Want to leave the Bible Belt. What cities/areas should I look at?
December 9, 2021 10:15 AM   Subscribe

I've lived in the Bible Belt of the US for my entire life and I'm ready to leave. What cities or areas of the country should I look at?

Help me find a place I can live comfortably!

Here's what I'm looking for:
* Reasonable cost of living. I've always lived in a place with taxes that are probably too low, so I know the cost of housing is going to go up. But I'd like to buy a 3 bed/2 bath house on 1/2 acre for under $2k per month
* Mid size city. My current metro area is around a million people and this feels like a good size. Big enough for a university or airport, major hospital, decent internet, but small enough to get across the city in around 30 minutes.
* Blue-ish politics. Abortion access and LGBT rights protected at the state level. I don't want to worry every year about what BS the state legislature is planning.
* Decent internet, fiber preferred. We'll have two people working full time from home
* No glaring issues with climate change. A lot of the western part of the country is already having problems with drought and/or wildfires. Maybe there are cities that probably won't have those issues though?

So far I've looked at cities in upstate NY. Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester seem to fit my criteria and I really like the idea of being near the Empire State Trail and Amtrak. But maybe they don't really fit, and I'm just desperate to leave my current hell hole of a state. Let me know! And I know there are other cities I'm not thinking of yet that you lovely MeFites can suggest.
posted by Is It Over Yet? to Grab Bag (23 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
Don't believe everything you see on TV, the Baltimore area is a great place to live. It pretty much fits all of your criteria. Clearly, there are parts of the downtown city itself with problems, but there are a lot of nice parts as well. Or live in the suburbs just outside of the city like I do (but work downtown, though currently still remote). It is only a few hours to the ocean or mountains. We have all 4 seasons. Lots of outdoor stuff to do. Plenty of great museums, theatres, restaurants, and bars. Several great universities and hospitals, including Johns Hopkins and University of MD. Blue state. DC is less than an hour, Philly a little more than an hour, and NYC about 3 hours. Airport very close by with access to just about everywhere. Amtrak available. No real climate issues, but hurricanes if you live by the water (occasionally). I have many friends who have moved here and they say the people are friendly and unpretentious.
posted by maxg94 at 10:44 AM on December 9, 2021 [7 favorites]


Richmond VA is technically in the South, but the city and close in burbs are comfortably blue, we are about a million people in the metro area, 90 minutes east to the ocean, 90 minutes west to the mountains, 40+ breweries and more cool restaurants than you can ever get to. Great airport, Amtrak station, no traffic to speak of, and 4 seasons with very little snow.
posted by COD at 10:51 AM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


I'm also just over the line in Baltimore County.

Maryland is a well-run state, that gives you all of America in one small easy-to-navigate package. Mountains, beaches, farms, big cities, small towns, history, sports, cuisine, four seasons. It's also the most ethnically diverse state on the Eastern Seaboard according to the most recent census.

For under 2k a month, we have a 4 br house, on 1/4 acre, in a walkable community, with great access to trains, highways, hospitals, universities, an international airport and more.

We initially lived in Baltimore proper, but I prefer the county.
posted by champers at 11:06 AM on December 9, 2021 [2 favorites]


For Internet, my spouse has worked from our home with no Internet issues for five years.

Climate change will come. There are low-lying parts of the county, and communities in other parts of the state (such as Annapolis) are already being hit.

Summers are hotter and last longer.

We sometimes consider moving further inland. Frederick is booming. We also think about Thurmont for a more rural lifestyle.
posted by champers at 11:30 AM on December 9, 2021


I live outside Providence, RI, and the surrounding areas aren't bad. :7)

Nice airport, a few colleges (including an Ivy), no sports teams to gobble up local budgets, decent white-collar jobs (I work in IT for a downtown university, but have been WFH for a long time), and culture (I saw "Hamilton" last night!!).

Housing in the good neighborhoods of Providence proper isn't cheap and in the burbs things have gone up, just as they have everywhere, but it's still better than metro Boston.

An hour to Boston downtown driving or via commuter rail, and a few hours to New York City by car or Amtrak train or coach bus. Lots of outdoors stuff within an hour's drive in literally every direction (including out to sea!), and legit mountains in New Hampshire just a few hours away.

Climate change and the ocean make for mild-ish winters -- says a guy from MN!

Rhode Islanders are pretty parochial people, but it's not universal. I have lived here for about 20 years and I miss the Midwest, but I am used to the place now. The drivers are awful, though.
posted by wenestvedt at 11:46 AM on December 9, 2021 [2 favorites]


You are not imagining it, Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester all fit your criteria.
posted by bdc34 at 11:53 AM on December 9, 2021 [2 favorites]


Grand Rapids, MI is purple and going bluer over time. If you're outside of the city proper I can't speak to the internet but within the city it has always seemed fine. Colleges, airport. Definitely 30 min or less to get through/across town. And as far as I can tell, the Great Lakes region isn't on the precipice of major climate catastrophe. But our seasons are weirding like everyone else's. Nonetheless you would not likely find yourself in a wildfire or massive flooding situation anytime soon.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 12:02 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


Thurmont, MD had a reputation for having a wee Klan problem, 20 years ago. Not sure if that’s still the case but you may want to sniff around a bit before you commit.
posted by Alterscape at 12:34 PM on December 9, 2021


Maybe consider Pittsburgh, PA.
posted by gudrun at 12:55 PM on December 9, 2021


Forget Michigan, if Roe v Wade is repealed we revert to an old law which makes abortion illegal. Legislature is Republican so little hope of repeal of old law.
posted by H21 at 2:39 PM on December 9, 2021 [4 favorites]


But maybe they don't really fit

Naw, they do.

In metro Buffalo, a half-acre is (probably) going to put you in the outer-ring suburbs like Clarence, Lancaster, or the south-towns. This means your immediate surroundings won't be a complete respite from all the trumpy nonsense. You'll have people on your street with trump signs and whatnot, and the politics of your town* might end up being a little eye-rolling.

The state politics will still be deep blue thanks to downstate, and at least until trump ate conservatism the conservatism here was very much a Catholic conservativism, which is nowhere near as mean and nasty as Southern Baptist conservatism.

*There's nothing like really unincorporated land in NY. If you're not in an official City of Somewhere, you're in a subdivision of a county NY confusingly calls a town. Towns provide most day to day services, not the county itself.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 2:42 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


Illinois apparently has a law guaranteeing abortion access if Roe is overturned. Greater Chicago?
posted by Lawn Beaver at 2:45 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


Columbus, Ohio.
posted by essexjan at 2:51 PM on December 9, 2021


I wondered about Minnesota and Illinois, if you're ok to go for winter. But in terms of state level political protection I think it's hard to beat New York, just because of the demographic weight of NYC. Any place rural is more likely to trend purple-red rather than true blue.
posted by plonkee at 4:12 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


Ohio has a trigger ban law for Roe and a Republican stranglehold on the statehouse, I live here and I wish I saw good government in my future but nope.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 4:14 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions, keep 'em coming! The Baltimore area is definitely going on the list, and New York State is staying strong.

This map was shared on Reddit recently and if I go through the hassle of moving again, it'll be to one of the dark blue states. So no Ohio or Michigan. I think Virginia is still too South for my tastes and my partner has ruled out Illinois.
posted by Is It Over Yet? at 4:49 PM on December 9, 2021 [4 favorites]


It's smaller than your stated ideal, but I'd suggest giving Portland, Maine a look. The winters are long, but it's a cute little city on the coast, and it has flavor.
posted by Dr_Janeway at 6:18 PM on December 9, 2021 [2 favorites]


Another vote for Baltimore.
posted by aspersioncast at 8:03 PM on December 9, 2021 [1 favorite]


My partner and I live near Albany in Troy, NY and I was so ready to suggest upstate NY reading your question. We’re not from here originally but moved from OK about 7 years ago. Albany is a bit boring as cities go, but one of my favorite parts of living here is easy access to other cool places. NYC is a super easy and beautiful 2.5 hour Amtrak trip away, Boston is a ~3 hour drive, likewise for Montreal, etc. It’s a great more affordable hub area and we just bought a 3 bed/1.5 bath house for under $2k a month. We both work from home full time and it’s been no problem!
posted by caitcadieux at 8:41 PM on December 9, 2021 [2 favorites]


Dr_Janeway, Portland, Maine, is a great little city. (Source: Grew up an hour away from here; have lived here for 22 years.)

But there is no way on Earth that OP will be able to find a 3BR/2 bath home in Portland on a half-acre for under $2,000 a month.

Because COVID and WFH, residents of major metro areas from across the US are selling their homes, coming here with cash in hand, and buying up homes left and right for over the asking price. Because pearl-clutching NIMBYs, efforts to address this crisis are going nowhere. (To be fair, the lack of affordable housing here and the instant, fierce and unrelenting mobilization of opponents of same have been a problem since before the pandemic -- COVID has merely exacerbated it, as it has every other social issue that's been handwaved away for years.)

Sorry for the derail! I would love to welcome Is It Over Yet? and all other Bible Belt escapees, but I'm afraid that Portland is not economically feasible for a lot of Mainers right now, and won't be feasible for anyone else who's not prepared to get into a bidding war for a home.
posted by virago at 7:20 AM on December 10, 2021 [3 favorites]


I was thinking Cleveland, OH. But the state government is heavily republican. DeWine did the right things at the beginning of the pandemic, but that didn't last. We also have one of those ridiculous 6 week abortion bans. So stay away from Ohio.
posted by kathrynm at 10:28 AM on December 10, 2021


Lots of great suggestions above, but also, have you tried the Where Should You Live tool from the New York Times? You put in your criteria (with lots of different types of options0, and it suggests the cities that most meet them.
posted by mosst at 1:39 PM on December 10, 2021 [1 favorite]


Born and raised in the Bible belt also. I'm in the PNW now and getting ready to move back to the Chicago area. I'm finding that many "dark blue" states are influenced by one large city in that state, so smaller cities may have a lot of conservative folks / culture around.

(I'm curious, why no Illinois? I will say western WA is sooo expensive and very very far from family. I'm ready to get back east of the Mississippi.)
posted by travertina at 9:28 AM on December 11, 2021 [1 favorite]


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