Wife and I are finally empty nesters and have decided 40+ years in the Dallas area is enough. Don't hate it, but ready for a change. We are in our fifties and will still need to work. Wife is the executive corporate type and I have spent the last 30 years building various real estate related businesses, most successful of which is a home inspection company. So kinda sucks for me. But I am completely on board with the idea.

Right now east TN, Chattanooga or Knoxville areas are the leaders in the club house. I actually lived in Athens,half way between the two from 6 months to around 12 years old. But haven't been back since and find that my memories are definitely childhood memories and are not helpful.


We are planning to road trip there and visit both in late July.


Looking for opinions on places to check out, pros and cons of different areas for almost olds that still work but want to slow down a little. Figure after forty years in Dallas we will want some of the big city amenities we are used to but like the idea of a little bit of space near trails and maybe water, maybe a regular folk country club. Really pretty open.

Any advice and ideas are welcome.


Tia

I live in the opposite side (northwest TN) of where you are looking, but Chatt, Athens, and Knoxville are all beautiful areas. Oak Ridge is booming (pun intended) right now as well.

Our state parks are outstanding, and there is no shortage of lakes and rivers. Can't speak to the country club aspect, but many of the state parks have golf courses, pools and restaurants as well.

If you visit Oak Ridge, be sure to eat at Dean's Restaurant and Bakery.

Enjoy your visit and potential move to Tennessee!

I grew up in North Alabama (Huntsville) and our family has rental properties in Sevier County TN. We are currently in DFW and I've also thought about moving back to that part of the county. I really like SE TN. Huntsville has grown a ton over the past 10 years and I think would be great place to settle down as well.

OP,

your story sounds similar to mine....after becoming empty nesters in our early 50s, we moved from Houston to Johnson City in 2022...love the Tri-Cities area which is essentially the JC-Kingsport-Bristol triangle....mountains, lakes, rivers and tons of outdoor activities....we even have a small airport that actually has direct flights to Dallas....

by car, we are an hour east of Knoxville, hour north of Asheville, 4 hours from the Bourbon Trail, 5 hours from the Carolina coast....just an ideal location....

as for golf, there are plenty of courses in the area that are amazing....lots of rolling terrain and greenery...JC has a country club and i beleive Kingsport and Bristol do
as well....

zero regrets with our decision.....

Absolute….

Sorry that I'm just seeing your text. Class of '79 here and we've lived in the Knoxville area for 17 years. Would be happy to share The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. That said, we love it here. We miss Texas, but this is now our home.

Would be happy to share more.

Email me at psoasmajorman 'at' Y ahoo dot com

Thanks

We love it here too. But, you'll miss good Mexican food.

I'll take care of that if I can find the right food trailer (will be my new side hustle) called " jalapeño Bidness".

My wife works for an environmental consulting firm; I work at a university. Will help in any way we can.