12 Great Places You've Never Heard Of

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

The Arnoskys found the Wimberley area to be the perfect place to homestead. They came 20 years ago, lived in a tent while they built their house, started a farm and home-schooled their four children. Today they sell vegetables, flowers, bedding plants and other farm produce at farmers markets and to numerous local grocery stores.

Doug Stewart, a real estate agent and 35 year resident of the Texas Hill Country, says that land prices have been rising because Wimberley is close to Austin and San Antonio. Current prices are $6,000 to $8,000 per acre, with waterfront land much more expensive.

Stewart recommends that prospective homesteaders work closely with a real estate agent who knows the soils in the area, and advises that fertile soil increases as the landscape transitions from the Hill Country to the black soil east of Interstate 35.

Population: 2,724
County: Hays
Climate: hot summers; mild winters; enough rain for things to grow
Cost of living index: 93.8
Median home price: $190,300
Alternative energy: net metering and renewable energy incentives
Don’t miss: The Corral Theatre, an outdoor movie theater with showings at “dark:30 p.m.” on Fridays and weekends through most of the summer. Bring your own lawn chair.

Decatur, Georgia

Decatur is technically its own city, but is just 7 miles from Atlanta, so it’s part of that sprawling metropolitan area. In recent years, it has experienced a renaissance and is now a trendy outpost with all the benefits of urban living: public transit, arts, restaurants and historic buildings.

If you want to live in a city, but still feel like you’re part of a neighborhood, Decatur has a lot to offer.

Population: 18,251
County: DeKalb
Climate: hot and humid summers; mild winters
Cost of living index: 118.1
Median home price: $312,400
Alternative energy: net metering; no other incentives
Don’t miss: Agnes Scott College in the historic district

Fairfield, Iowa

Your image of southeast Iowa probably doesn’t include the world’s premier ayurvedic health spa, more restaurants per capita than San Francisco or 25 art galleries on the downtown square, but these are just some of the many features of Fairfield, a surprisingly sustainable and cosmopolitan town.

Since 1971, Fairfield has been home to Maharishi University of Management, founded by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. What began as an effort to teach India’s ancient principles of health and peace to Americans has spread into many aspects of life in the community. Fairfield hosts an Eco-Fair every year, and has the most homes with solar energy or other green building features in Iowa. The county has the most acres of organic cultivation in the state. It also has earned praise for its entrepreneurial spirit —  many small businesses thrive there.

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print