You bring up a couple of interesting points here.

First, the cost of living. This is absolutely a factor, and keeping your costs down when you’re first starting out with your new consulting practice is definitely a sensible idea. Your business may grow more slowly than you hope, or you may have some unexpected expenses, and minimising your spending in the meantime can only be good for your personal and business finances.

Second, your network. Surrounding yourself with people who understand and appreciate the world of working for yourself, people who are ambitious and who will push you and support you, is a huge enabler when you’re self-employed. Finding that ‘tribe’ can be helpful both in terms of business connections and in terms of that personal support network.

Of course, web development and consulting can be an almost fully virtual business, and you can always travel to conferences and business meetings, so to some extent that means that you can work wherever you want. Then it becomes more of a personal decision, taking into consideration the quality of life, the weather, the activities that you can do in your time off, and so on.

I’d suggest you try to list the elements that are most important to you, and clarify which of your criteria are non-negotiable and which are simply ‘nice to have’ - then you can determine the best options. If having face-to-face contact with people who challenge you is the most important factor for you, then I would start by seeking out groups locally and in the cities that you’re considering moving to, in order to see what there is. On the other hand, if the cost of living is the #1 priority for you, then you might rather want to focus on that.

Bear in mind as well that starting a new business can be a time-consuming endeavour, and moving cities at the same time may be taking on a lot - why not start your business now and then once you’ve got a steady income you can consider making your move?

Good luck, and let me know if you’d like to jump on a call to discuss your options with an objective third party :-)