If you moved to a smaller metro area…

[Anonymous]

Is your life less stressful than here? Particularly interested if you have kids. That would be a primary reason for us to move.

Fwiw, we have a high HHI so have relatively short commutes to work/school (very fortunate) and live in a nice neighborhood.

But both DH and I grew up in smaller metro areas (think Nashville or Minneapolis) and I miss the ease of traffic (relative to DC) and slightly more relaxed lifestyle. We do still visit a couple of times each year but not sure if what we are feeling is really just becasue we are on vacaction when we go.

[Anonymous]

We moved to a much bigger metro area but the lifestyle is so much more relaxed than the DC Area. We are 4 miles from DHs work, the kids school and our country club. All take about 15 minutes to get to. Work life balance actually exists. Working late means being home by 7. Most people don’t work past 3 or 4 on Friday. Plenty of things for the kids to do and they don’t fill up 2 seconds after they open.

[Anonymous]

I lived in Phoenix for a while and yes, it was less stressful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I lived in Phoenix for a while and yes, it was less stressful.

I'm the PP. We're in Phoenix . So much more laid back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We moved to a much bigger metro area but the lifestyle is so much more relaxed than the DC Area. We are 4 miles from DHs work, the kids school and our country club. All take about 15 minutes to get to. Work life balance actually exists. Working late means being home by 7. Most people don’t work past 3 or 4 on Friday. Plenty of things for the kids to do and they don’t fill up 2 seconds after they open.

Where is this?

[Anonymous]

The main thing that makes your life stressful is work and people in DC tend to be really into their jobs or have demanding jobs or long commutes. If you think moving will solve your problem, take a hard look at your career first.

[Anonymous]

I also feel more relaxed where I live now

I don’t have to be as polished all of the time as I felt like I needed to be in DC

Also my housing costs are ridiculously low compared to my income

Great schools but less pressure overall. Smaller class sizes. The main downside is less variety in activities

[Anonymous]

Where ^ ?

[Anonymous]

I did. I moved NYC to DC.

[Anonymous]

DC Metro is actually very balanced. You can always go to the outer suburbs for more relaxed.

[Anonymous]

Yes, absolutely. We live in a LCOL area now, and I think that factor makes a huge difference re stress levels. People work less and talk about work less. We live in a nice neighborhood with a range of housing options that we’d have to make like $1m a year to afford in DC. Little, everyday stuff makes a difference too. Errands are easy and the Whole Foods feels practically empty compared to the NOVA one we used to go to.

[Anonymous]

Is your life less stressful than here? Particularly interested if you have kids. That would be a primary reason for us to move.

Fwiw, we have a high HHI so have relatively short commutes to work/school (very fortunate) and live in a nice neighborhood.

But both DH and I grew up in smaller metro areas (think Nashville or Minneapolis) and I miss the ease of traffic (relative to DC) and slightly more relaxed lifestyle. We do still visit a couple of times each year but not sure if what we are feeling is really just becasue we are on vacaction when we go.

How long have you lived in this area? If you have short commutes to work/school, you should not have a lot of stress. It sounds like you have minimized that. If you stay here, you need to focus on what you can have here and take advantage of those things. The grass always seems greener somewhere else, but life is a series of trade offs. Go for the silver linings.

[Anonymous]

We moved to Virginia Beach and for me the most striking change was that there were no wait lists and shortages for kid activities. We joined a pool for summer league swim no problem. I could actually take the time to talk to my kids and other moms about summer camps rather than grabbing spaces when they were available. Space at the Girl Scout camp. We still joke about my husband waking me up early in January right after Christmas and freaking out because I hadn’t signed kids up for camps yet. I rolled over and told him to go back to sleep because that level of anxiety is now in the past. The only time I have encountered a waitlist is finding a vet for our pandemic puppy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We moved to a much bigger metro area but the lifestyle is so much more relaxed than the DC Area. We are 4 miles from DHs work, the kids school and our country club. All take about 15 minutes to get to. Work life balance actually exists. Working late means being home by 7. Most people don’t work past 3 or 4 on Friday. Plenty of things for the kids to do and they don’t fill up 2 seconds after they open.

Where is this?

I believe they said Phoenix. See 17:12

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where ^ ?

PP.
smaller northeastern metro such as Albany, New Haven, Providence, Worcester