Not a bad place if you can conquer the bugs
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2/11/2022
My spouse and I moved to Savannah in fall of 2020 from our northern California home. But before we’re labeled as Californians driving up housing costs, let’s set that straight shall we? Yes, we did buy a large, historical home in the very desirable midtown area of Ardsley Park but it was run down, had been sitting empty for several months and had been on the market for over a year. Evidently no one (local) wanted to tackle this beast except us dumb out-of-towners. Anyway, 16 months later and while we’re still in the midst of a necessary & complete remodel, let me share some of my observations about this city.
Quick list:
Pros:
• Cost of living is much less expensive compared to other coastal cities of similar size.
• Preserved historic architecture and downtown city planning is phenomenal.
• SCAD will forever give it a youthful glow.
• Airport is ridiculously small yet sweet.
• 1980s called and they want their traffic back.
Cons:
• Mosquitos, Palmetto bugs (cockroaches to westerners) and super small, biting gnats that they call no-see-ums. Get yourself familiar with mix of bug repellents that work for you personally and any surrounding yard you might have.
• Sometimes the air outside smells from a paper plant nearby.
• Limited healthy eating options.
• May have problems getting motivated tradesmen.
• Did I mention mosquitos? Its no joke. Seriously, if anything is going to drive me away it will be the Bugs. April to October I’m wearing repellent.
In general, downtown historic Savannah with all of its preserved architecture & 22 squares or parks is incredible - more like something you see in Europe. We’ve visited than half of the country, much of Europe, and lived all along the west coast all our lives. Savannah is one of the prettiest cities we’ve visited – which was only twice before we decided to move here. The main reason we did come was for the beautiful, affordable historic homes.
Food is pretty good, varied ethnicities, can be generous in proportion, and relatively inexpensive depending on where you are coming from. But beware most things skew towards the sweet side (including Asian food) and pretty heavy on the butter. Then, it IS the south. If you’re looking for more salads and/or low-carb foods, hopefully you don’t mind cooking.
Traffic & commute: Almost laughable from a Californian’s point of view. There’s almost no one on the freeways and I usually can get to the other side of town in about 20 minutes. Airport: Again – almost laughable. On more than one occasion, I’ve parked my car in long term parking, walked the few hundred yards to security, went through security and got to my gate within 25 minutes. On a weekend. All my out-of-town guest have mentioned the same phenomenon. It’s a little airport but who cares when its 25 minutes from car seat to plane seat?
Housing: I doubled the size of my house and paid less than half the cost than what I had in CA. Granted, it was a complete reno but so was my house in CA, so apples to apples? Not sure what the rental market is here, but I’m hearing <$1000 month for a 1 bedroom in midtown.
Safety: Lots of tourists in the historical areas so there will be crime. And of course there are some pockets of bad areas just like any other city. You just have to be alert and practice common sense. Less homelessness here than CA for sure.
Friendliness: I’ve experienced both the southern charm as well as some pretty rude people. Maybe its clickishness or maybe its COVID but we have yet to form any true friendships here. In general I think people are nice & polite with a majority of workers (cashiers, wait staff, etc) including millennials looking at you eye to eye and with a smile.
As far as racism, we are an interracial couple and have not had a problem with it so far.
I have lots to say about remodeling a home here in the south, but probably too much for this forum. But in a nutshell – just be ready to learn to do much of it yourself.
Camille | Napa, CA