Trans friendly state/place

[qwerty108109]

I am looking to move out of Arkansas to a more trans friendly state/place I'm looking for a place that's not expensive or has public housing available. Has a good college and a big trans community. Does anybody have any suggestions?

[sparrow]

Seattle is about as trans-friendly as a city can be.  It's expensive, though.  But... if you're in school it's not hard to found a shared house to live in for cheap.  I have no idea about the public housing situation, but UW has dorms and there's a bunch of really big apartment buildings that they just put in near the university, so my hope is that excess supply might drive the prices down.

Also, if you're looking for college and not university, the Seattle community colleges are all superb.  In particular, Seattle Central CC is on Broadway, which was traditionally "the gayborhood" and I find myself well-received there regardless of presentation.

[MeganAshley]

Des Moines, IA is a pretty good place to be. It is a surprisingly socially liberal state and Des Moines has a strong LGBT community with a lot of resources available socially.
There is a community college, at least 2 main campuses for private universities, close to Ames, IA with is the home of Iowa State University, the second largest state run university...
Loads of quality income friendly housing has been going up lately and the cost of living is among the best in the nation.

Hope you find what you are looking for where ever you end up!

*hugs*

[Valwen]

I live about 30-40 minutes south of boston and the whole of massachusetts is fantastic, I have encountered zero problems with anyone outside of some misgendering. Even my bosses at a very conservitive company have been respectful. I have easy access to the fenway health center which specializeds in LGBT health.

Mass is not cheap but then again most liberal areas that are friendly to transgender people are going to be costly. We also have more collages and universities than I can count, a few are world renown and I even share a name with a certain medical school near by...sadly no relation :-).

Serena

[Asche]

I live in the NYC area, and as far as I can tell, it's reasonably trans friendly.  My county (Westchester) and NYC both have non-discrimination ordinances.  I walk around in femme clothes all the time and haven't had a problem.  It's expensive, though.  And there are parts of NYC to avoid, but that's true even if you aren't trans.

[SophieD]

You might consider Maryland.  The laws are supportive to transitioning and I've found excellent medical resources in the area.

[Colleen M]

Unfortunately, it really seems like "reasonable cost of living" and "reasonably trans-friendly" come pretty close to being mutually exclusive.  If you really want to prioritize trans-friendly, you might try looking for a job there first and seeing if you can get one where the wages are nearly as inflated (to your Arkansas eyes) as the rent.  When doing math, keep in mind that there are a lot of trans-friendly big cities where having a car is usually considered a bad idea and you can subtract a car payment, fuel, maintenance, and insurance from your budget. 

If you can't look for the job first, have you considered going for a blue city in a red state?  Houston and Austin are reliably blue in a red state, for example.  It might leave you feeling like you couldn't go too far from home, but it would create a fair comfort zone at least. 

Best of luck, however you handle it. 

[FTMax]

Richmond, VA. Don't let the stupid "we're going to check kids genitals before they can use the bathroom in school" bill fool you. It's not going to pass, and everyone I've spoken to is appalled by it (liberals and conservatives alike). Virginia by and large is a state of people who don't care what you do as long as you aren't bothering them.

Richmond is the most affordable city in the state, with an informed consent clinic for trans folks. There is at least one cosmetic surgeon in the city there who works with trans patients. The community college system is great throughout the state, and they also have VCU which is a good school you could transfer to as well.

[Kellam]

I am going to add another shout for Massachusetts. I am trying to move to Northampton, MA. It has a huge trans and queer comunity. It is also much cheaper than eastern MA. A room in a shared house in Boston goes from 600, while western MA the rent starts around 400. Those are the low figures. Northampton is surrounded by colleges too. Good ones. Also, if you're poor the healthcare is free or almost free, all trans care is covered and we are so close to passing a non-discrimination bill. It is cold though, I hope you like snow. But gorgeous in the summer!

[Tristyn]

Richmond, VA. Don't let the stupid "we're going to check kids genitals before they can use the bathroom in school" bill fool you. It's not going to pass, and everyone I've spoken to is appalled by it (liberals and conservatives alike). Virginia by and large is a state of people who don't care what you do as long as you aren't bothering them.

I hope that doesn't pass either. I don't live there, but for the sake of the resident's children there, I sure hope it doesn't. Goodness....whatever will they think of next?

And I wonder if Florida has any very trans-friendly locations that are better to live in than where I am currently residing in? I think Riverside is decent. They have a good number of trans-friendly resources and support groups. If I could afford to, I would find some income-based housing there or something. I'm still just so bummed out from a misgendering bash I took from an ignorant male cabbie yesterday. I just think things could be easier if I lived in an area where trans people wouldn't be looked at as a mutant from the X-Men or something....

[Rachel]

Philadelphia Pennsylvania has protections for trans and there are a lot of great schools and housing varies as well as neighborhoods. I work for a trans friendly hospital and I am totally out and express and I am in Senior leadership. There are 14 trans out and expressing where I work.

Outside of Philadelphia and Pittsburg the rest of the state does not have trans protection. Some of the areas are pretty rural in the state and are not accepting. But then there are bright spots like New Hope.

[Asche]

You might consider Maryland.  The laws are supportive to transitioning and I've found excellent medical resources in the area.

But avoid Johns Hopkins.  The psychiatry department is run by a notorious homophobe and transphobe and people I know have had horrible experiences there, so I would not trust any part of the hospital to be at all trans friendly.

[CarlyMcx]

Palm Springs, California.  The population is about 51% LGBT, and it is about the trans friendliest place in the world.  Rents are still low (at least by California standards).  As far as universities, the best you will do locally is a junior college.  If you want a four year school, you will have to take a drive out to Cal State San Bernardino or UC Riverside, about an hour in each direction.

[MugwortPsychonaut]

Philadelphia Pennsylvania has protections for trans and there are a lot of great schools and housing varies as well as neighborhoods. I work for a trans friendly hospital and I am totally out and express and I am in Senior leadership. There are 14 trans out and expressing where I work.

Outside of Philadelphia and Pittsburg the rest of the state does not have trans protection. Some of the areas are pretty rural in the state and are not accepting. But then there are bright spots like New Hope.

I'll second that. However, as good as resources and legal protections are in Philly, the people themselves can be absolutely horrible.

[ryokohimura]

If it's ok...and my fellow Oregonians don't hunt me down...I'd like to put a plug in for Oregon. Especially around Portland. Decent and visible trans community, OHP covers transition-related care as well, colleges are decent though if you're looking for nationally known UO in Eugene and OSU in Corvallis are options. Non-discrimination regulation is in place, plus if you can stand the rain and grey, it's beautiful with lots of otudoor things to do.

The downside is that the job market can be....meh and housing prices have gone...up. Still not quite Northeast or California levels, but still.

[RobynD]

Another plug for Oregon. Most of the urban areas are very liberal and friendly. All of what the poster said above. Plus it is one of the most beautiful places in the world.