Some general TN relocation questions (Cookeville: house, neighborhoods, to buy)

[lavender_blue]

Originally Posted by JMT

My house is 54 years old, and I don't have any issues with mold.

Thanks for the info on snow. I imagine most of middle TN has about the same weather?

When I say 'older' home I mean a lot older. A 1930 house is my ideal, 1900-20s homes are often very nice. Even 1940 depending on the quality of the home. I am discovering that those are harder to come by in the areas where we are looking (Williamson and Maury counties, there are more near Cookeville.)

Realtor.com has flood zone maps so that is helpful.

The realtor I spoke with also said they can 'encapsulate' areas where mold is or can develop, so there are remedies.

[lavender_blue]

Originally Posted by fishingupnorth

Can I put in a shameless plug for Fairfield Glade here? We moved here from Wisconsin a year ago and it is heaven. We are on the Cumberland Plateau so it is cooler and has less humidity. 11 private lakes, 5 golf courses with super low rates to play. Super friendly people because no one who lives here is from here Housing is a little tight right now because of all the people moving in. A home usually is sold within a week. We also have our own Police Department and Fire Department.

There is much more information in other threads on the forum, but you owe it to yourself to check it out.

Thank you! I will check it out. We need to be within about 1hr of Nashville.

[lavender_blue]

Thank you, Barking Spider, very helpful info. This is what the realtor I spoke with was talking about. We would love to have a basement so maybe we can find an older home that has one.

I am glad to hear that it's not only older homes that have the issue so we don't have to rule those out.

[lavender_blue]

Originally Posted by JOinGA

The neighbors need to learn the Vaseline and glitter technique for discouraging political sign theft.

LOL, I saw one rigged with mousetraps on FB. Probably also very effective

[BuffaloHome]

Originally Posted by fishingupnorth

Can I put in a shameless plug for Fairfield Glade here? We moved here from Wisconsin a year ago and it is heaven. We are on the Cumberland Plateau so it is cooler and has less humidity. 11 private lakes, 5 golf courses with super low rates to play. Super friendly people because no one who lives here is from here Housing is a little tight right now because of all the people moving in. A home usually is sold within a week. We also have our own Police Department and Fire Department.

There is much more information in other threads on the forum, but you owe it to yourself to check it out.

Really? So you're admitting that you think Tennesseans aren't friendly? Or just people in Cumberland County? I live in Putnam County and find the people here (locals and transplants) to be the friendliest I've ever met.

So yeah your plug is shameless since the OP is wanting an older (pre-1930) home within an hour of Nashville. Fairfield Glade offers neither, and it's not even close.

[Wileykid]

Originally Posted by lavender_blue

Considering a relocation to TN, have some general questions, would appreciate your input, thank you!

1/ Weather: I'm originally from the MidWest (Ohio) so I love seasons. I realize the south is a different climate (we're in CT now), but I'm trying to get a sense of weather in TN. I have heard there are four seasons but they're 'different' - what does that mean, exactly? When do they generally start, what kind of winters, how long is spring vs. winter, etc. Any CT or MidWestern people that could do a good comparison of TN weather?

Also: humidity. How bad is it? I tolerate it okay but I really don't like it. Here in CT, it's pretty humid all of July and August. Sometimes the humidity starts in May and goes all the way through August with small breaks here and there. How does TN compare to that? We are looking at Williamson County, possibly Cookeville area of Putnam County as well. Not sure if they would be any different.

2/ Getting a mortgage after relocation: this is for the transplants, if you are reading. We have excellent credit, good income, zero issues getting credit if/when we need it. My husband is telling me he read that if you move to another state, even if you are financially sound, you cannot get a mortgage for at least 6 months. Is this true? Doesn't seem right to me, curious what people have experienced there.

3/ Crime in TN: my general impression having read a couple of thread is that it is:
- often in rural areas and drug related
- property theft related to drug activity
- violent crime is not common, especially in low crime areas

Does the above sound right for crime?

Thank you in advance for your input!

LB

I grew up in Ohio, and the temp's here in Tennessee are usually around 10*(ish) warmer, or more, during the winter. Been here for about a year and a half, and what little snow we got last season, was gone within several hours. I retired out of SoCal, and when I was looking for a retirement place, Ohio was on top of the list, I just didn't want to deal with the snow. Tennessee was a great compromise, as it gets all the seasons, but not as cold. Warmer in the summer, and that can vary a fair amount depending on where in the state.

If you have a sound financial background, with a reliable income, the banks will not care if you have only been in the state for a short time. I think what you husband read, is if you move to a new place, have a brand new job, then in some cases, yes, banks want to see six months to establish a stable income.

As far as crime, it depends on where you end up. It is really not much better, or worse then anywhere else. At times it looks worse due to the way crime statistics are gathered here. Some states/cities/counties will count all the crimes one person does, as one. Others will count each one as an individual crime, making it look worse then somewhere else. Lots of drug issues here, and rural areas do have their problems, but unless you go looking for it, highly unlikely you will deal with it.

[JOinGA]

Originally Posted by BuffaloHome

Really? So you're admitting that you think Tennesseans aren't friendly? Or just people in Cumberland County? I live in Putnam County and find the people here (locals and transplants) to be the friendliest I've ever met.

So yeah your plug is shameless since the OP is wanting an older (pre-1930) home within an hour of Nashville. Fairfield Glade offers neither, and it's not even close.

I don't mean to hijack someone else's comment, but when I think of people from other places being extra friendly, it isn't because the natives are not friendly, it is just that people moving to a new area are especially motivated to make new connections.

[JRR]

Originally Posted by lavender_blue

Considering a relocation to TN, have some general questions, would appreciate your input, thank you!

1/ Weather: I'm originally from the MidWest (Ohio) so I love seasons. I realize the south is a different climate (we're in CT now), but I'm trying to get a sense of weather in TN. I have heard there are four seasons but they're 'different' - what does that mean, exactly? When do they generally start, what kind of winters, how long is spring vs. winter, etc. Any CT or MidWestern people that could do a good comparison of TN weather?

Also: humidity. How bad is it? I tolerate it okay but I really don't like it. Here in CT, it's pretty humid all of July and August. Sometimes the humidity starts in May and goes all the way through August with small breaks here and there. How does TN compare to that? We are looking at Williamson County, possibly Cookeville area of Putnam County as well. Not sure if they would be any different.

2/ Getting a mortgage after relocation: this is for the transplants, if you are reading. We have excellent credit, good income, zero issues getting credit if/when we need it. My husband is telling me he read that if you move to another state, even if you are financially sound, you cannot get a mortgage for at least 6 months. Is this true? Doesn't seem right to me, curious what people have experienced there.

3/ Crime in TN: my general impression having read a couple of thread is that it is:
- often in rural areas and drug related
- property theft related to drug activity
- violent crime is not common, especially in low crime areas

Does the above sound right for crime?

Thank you in advance for your input!

LB

Where did you live in Ohio?

[JRR]

Originally Posted by lavender_blue

Thanks for the info on snow. I imagine most of middle TN has about the same weather?

When I say 'older' home I mean a lot older. A 1930 house is my ideal, 1900-20s homes are often very nice. Even 1940 depending on the quality of the home. I am discovering that those are harder to come by in the areas where we are looking (Williamson and Maury counties, there are more near Cookeville.)

Realtor.com has flood zone maps so that is helpful.

The realtor I spoke with also said they can 'encapsulate' areas where mold is or can develop, so there are remedies.

The weather can vary a bit in middle Tennessee. Here in Cookeville, we are on the Highland Rim. We ae usually a couple of degrees cooler than Nashville which is down in the basin. And the plateau just to the east of Cookeville is usually a couple of degrees cooler than us with a bit better chance of snow.

[GWoodle]

[quote=lavender_blue;59206463]Thanks for the info on snow. I imagine most of middle TN has about the same weather?

The weather in TN varies from north to south. There is more cold to the north, so can be more snow. There is more humidity to the south, when winds bring it up from the Gulf. The combination of humidity & heat or cold with winds determines what you get.

A cold shot in Chicago may reach Nashville a day or so later. A storm in Dallas may track to Nashville in a day or 2. Depending on speed, a storm brewing in Memphis reaches Nashville in a couple of hours. The tornadoes this spring tracked some 100 miles from west to east.

A difference of a few degrees can make a huge difference if you get all rain, some turns into ice, some turns into snow. Most counties may have a brine truck to coat the roads before freezing into ice or have a layer of snow melt into a layer of ice on bridges etc.

Tornado season begins in the spring when temps in the south is high, temp to the north is cold, humidity is high, and the jet stream stirs it all up. The problem is TN is a populated area.

The wild card in all this is when a named storm hurricane hits a Gulf state then heads north into our region. Having 12in in a day for 2 days of named storm brings big flood. Having 2-3in in an hour thunderstorm brings flash flood.