Just a question, what do you gain from arguing with me about this? Like, why does it matter? Why must my statement about Roanoke (and yes, I mean Roanoke, not Blacksburg) vs. Richmond be criticized because I... go between both towns and didn't specify the ins and outs of my exact living situation? 🤦‍♂️

You're right. That right there is why I told her to consider Roanoke. However, she has a 2bd, and there's a million other things that make it complicated. It's really not that much cheaper with her circumstances. There's a countrywide crisis. It's just particularly bad in Richmond, which is why we left.

You think I don't know that?

TLDR, since you didn't seem to read my other comment: lived with mom in RVA. Mom moved to Roanoke. I moved in with my boyfriend in Blacksburg. I go between the two houses a lot because Roanoke is right there. I said "Roanoke" initially for simplicity, because not everyone knows what Blacksburg is.

Howdy! It's nice to see someone who also moved to the NRV from Richmond!

I live with my boyfriend now, and our place is actually really decent, especially given how expensive the rest of this town is. I think we pay about $850 for a 1bd? I used to live with my mom in RVA, and she now pays $1300 for a place in Roanoke. Not nearly as expensive as Richmond, but still far from ideal.

I do hope to go back once he graduates from college. I miss RVA so, so much, but Blacksburg and Christiansburg have wormed their way into my heart too. 💕

Hello from Blacksburg! 😁

A friend of mine was living in a rental that was "affordable", but didn't have running water for several weeks. Are those really the conditions you think we deserve to live in? It's not a matter of "disliking" it, it's a matter of it being literally hazardous. Which is its' own problem, honestly. And regardless, we deserve to like where we fucking live.

And if you really didn't "care about my hometown", would you be in the Richmond subreddit getting downvoted to the 7th level of hell for being a landlord bootlicker?

There IS nowhere cheaper. I already tried. I hauled my shit 3 hours south to Roanoke and I'm miserable. It was supposed to be "cheaper" and it isn't. Where the fuck else are people like me supposed to go? I shouldn't have had to leave my goddamn hometown, that I adore, in the first place. Not to mention, if people leave in droves, it'll just raise the rent in other cities due to population boom. Reality 101.