Posted: 12/14/2010 6:03:38 PM EDT
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Ok, so I have just about had all I can take of winter here in Iowa.
I'm looking at buying some property in Alabama, my question is what area do you really want to avoid? I'm looking at 80 acres around Talladega. But I really dont care as long as I can wake up and it's not -20, them days are over for this guy..... Thanks, |
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Avoid areas is red. Those are generally the poorest counties. Land can be cheap there though. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/21/AlabamaBlackBelt.png/200px- 
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Quoted: Quoted: Avoid areas is red. Those are generally the poorest counties. Land can be cheap there though. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/21/AlabamaBlackBelt.png/200px- I just love counties whose largest cities have downtowns that look like this:    |
| I would take a look at the local schools for the best answer. The quality of education varies widely even from school to school. Really cheap land in Alabama usually means very rural or undesirable area. Both areas may be fine for what you're planning to do. Just be warned Alabama has some really crappy areas, as well as some nice areas. Talladega County has both. |
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Thanks for the replys!
The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a gehetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. |
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Thanks for the replys! The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a gehetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. Actually, many rural areas in some parts of the state are just as poor, decrepit, and crime ridden as the ghetto. It's quite surreal. |
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Thanks for the replys! The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a gehetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. Actually, many rural areas in some parts of the state are just as poor, decrepit, and crime ridden as the ghetto. It's quite surreal. The population of the rural counties in Alabama is mostly very poor people with a mix of some farmers and then a few wealthy people. |
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Thanks for the replys! The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a ghetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. Actually, many rural areas in some parts of the state are just as poor, decrepit, and crime ridden as the ghetto. It's quite surreal. Hmmm, maybe I need to rethink this Alabama deal. I have driven through there a few times to see my son at Ft. Benning. The people seem nice and the country is really beautiful. But I'll be honest I'm a country boy from Iowa the closet thing to a ghetto around here is the trashed mobile home at the end of my road. 
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Don't be put off. We have a rural home and are happy with the area and neighbors. We looked within a 2 hour driving radius of Birmingham and looked at a lot of properties. Some areas were great, some not so.
Not sure if you plan to farm at all, but Alabama soils are generally poorer than what you find up North. The lower 50+% of the state is the Coastal Plain, with primarily sandy soils, mainly useful for growing pine trees (that's the area we live in). Here's the listing realtor we bought through. He handles some nice rural properties: http://www.speaksland.com/ He has good info, photos, and topo maps on the site for his properties. For a move like this I would recommend spending several weeks down here driving around looking at properties. There is really no substitute for getting a feel for what you want and what is available. I developed a checklist to look at properties and to make sure I asked all the right questions of the realtor, although it is amazing how little many know about the properties they sell. |
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Thanks for the replys! The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a ghetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. Actually, many rural areas in some parts of the state are just as poor, decrepit, and crime ridden as the ghetto. It's quite surreal. Hmmm, maybe I need to rethink this Alabama deal. I have driven through there a few times to see my son at Ft. Benning. The people seem nice and the country is really beautiful. But I'll be honest I'm a country boy from Iowa the closet thing to a ghetto around here is the trashed mobile home at the end of my road.
Well, I don't think most of us meant to overly concern you. There are plenty of nice areas here, too. I have friends that live in Talledega County, and I'd live in their area, but they don't live near downtown Talladega. Like most other areas a large percentage of black population usually means it's a fairly poor area. Lots of neat places in the State. Blount County is cool, Cullman is nice. Geographically, my favorite part of the State is North Alabama around Scottsboro, Guntersville, Fort Payne, etc. We actually have a ski resort in Mentone-well, kinda. 
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Thanks for the replys! The average income of the county is really not a huge concern of mine, while I would prefer to not live in a ghetto the chances of that in the country are pretty slim. That said can anyone provide some insight in the Talledega area other then the income data. Actually, many rural areas in some parts of the state are just as poor, decrepit, and crime ridden as the ghetto. It's quite surreal. Hmmm, maybe I need to rethink this Alabama deal. I have driven through there a few times to see my son at Ft. Benning. The people seem nice and the country is really beautiful. But I'll be honest I'm a country boy from Iowa the closet thing to a ghetto around here is the trashed mobile home at the end of my road.
Well, I don't think most of us meant to overly concern you. There are plenty of nice areas here, too. I have friends that live in Talledega County, and I'd live in their area, but they don't live near downtown Talladega. Like most other areas a large percentage of black population usually means it's a fairly poor area. Lots of neat places in the State. Blount County is cool, Cullman is nice. Geographically, my favorite part of the State is North Alabama around Scottsboro, Guntersville, Fort Payne, etc. We actually have a ski resort in Mentone-well, kinda.
I haven't been out to check on the resort in Mentone this year yet but the weather has been in their favor a good bit lately. The Fort Payne area is a nice area. We are within 1.5 hours or less of many large cities (Birmingham, Huntsville, Chattanooga, TN, etc.) For the most part you still feel safe doing whatever you want around here though. All depends on what you want to spend as to what all you will get. This website can give you a start in what is available. Sometimes it is a little out of date so if you see something you like, call to verify. Often they will write down your email and send you new postings that meet your criteria. Good luck and come on down if you are like minded. |
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Come on down brother. Despite some of the scary comments in this thread, Alabama is a safe state. The people are friendly froperty is fairly affordable and the weather is definately warmer than Iowa. I was born to an Army Officer's family so i moved alot in my life including, Germany, OK, MD, KS, AL, VA, NJ, TX and MN.
I chose to move to Alabama for college and I have remained here since 95 with no real plans to move. Trust me you won't be disappointed moving here. If your looking for good rual land, Double Springs/Addison is nice right on Smith lake lots of National Forest and Wildlife management land. Cullman is nice, Ft. Payne is nice, Guntersville and Scottsboro are also good locations, as well as, many others. Come on down and drive around a the areas for a week or so....I am sure you will find what your looking for. |
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Avoid areas in red. Those are generally the poorest counties. Land can be cheap there though. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/21/AlabamaBlackBelt.png/200px- Doesn't that mean cheap land? My whole family lives in Clarke County (a pink county) not poor, but certainly not rich. If you wanted something kind of small and nice, look at Thomasville or just south of there. It's country living, but at least they have a walmart and a few car dealerships and they have a wanna be tactical store. |
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I don't mind poor or low income, (Hell I'm no Bill Gates) I'm just not up for a bunch of Crack heads trying to steal my shit. I have a small heard of purebred Simmental cattle I would like to keep them at home rather then all over the countryside if you know where I'm comming from.
I pretty much live by this "You treat me good I'll treat you better, you treat me bad I'll make your life on earth hell" |
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Come on down brother. Despite some of the scary comments in this thread, Alabama is a safe state. The people are friendly froperty is fairly affordable and the weather is definately warmer than Iowa. I was born to an Army Officer's family so i moved alot in my life including, Germany, OK, MD, KS, AL, VA, NJ, TX and MN. I chose to move to Alabama for college and I have remained here since 95 with no real plans to move. Trust me you won't be disappointed moving here. If your looking for good rual land, Double Springs/Addison is nice right on Smith lake lots of National Forest and Wildlife management land. Cullman is nice, Ft. Payne is nice, Guntersville and Scottsboro are also good locations, as well as, many others. Come on down and drive around a the areas for a week or so....I am sure you will find what your looking for. Roger That! Thanks |
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I will follow up my comment with this qoute:
"without going into detail, Im much happier now that Im living and working in AL. This forum is also much better than the one that was "zoned" for my past residence all yall have a Merry Christmas!" From this thread in the Gulf States Forum |
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I live about 20 miles from Talladega in a very rural area, that is the town where my church is. This place (central AL) is a great place to live if you don't mind driving to get to things. While there is not much retail in Talladega, you are within easy driving distance of metro Birmingham and Anniston. Talledega county is not as economically depressed as other parts of the state, certainly not as desolate and desperate as the black belt counties. The coming of Honda's two big plants to the town of Lincoln near Talladega and now many of their feeder plants, plus increased activity at the Anniston Army Depot have changed the economic landscape of Talladega county for the better.
Talledega county is a big place, the northern end has the city of Talladega and the town of Lincoln which is where things are growing a little bit, the south has the towns of Sylacauga and Childersburg which are not. I have met some guys on the Talladega Co. drug task force and heard their perspective on that situation. Like every place in rural america we have our share of meth kitchens and pot growers, but probably not much worse than the rest of the country. In terms of violent crime, most all of it seems domestic or drug dealer to dealer related. I would say that if someone disliked rednecks or black people this is not an area that person would enjoy, I happen to like both, so I am happy here. There are two weekends a year we are invaided by 200K Nascar fans looking for a place to park their campers, pitch their tents, etc. and it makes for an interesting change, but it is not a big problem or anything to worry about. For someone used the flatness of Iowa, you are going to notice a big change in the landscape, the actual tail of the Appilachian chain sorta peters out in Southern Talladega Co. as I see it...this is not such a flat place...certainly great to look at. All of which to say, I only plan to leave this area in box or an urn... |
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Avoid areas is red. Those are generally the poorest counties. Land can be cheap there though. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/21/AlabamaBlackBelt.png/200px-
I've done some hunting in those 'black belt' counties. Very rural, but some of the main intersections in these small burgs are otherworldly, surreal as far as their ghetto and ghetto wannabe populations. |
