Contemplating A Move

[HawkFire]

I'm going through a mid-life crisis of sorts. I would like to move. I haven't been to too many states, but am interested in Missouri (Kansas City area), Indiana (Noblesville area), and Oklahoma (Edmond area). Anyone here from one of those areas? Anyone familiar with those areas?

I chose Missouri for the beautiful nature it offers.

I chose Indiana for the wonderful looking Morse Lake.

I chose Oklahoma for the affordability and the school system.

All of the areas are affordable, actually. I'm not sure which is best for me. I'm on no time schedual. I am free to do this whenever I choose. I would like a change.

[francelajoie]

Where do you live now?

[CarlaB]

If you like Indiana for Morse Reservoir, you might look at Lake Monroe near Bloomington. It's more affordable than Noblesville and it's a more beautiful area. You would be hard pressed to find an area more beautiful than Bloomington. Indiana University is there, so there is a lot to do. It's easy to go to the shows ... we'd go out to dinner downtown, then walk to campus for the show. So much easier than in the big city! We saw Bill Crosby, Le Miserable, Fame, Seinfeld, etc. Also, we'd always joke that people from all over the world move there just to open a restaurant! There are a couple places trained for celiacs already, but I'm sure you could train some of the others to accomodate you as well.

Bloomington is under an hour from Indianapolis, so you also have all that a larger city has to offer.

Noblesville is pretty, too, but I think nothing beats southern Indiana! Southern Indiana has lots of hills ... Northern/Central is flat.

I now live near Cincinnati.

Edit: just reread your post ... schools in B'ton are good, too. And if you like music -- it's the place to be!

[HawkFire]

I am in California. I have been here for many years. I was not one of the smart people who purchased a home prior to the home price increases. I feel that the joy has left this beautiful area for me personally. I will never be able to obtain financial freedom living here. I am very unhappy renting at my age. I want to provide a better quality of life for my children through home ownership. Their social and educational lives here are wonderful, but there is a continual sense of financial insecurity when you are a renter. I looked on line during the past two years and see that there are so many wonderful places to live. New homes for under $150,000. Beautiful communities, nationally recognized schools. Why do I not "go for it" as they say? So, I am finally ready to "go for it". My children are also excited to experience a change.

If you like Indiana for Morse Reservoir, you might look at Lake Monroe near Bloomington. It's more affordable than Noblesville and it's a more beautiful area. You would be hard pressed to find an area more beautiful than Bloomington. Indiana University is there, so there is a lot to do. It's easy to go to the shows ... we'd go out to dinner downtown, then walk to campus for the show. So much easier than in the big city! We saw Bill Crosby, Le Miserable, Fame, Seinfeld, etc. Also, we'd always joke that people from all over the world move there just to open a restaurant! There are a couple places trained for celiacs already, but I'm sure you could train some of the others to accomodate you as well.

Bloomington is under an hour from Indianapolis, so you also have all that a larger city has to offer.

Noblesville is pretty, too, but I think nothing beats southern Indiana! Southern Indiana has lots of hills ... Northern/Central is flat.

I now live near Cincinnati.

Edit: just reread your post ... schools in B'ton are good, too. And if you like music -- it's the place to be!

Wow. Thank you for that information. I have spent the better part of two years narrowing down my search. It's a big country. My world only acknowledged the beauty of California for so long, that it was to my great surprise that there was so much more out there. If Bloomington is prettier than Noblesville, I'm excited to look into that tonight. Thank you so much.

[jayhawkmom]

I looked on line during the past two years and see that there are so many wonderful places to live. New homes for under $150,000. Beautiful communities, nationally recognized schools.

I live in the Kansas City metro, on the Kansas side. It is beautiful here, the schools are great, but finding a new home under 150K is downright impossible. Even still, coming from California, I'm sure this area would seem very cost effective to you. I'm less than 10 minutes from the Missouri state line. I'm originally from NY, a little South of Buffalo - so the weather here is wonderful, to me! =)

Best wishes in your decision, and move!

[HawkFire]

Kansas City.... I have a question... Is Clinton Lake as beautiful as it sounds? I have googled it numerous times and looked for pictures (seen only a few). I wanted to get a strong visual of it all. Do you visit there? Is it polluted? Issues during peak months?? We love to sail. We require a decent opportunity to continue participating in our favorite family sport. I read that regattas are held on Clinton Lake.

I've looked in Lawrence for homes and other suburbs. There are many homes around $150-175 that I could be happy in!!! Thanks for posting.

[francelajoie]

How about New England? hahahahah

I mean, whats better then New England weather?

[HawkFire]

How about New England? hahahahah

I mean, whats better then New England weather?

Oh, no.... The east coast scares me....

[CarlaB]

Noblesville is nice, too, very nice, actually. But if I were personally choosing between the two places, I would pick Bloomington. It's affordable, too. You can get a home for under $150k.

Another funny thing about Bloomington ... in October you can't get a hotel room ... it's almost like it's the only place in the country where the leaves change color!!!

[HawkFire]

Carla,

Is Bloomington very much more rural than Noblesville? I didn't do an indepth search on the area, just a quick look through homes available on Realtor.com. I felt that the homes were a bit older, though there were newer homes as well, and that it was a bit secluded. I also still need to actually google the lake you mentioned to see more. It is better you say, than Morse Resevoir? In what way? Bigger? More amenities? Thank you for the new direction!

I quickly scanned some sites on Monroe Lake... thank you for telling me about it. I have a friend with all of her family living in Muncie. That is the reason I chose Noblesville. They all told me it was a good place to be. I didn't consider Bloomington. I liked the look of the lake and the sailing opportunity. I went to the sites that had photos. I'm a visual person. I need to see and imagine myself there. I keep being drawn back to Indiana. I really do like the natural beauty of Missouri, though. I am amazed at all it has to offer. I do believe Mo would be warmer than Indiana. Oklahoma gets the least of my enthusiasm, though I am still drawn to the affordability and the schools.

I am a single parent. I prefer newer homes because my skills with a tool box are limited to hammers and nails.

[CarlaB]

Noblesville is becoming almost a suburb of Indy. Bloomington is a small town atmosphere. It's not a tiny town, but it's not a big city either. Indiana University is in Bloomington, and it's one of the Big Ten schools, so it's not small! The downtown of B'ton is hopping! They actually just built a Hilton Garden Inn downtown. Bloomington also has a Mall and downtown shopping. So, it's not tiny, but as soon as you leave, it is rural. There are two high schools that serve B'ton -- Bloomington North and Bloomington South.

Most of the housing is older. However, there are new developments around town as well, especially on the West-side.

I don't know much about Morse Reservoir, but I know that Lake Monroe is the largest one in Indiana.

Did you see the www.visitbloomington.com website? There is a lot of info there. The two towns are about 2 hours apart driving ... I'd visit both and see which you like better. So much is a matter of personal preference. Both places are very nice. It just depends on what you're looking for.

I quickly scanned some sites on Monroe Lake... thank you for telling me about it. I have a friend with all of her family living in Muncie. That is the reason I chose Noblesville. They all told me it was a good place to be. I didn't consider Bloomington. I liked the look of the lake and the sailing opportunity. I went to the sites that had photos. I'm a visual person. I need to see and imagine myself there. I keep being drawn back to Indiana. I really do like the natural beauty of Missouri, though. I am amazed at all it has to offer. I do believe Mo would be warmer than Indiana. Oklahoma gets the least of my enthusiasm, though I am still drawn to the affordability and the schools.

If you have a friend in Muncie, then you might prefer Noblesville so you'd be closer. I'd look and see what they say about the climate of both places if that's a concern. I found the B'ton climate very nice. I don't know how much cooler Noblesville would be. I know that when I moved from the northside of Indy to B'ton, I thought it was a bit milder in the winter.

Noblesville is nice. So is the Northeast side of Indianapolis near Geist Reservoir and the Fishers area. Not to confuse the issue , but Fishers is nice, too, and it's almost part of Indy now.

[HawkFire]

Thank you again. I plan to contact a realtor at the end of this school year and move. I will not visit the place we decide on. I do not have the luxury of that kind of time or money, unfortunately. I will trust in fate to bring me to the right town.

Yes, I've considered Fishers. My friend does not live there, but her family does. She visits them. They all said Muncie was lacking and to try Fishers and Noblesville areas. I am feeling that posting here about this subject was meant to be. I'm going to invest in some time this weekend looking into your Bloomington!!

[CarlaB]

Thank you again. I plan to contact a realtor at the end of this school year and move. I will not visit the place we decide on. I do not have the luxury of that kind of time or money, unfortunately. I will trust in fate to bring me to the right town.

I've done that myself. If you need a realtor in B'ton, let me know, I can recommend you to one we found helpful.

[HawkFire]

I've done that myself. If you need a realtor in B'ton, let me know, I can recommend you to one we found helpful.

Thank you. I will get that info from you in the spring. Even if I don't continue to post here very often, I will remember to ask you for the name sometime around April if Bloomington is where I decide to go. Thank you again. You've been very helpful.

[CarlaB]

I'd say the main thing for you if it comes down to choosing between the three is what kind of place do you want? Noblesville is nice, it's a small town very close to Indy (Indy has grown into it), Fishers is more like living in Indy, yet it still has some character of being its own town, Bloomington is a town set apart from Indy, definately a small town atmosphere.

Bloomington is a little more diverse because of being a college town. The main industries there are switching over from being blue-collar to being pharmaceutical. You might want to rent Breaking Away ... it's from over 20 years ago, and it's changed A LOT, but you can see the area.

Fishers is more of a homogenous type place.

It's all a matter of preference. Feel free to ask any questions that you have. I've lived in both Fishers (actually Indy, the other side of the road from Fishers) and Bloomington. I have been to Noblesville.

[tarnalberry]

It's interesting. I've been in CA all my life, until we moved to WA last year. I miss CA. The culture change to up here isn't huge, but I'm still having some trouble adapting to it. I doubt I could ever move off the west coast - certainly not to anywhere that had snow!

[HawkFire]

It's interesting. I've been in CA all my life, until we moved to WA last year. I miss CA. The culture change to up here isn't huge, but I'm still having some trouble adapting to it. I doubt I could ever move off the west coast - certainly not to anywhere that had snow!

I know. I will miss california. I do love it. But there are things that I need for stability. I need to be secure financially.. on my own. My ex would love to purchase me a home, keep me here near him... but only to have control over me. He really doesn't care if we move because he will replace us instantly. I need to move.

[jayhawkmom]

Kansas City.... I have a question... Is Clinton Lake as beautiful as it sounds? I have googled it numerous times and looked for pictures (seen only a few). I wanted to get a strong visual of it all. Do you visit there? Is it polluted? Issues during peak months?? We love to sail. We require a decent opportunity to continue participating in our favorite family sport.

Yes...it IS beautiful!! I'd actually never been there until this past weekend. We took our children to a pumpkin patch near Lawrence, and afterward we headed to KU for a while. We left the campus and headed toward the lake. I'm a native of Western NY, where there is water everywhere.... and to move out here to KS has been weird. No water. Yet, our neighbors have a boat, and I keep asking dh where in the world they go with that boat. Guess he decided it was time I get to SEE water, for myself! =)

It really was gorgeous out there! I don't know the answers to your questions, since I don't get out there. But, Lawrence is a BIG college town, with older homes and lots of new development. We contemplated purchasing in Lawrence because it's more cost effective than were we live now...but, figured we'd break even in our fuel consumption since DH works a full time job in Mission and teaches (part time) in Olathe. We'd *never* see him, he'd be on the road all the time.