RICH

I live in Florida, so what's not to like?
I am single (divorced), have little savings, but I fancy moving on. What is the next best place to aim for, and why?

januarymix

Well what are you looking for in your next phase of life, so to speak?

lizzyq

Florida isn't for me, so I shall not answer your first question

What do you definitely want/not want where you next go?

Has your blood thinned from living in Florida?
What do you want within easy reach? Sea? Mountains? Big city amenities? Open spaces?
Is your line of work tied to a particular type of place?

Speedwell

Rich, we don't all live in huge subdivisions in Houston. But the cost of living is low here, even for people without a lot of money. There are lots of jobs, lots of diversity, and lots to see and do. The expat community... well, you've seen us post, there's a lot of expats here, especially west of the city. So long as you are actually in the city, you can escape a lot of the ignorant country bits of the state. And there's a lot of Greater Houston, almost twice the land area of Northern Ireland. The weather is like what you've been used to. I'm certainly not saying it's perfect, and as you probably know I'm looking to move away myself, but you might consider it for a sort of change of scenery without the huge stresses of a completely different lifestyle.

Bob

Anywhere you can get a job...

holly_1948

Totally agree.

Unless RICH is retired (or rich) in which case it is worth taking a look at Cuenca, Ecuador. Reportedly the cheapest place in the world to live well if culture is part of your needs (theatre, outdoor cafe, ex-pat community, exotic flora, whatever). Rent an apartment there for three months during the worst of the Florida summer to decide whether you like it.

Holly in North Fort Myers (almost neighbour to RICH).

scrubbedexpat097

Yep, come to Texas. Lots of good reasons:

1. You already understand heat and humidity
2. You already know how to panic in Hurricane season
3. It is a cheap place to live
4. There are lots of jobs (especially in the Houston area)
5. No state Tax
6.You can find out yourself that Houston is NOT a shithole
7....and.................You can meet us all at our non-happening Houston meet ups

thinbrit

If you are going to invite him to Texas, for Pete's sake have him look at the DFW area. Houston really is a shithole

scrubbedexpat097

it is NOT! We voted on it...

RICH

Thanks all. So, Texas sounds nice. Maybe I can visit Houston for the next meet-up

It's early days, it literally only occurred to me last night that I could try somewhere else. (I did mean in US, so not considering Ecuador!)

I really need to get a new job, and why not look further afield. Oddly today, my supervisor announced she's leaving and moving to Puerto Rico next month.

I remember a thread that seemed to suggest Denver was nice. Anyone there?

I know I am being vague, just trying to get out of the floating along mode, and find a direction.

scrubbedexpat097

So what do you do for a living??

Poppy girl

If I moved yet again lol I would probably look at Texas been a few times and like the place, or Colorado.

RICH

Since I've been here, I'm a low level paper pusher for a bank. 10 years ago in UK I was in Hotel Management.(HND qualified 25 years ago fwiw) Neither of which are high on the list of must do again, but fall-backs. What do I want to do? - is my problem, where to do it is my opportunity

Actually it is a national (ish) bank, so a transfer is a possibility.

Cardienscarf

I lived in Boulder for 22 years. It's about 30 miles NE of Denver. It's a great place to live but housing is very expensive. It's a bit of a bubble.

My son lived in the Old Highlands area in Denver for a while and loved it. That's where I would look if I was going to move to Denver. There's a fairly large British expat group in the Boulder/Louisville area that meets up for a curry once a month and they always do things at Christmas and New Year as well as a few other events throughout the year. If you took a trip out to see if it's your kind of place, you could time it with one of the curry nights and chat to some of the expats to see what they have to say. Let me know if you decide to do that and I'll put you in touch with them.

Beaverstate

Well Rich, you could give Oregon a try, but it would be a good idea to have a job lined up. Certainly better(?) weather, a whole lot less flat, rivers that flow rather than make swamps. Winters tend to be a bit British...cool and wet... but summers are sunny, warm with very low humidity. Job prospects...well we have banks, I believe that is your fallback position. Otherwise its I.T. , Nike or a barista.