[Huskymaniac]

Marisa has some good ideas. Here is the deal. You need to know for sure what climate you want. Do you want to avoid weather extremes like tornados, floods, hurricanes, blizzards, earthquakes, etc? Does living near the ocean matter to you? If so, do you want warm waters? Then I would ask if you have children that are school age. The correlation isn't 100% but, in general, quality of education is proportional to taxes paid. Having said that, you can find good private schools almost anywhere that is reasonably populated. You pay for good education one way or another. Then you need to look at college options for when that day comes. NY, for example, has some great school districts for k-12 but our state colleges are pretty mediocre. North Carolina, California, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Texas, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Georgia, Virginia and Illinois have some really good state colleges. And you are already aware of business taxes. Finally, look into the cost of housing. And, if you want to look really far ahead, search on states that are good to retire in.

Personally, if the cost of housing wasn't so crazy, I would live in either southern CA or Napa Valley. Aside from Hurricanes on the coast and some areas with flooding issues, NC has a lot to offer. I have heard good things about Austin, TX but I am not a big fan of heat. I have also heard nice things about Denver, CO but that is nowhere near an ocean. I love Maine but the winters are pretty cold and the schools are pretty mediocre. Don't let anyone talk you into the pacific NW. The ocean water is frigid and the weather is more gloomy than they will admit.