Take a map of the Southeast. Chop off the part of Florida south of I-4. Draw a straight line from Charleston SC to BOONE NC (NW corner of state). Draw another straight line from Tallahassee to Nashville.
Pick your town in between those lines there, small or large, college if you like it, lake if you like it, beach if you like it.
This frames Georgia, where you probably will want to avoid inner/greater Atlanta. Come to think of it, just see how close to Georgia you can get, in any other state. Florida and Tennessee do not have income taxes.
Northeast Florida is really the best. Posters above recommending Virginia mountains, that is where I am from but the three worst things are January, February, March, and taxes.
If I could get a good job in St Augustine, that would be a great spot to go to....and I can get out of East Lansing, whose police do not know how to investigate accidents(I was rear ended, and it was ruled my fault), and Judges(David Jordon) don't know how to make rulings in accident cases(I fought and lost)....