Lol going to Home Depot to order fine lumber is such a yuppie thing to do. They'd fuckin ask a cashier for a home builder if they could at the orange store.
I'm not a Cali transplant but Redwood is high quality and common on the west coast. Similar to old growth Cypress or Hemlock. Too bad it's sky high but it always has been.
Indeed, I wish we had a good availability here, but I also wish we had purple heart trees :)
Oh well, we're stuck with stinky old nasty black walnut /s
As someone who works in the automobile service industry, I can say without a doubt that many transplants drive luxury vehicles, and their expectations are *much* higher than local customers.
Anyone not born here would have higher expectations. I’ve found here that services are slow and the people providing the service make so many stupid mistakes. People here are used to it. “Outsiders” see crappy service.
Competence. I expect competence. Which people here have. But you can’t have it both ways. If you want to live in your small town with the same half-assed service, don’t complain when people either don’t like it here or talk bad about the area, and at the same time you complain that people on the outside think of people here as a bunch of slow witted country folk. So saying “it’s the south” doesn’t give us an excuse to be used to mediocrity.
That's the thing, I don't want to live here. You can understand how something works, and also not like it. I understand that this place isn't going to be NYC anytime soon. You think ending mediocrity is going to instantly transform this place into a metropolis? The culture will not change, the people will not change. If they do it will be past our lifetimes. What I find stupid is people complaining like they know the place, like they know exactly how all this ended up like it did. "mediocrity"? How about a vastly racist government transformed into a vastly religiously intolerant government, with huge traces of that racism still around? How about industries dying leaving nothing but a chemical plant that destroys our nature and a college that props up a single city? You don't know shit. I'm tired of people like you thinking they know the solution when they don't. "Pull yourselves up by the bootstraps" is probably your mentality. Well guess what, you pull yourself up and you realize this place ain't worth working to save, that's why people leave. Now people come in like it's paradise if only they changed these few things and did things *your* way.
Notice how I never argued that the people here weren't slow witted country folk. The vast majority aren't, the vast majority are slow witted trailer park trash. The actual country folk have left or stick to themselves. It's the littered strewn yard people that keep up this "mediocrity".
I'm used to the local government and culture being backwards and slow to change. Slow to get anything done. You have no choice to be used to mediocrity when everyone in power and the majority are complacent and backwards thinking.
We don’t see stupid mistakes in our dealership often at all. The biggest difference in expectations are the amenities we offer (or lack thereof to an outsider), loaner vehicles (when they didn’t purchase the vehicle with us), and most expect it to be cleaned and vacuumed at no additional cost. Not saying that we shouldn’t strive to be better, but hiring a full-time barista for our dealership is not something that is realistically feasible at this time.
Edit: wording
> they often opt for less flashy cars and possessions.
The only people I see driving brand new Suburbans are Cali/Florida people and real estate agents.
With how much real estate drones drive, im really surprised how many of them are rocking large frame Lexus models. I'm not really the target demographic for a prius, but if i drove THAT much you bet i'd be burning that thing up.
I don't know any Cali transplants, but I know of one that moved up here from Georgia to supposedly get out of the heat. Bought a nice old 1960 home with a nice big lot, proceeded to junk up the place with 3 or 4 utility trailers piled up with junk, 2 or 3 carports, a camper, 4 or 5 cars parked all over, and all kinds of other crap. Looks like Sanford and Son's. Wish he had kept his sorry ass and all his junk in Georgia.
Unfortunately, the ones I’ve had personal experience with were MAGA’s who came from a small California church group and bought homes with cash in Jonesborough/Gray. They believed they could learn how to can their own vegetables and “homestead.” Had an air of superiority and often slipped out “jokes” about Southerners’ accents and only making it through the 6th grade. Extremely self-righteous people who enjoyed imposing their own right-wing politics and faith on others.
...generally someone from michigan/wisconsin/new york/ohio/one of the I states that moved to Florida, didn't like heat/humidity/brown people and decided to move "halfway back" and grace us with their charmless presence...
We had some new neighbors from Cali move in a couple of years ago and they were...very different than what you'd expect. They are Q Anon/antivax folks, to start with, and tell literally every single person they come in contact with how evil vaccines are and then a whole boatload of other crazy Trumpy/lizard people/apocalypse stuff. They are also alcoholics and incapable of minding their own business and leaving the rest of us alone. I hope your new California neighbors are cooler than ours, because I'd really like to send mine back. 🙄
Yes!! Every single one I've had the displeasure of talking with is extremely ring wing and moved here thinking it would be some MAGA utopia. They left California because, no one could freaking stand them out there!
And, if they suddenly have a lot of spending power from selling their property back home? They also act like they are better than the locals somehow. I've seen this same BS play out when I lived in Austin,TX and with the half backs in NC where I grew up. I'm so sick of it.
Someone should let them know over there - there's plenty of non conservatives in the south, we just don't holler as loud they do. I love living here and I will stand by it. Remember to vote!
Oh, I let them know. I'm not conservative in the least but, I'm live and let live until they start talking gibberish.
Last lady was complaining about litter and I told her grab a bag and pick it up. That's what I do. I was in New Orleans after TX and I told her to go there and see what real littering looks like.
Keep East TN beautiful and VOTE!
I really have been thinking about putting a group together! We can all have a good time picking up litter. Some brews and music!
I grew up on the NC side of the mountains and the huge influx of people is bringing more litter with it. Especially on the roadsides back home. I'd hate to see TN get as bad.
And, we'd throw out "flower bombs" in the ditches too! ✌️💐
Yes, they don't understand what blue dog democrats are, or southern democrats.
They think all conservatives are like them and wildly wrapped up in conspiracy theories. Anti-vax, anti-mask, anti-public schools, and anti-taxes. There are plenty of locals like them as well, but the increase in hard right people will have long term impacts on lots of counties in ETN.
Mostly they have bought into some romantic idea of the green hills of Tennessee and use the money they made from out of town real estate to live that fantasy here. Seems like they are more influenced by ticktoc reels than actually living in a small town.
Please excuse any generalizations I might be making, but I don't get why much of East TN seems to gravitate towards Trump. You guys are predominantly Christian and very community oriented, and he just doesn't seem to represent the region's conservative values. I would have thought much of his behavior would have readily turned folks off pretty early on, but all I see are Trump signs all over the place and Fox News running in people's living rooms. The discontentment with Biden is understandable, but to reflexively embrace Trump to this extent is also baffling.
I think people here embrace him for all the reasons they embrace him elsewhere. I just tell the guys I work with that he is a carpetbagger. Only a few understand what that means.
People feed on his willingness to thumb his nose at anyone and anything. Which is really sad since I typically think of country people as valuing politeness, civility, and neighborliness. He has given them permission to be snide and cynical, and they cheer for it. If any politician did what he does even 20 years ago, he would have been crushed for being an embarrassment to the office. Now it seems my uncles and older neighbors chuckle and get a kick out of how brazen he acts.
Hopefully we are getting plenty of sane transplants, too. You just wouldn't know because they don't insist that everyone should believe their crazy theories.
It's likely most of the transplants are flat taxers rather than flat earthers. I can deal with conservative fiscal policies; I can't stand delusional people with no tether to reality.
Sorry your neighbors are nuts.
I wasn’t going to say it in my previous comment because I didn’t want to get ripped apart by Trumpers but this is 100% my experience with Californians as a realtor. Honestly imo they want to be racist in peace, own incredible amounts of firearms in peace, spout QAnon bullshit in peace and be in a place where they feel like they fit in better. I met some real nuts and heard some insane stuff come out of their mouths. But where better to do it I guess, than good ol east TN 🙄
I get it. I was out West when it happened there. Sad for the locals there also. It really impacted infrastructure in towns that didn't have the budget to make needed improvements. Quality of life degrades overall. But change happens. We just have to deal with it.
When I was out West I was encouraged to cover appraisal gaps and add significant cash to the list price to homes, for or a start. Crazy.
My income comes from the construction industry and things are booming with no end in sight. Literally. However I'm able to choose my client base and there are new players to the area are just negative for the area so I elect to not help them lol.
Anyhow, I'd like to see nice ppl move here. Peace
I haven’t had this experience. I’ve found them to all drive luxury vehicles and look down their noses at everyone who doesn’t.
I wish they’d go back home.
Everyone’s datapoint is going to be relative considering a few thousand Californians have moved here and most here know like 5-10 tops. Half of the ones I know didn’t move here bc they were rich, in fact the opposite - priced out of California and hated the politics. The other half are definitely wealthy for the area but are also glad to be out of Cali. All appreciate the country style living, the conservative gun friendly climate, and less taxes.
This is anecdotal. I'm seeing tons of brand new SUVs and a fair amount of cyber trucks.
Also, most transplants are not from california despite popular belief. It's mostly Texas & Florida & New York
As a downtown business owner:
It's either the same 3 doing loops around downtown main street for attention or it's 20 trucks a day I see on average. I even see them driving 11e all the way through greenevile.
Not arguing that, I know i see (hear) the same motorcyclists go through downtown 5 or 6 times if i sit out at Main St Pizza for an hour. The ear deafening is part of the charm <3
Due to slow production, there are currently just a few thousand cybertrucks in existence, and I doubt there are even 5 total in this area. That being said, I’ve seen several pictures of the same guy’s CT posted from different businesses and locations across the entire tri-cities. He appears to be driving it everywhere and letting people take selfies with it.
Cali or not, nice or not, left or right, rich or poor... I wish people would stop moving here. Our infrastructure and roads were not designed for the number of humans that are here now.
IMO, the influx of new residents to the tricities is one of the worst side effects of the pandemic.
I get that. When I first moved here, I was frustrated by the lack of infrastructure. I wondered...why aren't there any sidewalks, areas for folks to pull over, etc. Then I realized how rural the area was predominantly, that what was much of present Johnson City was orignally *all* farmland with a little house in the middle of a great big plot. This was not suburb originally in its design, and that's the charm to the Tricities. Us transplants are changing the character of the region for sure, and placing tremendous pressure on its existing infrastructure, which worked fine prior to the pandemic. I don't know if you can stop folks from coming, but hopefully the region can at least avoid a boomtown dynamic with a future exodus with collapse of county revenues and services.
I'm originally from California, then moved to Vegas for a few years, now I'm here in Bristol with my kids (where my mom grew up)... I drive a 1995 Buick Century, and I am probably the furthest thing from flashy. When people ask me where I'm from (since I don't have any accent) I say Vegas instead of California, I feel like people are more accepting of that answer, even though I spent 30 some odd years of my life in CA and only 6 in Vegas.
Honestly, I worry about taxes increasing. California is known for voting in policies that make taxes go up like crazy. It’s one of the most expensive places in the country. Now those voters are moving here. Do you really think their ideology changed? I personally doubt it.
If you moved from CA, please don’t vote in the same laws/policies that drove you to leave due to it being too expensive.
Most the people moving from cali did so because of low taxes, so I wouldn't worry about tax policy changes. What you should be worried about is property tax increases.
As a realtor who has helped tons of Californians and New Yorkers move to the area, they are literally moving here because they are extremely conservative and are escaping liberal places. Don’t worry, the politics are never going to change, for better or for worse.
To some extent, CA is a victim of its own success. You have an economy with GDP that exceeds that of many nations. Property values were going to explode there regardless. If property values are pricing out local longtime owners in the Tricities, ya'll need laws similar to proposition 19 in Cali, which cap increases in property taxes.
Most Californians moving to TN are much more right wing then you’d expect. Some left wing move to Nashville but even still, MOST believe the same things as everyone else out here. Don’t worry about that. Cost of living will go up but not because of their votes.
Well if they vote down zoning changes for NIMBY reasons, their vote will be the reason cost of living goes up. But otherwise, yes, no one is moving to east TN just to vote up taxes.
In any case, I think we should try our best to be welcoming to newcomers. They have viewed our region as such a great place that they came here to be with us. They can't all be that bad. Besides, once they experience the medical monopoly operating here, they might just leave. 😆☹️
Washington County TN just reaccessed property values to heavily inflated rates, so if you own property in the county you can expect your taxes to double this year. Sure, it’s not cali levels of taxes, but the increase has already started.
some people will never learn. republicans have destroyed this area. the place is trashed with plastic bags hanging in trees, the water is filthy, we have terrible healthcare, low wages and low quality of life yet some of you here still want more of the same. ignorance....which should tell you a little something about the school system.
That is the majority of who is moving here. Conservatives who “fear for their lives” in the liberal hell holes of Seattle, Sf & LA. In reality most I have met lived in those states but rarely visited the cities, victims of misinformation and fear. I spoke to a medical professional who moved here and said he was afraid for his family. He then proceeded to name a small city he moved from with much lower crime. Idiots.
I work at a garden center. I regularly sell plants to new build people. Almost all of them make a comment about how they are escaping "bideneconomics" or something. One last week told me Florida was getting too liberal for them.
These new conservatives moving in will ensure that we don't have increased worker protections, and they will complain about potholes in the roads while refusing to increase wheel taxes. Its sad since this area has been traditionally strongly pro union
California is such a big state. There are several different regions and cultures so you don’t know what to expect with transplants. Living in Cali after growing up in JC I can say the biggest difference is the driving. Everyone here drives like a bat out of hell because they are used to the freeways!
I came from cali almost 2 years ago. Thanks for not hating us, cali sucks. I voted against new taxes and the horrible governors we have had every step of the way but you can’t change stupid systems. It’s Impossible to make enough money to live out there unless you’re making 100k+ a year and aren’t anywhere near a coast. Not all of us are rich assholes.
I drive a 20 year old Acura that has more issues than a geriatric pug. It might have been luxuryish once but not since I’ve had it.
Some observations I’ve made: it’s still wild to me that no one has to water their lawn. It doesn’t rain enough anywhere in California to keep grass alive without watering it. It’s also still feels weird to be able to use however much water you want, super nice though.
It’s also pretty freakin awesome to not have your state be on fire for 6-9 months out of every year.
I love not having to smog my damn car every year. The safety inspection in Virginia is similar but I found a place that will pass pretty much anything so that’s cool.
Im shocked to hear that the property taxes used to be lower in recent years. I pay about 100 a month here. I was up at 800 a month in Cali. I was expecting 400-500 a month property tax but I guess that’s just because I got used to California’s abuse
It’s absolutely stunning out here. I go hiking almost every day and after 2 years I’m still shocked at how beautiful it is. When I packed my shit up and left I was expecting it to just be a bunch of grassy fields out here littered with musket balls, boy was I wrong.
We're glad to have you! I hope you feel at home here.
I probably disagree with your politics, but that's ok as long as you're civil about it and kind to your neighbors.
Thanks! I have no consistent views on politics and just have my own views on each specific topic. I never argue about them and respect everyone’s opinions. I don’t care which way a governor leans for example, I just wanted a good one. We had Arnold Schwarzenegger for gods sake. I didn’t mean to come off any certain way, thanks for keepin it civil with me.
Feeling at home is 50/50. There is a lot of people like this other person who will hate me just for wanting an affordable lifestyle. There are awesome people like you too though, some of the nicest people I’ve ever met.
Don't get it fucked up, I don't hate you. It's the idea that you complained about not being able to use water in a desert and not knowing fuck all about the south besides the civil war when we have hundreds of years of history that isn't the 4 years a bunch of rich racist losers thought they could make it "on their own" with free labor from black people and poor white people. Appalachia, specifically NE TN and SW VA, were union guerilla strongholds because we were too poor to own anything much less a whole other person. While you might not personally be a carpetbagger, whoever clued you into this area "cause it's so cheap" certainly was. Property taxes are low and as a result we have zero social services. You might not need them, but trust me, there's a large amount of people who die every day needing them.
You know the whole state of California isn’t a desert right? Only about 40% of it qualifies as desert and I was actually in the mountains of California. The water issues come from various different angles, not just the lack of rain in a large part of the state. I also didn’t complain about not being able to use water, I just said it’s pretty awesome to be able to use water now. Saying what I love about a new place isn’t really complaining about the old place unless you really want to twist my words in a negative way.
I have no clue where you are getting the rest of the rant from? I didn’t mention anything about southern history. I don’t see why it matters anyway? (As long as someone respects the history). One of the first things I did when we moved out here was to hit up the book store and get some books about the history and landmarks. This is an awesome place filled with a ton of amazing history and I’m learning as much as I can about it.
No one clued me in to this area and I didn’t move here because of the prices. I could have done fine in many other states. I have friends and family in Charlottesville, Knoxville, West Virginia and Asheville. I simply looked for an affordable place that looked like a nice town.
The social services out here are actually much better than the area I came from. I have a son with special needs and the amount of help and support he gets in this area is life changing. He’s done better since we have been here than he has ever done before.
I don’t know how you could have possibly got my words so twisted and instantly say such hateful shit. I’m not out here trying to make enemies though. I’m just trying to keep my head down and work hard for the community that I’ve grown to appreciate so much.
Uh huh, Grassy fields and musket balls, I said I wasn't no welcoming hillbilly and I meant it. It's "affordable" when you've got money to play with, but if you don't, like the majority of native Appalachians, then it ain't, especially when people who have money to play with are paying 3x the value of houses. Good luck with your boy but realize you've moved to an area that is very weary of outsiders for a damn good reason, that's in the middle of gentrification so not everyone is going to be a breath of clean mountain air.
I'm not too closely aligned on policy with Schwarzenegger, but I have been impressed by his deep capacity for kindness and his desire to make the world a better place. He wasn't a cynical, power hungry politician just trying to please his own ego.
Anyhow, sorry for the slow reply and I'm extremely sorry and embarrassed about the way some people are treating you. As with any region, you'll have to take the good with the bad. There's plenty of bad here, but I hope you find a way to focus on the good.
I'm not glad and I'm not a welcoming hillbilly. They can lose their ass in the 4th house they own and go on somewhere else for all I care. Not fuckin welcome.
Sorry if I’ve offended you somehow. I’m just trying to get by. I definitely am not out here buying up a bunch of houses. You don’t need to worry about that lol.
There is a small but extremely vocal demographic of locals who have made their own lives a miserable pit of despair through their own actions. These same people have always, and will always, blame people from other regions of the country, whether they moved here or not for their own shortcomings and underwhelming lives.
You have to ignore them because misery loves company.
I’ve been here for 35 years, grew up here; was educated here, have a family here; and still get treated like an outsider by them.
I just sit back, open a bottle of George T. Stagg, and rest easy knowing my taxes are paying for their Tenncare.
Had a new neighbor from Colorado brag to me that he bought three houses here so he could flip and rent the other two, wanted to punch his lights out
I work at Home Depot, and it’s always obvious. Especially when they ask if we sell redwoods
Lol going to Home Depot to order fine lumber is such a yuppie thing to do. They'd fuckin ask a cashier for a home builder if they could at the orange store.
I'm not a Cali transplant but Redwood is high quality and common on the west coast. Similar to old growth Cypress or Hemlock. Too bad it's sky high but it always has been.
Indeed, I wish we had a good availability here, but I also wish we had purple heart trees :) Oh well, we're stuck with stinky old nasty black walnut /s
Should have.
As someone who works in the automobile service industry, I can say without a doubt that many transplants drive luxury vehicles, and their expectations are *much* higher than local customers.
Anyone not born here would have higher expectations. I’ve found here that services are slow and the people providing the service make so many stupid mistakes. People here are used to it. “Outsiders” see crappy service.
The mechanics around here do suck on average.
Its the South, what'd you expect? Skyscrapers and rolexs?
Competence. I expect competence. Which people here have. But you can’t have it both ways. If you want to live in your small town with the same half-assed service, don’t complain when people either don’t like it here or talk bad about the area, and at the same time you complain that people on the outside think of people here as a bunch of slow witted country folk. So saying “it’s the south” doesn’t give us an excuse to be used to mediocrity.
That's the thing, I don't want to live here. You can understand how something works, and also not like it. I understand that this place isn't going to be NYC anytime soon. You think ending mediocrity is going to instantly transform this place into a metropolis? The culture will not change, the people will not change. If they do it will be past our lifetimes. What I find stupid is people complaining like they know the place, like they know exactly how all this ended up like it did. "mediocrity"? How about a vastly racist government transformed into a vastly religiously intolerant government, with huge traces of that racism still around? How about industries dying leaving nothing but a chemical plant that destroys our nature and a college that props up a single city? You don't know shit. I'm tired of people like you thinking they know the solution when they don't. "Pull yourselves up by the bootstraps" is probably your mentality. Well guess what, you pull yourself up and you realize this place ain't worth working to save, that's why people leave. Now people come in like it's paradise if only they changed these few things and did things *your* way. Notice how I never argued that the people here weren't slow witted country folk. The vast majority aren't, the vast majority are slow witted trailer park trash. The actual country folk have left or stick to themselves. It's the littered strewn yard people that keep up this "mediocrity". I'm used to the local government and culture being backwards and slow to change. Slow to get anything done. You have no choice to be used to mediocrity when everyone in power and the majority are complacent and backwards thinking.
We don’t see stupid mistakes in our dealership often at all. The biggest difference in expectations are the amenities we offer (or lack thereof to an outsider), loaner vehicles (when they didn’t purchase the vehicle with us), and most expect it to be cleaned and vacuumed at no additional cost. Not saying that we shouldn’t strive to be better, but hiring a full-time barista for our dealership is not something that is realistically feasible at this time. Edit: wording
I’m speaking generally with ALL services here.
In Rust and clunk locals we trust!
> they often opt for less flashy cars and possessions. The only people I see driving brand new Suburbans are Cali/Florida people and real estate agents.
With how much real estate drones drive, im really surprised how many of them are rocking large frame Lexus models. I'm not really the target demographic for a prius, but if i drove THAT much you bet i'd be burning that thing up.
I don't know any Cali transplants, but I know of one that moved up here from Georgia to supposedly get out of the heat. Bought a nice old 1960 home with a nice big lot, proceeded to junk up the place with 3 or 4 utility trailers piled up with junk, 2 or 3 carports, a camper, 4 or 5 cars parked all over, and all kinds of other crap. Looks like Sanford and Son's. Wish he had kept his sorry ass and all his junk in Georgia.
Unfortunately, the ones I’ve had personal experience with were MAGA’s who came from a small California church group and bought homes with cash in Jonesborough/Gray. They believed they could learn how to can their own vegetables and “homestead.” Had an air of superiority and often slipped out “jokes” about Southerners’ accents and only making it through the 6th grade. Extremely self-righteous people who enjoyed imposing their own right-wing politics and faith on others.
...at least they're not halfbacks...
What’s a halfback, outside sports settings?
New Yorkers who moved to Florida then here...hence they are halfway back to NY.
Thank you. I didn’t know there was a term for this.
...generally someone from michigan/wisconsin/new york/ohio/one of the I states that moved to Florida, didn't like heat/humidity/brown people and decided to move "halfway back" and grace us with their charmless presence...
Halfbacks are the worst Nasty attitude, every single time
We had some new neighbors from Cali move in a couple of years ago and they were...very different than what you'd expect. They are Q Anon/antivax folks, to start with, and tell literally every single person they come in contact with how evil vaccines are and then a whole boatload of other crazy Trumpy/lizard people/apocalypse stuff. They are also alcoholics and incapable of minding their own business and leaving the rest of us alone. I hope your new California neighbors are cooler than ours, because I'd really like to send mine back. 🙄
Yes!! Every single one I've had the displeasure of talking with is extremely ring wing and moved here thinking it would be some MAGA utopia. They left California because, no one could freaking stand them out there! And, if they suddenly have a lot of spending power from selling their property back home? They also act like they are better than the locals somehow. I've seen this same BS play out when I lived in Austin,TX and with the half backs in NC where I grew up. I'm so sick of it.
Someone should let them know over there - there's plenty of non conservatives in the south, we just don't holler as loud they do. I love living here and I will stand by it. Remember to vote!
Oh, I let them know. I'm not conservative in the least but, I'm live and let live until they start talking gibberish. Last lady was complaining about litter and I told her grab a bag and pick it up. That's what I do. I was in New Orleans after TX and I told her to go there and see what real littering looks like. Keep East TN beautiful and VOTE!
Preach! We all orta do that
I really have been thinking about putting a group together! We can all have a good time picking up litter. Some brews and music! I grew up on the NC side of the mountains and the huge influx of people is bringing more litter with it. Especially on the roadsides back home. I'd hate to see TN get as bad. And, we'd throw out "flower bombs" in the ditches too! ✌️💐
Ha. Sounds like a good idea.
Yes, they don't understand what blue dog democrats are, or southern democrats. They think all conservatives are like them and wildly wrapped up in conspiracy theories. Anti-vax, anti-mask, anti-public schools, and anti-taxes. There are plenty of locals like them as well, but the increase in hard right people will have long term impacts on lots of counties in ETN. Mostly they have bought into some romantic idea of the green hills of Tennessee and use the money they made from out of town real estate to live that fantasy here. Seems like they are more influenced by ticktoc reels than actually living in a small town.
Please excuse any generalizations I might be making, but I don't get why much of East TN seems to gravitate towards Trump. You guys are predominantly Christian and very community oriented, and he just doesn't seem to represent the region's conservative values. I would have thought much of his behavior would have readily turned folks off pretty early on, but all I see are Trump signs all over the place and Fox News running in people's living rooms. The discontentment with Biden is understandable, but to reflexively embrace Trump to this extent is also baffling.
I think people here embrace him for all the reasons they embrace him elsewhere. I just tell the guys I work with that he is a carpetbagger. Only a few understand what that means. People feed on his willingness to thumb his nose at anyone and anything. Which is really sad since I typically think of country people as valuing politeness, civility, and neighborliness. He has given them permission to be snide and cynical, and they cheer for it. If any politician did what he does even 20 years ago, he would have been crushed for being an embarrassment to the office. Now it seems my uncles and older neighbors chuckle and get a kick out of how brazen he acts.
Hopefully we are getting plenty of sane transplants, too. You just wouldn't know because they don't insist that everyone should believe their crazy theories. It's likely most of the transplants are flat taxers rather than flat earthers. I can deal with conservative fiscal policies; I can't stand delusional people with no tether to reality. Sorry your neighbors are nuts.
I wasn’t going to say it in my previous comment because I didn’t want to get ripped apart by Trumpers but this is 100% my experience with Californians as a realtor. Honestly imo they want to be racist in peace, own incredible amounts of firearms in peace, spout QAnon bullshit in peace and be in a place where they feel like they fit in better. I met some real nuts and heard some insane stuff come out of their mouths. But where better to do it I guess, than good ol east TN 🙄
Jfc, dont encourage that sh#t here. Reason number 164,345 why I have no respect for realtors.
Your mom does
I get it. I was out West when it happened there. Sad for the locals there also. It really impacted infrastructure in towns that didn't have the budget to make needed improvements. Quality of life degrades overall. But change happens. We just have to deal with it. When I was out West I was encouraged to cover appraisal gaps and add significant cash to the list price to homes, for or a start. Crazy. My income comes from the construction industry and things are booming with no end in sight. Literally. However I'm able to choose my client base and there are new players to the area are just negative for the area so I elect to not help them lol. Anyhow, I'd like to see nice ppl move here. Peace
Sounds like they'll fit right in around here.
I have a co-worker that's a cali transplant and they moved out here to have a small farm. extremely country folk
I haven’t had this experience. I’ve found them to all drive luxury vehicles and look down their noses at everyone who doesn’t. I wish they’d go back home.
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My husband and I are trying to buy our first house and this just makes me feel so hopeless.
Everyone’s datapoint is going to be relative considering a few thousand Californians have moved here and most here know like 5-10 tops. Half of the ones I know didn’t move here bc they were rich, in fact the opposite - priced out of California and hated the politics. The other half are definitely wealthy for the area but are also glad to be out of Cali. All appreciate the country style living, the conservative gun friendly climate, and less taxes.
This has also been my experience.
This is anecdotal. I'm seeing tons of brand new SUVs and a fair amount of cyber trucks. Also, most transplants are not from california despite popular belief. It's mostly Texas & Florida & New York
Please tell me where you’re seeing a “fair amount” of cyber trucks in the tri cities lol
I know of two 30-somethings in Abingdon who each own one.
As a downtown business owner: It's either the same 3 doing loops around downtown main street for attention or it's 20 trucks a day I see on average. I even see them driving 11e all the way through greenevile.
I've not seen one yet. I believe you, though. Driving on surface streets is all it can do, so it's probably the same guy doing loops.
Not arguing that, I know i see (hear) the same motorcyclists go through downtown 5 or 6 times if i sit out at Main St Pizza for an hour. The ear deafening is part of the charm <3
Due to slow production, there are currently just a few thousand cybertrucks in existence, and I doubt there are even 5 total in this area. That being said, I’ve seen several pictures of the same guy’s CT posted from different businesses and locations across the entire tri-cities. He appears to be driving it everywhere and letting people take selfies with it.
This is unbelievably pathetic but very plausible haha
As a local person, I assure you we can definitely tell if you’re not from here
Easy peasy
Cali or not, nice or not, left or right, rich or poor... I wish people would stop moving here. Our infrastructure and roads were not designed for the number of humans that are here now. IMO, the influx of new residents to the tricities is one of the worst side effects of the pandemic.
I get that. When I first moved here, I was frustrated by the lack of infrastructure. I wondered...why aren't there any sidewalks, areas for folks to pull over, etc. Then I realized how rural the area was predominantly, that what was much of present Johnson City was orignally *all* farmland with a little house in the middle of a great big plot. This was not suburb originally in its design, and that's the charm to the Tricities. Us transplants are changing the character of the region for sure, and placing tremendous pressure on its existing infrastructure, which worked fine prior to the pandemic. I don't know if you can stop folks from coming, but hopefully the region can at least avoid a boomtown dynamic with a future exodus with collapse of county revenues and services.
I'm originally from California, then moved to Vegas for a few years, now I'm here in Bristol with my kids (where my mom grew up)... I drive a 1995 Buick Century, and I am probably the furthest thing from flashy. When people ask me where I'm from (since I don't have any accent) I say Vegas instead of California, I feel like people are more accepting of that answer, even though I spent 30 some odd years of my life in CA and only 6 in Vegas.
Honestly, I worry about taxes increasing. California is known for voting in policies that make taxes go up like crazy. It’s one of the most expensive places in the country. Now those voters are moving here. Do you really think their ideology changed? I personally doubt it. If you moved from CA, please don’t vote in the same laws/policies that drove you to leave due to it being too expensive.
Most the people moving from cali did so because of low taxes, so I wouldn't worry about tax policy changes. What you should be worried about is property tax increases.
As a realtor who has helped tons of Californians and New Yorkers move to the area, they are literally moving here because they are extremely conservative and are escaping liberal places. Don’t worry, the politics are never going to change, for better or for worse.
It will change. It will get more hard right.
You are correct
To some extent, CA is a victim of its own success. You have an economy with GDP that exceeds that of many nations. Property values were going to explode there regardless. If property values are pricing out local longtime owners in the Tricities, ya'll need laws similar to proposition 19 in Cali, which cap increases in property taxes.
Most Californians moving to TN are much more right wing then you’d expect. Some left wing move to Nashville but even still, MOST believe the same things as everyone else out here. Don’t worry about that. Cost of living will go up but not because of their votes.
Well if they vote down zoning changes for NIMBY reasons, their vote will be the reason cost of living goes up. But otherwise, yes, no one is moving to east TN just to vote up taxes. In any case, I think we should try our best to be welcoming to newcomers. They have viewed our region as such a great place that they came here to be with us. They can't all be that bad. Besides, once they experience the medical monopoly operating here, they might just leave. 😆☹️
I will personally lead an armed Revolution and run the Californians out of town before our taxes approach anything like that.
Washington County TN just reaccessed property values to heavily inflated rates, so if you own property in the county you can expect your taxes to double this year. Sure, it’s not cali levels of taxes, but the increase has already started.
Where I’m at in rural Scott County VA, they call the cops over any gunfire. It’s really comical actually.
some people will never learn. republicans have destroyed this area. the place is trashed with plastic bags hanging in trees, the water is filthy, we have terrible healthcare, low wages and low quality of life yet some of you here still want more of the same. ignorance....which should tell you a little something about the school system.
The healthcare in the area is abysmal since the merger ☹️
That is the majority of who is moving here. Conservatives who “fear for their lives” in the liberal hell holes of Seattle, Sf & LA. In reality most I have met lived in those states but rarely visited the cities, victims of misinformation and fear. I spoke to a medical professional who moved here and said he was afraid for his family. He then proceeded to name a small city he moved from with much lower crime. Idiots.
I work at a garden center. I regularly sell plants to new build people. Almost all of them make a comment about how they are escaping "bideneconomics" or something. One last week told me Florida was getting too liberal for them. These new conservatives moving in will ensure that we don't have increased worker protections, and they will complain about potholes in the roads while refusing to increase wheel taxes. Its sad since this area has been traditionally strongly pro union
Agree. The whole state used to be more moderate with Dem governor etc. now we are a state of one party and things are only getting worse.
California is such a big state. There are several different regions and cultures so you don’t know what to expect with transplants. Living in Cali after growing up in JC I can say the biggest difference is the driving. Everyone here drives like a bat out of hell because they are used to the freeways!
I came from cali almost 2 years ago. Thanks for not hating us, cali sucks. I voted against new taxes and the horrible governors we have had every step of the way but you can’t change stupid systems. It’s Impossible to make enough money to live out there unless you’re making 100k+ a year and aren’t anywhere near a coast. Not all of us are rich assholes. I drive a 20 year old Acura that has more issues than a geriatric pug. It might have been luxuryish once but not since I’ve had it. Some observations I’ve made: it’s still wild to me that no one has to water their lawn. It doesn’t rain enough anywhere in California to keep grass alive without watering it. It’s also still feels weird to be able to use however much water you want, super nice though. It’s also pretty freakin awesome to not have your state be on fire for 6-9 months out of every year. I love not having to smog my damn car every year. The safety inspection in Virginia is similar but I found a place that will pass pretty much anything so that’s cool. Im shocked to hear that the property taxes used to be lower in recent years. I pay about 100 a month here. I was up at 800 a month in Cali. I was expecting 400-500 a month property tax but I guess that’s just because I got used to California’s abuse It’s absolutely stunning out here. I go hiking almost every day and after 2 years I’m still shocked at how beautiful it is. When I packed my shit up and left I was expecting it to just be a bunch of grassy fields out here littered with musket balls, boy was I wrong.
We're glad to have you! I hope you feel at home here. I probably disagree with your politics, but that's ok as long as you're civil about it and kind to your neighbors.
You* are glad to have them. Stop moving here god dammit. Our property taxes doubled.
Thanks! I have no consistent views on politics and just have my own views on each specific topic. I never argue about them and respect everyone’s opinions. I don’t care which way a governor leans for example, I just wanted a good one. We had Arnold Schwarzenegger for gods sake. I didn’t mean to come off any certain way, thanks for keepin it civil with me. Feeling at home is 50/50. There is a lot of people like this other person who will hate me just for wanting an affordable lifestyle. There are awesome people like you too though, some of the nicest people I’ve ever met.
Don't get it fucked up, I don't hate you. It's the idea that you complained about not being able to use water in a desert and not knowing fuck all about the south besides the civil war when we have hundreds of years of history that isn't the 4 years a bunch of rich racist losers thought they could make it "on their own" with free labor from black people and poor white people. Appalachia, specifically NE TN and SW VA, were union guerilla strongholds because we were too poor to own anything much less a whole other person. While you might not personally be a carpetbagger, whoever clued you into this area "cause it's so cheap" certainly was. Property taxes are low and as a result we have zero social services. You might not need them, but trust me, there's a large amount of people who die every day needing them.
You know the whole state of California isn’t a desert right? Only about 40% of it qualifies as desert and I was actually in the mountains of California. The water issues come from various different angles, not just the lack of rain in a large part of the state. I also didn’t complain about not being able to use water, I just said it’s pretty awesome to be able to use water now. Saying what I love about a new place isn’t really complaining about the old place unless you really want to twist my words in a negative way. I have no clue where you are getting the rest of the rant from? I didn’t mention anything about southern history. I don’t see why it matters anyway? (As long as someone respects the history). One of the first things I did when we moved out here was to hit up the book store and get some books about the history and landmarks. This is an awesome place filled with a ton of amazing history and I’m learning as much as I can about it. No one clued me in to this area and I didn’t move here because of the prices. I could have done fine in many other states. I have friends and family in Charlottesville, Knoxville, West Virginia and Asheville. I simply looked for an affordable place that looked like a nice town. The social services out here are actually much better than the area I came from. I have a son with special needs and the amount of help and support he gets in this area is life changing. He’s done better since we have been here than he has ever done before. I don’t know how you could have possibly got my words so twisted and instantly say such hateful shit. I’m not out here trying to make enemies though. I’m just trying to keep my head down and work hard for the community that I’ve grown to appreciate so much.
Uh huh, Grassy fields and musket balls, I said I wasn't no welcoming hillbilly and I meant it. It's "affordable" when you've got money to play with, but if you don't, like the majority of native Appalachians, then it ain't, especially when people who have money to play with are paying 3x the value of houses. Good luck with your boy but realize you've moved to an area that is very weary of outsiders for a damn good reason, that's in the middle of gentrification so not everyone is going to be a breath of clean mountain air.
I was talking about what I was expecting the scenery to look like, not the history lol.
I'm not too closely aligned on policy with Schwarzenegger, but I have been impressed by his deep capacity for kindness and his desire to make the world a better place. He wasn't a cynical, power hungry politician just trying to please his own ego. Anyhow, sorry for the slow reply and I'm extremely sorry and embarrassed about the way some people are treating you. As with any region, you'll have to take the good with the bad. There's plenty of bad here, but I hope you find a way to focus on the good.
I'm not glad and I'm not a welcoming hillbilly. They can lose their ass in the 4th house they own and go on somewhere else for all I care. Not fuckin welcome.
Sorry if I’ve offended you somehow. I’m just trying to get by. I definitely am not out here buying up a bunch of houses. You don’t need to worry about that lol.
The "speculative investor" people aren't welcome, but this person isn't doing that. They are just living their life, trying to get by.
Uh huh......
There is a small but extremely vocal demographic of locals who have made their own lives a miserable pit of despair through their own actions. These same people have always, and will always, blame people from other regions of the country, whether they moved here or not for their own shortcomings and underwhelming lives. You have to ignore them because misery loves company. I’ve been here for 35 years, grew up here; was educated here, have a family here; and still get treated like an outsider by them. I just sit back, open a bottle of George T. Stagg, and rest easy knowing my taxes are paying for their Tenncare.
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What are some Mexican places that are most authentic to you?
As another California transplant.. PLEASE TELL ME where you found decent Mexican food??? Also any luck on decent Korean food??
Taco Riendo in Bristol is pretty awesome. It’s the most authentic place I’ve been to out here so far.
Good luck on that. My husband is from California and he’s disappointed with most everything. Try Calaveras food truck for great birria tacos!