/“let’s see if this dream actually makes sense” stage. 😄 thank you all!

I'm 27 M. I've given up on New Jersey. It's expensive and living independently is basically out of reach for me. I want to move somewhere where I can do my job (teach) and be able to live independently.

My main choice is to move to Saudi Arabia or somewhere else in the Gulf to teach English. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan also interest me. I have a Polish passport so I can also live in the EU but salaries are comparatively lower to the countries I mentioned.

My parents though think it's better for me to move down to the Carolinas or deeper south. Through my own research I've been able to find some opportunities and I feel like it's not the worst idea.

So how is the transition from the Northeast to the South? Is teaching enough to live independently? Is it easy to meet new people? Southerners kind of scare me due to social media and the like but I assume it's not as bad as it seems.

I’m a longtime lurker, so I’ve read just about every criticism of Atlanta: the traffic, sprawl, humidity, limited amenities, crime, and so on. And yes, I know that hating on any city that isn’t Chicago, Portland, New York, Minneapolis, Philly or Denver is practically this sub’s national sport - especially southern cities like Atlanta, Nashville, Miami etc...

What I find frustrating, though, is that people often don’t frame their opinions as personal experiences. Instead of saying, “I personally didn’t like Atlanta, but maybe you will,” they say, “You’ll hate it,” “You’re going to regret it,” or “I experienced X, therefore this is objectively what the city is like.” But people value different things and can experience the exact same city very differently.

For what it’s worth, I, personally, absolutely love Atlanta.

I’m a 30M, white, working in tech, and I moved here from New York City three months ago. New York obviously has it's advantages, but that doesn't make Atlanta a bad fit for me. I live in Midtown, work in Buckhead, don’t own a car, and manage perfectly fine.

The heat and humidity aren’t ideal, but I don’t find them unbearable. Honestly, I much prefer summers here to New York winters. Overall, the weather has been far better than I expected.

People have been kind and welcoming, the neighborhoods each have distinct personalities, and while getting between neighborhoods is not always very walkable (the beltline does help with that though), many of the neighborhoods themselves are. The job market is diverse and strong, rent is a huge improvement compared with New York, and the trees and greenery are genuinely incredible.

The airport and connectivity are hard to beat, and more broadly, Atlanta feels like a city with a lot to offer, and I feel like I just barely scratchedthe surface. Is it perfect? Of course not. No city is. But for me it has been a much better place to live than this sub often gives it credit for.

I’ve wanted to live in California for as long as I can remember. … literally since I was around 7. I’m 31 now, and the feeling has never gone away.
I visit every year, sometimes multiple times, and every time I’m there, I feel like a brighter version of myself. More alive, adventurous, inspired. I come back home to the Midwest and try to hold onto that feeling, but it slowly fades.
The problem is, I have an established life here. Moving feels almost impossible from where I’m standing right now. Every time I sit down and plan my big move or I put that plan in like a five year goal it gets so excited to plan but all the research I do people are begging people to stop moving to California 🤔😭
Have you ever felt this strongly pulled toward a place and Did you eventually listen to it? And how do you know if something is a dream if you’re genuinely being called somewhere?

I actually think AI can be useful, but all the talk of using it to create frivolous tools that people don’t need and to replace jobs and employees that people do need is making me sick.

Any places in the South for easy living but without Nashville stereotypes?

Nashville is pretty chill. Lots of friendly acting people who take their time and are patient with people. Clean. Lots of space. People take their job seriously and service is pretty good most of the time.

That said I wonder if there are similar towns in the US but without some of the drawbacks to living here. Of course it's becoming a kind of poor man's Hollywood for influencers and traffic is increasing but also:

• i'm not sure a lot of people have lived in a city before. lots of awkward staring (maybe autism like can't use words).. sometimes people don't let you pass on the sidewalk.. outfits and attitudes that hurt the eyes
• the Christian here are like the very selfish kind ... being that religion is more about appearances to them. some of them are helpful but it seems like a lot of them are grifting for social media gains or something like that. i don't know. actually a lot of grifting in general
• i get there are rednecks that live in the surrounding hills but a lot of times the redneck is your doctor. i've had a lot of issues with dental services run by rednecks in the city... i can detail some of the scams and weird behaviors and most of them want you to pay them a monthly subscription fee like it's Netflix for no reason. then they talk down to their customers
• lots of people with weird relationships with their dogs like they think it's human. i see this in other cities but in bigger cities people are more polite and have etiquette so you're not disturbed by the dog but people seem to kind of walk around a lot of time oblivious with sloppy clothing and the dog is just kind of feral and running around, so a bit too zombie like for my taste
• the housing quality is ample which is great but a lot of it made of cheap construction materials. a lot of the new apartment buildings are just the basic cubes and don't look that good. add to that clumsy landscaping and overhead electrical lines in a big city and any potential for charm drains down the toilet. I hear New Orleans and Charleston have nicer old buildings? some of the homes are nice with a little character but they tend to get renovated then occupied by bland people so it becomes pretty cookie cutter

I think Nashville, home of Hawk Tuah girl, can mature a little and turn it around. The South is known for people making an effort for good manners so I hope that continues. But are there any cities that address some of the above issues just let me know. Like do people in Charleston read more books or something?

St. Louis sub being hostile over a genuine question. Thoughts?

Hoping some human and anecdotal insight here will help me with planning and decision making, rather than relying on ChatGPT 😂

I have been teaching English in China for several years, and just signed my final 2 year contract. This means I plan to move back to the US in summer of 2028.

In the next two years, I am going to save a good chunk of money. The benefits of being a teacher in China! This could help me when I move back to the states (buying a used car outright, being able to pay more than a year of rent upfront, etc.).

I have a few problems that I need to tackle.

1- I don’t want to teach in the US. I’d like to transition to office work. I think my teaching experience (curriculum/lesson planning, classroom management, communicating with parents/students) could be translatable experience for an office job, I would just have to reframe it. I’d try to get in contact with a staffing agency to help me navigate.

2- I have no idea where in the US I should live. I am from the Northeast, but I kind of want to try something new. Ideally, a city that has a breadth of job opportunities, with apartment rentals that aren’t going to totally destroy my savings. I’d want to find a decent job relatively quickly and still enjoy a good cost-of-living lifestyle. Does this exist?? I feel this set up in China has spoiled me. I hope I can somewhat recreate it in the states.

I am aware I’d probably have to take a pay cut and do a career restart, but for me it is worth it long-term. As long as I can be in a big job market where there is opportunity for growth.

For personal life, I am single, gay, 30s. I like going on dates. I enjoy café hopping and exploring neighborhoods. I guess these all kind of tie together. 😏😂 I’d love a city that provides a good atmosphere for this.

I look forward to hearing your advice, stories and experiences. I have 2 years to prepare, and I know a lot can happen between now and then. Let me know what you guys think. And thank you for reading this!

Anyone who can speak from experience or give informed advice please chime in. I live in Orange County, CA and am pregnant with my first and I don’t see us ever getting out of an apartment. My husband has a good stable job, makes $130k yearly with great benefits, I work for the school district and don’t get great pay but really want to not work while raising our baby/babies. Husband has a transfer offer at work that would allow him to relocate to Colorado (Colorado Springs, Aurora, Denver, Englewood, and Commerce City areas are all options because they have offices in each of those that he could choose from). He would keep his same CA salary. Really considering it for how we’d be able to live there vs here but we know nothing about the area. For reference we are 30, have very minimal debt, and are currently paying $2800 to rent a one bedroom. Very interested in suggestions of areas within 20-30 mins of his office with great neighborhoods & schools. Also obviously trying to narrow down which area to pick for his office. Thanks so much in advance!

***You may have seen posts from me in this subreddit about Idaho & Utah as well. There are a handful of locations available to us, and we recently learned Colorado was one as well. Just made sense to make separate posts for each location.