Looking at Chattanooga - Empty Nesters (East Brainerd, Charlotte: apartments, lofts, townhouses)

[Seattlegirl01]

Hello Everyone!

I've been doing research on where my husband and I can move to once we become empty nesters which is fast approaching. We looked at CT, however, the taxes turned us away. I've run many scenarios with tax ramifications and TN keeps making the list. I should note, I have never been to Chattanooga, but we are hoping to visit this January.

Of the cities in TN, Chattanooga keeps standing out with it's outdoor activities, healthcare, university, and access to much larger cities +/- 2 hrs. We both work in the tech industry and can work 100% remote. My husband teaches at our local university in Seattle in the evenings, and I know he would like to continue to do that in Tennessee.

What neighborhoods or surrounding areas do we look at?

Here's more about us:
- will be late 40's/50's when we move
- love college football and the NFL
- enjoy the symphony and plays
- love to eat at restaurants and enjoy great wine, something I'll miss about the west coast.
- enjoy dinners with friends
- walks with our golden retriever

Wish List:
- 1/2 - 1 acre lot
- on sewer system
- one story, a loft would be okay
- 3 car garage
- 4 bed/2+ bath (need 2 offices and space when our 3 kids come to visit)
- 600-800k budget,
- open to buying land now and building when we move
- strong WIFI

Really appreciate the advice.

Thank you in advance for reading my post.

[shinestx]

If you want to be on sewer, that limits you mostly to inside the Chattanooga city limits. Because of that you'll have a tougher time finding bigger lots on which to build, but 1/2 acre is very doable, but finding a vacant lot would be extremely tough. In the past 5 years developers have been snatching up buildable lots in the city limits and building high-markup new construction. Much of that has been townhouses. I'd look in the North Chattanooga area, but your budget may be tad tight. Probably can still find older construction in that price range, but you'll have to shop for available lots in that area. For the same reasons, St. Elmo may be just as tough. If you want to be a little adventurous, the Brainerd area has a lot of nice homes between Brainerd Rd. and I 24 from Missionary Ridge to East Brainerd. There are a few rough pockets, like around East Gate, but since you're not going to be concerned with the public school quality, you may find the perfect house there. Plus the location is central to downtown and the eastern suburbs and points east from there. I believe there are still some lots on Stringers Ridge, but I'd bet they'll cost more than your budget. As for loft living, if you're not set on the lot size, you can find large lofts along Cameron Harbor on the rivers edge of downtown. YOu may also find some great townhouses on the north shore. I'd be very surprised if you can find a decent sized townhouse downtown for under a million. There are tons of apartments downtown however.

[mandolinman]

Based on your list of wants, if you want to be in the South I would be looking at Atlanta, Nashville, and Charlotte. Chattanooga sounds too small for what you want and isn't going to be checking many of your boxes.