[Huskymaniac]

So you don't appear to be scared off by expensive houses. SERIOUSLY consider southern CA or, possibly, central CA. It is the closest thing the US has to mediteranean climate. You need an Italian cook?

One thing I forgot to mention is the benefit of living AWAY from the larger cities. Move a little more into the rural areas to save money on housing. Specifically search for rural college towns. The people are better educated, the schools are better, the economy is more stable and people appreciate good food more than what you would find in generic rural areas. Relative to the city, the housing is cheaper, the traffic is lighter, the people are nicer and crime is lower. In the state of NY, a great example of this is Ithaca. In PA, you have state college. I'm sure such places exist in central and southern CA. I just haven't personally looked to know.

NC and most of the southeastern US is probably out for you if you don't like humidity. I don't know what the humidity is like in Austin but you can easily get climate data. I do know that the central US is drier in general BUT they also have temperature extremes. It can get REALLY cold in north-central US and REALLY hot in south-central US. I have heard that it is dry and not particularly extreme in CO. I know it is dry in most of NV, AZ and NM but it can get REALLY dry and it isn't very green there at all. I like some green, personally.