big one for me: hardly any people. I’m single, in my 30s, I need to get to fucking and developing my social life.

as a person who moved there around a decade ago in similar circumstances for similar reasons: Vermont is not a place where you can do this. Vermont has a certain reputation from the outside that doesn't match what it's actually like to live there.

outside possibly the greater Burlington area, there just aren't any places with enough of a population for a real community. housing is nonexistent, and if you're making less than 6 figures, you're going to find it extremely difficult to afford anything that's available living alone. rent and home prices have essentially doubled over the last four years. what housing you can find is generally old, poor quality, and often in a flood plain. outside Burlington, the state can be divided into declining rural towns full of aging reactionaries and expensive ski resort towns that exist to service tourists and don't support any kind of organic population. the general vibe is that it's a place for wealthy second home owners who have money from somewhere else to come visit, but that it's not a place where you can live off money you make from working there.

Vermont's "lefty" reputation is a mirage that's only visible from the outside, and mostly comes down to people associating it with Bernie. Vermont has elected a Republican millionaire governor for the past 8 years who's the de facto head of the Vermont Democratic party. he won the recent election with something like 70% of the vote, which is basically the same proportion of the state that voted for Kamala Harris. Phil Scott vetoes the state budget every year until the Democratic legislative "majority" gives him exactly what he wants, and his recent priority has been slashing the state's temporary housing program and throwing people out on the street, then using the increase in unhoused population he's creating to call for additional police and prisons.

Vermont is not a place I would recommend to anyone unless you're already a wealthy outdoor enthusiast/isolationist, or you get an unusually well paying job that you really love and you're comfortable making that your whole life.