Mountain Cabin - Where would you own?

[YoungSisyphus]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look? If you wanted to have the flexibility of turning it into a short-term rental when not being used? I have a little experience in the North Carolina area but was wondering if anyone has any favorite spots. Thanks!

[UpperNwGuy]

The southern Appalachians or the southern Rockies. You want summers that are cooler than the lowlands, but winters that won't kill you.

[NYCaviator]

Wyoming or Montana.

[tibbitts]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look? If you wanted to have the flexibility of turning it into a short-term rental when not being used? I have a little experience in the North Carolina area but was wondering if anyone has any favorite spots. Thanks!

This is primarily about legal and tax considerations, not where the most scenic view is. Personally I wouldn't rent so I won't even attempt to answer that.

[shunkman]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look?

Somewhere that has available cell phone service and high speed internet. Unfortunately our PA mountain cabin has neither.

[Dmanse02]

Southeast TN in appalchians. Beautiful, short rides to many large cities and beaches for getaways. Income tax free. Year round mild weather.

[Cheez-It Guy]

I guess it's all relative, but what is the short ride from anywhere in Tennessee to any beach?

[White Coat Investor]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look? If you wanted to have the flexibility of turning it into a short-term rental when not being used? I have a little experience in the North Carolina area but was wondering if anyone has any favorite spots. Thanks!

This is primarily about legal and tax considerations, not where the most scenic view is. Personally I wouldn't rent so I won't even attempt to answer that.

Wyoming.

[DoTheMath]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look?

Somewhere that has available cell phone service and high speed internet. Unfortunately our PA mountain cabin has neither.

+1 If working from the cabin is a priority, then good quality internet would be a must and is not easy to find in most places in the mountains. Satellite for the internet is expensive and not really workable for streaming, video chat, etc. If you restrict yourself to wired, you have already cut down your options quite a bit.

Beyond that, it is mostly personal. Costs, taxes, rental possibilities, weather, nearby amenities, .... are all person dependent.

[Random Poster]

Just outside of Bozeman, Montana.

[quantAndHold]

This is a second home? Close to where you actually live.

If it’s your year round home? It depends on how much you like winter. For a summer home, Colorado or Wyoming. Winters, though, are a different story.

If you’re planning on working from there, a place with good internet and cell service is probably first priority. That’s not a given in any mountain range anywhere.

[retire2022]

op this was discussed recently:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=276265

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=321378

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=324063

[catdoctor]

I guess it's all relative, but what is the short ride from anywhere in Tennessee to any beach?

+1

[Shallowpockets]

What is definition of a cabin to you?
Are you thinking wood logs, one room. To me that is a cabin.
Others might say they have a cabin in the mountains and it is 4 bedrooms, two baths, deck over the valley.

[CascadiaSoonish]

There are some fantastic cabins an hour away from town near me. But I wouldn't count on them for teleworking. Power was intentionally shut off to the area for a couple weeks during the recent fires in the Pacific NW and a mandatory evacuation order was in place. Worth considering when looking at properties.

[iamlucky13]

I'm not clear if the question is for a permanent residence,
or for extended visits. For the latter, close enough to visit regularly.

For me, that would mean within 3 hours travel. Otherwise, I would settle for renting.

If remote working is the plan, you need to verify the internet speeds before buying, using whatever services you need. Hopefully everyone already knows that whatever speeds are listed as available should be considered false until proven true, especially when outside of a major metro area.

So if at all possible, I would try to arrange with the seller an "inspection" that includes several hours of doing work tasks, connected to your company VPN, if relevant.

[123]

I guess it's all relative, but what is the short ride from anywhere in Tennessee to any beach?

+1

Perhaps the interest is for a beach on a lake or river rather than an ocean beach.

[Dmanse02]

I guess it's all relative, but what is the short ride from anywhere in Tennessee to any beach?

Definitely relative, but for example - I used knoxville as the big city in east TN with 5.5 hours to charleston, 6 hours to myrtle beach. I consider those in striking distance for a weekend getaway.

[retire2022]

Op

Several posters mentioned checking out internet speeds, I concur that is an important point as my 89 acre cabin in woods has spotty cell service and internet FIOs are sparse.

Nevertheless I have found this app which you can install and it will show the four major carriers on a map near your desire location based on actual users.

https://www.opensignal.com/

[ktd]

No doubt Lake Tahoe. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America and world's second-largest behind Issyk Kul. Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful natural wonders of the world and the purest water lakes in the world.

[AerialWombat]

Just outside of Bozeman, Montana.

+1

Or drive a little further, and anywhere near/around Flathead Lake.

[hudson]

Question for more experienced Bogleheads. If you had the freedom to work remotely and wanted to look at owning a mountain cabin, where in the US would you look? If you wanted to have the flexibility of turning it into a short-term rental when not being used? I have a little experience in the North Carolina area but was wondering if anyone has any favorite spots. Thanks!

It would need to be near good mountain bike and hiking trails. I don't want isolation; I want neighbors. I'd want to be able to easily get 1000 ft or more or elevation change on a day hike or ride.
I'd want a good mountain steep creek or stream nearby...no crowds. I'd want 6000 foot or higher mountains nearby. Of course, city water, sewer, and trash pickup. Fiber internet of course...somewhere in the counterclockwise circle...Troutdale, Johnson City, Townsend, Murphy, Highlands, Flat Rock, Morganton, Boone, Mouth of Wilson...back around to Troutdale, VA.
I know exactly where, but I'll never tell. I probably wouldn't get everything I want; but I'd get all of the mountain and creek stuff.
I would never own; I'd either rent or pitch a tent.

[tibbitts]

Well the OP has not been back to provide clarification, but I really think everybody is missing the point, which is the "work" aspect of the question. Usually "anywhere" comes with some restrictions/requirements for almost any employment situation, even self-employment.

[MrBobcat]

Just outside of Bozeman, Montana.

+1

Or drive a little further, and anywhere near/around Flathead Lake.

Flathead area is great in the summer, but IMO it's a bit overcast and dreary during the winter months. Bozeman area has much more beautiful clear skies during the winter. Both areas are pricey though.

[thatme]

I'm in the process of building a cabin in Wyoming at 9,000 feet. I would love to live up there full-time/work remotely but I don't know if I could convince my wife to buy into that plan. The reliable Internet is a big deal - there is available satellite internet but the service is spotty and relatively slow. There is cable internet in the area but there are only so many "slots" and all are currently full. The more people that request service, the more likely they are to expand capacity to the area, but I've been hearing that for 2 years now.

Also, Wyoming has no state income tax so there's that.

[mhc]

There are many Colorado mountain towns that are not too remote (1-3 hours to Denver). I would stay below 10,000 feet or winters could be a little rough. Estes Park (7500 feet) is really nice though getting too crowded for my taste, but that can be good for a rental. Snow is generally not a major issue in Estes, but the canyon floods can cause real problems that take a few years to repair. There are all of the ski towns if that is your thing. Steamboat is a really nice laid back town.

Flathead Lake in Montana is really nice but much more remote. Same thing with the mountains in Wyoming.

[nigel_ht]

So far folks have mentioned two of my favorites: Wyoming and Bozeman. I'd add around Flagstaff.

What I own though, is a little cabin in Shenandoah. It doesn't have high speed internet, just 10MB ADSL which hasn't been an issue for Zoom yet...but it'll be a big issue if you need to upload anything since its 1MB up.

I'm waiting semi-patiently for Starlink...

[AerialWombat]

I'm waiting semi-patiently for Starlink...

I am praying to the Internet faeries that Starlink will be the end all/be all of wireless Internet. If so, it’s a game changer in relation to this thread for some of us.

[AerialWombat]

Just outside of Bozeman, Montana.

+1

Or drive a little further, and anywhere near/around Flathead Lake.

Flathead area is great in the summer, but IMO it's a bit overcast and dreary during the winter months. Bozeman area has much more beautiful clear skies during the winter. Both areas are pricey though.

I personally prefer cold, dark, wet weather. I’m the guy that thinks London is too sunny. So I’ll take Kalispell over Bozeman most days, but realize I am in the minority. You are correct on prices, sadly. Ultimately, I believe I will wind up moving to the Forks, WA area, which is also a great place for a cabin in the woods (for rain lovers, that is).