Any advice for good doctors, areas to live, etc.?

As for doctors, would probably start with UVA and work my way out. Thinking going to the doctor during the work day might be easier.

As for buying a house, I'm looking with hubby at various locations: Orange, Culpeper, you name it, that's outside of town and can give us some acreage.

Will be working north of the Charlottesville area, giving hubby some options for looking for new work, north or south on Route 29.

Any ideas for where I could live with an hour or less commute time, I can find almost 10 acres, and I can pay less than $250-300k is greatly appreciated!

I'm guessing you'll be at NGIC. Just my guess as there isn't much else North of town besides some retail. Anyway, north of town in Greene or Madison should fit the bill. I'm in Fluvanna but that's to the SE of town. The majority of the GP doctors/ pediatricians, OBGYN are affiliated with Martha Jefferson Hospital, not UVA. It's also a very good hospital, just not a medical college. MJH has satellite locations around, one being at airport road which is also north of town. You can also look at Orange County, easy access via to 29n to Rt33E. Check the property tax rates. All three of those counties are lower than Cville and Albemarle County. If you want some detailed info you can pm me. I've been in the Cville area most of my 47 years.

Martha Jefferson has been awesome for my family.  They definitely put the "Care" in healthcare.

Thanks to you both!  07Commander, I'll PM you the closer I get to making the jump. Much appreciated!

I also work north of the city and moved from NoVA.

1. Got kids? Some of my highly-educated co-workers regret letting their potential tax bill weigh more heavily than the quality of the school district. I don't want to crap on other counties, so I'll just say they're in "not Albemarle."

2. Don't commute an hour to work, it's just not necessary to do that to find that acreage and price range. You might look out toward Stanardsville. One co-worker has 5 or 10 acres, but his property abuts the GW Nat'l Forest, so for shooting and hunting, it's like he has a million.

A funny thing happened when we moved here. It used to take longer to get to Wegman's in the same town (Woodbridge) than it does for us to get to the one here, but now we don't go because it's "too far away." In congested areas, our perception of distance was actually a function of time. Not so here. I have one co-worker who lives in Madison and he might as well live on Mars, even though his commute is much faster than mine used to be from Woodbridge to Herndon. The NoVA urge to "run away!!" just doesn't apply here the way it does up there. You can live 15-20 minutes from work and still live some place where you can shoot off your back porch.

If you're not coming to stay long, consider renting. The houses near me seem to go on the market for several months, then go off, then back on again with another agent. Some of them were for sale when we bought 6 1/2 years ago, and they still are, leading me to think that it's difficult to sell a house here. In a hot market you'd see that and wonder what's wrong with the house. Here it may be rather overpriced, (our agent said, "people here sure think highly of their homes,") but the properties are nice. New construction has resumed, so I suspect older houses, especially more modest ones, are a challenge to move. Except in cramped developments, you won't find HOAs, and in the areas zoned "rural area," houses aren't arranged according to any sort of plan. People bought land and built around the modest homes that were in the boondocks when they were built. Our middle-class type house (5/3.5) lies between a tiny bungalow and a giant mansion. We're lucky that our "average Joe" neighbors are good people, but not everyone I work with has been so lucky.

This area is growing, but retail seems to have had mixed results, and industry and commercial corporate centers are virtually non-existent. I suspect that planning rules make Charlottesville/Albemarle business-unfriendly. Many new chain stores seemingly only get approval if they're built in this sort of above ground but "subterranean" style. By that I mean they're surrounded by huge berms and have no signs to let you know they're even there. Even the Wal-Mart, which is not new, is slightly elevated and set back far. There's a Lowe's, but you'd never know if you weren't looking for it. Access to the the stores from 29 tends to be poor, borderline retarded. I find myself having to drive through other stores' parking lots to get where I'm going, and thinking, "this can't be right." To get to the new CVS from any direction but southbound 29, for example, you have to drive through the tiny, cramped lot where Albemarle County Firearms is, then pull a three-point turn to get to the drive-through. It appears to be some stupid plan to maintain the country living feel at the expense of actually being able to earn a living here.

3. Another thumbs up for Martha Jefferson. We've used both systems with no major complaints, but a lot of the practices now part of the UVA system have that sort of "managed care" feel, where you go to a practice, not a doctor. I got excellent service and care at the Profitt Rd emergency room, with prompt transfer to MJH for surgery. MJH is a beautiful facility and you don't have to contend with anything that might be going on around the campus (football & basketball games, commencement, rallies, riots...) I use an independent practice for primary care and am satisfied with it. Similarly, my specialists have privileges with the hospitals but their practices have not come under their umbrellas. (ETA: I'm a former hospital administrator, civilian and military, and I hold healthcare to a high standard. MJH passes my test easily.)

4. The pay cut coming from NoVA may hurt, depending on how you're doing now. Plan for it. Since it's a fact of living here, I go back to #2: give yourself a "raise" in quality of life terms. Cut your commute by half or more, and enjoy a life you couldn't have in the NCR unless you lived 2-3 hours from work.

If you're bringing a good job with you, this is a great place to live. Here, you can actually live a life beyond work and the commute.

Watch out for HOA fees.

In Culpeper County any number of HOAs have very high fees since they own and must maintain their roads.

The developers did NOT build the roads to VDOT standards so the state will not accept them.

That leaves the HOA responsible for ALL maintenance of the roads forever.

As mentioned above, it's much easier to get some acreage without having an hour commute. I'm only fifteen minutes from the city limits and although I only have 2 1/2 acres we are surrounded by farmland. Land is available and it can be pricey. Our lot was $57K. None of the surrounding counties are going to have any stupid laws against shooting or hunting either, just your typical stuff.

Wow. This is awesome info!  Tons of detail and incredibly helpful.

I plan to stay for good (or as long as I can). 23 years in the DC area is 23 too long. I want out of the political BS, and too many in this town are back-stabbers.

It's a pay cut, but is still good for the region. Since my hubby can work from home but still has to commute to the DC area temporarily, I thought north would make sense.

Fortunately this is a real good career opportunity...the company is hiring me at the manager level and I'm hoping to help them expand their client base.

I agree it's not necessary to be far from work to get the quality of life we want. I just want a life outside of work in addition to a good career.

Thanks again for all of this...I am so appreciative!

Charlottesville has gotten a bad rap lately because of the stupid protests and city council. Aside from that, Cville is always been in the top ten/top five of places to live in the US. I agree that having a life outside of work is absolutely necessary and I wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't move to nova for $50K more a year simply because of that. The traffic, drive commutes and the metro commute just isn't for me. I drive into work at 5:30 and there's only a couple cars on the road. My biggest worry is the deer. I'm 17 miles from work and it takes me 17-20 minutes if I'm not in a hurry. Spending hours per day in the car robs you of so much time with the family.

No kidding.  I've commuted to almost every part of this area in DC and can't stand it anymore.

Hubby and I realized today that we'd made very few memories in the last 10 years because all we do is work or commute. That's no life.

And who isn't getting a bad rap these days?

Wife and I moved to Greene from FXBG 2 years ago and love it!  There is a lot of new construction and the area is growing.  That being said, we have to go into Cville (25-30 min ride) for a nice dinner or shopping for anything more than groceries. 

We are hoping that the new construction will attract more folks and that will help influence more growth but who knows. 

House prices/taxes take a nice dip north of that Albemarle line too.  You just have to watch out for internet options and stay pretty close to 29 to get Comcast, otherwise your SOL.

I have nothing to add other than that we've had a great experience at the UVA medical center when Winchester/Valley Health nearly killed my wife.  I won't step back foot in the place unless someone is bleeding out or having a heart attack.  

So, update: work is going great, we're focusing on Stanardsville, and I love it. As hard as my temp drive is on me physically, I LOVE it here. I feel re-energized.

Only down: because my address hasn't officially changed yet, I still have to see my doctors in NoVA. Just the way things work.

What's funny is my first realtor HATED MJ as a healthcare option, but I prefer listening to the hive. I mean, she did show us rural areas in a Corvette and heels.

If anyone knows a good Neuro who's administers Migraine shots and a good Gastro that would be great!

Thanks guys!  Once I'm officially here I'll let you know so maybe we could all meet for lunch.

If you don't mind driving a little further the personal property tax is more tolerable in Louisa County and I-64 will get you to C'Ville quick enough. The only snag is taking 250 bypass and heading North to Boulders Rd. if that is where you are working. However, you would probably laugh at what we call a rough commute coming from NOVA..............

No, I wouldn't laugh.  That I-64/250 interchange is a bitch!

We're in Greene County. Didn't get anything on our wishlist, but a phenomenal view!

Things are settling in...gotta get used to handling my own maintenance again.  It's a lot, unfortunately...pipes, furnace, exterminator, etc. Ugh, Money Pit.