Starting from scratch over 50 yrs old...

Carla Burke wrote: political, & land rights issues are the primary reasons we opted to move south, instead of laterally. Colorado has a very complicated, ugly (imho) web of land, water, and mineral rights, that we found prohibitive,"

I get it! Almost didn't move to Colorado 12+ years ago because of the water rights stuff.  Was easier to get water living in the desert then living in CO...lol!  Glad you found the best of both!

I'd never thought I'd say this phrase my mom use to use, but in this case, it might be our reasoning - " Better the devil you know vs the devil you don't know.

Having built up community and connections here is a major reason to stay. We've both moved dozens of times and or traveled for work, so we're hoping whereever it is our next move is our forever-move or at least the last move before hospice, assisted living, etc ;)

Carla, thanks for the BOTH reminder! A great mindset reset! And in some ways we already have that; since except for the COVID change-to- plans CA is a place we visit several times a year and have friends and family.

John F Dean wrote:Indeed, there are many other points for consideration.   I started in MN and got out after 4 years due to a multitude of factors.  The wrong neighbors can be a major factor. The ability to get employment is another.

S Bengi wrote:Is it possible to have both?

Can you get a 2 family house with say 1-2 acres of land. That you rent out 1 floor and slowly fix up the other maybe use it as a garage/studio/airbnb/family to crash at.
And then you continue building where you love on all 40acres (or however much land you want).

Robin Katz wrote:Andy,

When my husband and I moved from the suburbs of Denver, I spent a fair amount of time getting information on potential places in Colorado, Washington, Idaho and Montana with the intention of living the rest of our lives there. Being a retired engineer, of course I made up a spreadsheet to document the information, but what I included were the following:

1. Water source and any issues relating to this - some places in Colorado limit the amount of water you can use
11. Tax/retirement friendly - states have very different taxation laws regarding retirement income
12. HOA - this was the absolute deal breaker for us, and a lot of acreage properties were part of HOAs in Colorado. We moved out of state.
13. Property/road access

S Bengi wrote:HOA are liable to change once a majority votes in new rules and customs.  

Andy John wrote:Hello Permies,

I'd love your insights on choosing a location to start a permaculture lifestyle at over 50 years old.

My question to you is - how much does where you LOVE (and know) V.S. what might make better climate sense

Yet now we are both 50+, and when I think about wanting to spend the rest of my life on our property I worry a bit if the altitude and winter access, although thrilling now, how much to factor in the next 20-30 years. I'm not thinking Flordia or anything, but choosing land 50 miles away in zone 6-7 as opposed to 4a/b.

I'm inclined ( stubborn-minded?) to go with what I love, and know, now and to heck with the future unknowns...

Robin Katz wrote:Bryant,
ered after everything else since it will likely just muddle the process. All you can really do is look at the current trends and extrapolate a bit forward.

On a different note, although the spreadsheet and all of those factors helped tremendously when it came down to choosing an area in the country to focus our search, it was our gut/heart reaction that decided which property to purchase. The land spoke to us of it's need that we knew we could fulfill. As we were walking the property, waiting for the realtor to show up and unlock the house, we made our decision and my husband said "we don't need to see the house." We did look at the house, and did all of our due diligence on purchasing, but the decision had been made during our walk.