We worked with a relocation specialist when moving xc for my DH jobs. They paid for it obviously. They connected us with a realtor we had to use - who was not very useful and I got most of the important info on schools etc from Reddit and the areas mom group. The useful thing was her coordinating the packers, movers, vehicle shipping, travel, storage unit, etc. the whole process was insanely expensive when I saw the break down. The packers were amazing - two guys did a 3k sq foot house top to bottom in two days and charged 17k. I have no idea what the company actually paid, but that was the bill.

What is your budget? You want a brick rambler? North of Maryland? Answer is smaller town Pennsylvania. There is no shortage of brick ramblers all over small town Pennsylvania. Look at Harrisburg and Lancaster.

We had a relocation specialist provided by DH’s job when we were relocated from DC to Bay Area. We had to find preschools, but the specialist arranged for temporary housing, a realtor to give us a tour of the area, and packing / moving of our belongings and transit of our car. I think you’d probably need to hone in on a place a bit.

I feel like areas near military academies / schools / bases tend to be more conservative.
I don’t know it at all, but what about New London ct? it’s further north but on the water for mild seasons, and only about 45 mins from New Haven for world-class medical care.

OMG, DCUM. Never change.

OP, you could probably do a lot of the research yourself with the Internet. I’m assuming you expect to work remotely forever.

r/samegrassbutgreener has a lot of discussion on this topic

How warm will the city be in the future?
https://www.vox.com/a/weather-climate-change-us-cities-global-warming

Where is drought likely?
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4644081/

How far is that city above sea level?
https://whatismyelevation.com/

Best small cities lists ( these are like cockroaches. They proliferate. If you’re looking for big cities, small towns, etc. those lists exist, too.)

https://www.fiftygrande.com/guide/coolest-small-city-in-every-state/

Best state colleges ( again many lists with different opinions, but it’s hard to beat CA and VA college systems, which is why we ultimately stayed in VA)

https://freopp.org/ranking-the-50-state-public-university-systems-on-prices-outcomes-3d807df8121d

... though not necessarily.

However if you need someone to hold your hand and make you feel better, they may add some value.