re: Thoughts on areas outside NWA

I lived in Harrison for 3 years. It's not as bad as everyone says. Lived in the country club there and it's nice on the edge of town.

Me personally I didn't like Mountain Home at all. Was up there almost everyday for work and there isn't anything there and you're further away from Fayetteville and Springfield MO.

If I was to move back I'd go to Conway. Medical is growing there and the city is growing.

Just my personal preference and I know I'm not a lifetime Arkansan, but being a recruiter and driving all over the state that is my advice.

Yeah my orders from recruiting school said mountain home so we actually moved there first. Driving from California to Arkansas and finally getting to Mountain Home I wasn't very impressed with the name.

Kind of like in dumb and dumber when they said, "I figured the rockey mountains would be more rockey."
You'd like to think Mountain Home was going to be a very nice cozy town.

I knew it was smaller country towns, but first experience of driving through Flippin AR I was starting to worry. But I love the area and the White River up there is awesome!

To get the most out of Mountain Home, one needs to be an outdoor enthusiast. Apart from golf, hunting, and hiking/camping, fishing is the lure(Pun intended). Norfork and Bull Shoals lakes, and the Buffalo, White, and North Fork rivers are all great. Some of the best freshwater fishing in the country. It is pretty secluded, but in a beutiful part of the state in terms of topography.

Ozark is a not-bad commute to Fort Smith. It's on the River and at the foot of the Ozarks. It's a small town, but close to the freeway for commuting.

I travel all over Arkansas. I've always liked Harrison, small town feel and has everything you need. You might take a look at the Pangburn area. It's a dot on the map, but it's located between Heber and Searcy.
Since you are in the medical profession. You should probably take a hard look for something around Conway, NWA or Jonesboro. These three areas seem to be building more hospitals and clinics than the other areas.

Jonesboro

Dear god why

I grew up and still live in South Central Arkansas. I like it, it's home. I'm not too far from decent shopping and entertainment (2 hrs from LR, 1 hr from Monroe, 1 hr 45 from Shreveport.) But it's not for everyone and it's not what it once was either.... although the outlook seems like it might be getting better. If I were to move somewhere else in the state my first choice would be the Hot Springs area simply because it's a good mix of everything I like and close enough to home to visit when I need to/want to. I also like the Conway and Cabot areas which would be our likely move since my wife grew up in Cabot and went to UCA.
Just my 2 cents and I'm sure most won't agree with it.
I'm not a huge NWA fan ... love to visit but wouldn't want to live there plus I would be broke due to wanting to attend every Razorback sporting event.