ERE City (US)

[7Wannabe5]

@AxelHeyst:

So our genuine advice is to seek out people and places who value the things you value as intrinsically worthwhile — thenceforth flows the squad vibes.

https://www.bankless.com/find-your-squa ... uild-vibes

Although many have tried many times, it is not really possible to command scenius into being. Every start up company, or university would like their offices to be an example of scenius. The number of cities in the world hoping to recreate the scenius of Silicon Valley is endless, but very few have achieved anything close. Innumerable art scenes begin and vanish quickly. The serendipitous ingredients for scenius are hard to control. They depend on the presence of the right early pioneers. A place that is open, but not too open. A buffer that is tolerant of outlaws. And some flash of excitement to kick off the virtuous circle. You just can’t order this.

https://kk.org/thetechnium/scenius-or-comm/

[jacob]

Is it fair to say that most scenes follow clubs? Your blog came first. MMM's blog came first. Do we have examples of scenes that formed without a club that first paved the way or created a nucleus?

I'm not suggesting that clubs inevitably will produce scenes. I wonder if there are design guidelines for making clubs that can transform into scenes, and best practices for avoiding clubs that will hinder/make scene creation impossible.

I'm primarily focused on what the right conditions for a scene are. The equivalent analogy here would be "the idea of an online forum---by no means a trivial concept insofar it wasn't so familiar" (as opposed to a mailing list = club). Since I'm not nearly as experienced in IRL scenes (introvert preferences are very strong with this one) as I am in online scenes, my best guess would be to think of it as a music scene or foodie scene.

Pick a place where 1) people already are; and 2) would want to be for other reasons that the scene. For example, something like a music scene (help me out here) probably originate in a place that already has a lot of young people with time to play---think concentration of universities and colleges---so it has to be big cities. Conversely, something like old-folks retirement scenes "grow" better in Florida. There's a digital nomad scene in Chiang Mai in Thailand and there's probably a reason why it's not some other place, like say, Kansas City. "Silicon Valley" is in SV because the climate is great + it used to be cheap + its proximity to Stanford and Berkeley, both of which are nerd-factories. People want to live there and many are already there. These factors do not hold for other attempts to make something similar by reviving rust-valley towns in Upstate New York.

The question to ask is where the most fertile ground is for EREmites. If you want want to grow plants, it's obviously not in the city. But not every EREmite wants to grow plants.

The closest equivalent I can think of is how the Free State Project went about it. They basically looked at every US state in terms of how close it matched libertarian values. Then they weighed this list against how likely they were to actually have influence if enough people actually moved to that state. This eliminated some big states. It also eliminated some states that while matching values had enough downsides that outweighed the libertarian attractions.

I think we need to do something similar. Two things need to be answered:
1) How do EREmites want to live? Personally I think it's a just small but vocal minority who is interested in alternative living situations (I might be wrong). I think the majority are still looking for old-fashioned/boring/proving/conventional homes.
2) What kind of services/facilities need to be available? This one is tough. Personally I need at least electricity and good internet and decent inter-library services. Many are interested in 21st century resilience too. Maybe I just take this for granted. Anyhoo ... this is also important to know!
3) Rank all places in terms of the availability/price of (2) and the number of "open slots" for (1). This is like calculating the expectation value by multiplying the probability of (1) with the value of (2).

All that to say before one can have a club or even a scene with actual people and not just their avatars, there need to be people around. This problem is easily ignored online, because there are billions of people to draw on. However, when trying to start something physical, then there's a law of geography (I forget the name) that the rarer some business is, the more central its location needs to be. For example, a jewelry shop should be on main street in a major city. It won't work if placed in a remote village, whereas a small grocery store just might survive there. This is non-trivial. I know a guy who always wanted to open his own dojo. He was super into martial arts to the point of driving 2x2.5 hours to train for one hour. As luck would have it, he got a windfall. He then spent that to open a dojo in Podunkadunk, BFE which was 2.5 hours away from anything. He failed to realize that where weren't enough interested locals + nobody else was willing to drive that far and so his dojo remained empty.

For clarity: I consider a scene to be something very different from an event or a festival. A scene is where the music is made---people spending time jamming. A festival is where it's played. I presume it's relatively rare for 1 single person to write the lyrics + complete score for all instruments.

[7Wannabe5]

1) How do EREmites want to live? Personally I think it's a just small but vocal minority who is interested in alternative living situations (I might be wrong). I think the majority are still looking for old-fashioned/boring/proving/conventional homes.

If those of us who would prefer alternative living situation were willing/able to pay $250,000 cash for a house in your neighborhood, the loss of cash flow from fairly conservative investments would be approximately $10,000/year and the property tax/maintenance burden would be at least another $5500/year = $15,500/year which is $8,900/year more than the $6,600/year I am currently paying for my garret apartment, which is already way more than I've otherwise paid for housing in the last couple of decades. Ergo, an alternative lifestyle solution such as house-hacking and/or succumbing to peer-pressure and entering into a marriage of convenience with IlliniDave would have to be applied even in more conventional residential setting.

I presume it's relatively rare for 1 single person to write the lyrics + complete score for all instruments.

My super-introverted INFP feels-too-old for the music scene sister is doing exactly this for as one of her major projects this year.

[AxelHeyst]

I think we need to do something similar. Two things need to be answered:
1) How do EREmites want to live? Personally I think it's a just small but vocal minority who is interested in alternative living situations (I might be wrong). I think the majority are still looking for old-fashioned/boring/proving/conventional homes.

I suspect you're right. That said, the alt shelter crew might be significant enough to consider. An ideal location would offer conventional options but possess niches for the alt crew to inhabit. I'm thinking of e.g. space for tinyhouses in informal/greylegal arrangements, squats, non-urban spaces not too terribly far away (perhaps there's a Core scene and a nearby Hinterlands scene?), etc.

[Ego]

I've seen the mothership model work well and continue to do so in the instatok age. People visit for a while, then go back to their home communities to translate the experience into something locally palatable. Really interesting experimentation happens at the edges of these communities.

Soi Taied (Fitness Street) in what was once a quiet suburb of Phuket grew around Tiger Muy Thai
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JOmjmm_9WE

Ubud, Bali wellness community grew around Yoga Barn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agdVDX7LwTU

The Self Realization Fellowship grew out of the mother center in Los Angeles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFiruKj2rio

[jacob]

If those of us who would prefer alternative living situation were willing/able to pay $250,000 cash for a house in your neighborhood, the loss of cash flow from fairly conservative investments would be approximately $10,000/year and the property tax/maintenance burden would be at least another $5500/year = $15,500/year which is $8,900/year more than the $6,600/year I am currently paying for my garret apartment, which is already way more than I've otherwise paid for housing in the last couple of decades. Ergo, an alternative lifestyle solution such as house-hacking and/or succumbing to peer-pressure and entering into a marriage of convenience with IlliniDave would have to be applied even in more conventional residential setting.

I suspect you're right. That said, the alt shelter crew might be significant enough to consider. An ideal location would offer conventional options but possess niches for the alt crew to inhabit. I'm thinking of e.g. space for tinyhouses in informal/greylegal arrangements, squats, non-urban spaces not too terribly far away (perhaps there's a Core scene and a nearby Hinterlands scene?), etc.

Having a better idea of what people (beyond the usual suspects) could be interested/not interested in would certainly help to focus. Otherwise, an area that has multiple options is certainly better than an area that has restrictions. When I was young(er), I dreamed of straw bale houses and tiny houses, but reality set in as I realized that it wasn't financially sensible to sink money into something that nobody else wanted to buy when I was done with it. With a conventional home, you get your money back when you move out. With an alternative building, you likely lose most of it (non-existing robots and not-happened/happening cultural revolutions aside).

I focused on single family homes in my listings above, because it's my impression that this is what people usually live in and they're easy to sell again. I doubt it would be something one single person would buy to live in our their own(?)(*). However, one of the listings above is an unofficial (think inlaws, not for renting out) two-flat (independent front doors). Otherwise, they're mostly standard 3bd/2ba configuration, so one could house-hack and rent out the other two bedrooms. There are also some giant Victorians around, think 6bd/2ba for those into that. Studio apartments for rent start at $650/month. (Roughly the same as unassisted retirement home units.) A 6-8 unit multiplex can be had for about $600-800k. On the more extreme end I know someone who is living in a garage. I've also seen someone sleeping in their car for weeks. However, given the potential winter conditions, I consider this extremely rough/borderline deadly as a permanent solution. There are no full-season RV parks around here as far as I'm aware and there's a reason for that. Obviously this is an urban area, and one would have to drive a considerable distance (30 minutes) to get anything beyond a quarter/half acre backyard with a couple of dwarf trees. Also, don't expect to be shooting deer or anything from your back porch.

(*) I do know two people living alone. They're both seniors and as such get a 75%+ discount on their RE taxes as well as a shit-ton of other discounts and freebies. This area is not a bad place to be old.

I think the main attraction from proximity (commuting distance) to a big city is the abundance of professional jobs. This is useful/required for those who are still in working/saving-mode---probably the majority---since their particular specialization is unlikely to be found in smaller or even midsized cities. For the FIRE'd, it really depends on conveniences. For example, the nearest airport is only 1 hour away from me. By foot!

[guitarplayer]

Yeah, I think therein lies the problem. Lots of "Everybody move closer to me"-suggestions, whereas the "I'm ready to move anywhere as long as it's close to one of you people" are few and far in between.

I am ready to become the Erdos of ERE.

[guitarplayer]

Do we have examples of scenes that formed without a club that first paved the way or created a nucleus?

Reportedly, what Zeno had created was a scene right off the bat.

[7Wannabe5]

@jacob:

I agree that your neck of the woods could be a cool, affordable place to live for many forumites, including alternatively-lifestyled singles. You just threw me for a momentary loop with the $250,000 single family house listings. There is also an 4-plex 8 bedroom fixer-upper available for under $150,000 = only $7500 X 20 forumites invested per occupant at maximum legal occupancy rate of 5 humans per two bedoom unit, and plenty of $5000 vacant lots available for Zone 2 of permaculture projects if you bike a few miles out into rougher neighborhoods. Zone 1 of permaculture projects could be on rooftop and/or tiny yard space available, and there is also what looks to be a very active community garden site/group. The hipster arts scene also seems to be quite vibrant, and I'm sure a city of that size would offer a great range of all sorts of dating opportunities for singles of any proclivity.

If/when I recover my health/fitness, I intend to become poly-homerous again, so Chicago/Cicero could be one of my possibilities, especially given that I can always crash with my third sister who lives on the northside indefinitely while I work on a fixer-upper. My ideal poly-homerous scenario would include city/rural-lake location/mobile footprints, so I would only want to invest approximately $20,000 and/or $200/month cash flow max in any/each of the options, because $600/month = 60% of my $12,000 year eco-spending limit. However, my Smart Car Camper conversion is not going to require anything like $20,000, and it's possible that I can find an otherwise attractive rurally located poly-partner who will grant me open visiting privileges, so then I would have maybe $400 month cash flow limit for City Mouse node of poly-homerous scheme, which I could achieve either in my current location (once I officially convert a 150 square ft room (which I actually don't even currently use!) in my 450 sq ft apartment into home office/storage area for solo-preneur activities, thereby reducing my effective rent from $550 to $367. Actually, it's already down to $500/month due to state property tax rebate for low income renters, so would be $333.) or someplace like Cicero or the cheap-side of the Most Educated Semi-Expensive City in the U.S. where my kids/Mom currently reside.

[jacob]

ERE City questionnaire.
This is to gauge general interest and realistic capabilities to see if ERE City even can happen or whether it's just a pipe dream.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
(answering no to either of those question is still helpful to gauge interest, but if the answer to either is no, there's no need to answer the rest)

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,...)

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
16) How hard are those to find in a given area?

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...)
18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...)

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones? (Walkable, bikeable, nature, internet, climate resilient, dating scene, music scene, sports activities, airport, hiking,...)

LMK if any of the questions need to be rephrased or fleshed out.

[Slevin]

ERE City questionnaire response.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
Sure. Probably would try renting first.
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
I mean sure but that would be excessively stupid price wise.

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
Yes, If it has good parks / greenery.

4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
Same as above.

5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
Sure, but walkability is a concern.

6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
Yes, small towns can be great in that the walkability is built in. Usually private transport needed for other travel though. Art focused small towns can be incredibly lovely.

7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
No.

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
Don't care but will only move somewhere with reproductive rights, so that might effectively mean no?

9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
Same as above.

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
IDC how about <700k (about the current net worth of my house).
11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?
Seeing as this is basically a sunk cost, would be willing to pay much much less.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Not in the same house. Same lot, sure, could work fine.

13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Depends on the structure of the ownership and sunk cost, but leaning towards probably not (unless cheap)?

14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,...)
Landlord / rentee would be fine with me as long as keep plausible exit strategy.

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
I have a remote job. Just need the internet.

16) How hard are those to find in a given area?
I just need the internet.

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...)
Technically I can't sell this out without tax penalties for about 1 year.

18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...)
We'll see. Maybe after 5+ years, plausibly never, depends on many factors.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones? (Walkable, bikeable, nature, internet, climate resilient, dating scene, music scene, sports activities, airport, hiking,...)
Nature + warm / sunny climate (outside is cheaper than building and heating an inside, also I'm basically solar powered). Being near an airport is also likely a must. Bikeability / walkability also nice for me, but can do without.

[macg]

LMK if any of the questions need to be rephrased or fleshed out.

Well I agree wholeheartedly with the theory of this thread, and would in fact consider moving for such a community, I have a mental block that isn't mentioned in any of your questions - weather. I just have zero desire to live anywhere that has any semblance of cold. I'm currently in an area where the winters drop to 50s - and dislike it and am looking to move lol.

Since most of the community here are thinking longer term, climate change and all that - rightfully so - that likely means I'm out of the discussion, unfortunately. But I'd gladly visit, and perhaps there's a way to live part of the year... So I'll keep paying attention.

[loutfard]

When I was young(er), I dreamed of straw bale houses and tiny houses, but reality set in as I realized that it wasn't financially sensible to sink money into something that nobody else wanted to buy when I was done with it. With a conventional home, you get your money back when you move out. With an alternative building, you likely lose most of it (non-existing robots and not-happened/happening cultural revolutions aside).

The straw construction boom in much of the "old" EU has brought straw construction surprisingly closer to mainstream the last twenty years. With the increase in popularity, liquidity risk ("Will I be able to resell it?") has decreased. Also, upside potential. An eco home might sometimes command a premium.

Inherent limitations mean straw construction won't go fully mainstream. The tree main ones:
- Vapour permeability. A great property, but it also brings limitations. Don't even think of placing a shower next to a straw wall for example. Limited wall finishing possibilities. Trickier in townhouses or semi-detached housing.
- Wet trades required (plastering, ...). This limits construction speed.
- Volume. Straw insulation is quite a few centimeters thicker.
- No strong lobby yet. More difficult to get the subsidies freely doled out to other insulation materials.

P.S. Sorry I went off so far onto this side track.

[NewBlood]

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
If there was an ERE city in my country, and not the capital, probably.
I've done the whole living in the US in a different culture and super far from family for 15+ years. Wasn't viable for me in the long-term.

2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens to grow around where you already are?
Yes.

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
Only if it’s possible to buy a house on a good size lot (at least 1000 sq m), so no.

4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
Only if it’s possible to buy a house on a good size lot (at least 1000 sq m), so maybe.

5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
Only if it’s close enough (less than 10km) to a train station.

6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
Yes. If it’s well connected by train.

7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
Only if it’s close enough (less than 10km) to a train station.

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
Maybe.
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
Maybe.

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
Target is under 150k euros.

11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?
30k max.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Not in the same house. Compound style on a big lot, maybe.

13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Only if less than 20-30k.

14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,…)
Not sure.

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
Remote job.
16) How hard are those to find in a given area?
If my current job doesn’t pan out, not sure.

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?…)
Within a year.
18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?…)
I’m hoping my next move will be the last, I want to put down roots figuratively and literally (plant trees). Barring AMOC unpleasantness.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones? (Walkable, bikeable, nature, internet, climate resilient, dating scene, music scene, sports activities, airport, hiking,…)
Walkable, bikeable, access to woods on foot or bike, less than 10km from train station and good-size library, climate resilient-ish. Dating scene would be nice, but probably unlikely … (don’t know how to solve that one given other parameters). Climbing gym within 10km would be a plus. Good bakery accessible on foot is a must.

[jacob]

ERE City questionnaire.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
yes
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
yes

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
yes
4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
yes
5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
no
6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
yes, either on or next to mainstreet.
7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
no

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
I can live with a difference of opinion as long as people keep it to themselves. No yard signs, flags, bumper stickers, tshirts, ...
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
maybe

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
300k, prefer under 200k, can stretch to 400k.

11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?
$15,000 if I can take it with me/sell it elsewhere (RV, tiny house on wheels, boat, yurt). If I can't, renting is preferred.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
no
13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
no

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
none

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...)
Within 2 years

18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...)
Ideally never, but otherwise 10 years if not suitable for old age.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones?
car-independence, public transport, average crime rate or less, out of natural disaster zones

[AxelHeyst]

ERE City questionnaire.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
I'd only move to ERE City if my current situation zero'd out. Otherwise, I'd be willing to visit potentially 1-3mo/yr.
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
Yes, but I'm trying to make "ERE Rural Mountain Enclave" happen.

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
Yes.
4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
Yes.
5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
Yes, if it's feasible to to retrosuburbia work there. If it's HOA'd up the ass, no.
6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
Yes.
7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
Clearly.

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
Yes.
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
Yes.

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)? Zero.
11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind? $x0,000, and wouldn't be my first rodeo.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family? Yes.
13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family? Yes, but I'd proceed with care. Since my shelter would be alt, the co-owning situation would also be alt and not a high capital risk.
14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,...) Up for any, depends more on the relationships.

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any? none. Probably will want internet.
16) How hard are those to find in a given area?

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...) Whenever a rock falls on QH. Otherwise I'm ready to visit 1-3mo/yr starting 2025.
18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...) When the inscrutable exhortations of my soul compel me.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones? (Walkable, bikeable, nature, internet, climate resilient, dating scene, music scene, sports activities, airport, hiking,...). Bikeable, nature (preferably mountains), within a couple hours bus/hitch/bike of an Amtrak station, outdoor people (climbers/hikers/bikers/paddlers/hunters/etc), existing EREadjacent subcultures (ecoanarchists, DIY scene, permaculturists, garage hackers, an ecovillage or two within an hour wouldn't hurt...

ETA: My responses made me think of considerations for a seasonal ERE City Population. Would be a way to introduce diversity across time to the community, as well as serve as a ramp/test drive to full-time residency for some.

[loutfard]

ERE City questionnaire.
This is to gauge general interest and realistic capabilities to see if ERE City even can happen or whether it's just a pipe dream.

I'll answer. Please understand my answers for an EU scenario.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
Not before my parents have died and my wife agrees.
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
Yes.

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
Yes, if need be.
4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
Yes, preferred.
5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
Rather not.
6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
Yes, near the center.
7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
On our own, but not for an ERE city.

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
If others are respectful and I have liberty to express my views.
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
If others are respectful and I have liberty to express my views.

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
150k€ including all taxes and fees, excluding sweat equity. 200k€ if it's something my wife also loves.

11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?
The minimum of 150k€ and market rate if strong proven liquidity selling it. If not, 15k€ plus sweat equity, or preferably rent. Strong preference for a compact eco townhouse (straw, hempcrete). 60m² should do for the two of us.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
In a very limited way. I've seen a shared washing machine room and a larger gathering space work incredibly well for friends and acquaintances.
13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Not our own home. A limited share in shared amenities would certainly work.
14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,...)
What I have seen work really well is a mix of community-owned rentals and individual ownership.

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
Either I keep my current job (near current city), or I'm financially ERE and don't need a job anymore.
16) How hard are those to find in a given area?
Impossible. Very specific tenured golden (well, at least gold plated) cage government job.

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...)
10 years.
18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...)
If it all works out, never except perhaps for old age reasons.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones? (Walkable, bikeable, nature, internet, climate resilient, dating scene, music scene, sports activities, airport, hiking,...)
- safety from geopolitics and other crime
- transportation: bikeable, public transport, airport
- culture: music. Books I can get on my e-reader.
- horticultural potential. I don't want to garden lots and lots, but I'd love to eat local produce. And if plants like the environment, that might be a good proxy for humans to like it.

[mathiverse]

ERE City questionnaire.

1) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it means moving there?
Yes.
2) Are you interested in "ERE city" if it happens grow around where you already are?
Yes.

Preferred level of development:
3) Are you willing to move to a high-density urban area? (3+ story buildings)
Probably not. I'd probably stick to visiting.
4) Are you willing to move to a low-density urban area? (closely spaced 1-2st)
Yes.
5) Are you willing to move to a suburban area? (widely spaced, lots of lawn)
Maybe? If I don't need a car and I can get to a more urban area via public transportation or bike lanes/walking paths (think C&O trail to Washington DC).
6) Are you willing to move to a "small town" (one mainstreet) area?
Yes. Next to Main street, probably.
7) Are you willing to move to a rural area?
Maybe.

Since politics is getting increasingly important in people's decision making process:
8) Are you willing to live in an area where the politics or political vibe differ from your own?
Sure.
9) Are you willing to live in a state where the politics differ from your own?
Maybe.

Budget:
10) How much are you willing AND capable of paying for a conventional home (house or apartment)?
I'd prefer under 300k. I can go higher though.

11) How much are you willing and capable of paying for an alternative home (tiny house, strawbale, container, cabin, boat,...)? If yes, what kind?
I'd probably prefer to rent.

Living situation:
12) Are you interested in living with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
Not in the same unit as other people. In the same building could be cool.
13) Are you interested in co-owning with others beyond yourself/SO/family?
No.
14) If yes to either, what financial arrangement do you prefer? (landlord, rentee, collective,...)
Landlord or rentee are most likely for me. I'd consider a co-op situation.

Job situation:
15) What kind of job do you need or want if any?
Software engineering gigs for my spouse and maybe me if I go back to my old career. This may not be an issue if remote positions remain accessible.

Time horizons:
17) When are you ready to move to ERE City? (Now? In 5 years? 10 years?...)
Within 5 years if it'll happen at all.

18) When are you likely to leave again? (Never? After 5 years? We'll see?...)
Ideally never. But, realistically, we'll see.

Amenities:
19) Which are the most important ones?
Good internet, car independence, average crime rate or less, decent libraries, airport nearby, out of natural disaster zones

[Ego]

While I very much value ERE and the people here, I can't imagine that the benefits of moving near other EREers would be greater than the benefits I get from living in a place where I have a deep network. There would have to be a really, really, really, good reason to move. Either things go disastrously wrong here or some magical ERE promise-land sprouts on a beach in Thailand.

And like Macg, I am not moving anywhere cold. The value ($ & lifestyle) of not needing a/c and heat year-round is incalculable.

[Slevin]

And like Macg, I am not moving anywhere cold. The value ($ & lifestyle) of not needing a/c and heat year-round is incalculable.

Literally basically only San Diego / SoCal is like that in the US. So you did win in choosing that already.

I’m one tier down in absolute preference, where I’m willing to be the places you would prefer it but probably don’t need it (as those places can usually just use good passive design to not need it). But agreed, I love being outside, and being outside most of the time means way less house needed, and outside space is drastically cheaper to build / furnish too. Basically just need to have situational sun and rain protection.