He's been in office less than 3 months, so not blaming him quite yet

The people I know in the big fancy houses have their own businesses or surgeons/speciality docs. We work in mental health (150K) and digital marketing (200K).

Have you traveled around RI to check things out? That might be your next step. The towns have different vibes and you might like some more than others. The state is TINY, so it won't take long, lol.

Housing stock is low and places go fast. What you want is pretty particular, but it's possible if you are flexible with location. So, I would find a good RI broker to stay ahead of Zillow (but who doesn't love looking at zillow as well). You could focus, say, on East Greenwich, Barrington, Bristol to start, but let the broker know you would consider the right place in other towns. I left NYC because I missed New England (grew up on the North Shore of Ma, another lovely area). I ultimately chose Providence and love it, but I came close to living in Tiverton, Bristol and Wickford myself- they reminded me of home on the North Shore, MA.

Definitely look at Bristol (there's some nice eye candy in the form of a farmhouse for sale now)- down to earth people, great downtown, gorgeous conservation and coastline. Warren is a very nice town as well, but you won't find land. Bristol-Warren school district is not great for high school and SPED services, but there are good private options. St Andrews and Providence Country Day are wonderful, supportive private schools that offer services for LDs. And do not worry- getting into schools here is thankfully much easier than in NYC!

Barrington has great schools and walkable downtown area- there can be status conscious folks there. Tiverton and Little Compton are farther out, both gorgeous with small villages. On the West Bay, East Greenwich has a wonderful downtown, good schools. Like Barrington, you will run into some snobs. North and South Kingstown have sweet little villages like Wickford and Wakefield. Not sure about the schools in that area now. Rocky Hill is a wonderful private school with good support for LDs in that area.

My son is learning a language that is not available at his school through languagebird, an online tutoring platform. It is working out great. You might check it out from the instructor side. https://www.languagebird.com/

Not seeing anything about what happened that led to the firing or the accusations.

Follow where the jobs are. If you secure decent jobs in RI and you can afford $1500 within a 40 minute drive, I think you will be fine. This state is TINY!

There are many options if the OP is open to location in the state and size.

OP is open to the entire state! They can find something with that degree of flexibility.

Dang, you could be a Rhode Island tour guide.

It will be an hour, BTDT. Still doable to some, depending on frame of reference. In NYC, my commute was 1.5 hours each way and I thought nothing of it. I moved to Providence in 2002 and I was amused by headlines in the local paper lamenting the increase in commute time: 17 minutes. It was remarkable how quickly I adjusted to a short commute, though!

This "crime" map might be helpful as you look at houses in different neighborhoods. As you can see, there is a wide range in little Woonsocket! https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ri/woonsocket/crime

This does seem to be a common problem- when we offer shelter to homeless people, we don't put in sufficient supports, supervision, and services to make sure there are no issues for the neighbors- or provide better conditions for the residents. Then when neighbors complain about predictable issues, we blame THEM for complaining instead of addressing the issues headon. Ask the shelter residents if they would prefer a clean, safe place and I promise that most would be all for it.

Moved here from NYC 20 years ago and never looked back- I love Providence! I've raised two kids here, used both public and private schools for two very different kids and both are doing great. Growing up in PVD has been pretty idyllic for them- running around with friends in the neighborhood, playing at local parks and playgrounds, enjoying walkable neighborhoods, always a lot to do and see, being a part of a diverse community. You can look up crime stats for the various neighborhoods, but some of that is misleading because it can combine very safe and unsafe areas in the same neighborhood. I've lived in two great family friendly areas- Elmhurst and the East Side (there are many nice neighborhoods on the East Side). Elmhurst is more affordable, but doesn't have the fun shopping areas of the East Side. On the other side of the city, it is a 15 minute drive to Brown- that's how big this city is! Coming from NYC I've learned to be mindful of potential crime, teaching my kids the same, and take precautions (security cameras are widespread here). Negotiating schools for your kids takes some work. The public schools have a history of problems and poor performance on standardized tests (and now under control of the state), but there are some publics that I have sent (or would send) my kids and there are charter schools that can be good options as well. There are also quite a few private schools with varying tuition (I think 18K to 43K)- financial aid is usually available. I'm middle class and was able to send my kids to two private schools with aid- one attended Community Prep for middle school and one went to Providence Country Day for high school. Of course, you can avoid such hassles and live in a town like Barrington, East Greenwich, Lincoln, Cumberland... but we like small city living!

A lot of therapists have single offices at Richmond Square on the East Side.

You might want to post on the NextDoor app for any leads. March is kind of a funky month for finding a place- more open up after the students leave in May.

Bagel Gourmet is the only place I get bagels in Providence. I became super picky after living in NYC and these bagels are the only ones that come close. I wanted to love Bubbies but they are an oversized white bread bland type of bagel- meh. Providence bagels have also been a similar disappointment.

Funny, I was just talking to some new (young...hip) arrivals to PVD who were hunting for a neighborhood to settle and I said the West Side. I would have loved that area as a younger adult. I had a family and too many pets so I chose Elmhurst and then Blackstone/Wayland- love both (but I'm a PVD fan, lol). It is definitely more quiet on the east side, but people do go out and there are busy restaurants and bars. More restrained in Hope, Blackstone and Wayland, while Fox Point and College Hill have a younger, lively vibe. With the colleges here , there are plenty of single/younger/childfree professionals. Lots of ways to meet each other and connect- there are flea markets, fairs, history stuff, arty stuff, music, running and cycling groups, yoga, whatever you're into. It's all very walkable- love that aspect of living here. I've had no problem meeting people with or without kids. People love to hang out, love an invitation. Still, I do get the draw to the west side and go there now and then for meeting friends.