oh forgot i find this realtor through internet

Hi May in Jersey,
My husband and I moved back to our home state of Michigan from South Florida (Palm Beach County) after we retired. People thought we were nuts, but its the best move we've ever made. We lived in a condo in Florida and came up to Western Michigan during the summers and worked on our house. It took three years (summers) to build. We sold our condo in the spring of the third year and finished the house that August. During construction we lived in our travel trailer on site, so hubby could just step out the door to work on the house. We paid for materials as we went along. So now we live in a very nice, new, paid-for, home in Western Michigan. Yes, we have a lot of snow in the winter, but then we're retired and don't have to go out in it if we don't want to. We love the hills, the lakes, the trees, the wildlife, and we are close to family for holidays and visiting and such. The money we got for our condo is our retirement fund. The decision to move back to Michigan was the right one for us, and we are very happy here, but the house turned out to be much bigger than our condo:-)

Wow, it's not often you see someone moving from Florida to Michigan - usually it's the other way around! :)

We just made a cross country move and must agree with Ramona. We purchased our house in February after extensive trips to the area in all kinds of weather. We had the house inspected and were even able to bring the price down based on what we found. Our land in Texas sold much faster (3 days!) than our house but we had planned ahead in case that should happen. Once the land sold, our house sold within 3 months as it was in a great area that was in much demand. Our movers were two guys we picked up and they were solid workers. We had packed most of our stuff already and they basically just had to load the truck. We also made a deal with them about stuff we were leaving behind and ended up not paying them anything in cash, as they were able to sell the items we gave them and made enough money that they didn't charge us for their labor. On this end, we called someone from Craig's List and he ended up being a good source too. We had the truck unloaded in one day and it too cost us nothing as he wanted a working television that had been left at the house and we gave him some used lumber that we had removed from the deck when we were replacing some {lots!} of boards on the deck. All in all, it was a good move. The rental trucks are murder on your back. Noisy as all get out, and you need to make sure it is in good repair because ours had transmission problems. Luckily we found out that UHaul has places that we could stop at and get things taken care of. Would we move again at age 71 and 65? Yes! The heat was getting unbearable and we wanted to be closer to our children. This year for the first time in over 10 years we will be able to celebrate the holidays with our children without someone having to make a 2500 mile trip either by car or plane. I am thankful and glad we moved even though it was a hassle.

We just did that 2 years ago...my husband always wanted to retire to a warmer climate, with some seasons and good fishing. He put in for a transfer with his job (unbeknownst to me) in May or June 2010 and received a letter on July 3 saying he was being considered.....then was notified in August that he was to report for work in Fort Smith, Arkansas on October 9, 2010. We owned a farmette in Wisconsin, with some animals, mini donkeys, horses, pygmy goats and an old farmhouse we had raised our boys and lived in for 23 years. We had an auction and attempted to sell our house and sold everything else but some personal pieces. Everything we owned fit in to an 8' x 10' POD. We loaded up our 5th wheel camper with our 2 dogs and moved south. We lived in the 5th wheel for 3 months before we found a house to our liking to purchase in Greenwood, AR at the end of December 2010....our house in Wisconsin didn't sell until February 2012....2011 was a nightmare and I had a horrible time adjusting away from the kids....if I had it to do over again I'm not sure I would..or maybe change the way I did things....I retired from a job I loved in order to retain some of the sick leave bank I had accumulated...I think I may have remained in Wisconsin and continued to work until the farmette sold and let The Hubs and his dog go south by himself until things sold....

Having moved 3,200 miles away from jobs, friends, my only chick, and 18 years of my life just two years ago, would I do it again? Maybe. You not only have to make weather and home decisions, but also what about the social aspects? We have lived here before and knew (or thought we did) what we were coming to. BUT it has been really, really difficult to be away from all our friends and our son. Even though we came here to take care of my mother and a business, it's rougher than we thought it would be. I see you live in Warren. I grew up there and I can't think of a better place to leave IMHO. Small town. Small minds. Run by a few with money. If you can get your ducks in a row and would be happy in your husband's hometown, go for it.

Hubbby wants to move back to our home state too when retires. Have been looking and telling him what wants now might not be what wants when 6 years older.

I'd put the house up for sale pronto, you can have in your contract up to 90 days after closing to vacate.
If you don't find a new home by then I would consider putting most stuff in storage and take the time to do your homework in figuring out exactly where it is that you want to live. Don't make quick decisions, take your time.

Take my advice & DO NOT DOWNSIZE. I did that 15 years ago and still regret it.

Check out the places you are considering carefully. My DH wanted to move back to the city where he was born too. If I had it to do over again there would be no way. I don't like small towns and this one has no shopping areas. I have to go from 15 to 30 miles away to get any decent stores. There isn't even a decent grocery store. Make sure the area will meet your needs before moving.