Frankly, I am not looking to make all of the changes you all are talking about for my next move. We are going to put our house up for sale in about a year. I doubt we would ever find a one story home here, as there are very few ranches, and they tend to be old and ready for tear down status. Of course, there are condos on one floor, but I think we have really decided to just buy a smaller home, locally, where we can pay cash for the house. Our biggest goal is to have no mortgage, and this will be possible when we sell. We are willing to spend a good bit to remodel, too. However, being able to walk to a few types of places is a definite requirement. There is a commuter rail here, but it's not something I would depend on, so just having it is fine, I don't need to be able to walk to it, although the area I am targeting, it would be possible to walk there from some locations. I don't plan on quitting work for at least 5 years, and it is important for me to stay within the same short commute I have now, or at least not more than 7-8 miles. And, I may continue working at least one day a week until whenever I can't talk and write! Basically, we are looking for a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home, with a flat yard. We will pay for gardening and snow removal, although, in a smaller home, DH may enjoy doing some of that, at least for awhile.
I do not want to move into a more urban area, or even some of the suburbs east of here, that have more services. I just can't take being too close to people. Where I live is not super rural, or anything, but sort of suburban-rural, with some towns having village centers, sometimes, more than one, with services. Most of all, I don't want to leave the area I am in. I've moved a lot, and I want stability. We also still have the idea of buying a small condo/second home out in western MA, so that is a consideration, too.