In 1988, I was six years old. I lived in Michigan. I had a perfect life, and my parents told me that we were moving to Northern Kentucky and I was like, you’ve gotta be kidding me, Kentucky.? I don’t wanna go to Kentucky. I was, I was angry, I was sad, I was scared. And all I could think about was the Beverly Hillbillies. And now here I am, 34 years later living in Northern Kentucky and honestly, I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. You might be moving to Northern Kentucky, maybe the Cincinnati area, and, but when you think of Kentucky, all of these stereotypes go off in your mind of what it is. I’m here to talk you through some of those as well as talk through the what, why, where, when, and how of moving to Northern Kentucky. Let’s jump into it.
What To Expect If You Are Moving To Northern Kentucky
My name is Eric Sztanyo from Keller Williams Realty and TeamSztanyo.com where we are helping you find your home and strengthen your family. I’ve done kind of moving to Ohio and a pros and cons of living in Cincinnati article, but we haven’t done moving to Northern Kentucky or we’ll probably make another pros and cons of living in Kentucky cuz it’s a little bit different. It’s a little bit the same and it’s a little bit different. This time, we’re specifically looking at moving to Northern Kentucky, which is kind of its own section in Kentucky. So we’re not talking about Louisville, not Louisville, not Louisville. We’re not talking about Lexington, we’re not talking about Eastern Kentucky, Western Kentucky or Southern Kentucky. We are talking about Northern Kentucky, which is composed of Boone, Kenton and Campbell Counties.
Now, I will admit that just saying Northern Kentucky sounds a little bit confusing. There’s kind of a weird relationship between Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati. We’ll get into that a little bit more. My whole life, you know, going back to that 6-year-old boy growing up to the 41-year-old man now. When you talk to people outside of this area or on a plane and they say, where are you from? I’m from Northern Kentucky. Well, nobody cares about that. And they think of all those stereotypes you’re thinking about like bare feet and no teeth and cut off denim and tobacco and whatever you’re thinking about when it comes to Kentucky and hey, stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason.
Eventually, you’re kind of just like, “yeah, I’m from Cincinnati” and you just leave it at that. You know, you’re actually from Kentucky and there is a difference and there’s some pride in the bluegrass state, in the Commonwealth, but when you’re talking to strangers and you’re trying to tell ’em where you’re from, sometimes it’s easier just to say Cincinnati. So when we’re talking about Northern Kentucky, you might be moving to Northern Kentucky because you actually have a job in Cincinnati or the Greater Cincinnati area. It is important to indicate that Northern Kentucky, while yes it is in Kentucky, it is in one of the southern states, there is a general feel of it being part of the Cincinnati metro area. And in fact, the Cincinnati airport is actually in Boone County in Northern Kentucky. It’s called CVG, which stands for Covington, which is also in Northern Kentucky.
So Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky are kind of interdependent when it comes to looking at the region as a whole. So what are you getting when you’re moving to Northern Kentucky? You’re getting a state with a very low property tax? You’re getting a flat income tax at 5%. If you’re moving to Northern Kentucky area. There’s a lot of employers like Western and Southern, Kroger, P&G, Amazon. and A lot of the healthcare work around the region. And you’re getting a little bit of a feel of that southern state. You’ve got beautiful topography and land, amazing outdoor activities. You’ve got the best horse racing in the world, you’ve got Kentucky Bourbon. There is a lot to love about living in Northern Kentucky.
If you’re moving to Northern Kentucky or even the Cincinnati area, why choose Northern Kentucky?
1. We already talked about the cost of living is low.
2. You’re gonna find a lot of space. It’s a pretty good mix between country and city and depending on where you wanna live and what kind of lifestyle you want to have, you can choose either one. Any commute you’re gonna have around the Cincinnati area if you’re living in northern Kentucky is very doable. Both to get to places of work and also to get to downtown and different amenities you might want to enjoy. There are property tax advantages of living in Kentucky as well, so there’s a lot going for it.
I wanna point you guys to a website that’s a pretty good resource in getting a field for the different cities, the neighborhoods, the lifestyle in Northern Kentucky. It’s called MeetNKY.com. And just reading off their homepage here, it says, “Come meet Northern Kentucky, but really meet Northern Kentucky. Shake hands with a craft distiller, find quirky treasures at a magic boutique, bet on an afternoon of fun at the racetrack, see the world’s largest wooden structure up close, walk across a shark tank on the first of its kind Shark Bridge at the Newport Aquarium. Which, spoiler alert, Team Sztanyo might be having their second event there soon. In Northern Kentucky, the south literally begins at our front door where the small town warmth and hospitality of Northern Kentucky go hand in hand with the big city amenities and attractions of Cincinnati, Ohio. Just a bridge walk away, you’ll find in Northern Kentucky, we do southern with a bit of German fusion and a whole lot of sass. (Sass? I don’t know, I, I didn’t write this) from how we make our bourbon to our vibrant culinary scene, unique shops and a remarkable amount of things to do. Northern Kentucky has something for you.
So yes, you have a lot of these fun amenities in Northern Kentucky like the Newport Aquarium and the Roebling Bridge, which by the way connects Ohio and Kentucky and is Team Sztanyo’s logo. You have the Ark encounter, you have the Creation Museum, Mainstross in Covington, which has an excellent bar restaurant scene. You have great open spaces and parks like Big Bone State Lake Park to explore and enjoy the outdoors. There’s just a lot going forward. But one thing I wanna put my finger on that was in this description is that idea of small-town warmth and hospitality go hand in hand with big-city amenities.
I think that’s why a lot of people choose Northern Kentucky to live in because you, you’re still getting, you’re drafting kind of off that southern warmth and hospitality feel. You’ve got that diehard University of Kentucky Wildcat basketball fan kind of feel. It’s really edging up and meeting to Cincinnati where you have all these big city amenities as well. And so it’s a good blend of both worlds. Historically speaking, and I talked to a lot of my clients about this, there’s something interesting in the fact that this is actually the place where the North meets the South and even in the Civil War, this is where the Underground Railroad was. We have a museum of that downtown and so you get a blend, the southern charm, hospitality, warmth, and kindness with what the north has to offer. In the Cincinnati area. It’s a unique space that has a little bit of both.
So why else might you choose Northern Kentucky? Well, it has a variety of opportunities for moving from town homes in historic neighborhoods to brand new construction projects. Depending on your interest, you could choose to move to denser more metropolitan Covington or somewhere on the edge of rural country living like in Campbell County or Southern Boone County in Walton maybe, or Union, all while being a 30 to 40-minute commute away from downtown Cincinnati. If you’re gonna be working in Cincinnati, but would rather put more money towards travel or recreation, living in Northern Kentucky does decrease your cost of living by probably around 3%.
Alright, so when to move to Northern Kentucky. I mean really there can be any time of year might just depend on your specific situation, but moving season kind of peaks and it typically runs from around April through August. With summer being the optimal time for families because of children being out for summer break.
Springtime and Autumn are great climates to move to Kentucky Inn, particularly because the summers get humid and hot and the winters are generally slushy cold and can be really dark. Now. People obviously still do move and winter. In fact, it can be a very good time to actually buy a house in the area because it’s so cold and dark and people don’t wanna go out looking for houses. You have less buyer competition out there and the people who are selling their houses in the winter often can be more motivated cuz there aren’t a lot of buyers out there. So it could be a good time to strike and get a good deal on a property.
Alright, let’s take a look at where you might want to move in Northern Kentucky. Northern Kentucky is divided up into three regions connected by Highway I-275. This corridor, also known as the I-275 loop encompasses a large swath of land surrounding I-275 from the tip of the state to the Licking River on the eastern side of Northern Kentucky.
In Boone County and around Florence. You have the Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky International Airport. You have Turfway Park where you can enjoy some horse racing and gambling if you like that, you have the famous Florence All Water tower, which everybody knows if you’ve ever driven down I-71, I-75.
Agribusiness is big here and Amazon and Mazack are corporations that have found their home in Boone County. If you don’t want to go downtown to watch the Reds play, you can watch the Florence y’alls, which is a great family environment to watch a baseball game, kinda like a minor league feel. Then you can kick off the Bourbon trail at Boone County distilling or go to Neely Family Distillery or head down to Big Bone Lick State Park. You can also enjoy a fun kind of really Kentucky Field Day. If you go out to rabbit hash, that’s fun day.
If you move east on the I-275 corridor, you’re entering Kenton County. You have Covington, which includes the Mains Stross Village, which is a lot of fun. Braxton Brewing, the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. Covington’s a great place to get views of the city as well. A lot of fun down there in Covington.
And then as you continue to move further east, you’re gonna jump into Newport. There’s Newport on the Levy, Hoffa house if you want to get a good German beer and a schnitzel, there’s the new riff distillery, and then as you head south, there’s Northern Kentucky University BBNT Arena. Then as you head further south in Campbell County, you’re gonna pass Northern Kentucky University. You’re gonna head towards Alexandria, you’re gonna have more land, a little bit more space to move.
Team Sztanyo! Your Trusted Guide When Moving To Northern Kentucky
All right guys, last thing we wanna focus on is how do you do this? How do you make this move? We’ll, reach out to us. We would love to help you out. Our number is my direct cell, (513) 813 6293. We’ll help you in terms of the process. If you have a house to sell where you’re at, we can connect you with some great realtors nearby to get you started on that. We can connect you with local lenders here in the process to make sure your financing is all taken care of. And then just answering any questions you might have about the area, school districts, anything else you might want to know, give us a call!
If you’re moving to a different state or a brand new location. A lot of questions are also gonna come up about timing. We help a lot of people who are moving from outta state or from across the country, move to Northern Kentucky, move to the Cincinnati area, and we can help you out too.
Northern Kentucky is a great place to live. There’s a reason why I’ve stayed here for 35 years roughly. There’s a reason why I’m raising my five kids in this area. It’s a great place to raise a family. It’s an affordable city. The people are great. You get the big city amenities, you get to root for Joe Burrow and watch the Reds play and go to those games. You’re also centrally located within the state, so if you wanna do a road trip for the weekend to Chicago or DC or Atlanta or Nashville, all those places are very attainable for a road trip. I love living here. It’s a great place to live. If you’re looking to move here, we’d love to help you out. Thank you and we’ll see you next!