NJ Natives thinking ahead…

This might be somewhat of a ramble but will try to make this coherent.

My wife (27, Nurse) and I (27, PR/Marketing) have lived in Jersey our whole lives. Both sides of the family are here. I never thought I’d leave, at least not until much older, but we had our first baby in March and after few recent experiences have made my wife and I seriously considering a move OOS.

We have a few serious locations we would consider, so would appreciate feedback on some below questions about what the out of state moving process entails.

First potential location: DFW. We took a trip last year there as a “pick something on the map and let’s book it” type trip and while there, decided to playfully house hunt on Zillow for the week. Welp, we fell in love with the area and the immensity of Texas is very appealing, along with the cost of living compared to the northeast. It’s a place I genuinely can see myself living.

Second potential location: Charlotte, but NC as a whole. My bachelor party was in Charlotte and while visiting all the NASCAR race teams, I personally took note of the towns of which they are located and found it appealing that I could see my wife enjoying as well. Again, COL more affordable than NJ.

What I’m trying to get at here is, with a family that isn’t finished growing, and my wife and I both growing tiresome of our lives in our current state, I would love to hear other’s advice/experience on making a move to a different state. - House Hunting: How did you look for houses? Did you reach out to a realtor who specializes in OOS buyers? - Jobs: How did you get a new career in conjunction with closing on the new home? Have success with a remote job? Or in person? - Childcare/Schools: How did you successfully research and determine a town with good school systems for kids?

Any type of feedback on either our locations or any of my questions is greatly appreciated.