[Ben M.]

So! After being fired for having cancer and hunting for one in these strange times I’ve finally got a job offer incoming. It’s for a large company and based in either Northern Massachusetts (Tewksbury/Andover area) or Arizona (Tucson area). I don’t have any family or attachments to either place, but presuming the salary and benefits are the same... anyone know anything about these locations? Or around there and could shed light on the locale? I’ve driven through Tucson numerous times and grew up in the Southwest so I’m most familiar with it, not so much New England.

I do know they call it “taxachusetts” but I figure I could live in New Hampshire and drive in. I’m used to driving classics most of the time, so rust city up north would rule that out. Doesn’t mean it’s off the table, the work is super interesting and plenty of people live there and have a car hobby.

[mechanickeith]

Just remember, Tucson can get quite warm,, But, You can drive the classics 365 days a year!! No snow to shovel, beautiful Az desert & the high countries. Lots to do here year round. Drag strip is just east of Tucson. The Old Pueblo chapter of POCI is in Tucson. Great group of people. We belong to the Tucson chapter, the Phoenix chapter & also the Cactus GTO's. What are your interests?? maybe we can help you out.

[67drake]

I have mucho family in Tucson. It’s the only place out of the upper Midwest that I would consider moving to. The heat blah blah, it’s so dry there it’s tolerable to me. With my wife’s arthritis and fibromyalgia I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s where I end up myself.

[hurryinhoosier62]

Avoid MA like the plague! The cost of living is outrageous.

[Goatracer1]

Grew up in MA. Live in NH. No state income tax or sales tax in NH. Beautiful area with mountains and sea coast. Not to mention lots of fresh water lakes and rivers. Also historic sights. Unless you ski or snowmobile winter sucks. Several POCI chapters. Many cruise nights and car shows. Also just over the MA/NH border is New England Dragway. There are also small roundy round tracks and of course there is NH International Speedway with it's NASCAR racing. We would love another Pontiac fan. If you should need them Boston has some of the best hospitals in the world. Heaven forbid. NH does not require auto insurance so the insurance is usually cheaper if you have a good driving record. Houses can be more expensive than other parts of the country unless you go 20 miles north of the MA boarder into NH. Hope this helps.

[shaker455]

Ben,
I live in that area and I am familiar with the business you refer to.
PM me if you like.
Jeff

[Formulabruce]

If you go to Mass, do Not live in a border town in NH. you still will pay Mass income tax though, and NH property taxes can be high in some areas. Also Electric rates are high no matter what provider you choose.
Good luck!

[tempest1964]

Ben, I have no dog in this fight, but I have followed some of your recent posts on the forum. I just wanted to say 'Way to go'. Looks like things are starting to look up for you.

[Goatracer1]

Don't let the cost of living scare you. This is not California. If you have a decent job the expenses are proportional to your income so it really doesn't matter. I just under went treatment for cancer. Started treatment in Boston and continued in Exeter NH. Great people and treatment. In the suburbs big house lots with lots of room for your stuff. Lots of malls and in the cities everything you could want or do. The taxes in MA are not as high as some of the places I visited. Property taxes can be high in NH but you have no sales tax and if you work in NH no income tax. It balances out.

[Bob Dillon]

Arizona all the way. Massachusetts? You gotta be kiddin' me.

[Jonsie]

You move to Boston area you had better like snow and cold, best figure 4+ months worth of same, and that's being generous

[GTOnly70]

After living in the Southwest for the past 30 years, this is a no-brainer - AZ all the way.

[PontiacJim1959]

I was born and raised in Connecticut and my ex was from MA. Have a daughter in MA. I moved to North Carolina 30 years ago because the prices of homes were out of my range of ever owning one and I didn't want to pay rent forever. I also gotta have my cars, so renting was another problem. So point #1 for my move was affordable housing - which I now own and is paid for. Point #2 is I am a car guy and am allergic to snow & ice. Driving and enjoying your car, if you are a car guy, is very limited as cold season is long and roads are salted. NC has a short winter season and more warm days - although it seems to rain way more than non-rainy days and temps are killer in the summer, but still I have more warmer days and AC can be your friend.

Anything in New England is high taxes. The road structure sucks. Many speed limits are 55 MPH, whereas in NC many are suggested 70MPH and the majority travel 75 or even above and I like speed. I visit family in Rhode Island/MA and the slow local and highway speeds just kill me - and many cops to enforce them. And potholes? Buy extra suspension parts 'cause you are going to need them.

New England is very historic. Many places of interest to visit. Great coastline, and the mountains in New Hampshire & Vermont. I tell everyone, New England is a great place to visit, but I don't want to live there.

So my vote is for Arizona, even though I have never been out there. Being a car guy, it's all about how many driving days in a year I have that lure me to a region. My goal is Florida where family also live. My brother is a car guy and he is always going to some car show or bombing around in one of his cars. I visit different times of year and if I had a car down there, I'd be driving it most of the time. I have more years behind me than in front of me and I want to drive as long as I can as much as I can.

[66sprint6]

Winter sucks go to Arizona.

[gtokid1968]

The east coast is no place to be!!!!!!
JM2C
My son (air force )lived in Tucson for 4 years and loved it!

[400 4spd.]

I've been to most states in the U.S., and IMHO I would rather live in a single wide in the southwest than an estate in the northeast.

[Chris65LeMans]

Where do you live now?

Do you prefer the desert and hot summers or trees and cold winters? It’d be a tough decision for me.

[einstein]

I considered a transfer to NH, the only state lacking both sales and state income taxes. But in discussions with one of the folks I worked with who owned 35 acres of property there (mom snd brothers still lived in area), her property had a spectacular view, which was of that which she owned. Punchline: she claimed they charged her a "view tax" of several thousand yearly, above the property tax on the house. Disclaimer; I don't know if she was entirely truthful...

[77 TRASHCAN]

Definitely Arizona! On your way there, stop by my town (west of Oklahoma City on I40), and I’ll buy ya lunch!!!

[Twinshadows]

Hello - - - - I live in ARIZONA - - - - kinda up Northern AZ - - -
Prescott area , about 20 - 24 miles north of Prescott.
A little different from Tucson , BUT STILL Great . Calif. had an earthquack !
(for quackers) . . today ; around a 4-5 . . . . . never felt anything .

And, They are correct - - for the car guys ; cruise-nights , car shows === ===
Arizona , for sure .
My older sister now lives in Austin, Tx. , and are getting 'much-o' storm-o'.
Boo - Boo .
Our Daughter & Son-in-Law just moved from Bagdad, AZ to North Carolina . . . . . . & spell that - - - - - like "Mistake" ! !

hey, I'm just saying , jim