View Full Version : summer home or winter home?
I recently lost another of my little doggies :( and now just have one left and want to re-think my housing/travel situation. Earlier this year (when I had 3 dogs - one a BIG dog) I bought an approx. 1500 sq ft place on a half acre in a very hot area of SoCal with the plan of travelling during the hot summer and early fall and staying home in the winter and spring. But now that I only have one small (less than 20 lb) dog left, I would like to sell my place sometime next year and downsize. But I'd still like to be able to travel several months each year but can't decide if I would be better off getting a place where I'd like to spend the summers (like the mountains or a northern state) and travel during the MUCH lower cost winter months (but darker and stormier in even southern places) - maybe spend some of it in SoCal near sis -or stay in the same area near sis and friends (but get a smaller place) and travel in the MUCH more crowded and expensive (but better weather and longer daylight) areas most everywhere. Any suggestions? pros and cons? I'd be mostly travelling in North America.
treehugger
9-23-11, 5:02pm
I don't have any suggestions or advice, never having done that, but I did want to say sorry for the loss of your dog.
Kara
I don't have any suggestions or advice, never having done that, but I did want to say sorry for the loss of your dog.
Kara Thanks I appreciate it.
chanterelle
9-23-11, 5:11pm
Since I no longer am dependent on vacation time, I travel in the fall, winter and very early spring, leaving the summer to famlies and those with limited vacation days.
As you mention it is less crowded and much cheaper plus it gives me more time to visit local markets and chat with local people. Since you are a beach and volley ball person remaing in SoCalas a home base sounds like a perfect fit.
I too am sorry about your dog, I remember that they were your dad's so the loss is double.
Since I no longer am dependent on vacation time, I travel in the fall, winter and very early spring, leaving the summer to famlies and those with limited vacation days.
As you mention it is less crowded and much cheaper plus it gives me more time to visit local markets and chat with local people. Since you are a beach and volley ball person remaing in SoCalas a home base sounds like a perfect fit.
I too am sorry about your dog, I remember that they were your dad's so the loss is double.
Thanks also. 2 were my Dad's and one was mine.
I am also leaning toward the "travel in winter" thing even with the greater potential for bad weather and shorter days. I like cold bulstery weather and the cost savings and much less crowded places may be worth it. Plus I don't play much beach VB, or even go to the beach or hike or bike ride or anything outdoors, in summer in SoCal as it's way too hot and crowded for me then. Generally do that stuff in the cooler months. I sort of do a hermit-thing in summer here because of the weather and crowds - the reason why I don't want to spend summers and early falls here. But I've never really did any long term travelling in the winter so am not sure how it would be. With just one small dog now I don't have to camp anymore but could stay in a small inexpensive vacation rental if I was staying somewhere long term, and a motel when enroute somewhere, so that would probably make travel in winter much more comfortable. I know Catherine here had rented a little cottage by thge sea this past winter and loved it - so maybe she has some advice.
I vote for buying a place close to Sis; that way you are physically there for each other as you get older. I know zip-0 about travel, so I'll leave that part to others.
iris lily
9-23-11, 10:58pm
I guess I never heard that you actually bought a place. Well, time to pack up again. The little dog will be a breeze compared to the 3 dog household of yore.
Why are you compelled to buy a place right now? Chill. Rent. Figure it out in leisure. Let Sven feed you bonbons and pour your wine while you contemplate what the universe offers.
Really, I think that I'd get a tiny place and stay mobile because sometimes I'd want to be home, and other times I'd want to travel, and I dont' know how the weather plays into that.
Sorry to hear of the loss of one of your best friends Spartana. Whenever I'm at a crossroads of sorts related to quandaries or choices, I hold on and sit tight. For me, waiting, always proves to be the best investment of all. Never fails to answer all that needs answering, and in turn, always affords me with the best option of all in the end!
Often, if you rush a decision, you have not had the chance to explore all the possible options that may not be visible at first.
Thanks for the input everyone. I spent several hours yesterday and today looking at prices on various things - like winter vacation rental houses and motels - and all are SO MUCH CHEAPER then summer prices - even some places in florida. Like about half price or more of the summer prices. There seems to be much more availablibilty too. Guess most people vacation in summer. So I'm leaning that way but I think I'll take the suggestions about renting rather than buying again when I get a perm place - at least until I know I want it to be my last place. Don't mind moving as I only take a few things with me (minimalism is great!!) but hate the hassle and expense of buying and selling. UGH!. I'd would also like to stay near my sis but unfortunately she lives in a very expensive coastal area of SoCal and I couldn't afford to buy or even rent near her. That's why I bought this place when I thought I'd be having the dogs much longer- 50 miles from her and she could pet sit, visit, etc.... But I am in a very hot area - going to be over 100 again this weekend and I HATE hot and dry weather- and was unable to find an affordable vacation place to rent this summer with the dogs. Earliest I could find one I could afford was end of Oct and beyond. So, since I want to sell my place and move next year anyways, maybe I should do the rerverse of what I was doing and will have more luck travelling in winter than summer. But if I buy or rent somewhere else - probably Pac NW or New England - then I could still see my sister for a few months each year - in winter - and stay at her place for free since she's also single with no kids and lives alone and would be OK with that. Well I won't be making any decsions until end of Feb anyways so will think about it some more. Maybe see how it would be to travel to some colder areas this winter to see if I would like that. Taking off in a few days to get out of the heat here for a couple of weeks so it will be my trial run - not that the first week of Oct is anything like mid-winter for travel. Rain and sleet and snow, oh my :-)!!
I know Catherine here had rented a little cottage by thge sea this past winter and loved it - so maybe she has some advice.
Yes, I love my winter beach rental! In fact, I was just emailing my "landlady" to book a few weeks in late March/early April again. The town I love is Ocean Grove, NJ because it is truly unique--a step back in time. It's preserved by Historic Landmark status, and it was originally settled in the mid 19th century by the Methodists, who called it "God's Square Mile." It is a square mile, so you can walk everywhere, and it's bisected by an old-fashioned main street. When I was there last spring, I walked everywhere--to the post office, to the bank, to a fabulous organic restaurant, to the little art shops and a great bakery owned by a regular person who just felt like opening a bakery. You can even easily walk to the train station and go into NY.
Also, unlike other beach towns, it's very democratic in the sense that when the Methodists designed it, they built the blocks so that as many people as possible could see the water and feel the sea breezes. The houses closest to the shore have a bigger front yard, then the one next to it is a little shorter, and then the one next to it a little shorter--it's kind of like when you are trying to get everyone's face in when you're taking a picture at a dinner party.
It's a dry town, so it's really quiet, but you just walk across the Wesley Lake bridge in you're in edgy Asbury Park which is vastly improved from a few years back.
Have I sold you on it, yet?
Here's a link to a beach rental site that I like.
www.ourtownrentals.com
Here's "my" cottage: http://ourtownrentals.com/vacation-rentals/Ocean-Grove/278/listing/1035
Shop around, Spartana! Of course, as you know, if you want more info about Vermont, I can do that, too! Someday I really want to own two little places--one in Ocean Grove and the other in a ski community in Vermont and rent them out in the peak season and live in them in the off-season.
Yep you've sold me Cathrine!! I was in boot camp in Cape May, NJ in winter (Feb) and love it there (not that I got to see much). I think NJ is highly under rated and a beautiful state. Vermont might be a tad too cold for me to vacation there in winter, but I am thinking of actually moving to Maine (my favorite place on earth!) permanently and then would be able to do short trips to VT any time I want.
I also discovered a couple of more reasons to be a snowbird (lives in a cold weather place and travels during the winter) rather than a sunbird (a person who lives in a warm sunny place and travels during the hot months) - winter utilities and bugs! If I had my perm home somewhere that got cold in winter I could avoid those high heating costs by simply going away for the coldest part of the winter. Also, I get eaten alive when travelling during the summer months so I could avoid all the bugs if travelling in winter. So I'll add those to my list. So far I have: cheaper, less crowded, more availability, no high heating costs, and no bugs.
Another question: has anyone ever flown with a small dog in the passenger compartment of a plane with them? My dog is under 20 lbs and I could probably fly back to Calif to visit the sis anytime I wanted if I could take the dog but I won't put her in the cargo hold. Do most airlines allow this? How much does it cost?
I guess I never heard that you actually bought a place. Well, time to pack up again. The little dog will be a breeze compared to the 3 dog household of yore.
Why are you compelled to buy a place right now? Chill. Rent. Figure it out in leisure. Let Sven feed you bonbons and pour your wine while you contemplate what the universe offers.
Really, I think that I'd get a tiny place and stay mobile because sometimes I'd want to be home, and other times I'd want to travel, and I dont' know how the weather plays into that.
Where is Sven and why isn't he here meeting my every need :-)! Well I bought my place around March of this year. I had sold my place in the mountains once my last dog passed away and I thought I was free to go be a homeless vagabond. But I inherited my dad's dogs and couldn't find them a home after a year of trying. So I bought my place because I was having trouble finding a rental that allowed 3 dogs. Plus I wanted to be close to my sis (50 miles away) so that she could occasionally pet sit for me so I wouldn't be too tie down. Of course I thought all the dogs would be around much longer. Now that I have just the one small dog - who's only 3 and will be around a long time - I'd like to find a way I can do the travel-bum thing a few months each year as well as have a place to go home to the rest of the time. But will take your suggestion and rent first before making any big decsions. That shouldn't be a problem with just one small dog - I hope! Maybe now I can find the tiny dream hovel in some cool little city AND be able to have a dog. In any case, I don't like where I live (although I like the town I live near alot - just too darn hot all year round)and would want to sell the place anyways, so will probably put it on the market soon and see what happens. I bought it VERY cheaply and will be able to make a profit or at least break even (after taxes) so that's OK. So that's where I'm at now. Deciding where to have a perm place and deciding when I want to travel (summer or winter) for several months at a time each year. I don't like short vacations - usually too expensive - so prefer to go somewhere for a few months at a time and stay put in the area - camp or off season vacation rental. I find it's much less expensive to do it that way.
Vermont might be a tad too cold for me to vacation there in winter, but I am thinking of actually moving to Maine (my favorite place on earth!) permanently and then would be able to do short trips to VT any time I want.
I also discovered a couple of more reasons to be a snowbird (lives in a cold weather place and travels during the winter) rather than a sunbird (a person who lives in a warm sunny place and travels during the hot months) - winter utilities and bugs!
New England has crossed our minds as a place to retire as well, perhaps the part of Cape Cod closest to Boston (by road) and Providence. The heat of the DC area and mid-Atlantic has badly worn on me the past two summers and I cannot conceive of living anywhere hotter. While it wouldn't be a cheap place to live, Massachusetts wouldn't tax my pension and it would still be cheaper than the DC suburbs. Western NC is another candidate, but is more than a day's drive from family in NY and New England for a retiree. One of my post-retirement goals is to not board a domestic airline flight for 10 years.
Snowbirding reduces, but doesn't eliminate, heating bills for a cold-climate house. Draining plumbing is a significant, and somewhat chancy, endeavor. It also eliminates the opportunity to temporarily return during the cold season. Most people choose to leave empty houses heated at 50 to 55 degrees all winter.
New England has crossed our minds as a place to retire as well, perhaps the part of Cape Cod closest to Boston (by road) and Providence. The heat of the DC area and mid-Atlantic has badly worn on me the past two summers and I cannot conceive of living anywhere hotter. While it wouldn't be a cheap place to live, Massachusetts wouldn't tax my pension and it would still be cheaper than the DC suburbs. Western NC is another candidate, but is more than a day's drive from family in NY and New England for a retiree. One of my post-retirement goals is to not board a domestic airline flight for 10 years.
Snowbirding reduces, but doesn't eliminate, heating bills for a cold-climate house. Draining plumbing is a significant, and somewhat chancy, endeavor. It also eliminates the opportunity to temporarily return during the cold season. Most people choose to leave empty houses heated at 50 to 55 degrees all winter.
Seeing all the crazy weather you guys had back east (and most of the nation as well) both in summer and winter I can see whay you'd want to retire further north. That was one of my problems trying to travel this summer - it was so hot and stormy everywhere across the nation this summer that it would have been miserable to go anywhere! Except maybe the northern northwest or Alaska ;-)!. I hadn't thought about the pipes freezing issue but I think I'd get a small apt or condo instead of a house so I wouldn't have to deal with all that stuff. Or snow removal, etc... And yes, taxes in Taxachussetts ARE high - another reason to look at New Hampshire or Maine which have less taxes. I think NH doesn't have state tax and doesn't tax pensions either.
Where is Sven and why isn't he here meeting my every need :-)! ...
Here he is! http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb111/kprp/sven2.jpg
Seeing all the crazy weather you guys had back east (and most of the nation as well) both in summer and winter I can see whay you'd want to retire further north. That was one of my problems trying to travel this summer - it was so hot and stormy everywhere across the nation this summer that it would have been miserable to go anywhere!
Weather issues really put a damper on some retirement locations. Somewhere like Williamsburg, VA would be obvious for us, but summers would be too hot and increasingly subject to tropical storms.
HappyHiker
9-25-11, 6:36pm
Some thoughts: if traveling with your dog proves problematic, might you consider seeking a caretaker for your property who would dog-sit in exchange for free rent? Maybe a trustworthy person such as a writer seeking solitude to write their book or a visiting professor--someone with excellent references and pet experience..I did this once for a couple when they traveled--I watched their 30 acres and took care of their dog and two cats--it was a happy exchange.
In-cabin seating for dog of 20 lbs. probably won't work--I think they have to fit in their carrier stowed under a seat to qualify, unless their rules have changed..which would work for a mini, pocket-sized pooch but maybe not yours.
And as to the winter beach rental--when we first moved to coastal North Carolina, for four months we rented a furnished beach condo, which allowed our dog, and loved our long daily walks on the beautiful empty beaches. The rental was very much less than a summer rental...
My dream is to rent a high altitude place for the three sultry, humid months of summer, otherwise I'm very content in my little coastal community. We might rent out our home during those three months of high demand to help pay for our mountain rental. I've no desire at all to own two houses--one is more than enough!!
Some thoughts: if traveling with your dog proves problematic, might you consider seeking a caretaker for your property who would dog-sit in exchange for free rent? Maybe a trustworthy person such as a writer seeking solitude to write their book or a visiting professor--someone with excellent references and pet experience..I did this once for a couple when they traveled--I watched their 30 acres and took care of their dog and two cats--it was a happy exchange.
In-cabin seating for dog of 20 lbs. probably won't work--I think they have to fit in their carrier stowed under a seat to qualify, unless their rules have changed..which would work for a mini, pocket-sized pooch but maybe not yours.
And as to the winter beach rental--when we first moved to coastal North Carolina, for four months we rented a furnished beach condo, which allowed our dog, and loved our long daily walks on the beautiful empty beaches. The rental was very much less than a summer rental...
My dream is to rent a high altitude place for the three sultry, humid months of summer, otherwise I'm very content in my little coastal community. We might rent out our home during those three months of high demand to help pay for our mountain rental. I've no desire at all to own two houses--one is more than enough!!
I had thought about the long term pet sitter thing -originally part of the reason why I moved near sis - but I'm pretty attached to the dog so would like to take her with me. But a house sitter or roommate would be something I'd consider. I was stationed on the NC coast (Oak Island) for a year and really loved the emptiness of the place in winter. Had a few ice storms but really the weather was grreat for the most part - chilly but fairly mild. That was one of the areas I've been looking at for a vacation rental this winter - assuming I DO decide to sell my place - and it even sells! Found some small furnishednhouses that go for around $750/month including all utilities. Places that go for a $1000/week in summer! Seems like that's the norm in most places during the winter - except ski areas. You might want to check out some ski areas for summers vacation rental. Most are very inexpensive for the summer compared to the winter - even more inexpensive during the early fall and late spring - and many have monthly rentals. This summer, after endlessly looking for a place to rent and not finding anything affordable, I finally saw a bunch of places in Killington, VT - as well as other VT ski areas - that were affordable after labor day. Unfortunately before labor day they were also outragously priced.
Weather issues really put a damper on some retirement locations. Somewhere like Williamsburg, VA would be obvious for us, but summers would be too hot and increasingly subject to tropical storms.
Well I hate to say this again - but I was stationed in Yorktown, VA (gosh the military life moves you around alot ;-)!) for about a year and it was great. Like my time in NC, I found the winter's to be not too bad - bit of snow and some ice storms - but tolerable, but the spring and summer was terrible. Super humid, hot, VERY buggy (I hate bugs!). Beautiful and interesting area though - and housing seems pretty inexpensive - but too hot a big part of the year for me. Nice place to visit in late fall I think.
Here he is! http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb111/kprp/sven2.jpg
Looks like Sven has left the building because nothing came up on this site. Guess some lucky girl already got him :-)! Hey, IL, you live in St Louis right? What are the winter's and summer's like in your area? What's the best time of year to spend in that part of the country? I've never spent much time in the mid-west but would like too. However everytime I think about heading that way they are either in the middle of a huge winter storm or a huge summer storm :-)!
Catherine, thanks for sharing your rental house site. That looks like a great little town. I love the ocean --always feel a pull to the water. One thing on my list of things to do before I die is to spend a year at the ocean and experience all the seasons. You are giving me some ideas. Having a Amtrak connection is a great selling point. I live on the west coast and don't do long car trips so I would be without a vehicle so this is giving me an idea about what might work. Your little house was charming. Did you have internet? I think the prices are reasonable. Love to try living in a walkable town too. Also it would be interesting to spend some time on east coast as I only have done short visits. Lots more I'd like to see.
Another question: has anyone ever flown with a small dog in the passenger compartment of a plane with them? My dog is under 20 lbs and I could probably fly back to Calif to visit the sis anytime I wanted if I could take the dog but I won't put her in the cargo hold. Do most airlines allow this? How much does it cost?
I've not traveled with a dog, but have travelled with a 23 pound cat. Every airline is different as to what their restrictions are. Check their websites for details. THey all have a pets page that tells you what their deal is. You'll definitely want a soft-sided carrier for him though. When we moved from NJ to CA 3 years ago my kitty Chris and I had to fly continental because my preferred airline, jetblue, had(has?) a 20 lb, including carrier, limit. Jetblue would've been better since the continental plane was total sardineville, but whatever. We survived and now Chris is on a diet... During the flight Chris sat quietly under the seat the whole time. It was too loud for anyone to hear him even if he'd been howling. Once in a while I'd feel him adjust himself on my feet, but overall it wasn't a bad trip.
Catherine, thanks for sharing your rental house site. That looks like a great little town. I love the ocean --always feel a pull to the water. One thing on my list of things to do before I die is to spend a year at the ocean and experience all the seasons. You are giving me some ideas. Having a Amtrak connection is a great selling point. I live on the west coast and don't do long car trips so I would be without a vehicle so this is giving me an idea about what might work. Your little house was charming. Did you have internet? I think the prices are reasonable. Love to try living in a walkable town too. Also it would be interesting to spend some time on east coast as I only have done short visits. Lots more I'd like to see.
Catherine's town is actually on the NJ Transit train line, not Amtrak. It's a commuter line that takes about 2 hours to get to NYC. haven't checked the prices recently but I'd guess it's about $20-21 roundtrip. Trains run frequently (hourly on weekends, much more often during the week) so it's truly a great line to live near. The town is nothing like the tv show jersey shore. Now that I'm in my 40s I agree with catherine's assessment. If I were ready to retire I could easily see myself living there during the off-season. Or at least the spring and fall part of the off-season.
Looks like Sven has left the building because nothing came up on this site. Guess some lucky girl already got him :-)! Hey, IL, you live in St Louis right? What are the winter's and summer's like in your area? What's the best time of year to spend in that part of the country? I've never spent much time in the mid-west but would like too. However everytime I think about heading that way they are either in the middle of a huge winter storm or a huge summer storm :-)!
I forgot to answer this earlier (was out looking for Sven, hehe.)
St. Louis has mild winters for the midwest. But lately there's been lots of ice and that is awful to deal with. This summer was horribly hot for days on end. I've found that summers to be not so bad but this year was godawful. An here, it's hot and humid, a bad combo.
One thing that's nice here is that we've got lots of water. I really would not want to live in one of those places short on water.
I've not traveled with a dog, but have travelled with a 23 pound cat. Every airline is different as to what their restrictions are. Check their websites for details. THey all have a pets page that tells you what their deal is. You'll definitely want a soft-sided carrier for him though. When we moved from NJ to CA 3 years ago my kitty Chris and I had to fly continental because my preferred airline, jetblue, had(has?) a 20 lb, including carrier, limit. Jetblue would've been better since the continental plane was total sardineville, but whatever. We survived and now Chris is on a diet... During the flight Chris sat quietly under the seat the whole time. It was too loud for anyone to hear him even if he'd been howling. Once in a while I'd feel him adjust himself on my feet, but overall it wasn't a bad trip.
travelling on a plane with a cat? Wow, you are brave ;-)! I think my dog weights around 15 lbs so may be able to fly but at this time I'm still trying to get her to "act right" in a house, car, motel or campsite before I take on any bigger challenge like flying. She's a wild thing!
But I have made the decision to put my place up for sale next month and be a homeless wandering waif for awhile (my dream life :-)!). Hopefully it'll sell before summer - by early spring ideally. It was actually re-reading Rosie TR's post about whether she should stay in AZ (which she doesn't like) or move to her home in Colorado (which she loves) that convinced me to do it. I told her life was to short to not do the things you love - so I'm going to take my own advice. Don't know where I'll end up permanently, but will most likely be a cold weather place that I can leave during the coldest part of winter for somewhere warmer (and I'll drag Sven with me whether he likes it or not - so no fighting me for him Iris Lilly!). Calif is just too expensive even if I wanted to stay here - at least in the areas that don't get too hot. Even with sis and I talking about selling our individual places and pooling our money and buying a place together a few months ago, after looking at places near her work (by the beach) they are still way more than I'd want to pay. I could rent Catherine's vacation cottage for several months a year just with the money I'd have to pay in property taxes for a SoCal house! And her place includes all utilities too! What a deal.
rodeosweetheart
9-30-11, 10:06pm
Spartana, we will probably selling our little cottage in SC this winter. Property taxes are under 500 dollars a year. It is eight miles from a state park on the ocean. Town is full of retired military with VA hospital. It is small and snug with a fenced in yard for doggies. PM me if you are interested.
Just wanted to add that when I was flying last week my first flight had a cat and a dog on board and the second flight had a dog. The cat owner was sitting just across the aisle and she told me she had to pay the regular cost of the flight for the cat and gave about a week's notice. The cat was in a soft carrier that fit under the seat but once in air, when the seat belt sign was off, the owner brought the carrier up to her lap to comfort the cat most of the flight. Mid-flight I think the dog needed a little action so there was some barking but it wasn't disturbing. In fact I noticed most people seemed to enjoy having animals on the flight.
We live in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Central California. At the 5,000 foot elevation. Last year we had over 20 feet of snow. We rented a place down the mountain in the foothills of the Sierra from us for the month of February last year. It is only a 45 min drive. It was already Spring last year in February. The daffodils were blooming. Next winter we are going to do it for 3 months to get out of the snow. We love our place in the Summer. It seldom gets above 80 degrees in the Summer and the humidity very low.
"I love the ocean --always feel a pull to the water. One thing on my list of things to do before I die is to spend a year at the ocean and experience all the seasons. "
Hahaha! I grew up on the Oregon coast, so here's my rundown on the seasons: Gray and warmish with wind, gray and cooler with wind, gray and rainy with high winds (head for an interior room), gray with occasional "sun breaks."
Spartana, we will probably selling our little cottage in SC this winter. Property taxes are under 500 dollars a year. It is eight miles from a state park on the ocean. Town is full of retired military with VA hospital. It is small and snug with a fenced in yard for doggies. PM me if you are interested.
Wow! Sounds perfect. I'm surprised you are selling but I think you said you wanted to go soomewhere cooler. SC is great but too hot, muggy and buggy for me as a permenent place - but thanks for the reminder to look for a place near a VA hospital - I forgot about that. Plus I've decided to just remain "homeless" for awhile when my place sells. I've been trying to do some long term travel since I retired but things always got in the way - ill parents, pets, etc... - and now I have a more freedom to travel long term so don't want to get tied down to a permanent home just yet. Thinking about just doing the off-season vacation rental thing for a few months in summer and a few months in winter and travelling the rest of the time (spring and fall) until I'm ready to settle down again. It'll give me a chance to check out other parts of the country too as well as housing prices and things like property taxes, income taxes, etc... I have "The Wanderlust" big time so probably best if I appease that before locking myself into another house again.
rodeosweetheart
10-4-11, 6:45pm
Hi Spartana,
the muggy buggy hot is over for the year, LOL, but yeah, pretty yucky when it is here, which is June, July, August, September. The rest of the year is gorgeous. So if you lived here, you'd want to go to Vermont from June through September!
Hi Spartana,
the muggy buggy hot is over for the year, LOL, but yeah, pretty yucky when it is here, which is June, July, August, September. The rest of the year is gorgeous. So if you lived here, you'd want to go to Vermont from June through September!
Oh I don't know - I hear those South Carolina summers can last all winter long ;-)! Have you ever thought of renting your place out as a vacation rental? Doing that always seems like it would be a big hassle with lots of potenial problems, but I know other's do it and like it - especially the money from those summer renters!
loosechickens
10-4-11, 9:55pm
Spartana....if you're going to be doing some wondering....don't forget about http://www.caretaker.org/ we have friends who spend most of their year going from one wonderful place to another........some of them pretty flossy places the owners don't want to leave unattended.
iris lily
10-4-11, 10:20pm
Spartana....if you're going to be doing some wondering....don't forget about http://www.caretaker.org/ we have friends who spend most of their year going from one wonderful place to another........some of them pretty flossy places the owners don't want to leave unattended.
kally did that for quite a while, she could comment, too.
My dream: get an annual gig in NewZealand where DH and I can live in a small caretaker's cottage (a simple place that can get dirty) and take care of the huge garden. I do NOT want to be a "housekeeper" and so, someone else would have to stay in the owners' big gorgeous house and look after it. The woman in the video who cleans cushions on the patio set--ummm, no. But let me dig plants and weed and put in new stuff--that would be great. I think I'd burn out on gardening (2 seasons per year) in about 3 years!
We live in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Central California. At the 5,000 foot elevation. Last year we had over 20 feet of snow. We rented a place down the mountain in the foothills of the Sierra from us for the month of February last year. It is only a 45 min drive. It was already Spring last year in February. The daffodils were blooming. Next winter we are going to do it for 3 months to get out of the snow. We love our place in the Summer. It seldom gets above 80 degrees in the Summer and the humidity very low.
You live in a great area but the snow - YIKES!! Alot in the last 2 years and looks like alot again this year. I love snow but sometimes it gets to be too much. I did look at a bunch of summer rentals in your area this past summer and unfortunately they are pretty expensive - and many places were pretty remote given that I'm a city girl. Looked at alot of places in Tahoe and they weren't too bad - but still too expensive even in summer although late spring and early fall were VERY reasonable.
Spartana....if you're going to be doing some wondering....don't forget about http://www.caretaker.org/ we have friends who spend most of their year going from one wonderful place to another........some of them pretty flossy places the owners don't want to leave unattended.
Thanks for the idea - hadn't thought of that. But I'm like Iris Lilly - don't wanna do any work as it may kill me :-)! Do most caretaking gigs require you to do a lot of chores and maintenance on the place or are they more like housesitting where they just want a warm body to make sure the place doesn't get robbed? Doing minimal chores and upkeep would be OK but I don't want to be out plowing the back 40! Plus I'd need a place that allowed a dog - but I don't want to take care of opther people's pets. Are they usually long term gigs or short term? Anyone else ever do this?
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