01-22-2008, 03:56 PM
We finally made the move into Charlottesville. Originally, it was supposed to be Canberra, Australia, but that fell through and we (eventually) decided that we like the area enough to stick around for a while longer. The house was on the market for what seemed like forever, but it finally sold (and unlike most folks these days, we made a decent chuck of change on the sale).
PM/email me for our new address. We'll throw a party eventually, but we're still unpacking and getting settled.
Why move into Charlottesville?
1) Proximity to work, friends, everything... Living out in the country is great until you want to do something or see someone that isn't out in the country. Then you end up spending an hour in the car. After almost 4 years, that was getting really old.
2) Job opportunities... My office is moving from the southeast edge of Charlottesville (~25 minutes to the old place in Fluvanna) to the UVA Research Park, which is way up north of town near the Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (would be a ~60 minute one-way commute). Not only that, but all of our major competitors and our government client are located north of town, so if I were to ever want to switch jobs or explore other similar opportunities in the area, I'd have to be up there anyway.
3) Reduce expenses... Contrary to what I first believed, living in the country isn't particularly cheap, especially if you spend a lot of time in town. Gas, wear & tear on vehicles, satellite TV, satellite internet, 2-acres of yard maintenance, not to mention a mortgage payment on a house that was probably a little more than we needed. That all being said, I fully expect that we'll end up spending more money on entertainment, a gym membership, etc, since we actually have access to those things now...
So far, we're extremely happy with our decision. And, with money in the bank, we're in an excellent position to pick up a bargain-priced property here in the city, or pick up and move somewhere completely different if thats what we want to do.
I'll post up some pics soon...
PM/email me for our new address. We'll throw a party eventually, but we're still unpacking and getting settled.
Why move into Charlottesville?
1) Proximity to work, friends, everything... Living out in the country is great until you want to do something or see someone that isn't out in the country. Then you end up spending an hour in the car. After almost 4 years, that was getting really old.
2) Job opportunities... My office is moving from the southeast edge of Charlottesville (~25 minutes to the old place in Fluvanna) to the UVA Research Park, which is way up north of town near the Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (would be a ~60 minute one-way commute). Not only that, but all of our major competitors and our government client are located north of town, so if I were to ever want to switch jobs or explore other similar opportunities in the area, I'd have to be up there anyway.
3) Reduce expenses... Contrary to what I first believed, living in the country isn't particularly cheap, especially if you spend a lot of time in town. Gas, wear & tear on vehicles, satellite TV, satellite internet, 2-acres of yard maintenance, not to mention a mortgage payment on a house that was probably a little more than we needed. That all being said, I fully expect that we'll end up spending more money on entertainment, a gym membership, etc, since we actually have access to those things now...
So far, we're extremely happy with our decision. And, with money in the bank, we're in an excellent position to pick up a bargain-priced property here in the city, or pick up and move somewhere completely different if thats what we want to do.
I'll post up some pics soon...
My two feet.
