We found our happy spot between I-75 east and the mountains. Gorgeous scenery, not crowded and the counties all have low taxes. Like I noted in my post - TN has high sales tax but I find that to be more fair than taxing my land and possessions.
My wife and I are preparing to full-time too. We are going to build a smaller home here for our base and sell the one we have now. It's way too big for two people.
I hope this helps. If you have any other questions feel free to message me.
That's too funny - I too lived in Florida for 45 years. Born and raised on the east coast near the space center, moved to Tampa to go to school and stayed there until 2007.
I have spent a fair amount of time in west TN because a close friend has several farms we hunt on. It is too flat for my taste. Nashville and the surrounding area is growing so fast I found it to be crowded and costly.
I ended up in east TN because of the mountains and hills, the low cost of most everything and the relative low population density. Stay out of Knoxville proper and avoid Sevierville (Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg area, etc.) if you like lower population density.
