Posted on 07/23/2020 6:41:03 AM PDT by cuban leaf
I moved from Seattle to a "hobby farm" in rural Kentucky nine years ago. Two years ago, my daughter and her husband followed me here and bought a spectacular home east of Louisville for around $600k that would have cost millions in King county, WA. They were able to come here because his job allowed him to Work From Home (WFH) full time - and still earn Seattle wages.
I've said for years that once technology allowed the concept of WFH to reach critical mass, we'd be seeing our cities drain into the burbs and rural areas of the nation. Little did I know the catalyst would be not technology, but a ginned up over-response to another flu pandemic scare.
But here we are.
And now my other daughter and her husband, who were solidly planted in Seattle because he owned his own business, just visited her sister. They were blown away by the people, the environment, and the prices. Even though they were here during the most miserable hot and muggy weather that we can have, they said it was completely acceptable. Now they are looking for a home here.
But why can they do it? Because all of his employees are working from home now and he's seeing no drop in productivity. And now he doesn't have to be the "first to arrive and last to leave" at the office, which actually frees up a lot of his time.
But wait, there's more!
He was here in Kentucky looking to hire some more WFH people. He said he has hired his last Seattle employee because they are simply too expensive. He will not let any of them go, but when one goes, he will replace them with an equally qualified candidate from a "lower tier" market, like Louisville, Nashville, etc.
But wait! There is even more!
I've been trying to get electicity to my new building here in Kentucky, but there is a huge construction boom going on right now and electricians are swamped. Even the local Lowe's has actually run out of some construction materials like 2x4 studs. And to drive the point home, when I called the local electrical inspector, he confirmed that there has been a boom going on since late last year but it really ramped up after the lockdown started.
But here's the interesting part and what inspired this vanity:
I told the inspector my theory about the pandemic causing WFH to boom and that I expected it to impact the rural areas of Kentucky. His response was that it is already happening in our rural county. He went into detail about all the inspections he's been on and the reasons for them - people from cities moving here permanently. He spoke of old buildings being revamped and new electric requiring inspection, new construction in the sticks, etc. He then went on to discuss his predictions that mirrored mine: We're going to see real estate price hikes in these rural areas as more and more city dwellers realize what we have out here and couple that with their newfound (and in many cases, permanent) ability to WFH. It's changing our culture.
And if they are moving here, they are leaving somewhere else. I believe we are seeing a fundamental shift in the living arrangements and lifestyles of the American public similar to what we saw when our boys returned from fighting in WWII. It's going to leave a mark.
But this time it's not suburbs. I believe it will be many, many new cities around the nation with populations under 100,000 within their outlying areas. The needs and culture of the inhabitants will be fed and supported by "quaint" downtown cores for personal contact with other residents, and the internet and companies like Amazon to meet their general shopping and other needs. And they will work for companies all over the world, but never leave their small town except when they want to.
All this is fine, yet one question is not asked.
All those Seattle-ites need to declare their new founded conservatism!!
Otherwise, are they all still beholding to their Seattle-ite rat-smelling liberallism?
Youre blessed. I am a corporate counsel and privacy officer for a Fortune 500 global company. I havent worked in the office since March 3rd. Ive been stuck in the burbs WFH, but Im longing to move out to somewhere with acreage, breathing room, rural values.
That is my fear as well. These quiet places are going to become not so quiet, pretty soon. Unfortunately.
Noting the explosion of people sailing around the world and working from their boats.
The good news is that people tend to naturally migrate to red as they age. When people leave the environment that made them blue into an environment that makes people red, a percentage will go red.
I think people are products of their environment. As they learn to live in the red areas, many will actually become red themselves. I’m already seeing it happen with my first daughter that moved here. They are not stupid people. They see what’s happening. And they see it from the perspective of where they now live as opposed to where they used to live. Cities create blue people. Rural areas create red people.
Sitting here in NW Montana, seeing license plates from New York, Illinois, Oregon, California, Maryland, Texas and Washington. A friend who does home appraisals says they are buying in Montana, paying Californication prices. I suggested he tell them the homes are falling apart. They should try another state. Hopefully the winters will drive them out.
Gunner
Im in Canada so we cant carry, legally at least.
But Ive spent most of the past 30 years WFH and loved it, recommend it highly.
Didnt hurt that for a lot of that time I was freelancing, so if I didnt produce I didnt eat. Easy motivation!
Speaking of Seattle, my recently citizenized youngest son and his wife escaped from there just in time. Moved to Oklahoma City last summer and loving the move.
Thanks for posting the USCCA map. I have been meaning to check that for a couple of days. Now, I don’t have to. Thanks!
” a percentage will go red.”
I know quite a few old leftists. Leftism dies hard in people. The percentage won’t be large enough, or fast enough to mitigate the plague they bring.
Yes, I’m hostile.
Pay more. They will be there tomorrow.
My high school friend who lives in the Bonnie Lake area south of Seattle just put their house up for sale and are buying a place in rural Idaho. They are following their kids who did the same two years ago. They are so sick of western Washington politics it’s affecting their quality of life and world view.
It’s about to change. :)
I left Seattle 12 years ago. WFH in flyover North Dakota at Seattle wages. Couldn’t be happier.
I agree, but it has a lot to do with their age. We tend to go red as we mature, even if we live in “blue” areas. And let’s be frank, here, the crap going on in places like Portland are causing even older “blue” people to re-assess their values.
But this cannot be ignored: Most of us were “blue” as teenagers. With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone.
I’ve noticed that both Comcast and Consolidated Communications (formerly SureWest) are laying a lot of cable wiring all over the place just outside Sacramento and Placer counties in Sacramento. And both can offer gigabit Internet service over cable TV lines.
Many companies and the city still want people in the office. I know very few in Manhattan that told people they don’t have to go back or things will be changed permanently. Seattle or whatever other cities you are mentioning is not New York
A place where a one-on-one meetings are still the norm and not the exception. Unless this thing drags on for years
That’s a good deal year daughter got. People usually don’t mention numbers on here when talking about salary or house prices and whatnot. That’s kind of a private thing. Good to know that something can be gotten for a price like that.
What does your daughter make per year?
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