What is the best city US City for families?

[JNEKG 4]

Hi

We are in a unique position where my USC husband and I live in Australia and have done almost all of our lives. We are now moving to the US and have a choice dof where we can live. I have been offered a few great jobs and can decide where I go. One company would like me to be located on either coast in a 'well known' location. The other company had roles in the mid west and south east but has a head office in Cincinnati. I can choose where I go with this one and they will all be work from home. There will be a significant amount of travel with any of the roles so proximity to a well run airport will be beneficial.

If you were in my shoes, which states, cities would you consider?

We are a family with three children 15, 13 and 4 so good schools are paramount (they don't have to be public schools).

Your thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated.

[Neonred 3,562]

Wow, difficult question and you are likely to get as many different suggestions as responses. I only know the east coast and some of the midwest and I am not sure what to suggest. What kind of climate are you looking for? Mild winters? Lots of snow? Warm all the time? I am living in a great small city in SW Florida, but it's not for everyone....warm and humid much of the year, like NOW! I know a lot of people that like the Atlanta area, and from their airport you can go anywhere. We enjoy visiting NYC but would not think about living there. Also the three NYC airports were in the top 5 worst in the country. I have some friends that really like Boston. They call it a "large small town". From my experience living in the midwest, the people there are very down to earth, and my very best friends are still there (Louisville KY and surrounding areas including Cincinnati). Cincy also has a decent airport that I have been through several times.

I grew up in upstate NY near Albany, and it was a great place to be a kid. Good schools, not an expensive place to live, and a lot to do outside. Things may have changed as that was a long time ago. Others will chime in with their picks.

Funny thing is that two years ago we visited friends that live in Sydney, Australia and my wife still thinks that was the best place on earth. She really wants us to move there! LOL...always good to have a dream!

Good luck.

[M&Pooh 12]

You are in a very lucky situation. Having no limitations when choosing place to live is absolutely great thing! But...

Basically, I think this "survey" won't be of much help for your family. People are going to give advices basing on THEIR preferences; your ideal decision would be a reflection of YOUR personal lifestyle and YOUR personal dreams and endeavors. It will depend whether you prefer huge metropolitan area, small university town or countryside setting; what kind of people you want to be around you; etc. etc. etc. leaving alone many other "technical" questions like, for example, property values ( if you want to buy a house )... Just too many variables to factor. And I expect to see in this thread completely opposite opinions ( like "NYC is the only decent place to live in the whole country!" vs. "You have to be totally crazy to live there!" )

There are ratings of "best places to live" but they are extremely subjective, too. Again, if you like a big city environment, a rating placing small Colorado town on its top, probably won't be of much use for you.

As to the air travel infrastructure, virtually any place in the country is well-connected ( I'm telling from the experience ). If it's really A LOT of travel and it's crucial to be able to get to your destination in 3 hrs as oppose to 5 hrs, it makes sense to settle close to a huge hub - take a look to the list of the busiest US airports.

Good luck

[JNEKG 4]

Thanks so much for your reply.

You are right, there are a lot of variables here. My husband prefers a colder climate but I prefer the warmer weather (I am an Aussie after all). We have never dealt with snow so would prefer not to if at all possible, but understand that narrows the field significantly. We can stand humidity so would avoid Florida.

We are also looking at cost of living and housing. We love San franciso but costs are too high. Seattle is probably our favorite but again cost of living is high.

Some of the places we are considering are :

Seattle

San Francisco

Denver

Dallas

Austin

Pittsburgh

Philadelphia

New York (up state, CT)

Southern California

They are just ideas for now. If anyone has any suggestions in terms of the most central point in terms of flight schedules, that would be great.

Thanks.

[AmyWrites 593]

I prefer the northern states, closer to the border to Canada. Cold, yeah, but low crime, good schools, low unemployment.

[Neonred 3,562]

If you don't like heat and humidity then you might want to cross off Dallas and Austin, they are worse than Florida in the summer. I'll be making my first trip to California (San Francisco) later this year and am excited to visit there. Many people like that area but it is expensive. From your list I would be looking closely at Denver, upstate NY, and Pittsburgh.

Just my uninformed opinion.

[JNEKG 4]

I prefer the northern states, closer to the border to Canada. Cold, yeah, but low crime, good schools, low unemployment.

Thanks for your reply. What states would you suggest?

If you don't like heat and humidity then you might want to cross off Dallas and Austin, they are worse than Florida in the summer. I'll be making my first trip to California (San Francisco) later this year and am excited to visit there. Many people like that area but it is expensive. From your list I would be looking closely at Denver, upstate NY, and Pittsburgh.

Just my uninformed opinion.

Thanks again.

I take your point about Texas and the humidity. I guess I thought it would be dry heat.

[CatRhoFatOZ 3]

I lived in San Diego for 5 years and loved it. I was a single mom with a baby two of the five. I wish I would have never moved away.

[del-2-5-2014 1,339]

California living can be affordable if you know how to live within your means.

[LeftCoastLady 441]

Based on what you're seeking, you should check out the website Find Your Spot. It will ask you a series of questions and provide you with a list of cities that fit your criteria. Once you narrow down your options, definitely start researching in more detail on schools and other items that are of importance.

I've been to a number of the cities on your list. Here are some thoughts...

Seattle: Great city. (But not as great as Portland. ) It's in the Pacific NW, so know that you will be dealing with grey skies and rain for much of the year. The pay-off is the great summers. It's about three hours from Vancouver, BC, so great potential for weekend getaways, heading to Whistler, etc.

San Francisco: Another great city. I was just down there on Wednesday. The weather is more moderate, but yes, you definitely need to have a certain income to live comfortably/more than comfortably there. Traffic can be horrible.

Denver: Great town as well, but the high altitude may not be for everyone. The winters can be brutal. I've had many connecting flights out of there and it can get bad.

Dallas: I've never visited, so I don't have much to add. But it's in Texas, so it does get hot and humid.

Austin: Amazing city with a great music scene, parks, and lots to see and do. But again, hot as Hades during the summer months.

Pittsburgh: Fun town. Really cold winters with lots of snow, though. From what you've written upthread, that may be a dealbreaker. Unlike the other cities on your list, it's somewhat isolated from other places, so you'd be driving more.

Philadelphia: Historic, of course. Very walkable and you can hop on a train for weekend trips up and down the East Coast, especially the Northeast corridor. You'd likely be looking into private schools if you move here, though.

New York (up state, CT): Beautiful autumns! Much more spacious than NYC, of course. The summers lately have been crazy hot on the East Coast and you'd be dealing with snow, of course.

Southern California: Very sunny, expensive, horrible traffic, and you'd be looking into private school options.

Edited June 24, 2012 by LeftCoastLady

[newlyweds2010 208]

We live in San Francisco and wouldn't trade it for anything else. Pros: Great food, mild weather (ok, the coldest winter I ever saw was the summer I spent in San Francisco), every pro sport available within reasonable driving (baseball, hockey, basketball, football), major airport, vibrant city. Cons: crime if you live in the wrong areas (I guess this is true everywhere, though), high taxation (generally so in the entire State), pricy (renting an apartment can get very expensive), not much parking on the streets, far from Europe (for us it's important, I guess not so much for you). All in all, it's an awesome place.

[Hugglebuggles 60]

I love Denver, but if you don't want snow you shouldn't live there. There can be very mild days or even weeks in the winter, but you can also get massive snow storms that dump a foot or more of snow in a matter of hours. Snow can also happen October-April, so there is a large window. I'm Canadian so the snow is no challenge for me, but it may be a big adjustment for you! As for flights, the Denver airport is one of the busiest in the country, so you wouldn't have much of a problem with travel. Denver also has a fairly moderate cost of living, great schools if you live in the right areas, parks and recreation, etc. I live in a town about 60 miles south of Denver metro, but will definitely move back up to the city one day.

I've travelled quite a bit and there are a ton of great cities in the country, but most of them are places I love to visit but would never want to live. The only reason I would move is to be closer to family, so that would be western NY.

Edited June 25, 2012 by Hugglebuggles

[bigdog 376]

I grew up in so Cal. not bad, but Austin is a fun town and economy good in Texas.

[scott76 22]

Denver is awesome. I live here and love it. The stories about the snow are overblown. It's 60 degrees most days in the winter.

If you want the best experience for your kids, live in Iowa. The problem with Iowa though is that it is very country-side (i.e. farmland). But it's always in the top 3 places of where to raise a family. If you love the city you could live in Des Moines but Des Moines isn't very big.

Anyways, Iowa isn't for me. But you asked for the best place to raise your kids and that's arguably it. I just am too much of a city person to live there.

[nicky&imad 16]

I prefer the northern states, closer to the border to Canada. Cold, yeah, but low crime, good schools, low unemployment.

I agree